Brood boxes

[SWEET]

The couple of pine/cedar hives I have (switched to poly) have Swienty lids, all good so far. Nice units to work with.

 

[Poly Hive]

For me it's simple and very clear.

Would I want to live in a house with no insulation and single glazing with a drafty front door? Well, I bought one and guess what the double glazing is in the door has been changed out and the insulation is going to be bloody expensive and messy to achieve as all the ceilings in the upstairs bedrooms will have to come off, insulation in between the rafters and plasterboard up. We are talking thousands here but it is going to happen.

Now let's say you have the funds to buy a bonny new car. Are you going to lash out on a hand crank start or a modern electric one?

For me poly is better for the bees. And that people is what we ALL should be thinking about, what is best for our bees.

PH

 

[enrico]

For me it's simple and very clear.

Would I want to live in a house with no insulation and single glazing with a drafty front door? Well, I bought one and guess what the double glazing is in the door has been changed out and the insulation is going to be bloody expensive and messy to achieve as all the ceilings in the upstairs bedrooms will have to come off, insulation in between the rafters and plasterboard up. We are talking thousands here but it is going to happen.

Now let's say you have the funds to buy a bonny new car. Are you going to lash out on a hand crank start or a modern electric one?

For me poly is better for the bees. And that people is what we ALL should be thinking about, what is best for our bees.

PH

But I like the look of wood and wood is better for the environment and wood won't harm your bees. So ....... There are pros and cons for both.
E

 

[drex]

I prefer the aesthetics of wood. I bought two Paynes polys in their early days. I know the bees do a bit better in them but I hate them. They are ugly and do not wear well. As long as my bees have adequate space and stores and are healthy I am happy. Am not just in this for the size of the honey crop, but each to their own.

 

[Swarm]

I ran poly alongside my cedar hives for ten years and the bees were fine in them, they were also fine in the cedar hives. No noticeable difference in stores usage but built up a little slower than the cedar hives in spring, they caught up though.
In general I had strong and not so strong in both hive types so decided to phase out the poly because of too many compromises.
Abelo brought out the best poly national option but I'm happy with cedar and so are my bees.