Building an observation hive…

[Do224]

I’ve got a couple of pieces of Perspex left over from making crown boards and wondered about trying to make a simple observation hive…

Anybody done something similar? Do many of you use these on show stands when selling honey?

I’ve got two Perspex pieces like the one below (crown board for scale)

 

[blackcloud]

Make some more crownboards
Far more useful and less stressful to the unfortunate colony
Do them without holes and a thick rim on one side so you can fondant feed on frametops Seal off stacks of supers or whatever -you can never have too many crownboards.

 

[Erichalfbee]

’ve got a couple of pieces of Perspex left over from making crown boards and wondered about trying to make a simple observation hive…

Observation hives while attractive are pretty horrid on the bees. Agree with BC. Make some crown boards

 

[Sutty]

Observation hives while attractive are pretty horrid on the bees. Agree with BC. Make some crown boards

Curious why you say they're horrid for the bees? At my last house I had one in the living room. It held two deep frames, was double glazed plus insulated closures over the windows. It could be turned around a central pivot, which was also the entrance/exit for the bees to outside the house. The whole thing was made of oak & nicely finished. Visitors were fascinated!
As I recall the bees did ok in it.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Curious why you say they're horrid for the bees? At my last house I had one in the living room. It held two deep frames, was double glazed plus insulated closures over the windows. It could be turned around a central pivot, which was also the entrance/exit for the bees to outside the house. The whole thing was made of oak & nicely finished. Visitors were fascinated!
As I recall the bees did ok in it.

OK, just my opinion. Was yours a hive set up so you could observe it?
A bit different from a couple of frames taken out of a hive, kept open each side so that the bees seeing the light try to get out and drip fed sugar water?

 

[Sutty]

Yes, it was a functioning hive, great for seeing the waggle dances, watching the queen laying, etc. They never seemed affected by the sudden light when taking off the insulating window covers.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

Curious why you say they're horrid for the bees? At my last house I had one in the living room. It held two deep frames, was double glazed plus insulated closures over the windows. It could be turned around a central pivot, which was also the entrance/exit for the bees to outside the house. The whole thing was made of oak & nicely finished. Visitors were fascinated!
As I recall the bees did ok in it.

exactly - totally different to an observation hive to take to a show or whatever, where the bees are cooped up there all day, no way to ventilate if it gets too warm. I've often seen bees getting stressed out in observation hives in these events - and not even at the height of summer.

 

[Erichalfbee]

exactly - totally different to an observation hive to take to a show or whatever, where the bees are cooped up there all day, no way to ventilate if it gets too warm. I've often seen bees getting stressed out in observation hives in these events - and not even at the height of summer.

Absolutely. I watched in horror one time as bees tried to remove dead pupae, pupae that had died from exposure to heat and lack of ventilation. An SBI once told me he hated seeing them at shows as they were always under stress. One he spotted had obvious AFB for heavens sake!

 

[Do224]

Curious why you say they're horrid for the bees? At my last house I had one in the living room. It held two deep frames, was double glazed plus insulated closures over the windows. It could be turned around a central pivot, which was also the entrance/exit for the bees to outside the house. The whole thing was made of oak & nicely finished. Visitors were fascinated!
As I recall the bees did ok in it.

That sounds fascinating. Did you build it yourself?

 

[Sutty]

That sounds fascinating. Did you build it yourself?

Woodworker uncle!
It's a nice piece of "furniture" - just one that buzzes!

 

[Sutty]

I have a plan to build a workshop in the garden if I can get planning permission.
I might set it up in there.
I remember our postman enquired about the bees coming and going through a plastic "waste" pipe in the wall. He came in and had a look: thought it was amazing.

 

[Do224]

I have a plan to build a workshop in the garden if I can get planning permission.
I might set it up in there.
I remember our postman enquired about the bees coming and going through a plastic "waste" pipe in the wall. He came in and had a look: thought it was amazing.

How do you go about any sort of management…presume you didn’t open it up in the living room?!

 

[Sutty]

Pretty much leave it alone. It was pre-varroa though!
You can "inspect" any time of course!

 

[Sutty]

I could have taken it outside to open near the entrance and blocked it up until re-installed.

 

[Sutty]

It has a small ventilation hole with mesh, but the bees tended to propolise it (tells you a lot considering it was inside!)

 

[Do224]

Pretty much leave it alone. It was pre-varroa though!
You can "inspect" any time of course!

With just two frames to fill did they regularly swarm?

 

[Sutty]

I never saw swarm cells, would have been fascinating

 

[Do224]

I never saw swarm cells, would have been fascinating

That’s really interesting, I had no idea a two frame colony would be viable long term. I wonder why they didn’t swarm…

 

[Sutty]

I can't honestly remember how long it was there, but I'd guess 3 years. Maybe never strong enough due the the thermal requirements?

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

The late lamented Dishmop - much missed on this forum had an observation hive in his lounge for many years - he used to manage it by swapping out frames with another hive in his apiary