Beekeeping on a shoestring budget

[cinnamon]

Hello all,

I'm new to beekeeping. I've done a day-long beekeeping course at Kate Humble's farm. Although I'm inspired I've found one of the instructors to be a "perfectionist" for all things bees. For instance, she was quite aggressive about commercial bee-keepers (despite one of them being an instructor and was in the room!!!) and she despised anything but the natural materials so Omlet's beehives or Flowhive were all evil because they are plastic etc. I don't know.. I think if bees are happy to adopt the hive, they clearly don't care where they choose to nest. They have wings and they can fly if they don't like it! I've never kept bees, so I may be way off... but I've been reading a LOT. So the following questions might be quite "newbie".

I like the top bar hives and I suppose I could build one - but I was thinking whether I could use a polystyrene catering type of box. I used to cook for a homeless charity and we used polystyrene boxes to keep food hot. So a similarly, this could keep the bees warm. Am I being naive about this?

I want to start slow and learn as I do. What I don't want to do is to make a bad start and get disheartened. Does anyone have polystyrene hives, whether you made them or bought them online? If so, were they a good idea?

I am thinking of using something like this: http://www.jbpackaging.co.uk/thermo-boxes/25kg-catering-food-box.html

Then put slats across and put the lid on for added insulation and make a entry/exit hole.

Any help is much appreciated.

 

[Anduril]

Hello all,

I'm new to beekeeping. I've done a day-long beekeeping course at Kate Humble's farm. Although I'm inspired I've found one of the instructors to be a "perfectionist" for all things bees. For instance, she was quite aggressive about commercial bee-keepers (despite one of them being an instructor and was in the room!!!) and she despised anything but the natural materials so Omlet's beehives or Flowhive were all evil because they are plastic etc. I don't know.. I think if bees are happy to adopt the hive, they clearly don't care where they choose to nest. They have wings and they can fly if they don't like it! I've never kept bees, so I may be way off... but I've been reading a LOT. So the following questions might be quite "newbie".

I like the top bar hives and I suppose I could build one - but I was thinking whether I could use a polystyrene catering type of box. I used to cook for a homeless charity and we used polystyrene boxes to keep food hot. So a similarly, this could keep the bees warm. Am I being naive about this?

I want to start slow and learn as I do. What I don't want to do is to make a bad start and get disheartened. Does anyone have polystyrene hives, whether you made them or bought them online? If so, were they a good idea?

I am thinking of using something like this: http://www.jbpackaging.co.uk/thermo-boxes/25kg-catering-food-box.html

Then put slats across and put the lid on for added insulation and make a entry/exit hole.

Any help is much appreciated.

Kate Humble needs to have open minded instructors. Poly hives have to be 100g/litre. The bees would eat through the poly box you are looking at. You could use pallets.

 

[casualman]

At £105 for a day's course is very expensive and insufficient time to learn sufficient information or skills to start beekeeping. For a fraction of the price join your local beekeeping association and start one of their courses. Our local one was £60.00 but for that you not only got tuition over many months but hands on experience, a mentor and come the swarming season a free swarm of bees. Relying on purely books will only get you so far. Learning as you go along means a very steep learning curve. keep on reading by searching this site for books to read.

A polystyrene box may not be strong enough to use and a hive tool would damage it. A hive has to be very strong and tough. You will want it to last for years; withstand crashing over; the top bars/frames being levered up after being stuck down. The flow hive is relatively expensive and certainly not a hive you should use if you are on shoe string. See threads about different types of hive on this site.

 

[Swarm]

Doesn't sound like a good start.

 

[pargyle]

Hello all,

I like the top bar hives and I suppose I could build one - but I was thinking whether I could use a polystyrene catering type of box. I used to cook for a homeless charity and we used polystyrene boxes to keep food hot. So a similarly, this could keep the bees warm. Am I being naive about this?

I want to start slow and learn as I do. What I don't want to do is to make a bad start and get disheartened. Does anyone have polystyrene hives, whether you made them or bought them online? If so, were they a good idea?

Then put slats across and put the lid on for added insulation and make a entry/exit hole.

Any help is much appreciated.

I started out beekeeping on a strict budget and it is possible - I built three top bar hives (after modifying and improving each one) and then finally tore it apart and built a long hive with frames ... best thing I ever did. Top bars are interesting but the reality is that framed hives on a standard frame size (national/14x12/langstroth) will be so much better to learn on and give you so many opportunites to beg, buy or borrow kit that it's really a no brainer.

If you feel capable of building a top bar ... build a box that will take frames.

As for Poly ... brilliant hives and my hives are now mostly poly -but you need to buy them - the polystyrene they are made from is much much denser and thicker than 'food' boxes - and they are made to fit standard frames. Mine are made by Paynes Bees and at around £100 for a 14 x 12 hive they are good value and with a coat of paint will last indefinitely. The bees love them and so do I.

But ... if you want to start building here's what I built ...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/99514363@N06/sets/72157634865981506/

 

[B+.]

I want to start slow and learn as I do. What I don't want to do is to make a bad start and get disheartened. Does anyone have polystyrene hives, whether you made them or bought them online? If so, were they a good idea?

Yes. Many of us use high-density poly hives. I wouldn't recommend that you try to make hives (dimensions are critical and the material needs to be quite dense or the bees will destroy it) but commercial hives are reasonably priced and, on the whole, do what they're intended to do quite well.
Unfortunately, things can go wrong very quickly if you don't know what you are doing with bees. The colony can go from a single brood box in March to a tower that you can hardly reach the top of (e.g. http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/album.php?albumid=751&pictureid=3744) by July. I really do recommend that you join an association, do a course and get a good beekeeping mentor who will guide you through the first year or two. The forum is a good place to ask questions, but, we can't be with you in the apiary looking over your shoulder seeing what you see.

 

[cinnamon]

Wow. Thanks for all the responses!

Kate Humble's course was a birthday gift voucher because my friends knew I was very interested in keeping bees. I thought it was quite expensive too!

I recently moved to Scotland and trying to get into some beginners courses at my local BKA but seems they're completely full! I've filled out an application and they said they'd let me know if someone drops out... but I don't want to wait. So I thought I'd start building a beehive and possibly attract a swarm (if lucky) or buy a colony from a local breeder.

Never thought bees could eat through the polystyrene catering box. I was hoping I could use the one I already have and not spend the money - so that's out . I've looked at Payne's polystyrene hives but there isn't a top bar hive type. It's not a must that I get a top bar hive but it seemed like it disturbed bees less and although I made peace with getting stung, I'd like to keep it to minimum if poss

I will pester the local BKA and see if they'll make space for me. In the mean time I'll build a hive, unless materials cost about the same as buying a flatpack.

Thanks again for all your responses. Much appreciated.

 

[Erichalfbee]

As everybody else. Join your local association. Get your hands on somebody else's bees and a mentor. One to one help is an absolute godsend. Buy a poly hive ( I'm an absolute convert but I do keep wood too) and use the frames that your association use to start you off. I don't consider top bar beekeeping is that easy for a beginner. Good luck and welcome to the mad club.
" my name is Erica and I am an alco..........ooops beekeeper "

 

[cinnamon]

But ... if you want to start building here's what I built ...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/99514363@N06/sets/72157634865981506/

Oh WOW! That looks so cool! Are you making and selling hives?

 

[B+.]

Never thought bees could eat through the polystyrene catering box.

Its not just bees...its wasps and any other sort of nasty (rodents especially) that will try to get in. If you press your thumb nail into the poly box you have, that will be a pretty good gauge. If your nail sinks in or leaves a mark, its not dense enough....although it may do over the summer months.

 

[pargyle]

Oh WOW! That looks so cool! Are you making and selling hives?

Sadly not ... it is a lovely hive and the bees like it - but it is very heavy and took a lot of time to build. I now spend all my money and my honey money keeping Paynes in business !! If you want to get started then start by building a Nuc box - I prefer 14 x 12 size but there's always an argument about what size is best - pros and cons everywhere.

A Nuc can be made cheaply from OSB (18mm is nice) and if you have a B & Q nearby they will cut the pieces to size for you and all you have to do is fasten them together. Nucs are always useful and a couple of nucs will give you time to build something full size.

I really would not recommend top bar hives for a beginner - go for a framed hive one way or another ...

Plenty of plans on the internet:

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=n...=WbjrWKD1EYfPgAaF6pKQAg#imgrc=9vS8_WI0Ved82M:

 

[madasafish]

I make Langstroth nucs out of cheap s/h insulation board.. Approx £10 each..##
I made TBHs out of pallet wood - but in reality it requires some skills at bodging as the wood is often uneven..


## plans http://www.michiganbees.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Styrofoam_Nuc_20100813.pdf

I use reclaimed wood ,nails and screws as far as possible, made my own vaporiser and am mean as only an ex Scot educated in Aberdeen can be

I also sell nucs and honey to try to run beekeeping as a cost free hobby...And I struggle to break even. Some spend £1000s a year!

Each to their own...

 

[B+.]

Some spend £1000s a year!

Guilty

 

[Fritillary]

Cinnamon I'm a committed bargain hunter and cheapskate - and now I suppose I will also have to admit to an Aberdeen connection. (Granite hives anybody?)
The trouble is, beekeeping sort of takes you over, as many of us have found....

Without the ££ anyway for anything conventional as far as I could see, when I started, I did manage to make top bar hives, nothing like as posh as Pargyle's, as am a rubbish carpenter. It sure helps if you or someone close has power tools.... But if I can do it, you could. If you do start out with top bars though, it would really help a lot if you can find people local to you who already use them. Otherwise easier to go for something else. There are as others have said, other reasonably cheap options. I still like my top bars, but it was hard work for me.

I hope you get onto the local course somehow - the one I did was the best bargain for me!

(Those used catering poly boxes though are great for seedlings and for overwintering dahlias. Don't waste 'em!)

 

[madasafish]

Guilty

You sir are not a hobby beekeeper..

 

[pargyle]

I use reclaimed wood ,nails and screws as far as possible, made my own vaporiser and am mean as only an ex Scot educated in Aberdeen can be

I also sell nucs and honey to try to run beekeeping as a cost free hobby...And I struggle to break even. .

As a Yorkshireman I come a close second ... even the most ardent cheapskate will find it hard not to spend money - the intention is always there but - it takes time a planning to make all your own kit and inevitably the bees catch you out and just when you think you have enough frames/boxes/floors/roofs ... you haven't !

My plan is always to try and break even ... not even come close yet !

 

[Little John]

Shoestring budget ? Yes, it CAN be done - but take note of the wise words already in this thread. Bees will set up home ANYWHERE - and so with this in mind ...

Some of the REALLY cheap ideas are interesting enough, and would indeed work - but there's always a snag. For example: you could take an old refrigerator, pull it's innards out and door off, poke a hole in the floor somewhere near the back, lie the butchered fridge on it's back, place Top Bars across where the door used to be, place something over them to keep the rain off - and voila - you've got yourself a 'bee hive' ... for nothing.

BUT - it would look as ugly as sin, and the Top Bars are unlikely to fit anything else ... but it's a beehive (of sorts). And you could do exactly the same with an old busted chest freezer.

A slightly better solution would be to fit wooden liners into your boxes of choice. These could be made from apple boxes, pallet wood, or whatever's available. If this was done to modified fridges or freezers, then the door could remain, as it would function as a fairly good weatherproof roof.

In the case of your fish/catering boxes - such liners could turn these into viable beehives (assuming they had the required volume), but you'd need to poke some plastic tube (or similar) through one wall to form an entrance which wouldn't get chewed, and an outer weatherproof covering would also be advisable.

Moving on - Wheelie Bins (condemned, of course ) - could provide an excellent weatherproof housing for an inner hive made from wood. The problem with these however, would be how to perform inspections - indeed how to access any frames or (heavy) boxes from such a depth without incurring back injury. If you could solve that one, then Wheelie Bins are just waiting to be re-deployed as beehives !

Next up is the Kenyan Top Bar Hive. In my experience, NOT recommended, although they ARE simple and cheap to make. Those, imho, are their only positive features. Much better to make a square-section Long Hive dimensioned to fit standard frames - which is what I do. If you run without foundation, then foundationless-frames are a doddle to make - which again, is what I do (for my own use. Purchasers of Nucs get commercially-made frames).

Next up again is the Warre Hive. A little more exacting to build than the KTBH, but still easy, and can be built from scrap wood. Again, in my experience, NOT recommended as a vertical Top Bar hive, but if dimensioned to fit frames, then it can become an excellent beehive.

From then on, the world becomes your lobster. Providing you have the necessary tools and some place to use them, then you can build yourself ANYTHING in the way of beehives for little or no money - that is, providing you have the time. I extensively use pallet wood and condemned scaffold boards, the latter being ideal for making Long Hives with, but then - I'm now retired and so the amount of time involved with building custom bee stuff isn't an issue for me. It has become "what I do".
LJ

 

[PaulCarroll]

Bees are a bit like Oliver Twist to the Beadle, they always want more. Whether it be brood space or supers, the demand is always there. It therefore follows that whatever procedures you utilise as a beekeeper, you will always seem to need more equipment. Like others who have commented on your post, I have tried to limit my expenditure and tried to keep my colonies to a cost effective level. I have still spent more than anticipated over the years, but the lesson I have learnt is that unless you are a skilled craftsman, then initially purchase your equipment of choice so you can get set up and running. You can from that point begin to consider options going forward. I think you will soon glean from this forum, the vastly differing ideas and ways of managing bees, but the miracle of this hobby is that even the most experienced of beekeepers continue to learn from the experiences of themselves and others. Keep it simple join an association, buy some Poly hives to get started and work with your mentor to plan how your goals for the season. Hopefully your bees will work with you on achieving those goals!!!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[pargyle]

Shoestring budget ? Yes, it CAN be done - but take note of the wise words already in this thread. Bees will set up home ANYWHERE - and so with this in mind ...

....

From then on, the world becomes your lobster. Providing you have the necessary tools and some place to use them, then you can build yourself ANYTHING in the way of beehives for little or no money - that is, providing you have the time. I extensively use pallet wood and condemned scaffold boards, the latter being ideal for making Long Hives with, but then - I'm now retired and so the amount of time involved with building custom bee stuff isn't an issue for me. It has become "what I do".
LJ

Some great ideas ... and if you have the time and the inclination and the tools and you can use them ... it's a great way and a cheap way to get the bees in boxes.

My Long hive is pallet wood outside, victorian pine floorboards inside with a 25mm layer of polystyrene in between them. It has a detachable mesh floor and a hinged apex roof .. it was what I wanted but .. talk about complicated to construct !! The actual cost was basically in the screws and fittings but ... time ... probably upwards of 40 hours in total - and probably as much again thinking and designing time. I made my own 14 x 12 frames - skip hunted softwood - but I have a bandsaw, radial arm saw, circular saw and a planer thicknesser.

If (when) I make more long hives I will still make them well insulated but the outside will be scaffold planks (for the timber thickness) polystyrene sandwich but with a thin plywood liner for the hive. The roof will not be apexed ~ it will be a box lid, split in the middle of the hive into two sections hinged from either end and not from the side. It's still not an easy construction but a lot less complicated than my first attempt.

To be honest as well - I still have a hankering for a Zest type hive:

http://thezesthive.com/

I like the idea of a hive made from lightweight insulation blocks but I would make it to accept 14 x 12 frames and put a mesh floor in it and proper crown boards and a roof. But - it's going to be a semi-permanent structure so not for me for the time being - but another very cheap option for a 'box'.

Don't discount buying frames - the bee auctions inevitably have boxes of odd sized or surplus frames that go very cheaply - if you know what you are looking for and have a tape measure with you. Of course, seconds or thirds frames bought in the sales are also really good value - and usually very good considering they are supposed to be defective in some way. Certainly in my experience they have always been very good.

 

[cinnamon]

Oh so many ideas! Little John - agreed on old fridge being used as a hive is "ugly as sin"!

I may be at my "midlife crisis" - everything I used to do, now I question. I am determined to go back to basics where possible. That said...
- I kept chickens and didn't mind spending about £1k to set up using Omlet products. What do I get - eggs and funny companions that weed my garden. So never mind the outrageous amount spent on them!
- I have 2 cats that cost £20 per week just to feed them. I've had them for over 10 years. What do I get - besides allergies, hair everywhere, and constant litter cleaning? Oh the companionship - they are the best. Love them to bits. So never mind that they cost over £1800 a year after vet, food and litter bills.

So now the bees - I should not skimp on these little beasts since they do so much good for everyone. I can afford it but that's not the point. Maybe I want to challenge myself whether I can do with little to nothing.

I am thinking of quitting my highly lucrative job and just engage in nature and animals. I am tired of back-to-back meetings that achieve little if anything and corporate BS. Luckily my dear husband doesn't mind suffering a little while I figure out what to do. I've done it for him few years back while he took a sabbatical. But this is no sabbatical for me - I want to be done with it all...

Thank you for so many of your ideas and suggestions. So much to read and learn everyday. I'll research the hive types a bit more and probably buy first one to start with and possibly build others when I know what I'm doing.