Help with prices please, urgent.

[kazmcc]

Due to erichalfbees kindness, we are almost ready to take the honey supers from the bees and put another super on. All we need now are the wood componants for the frames - SN4s. We have been put in touch with someone who can sell us equipment, and he is quoting us £15 for the frames parts, that's without postage. Seems a bit steep to me, am I being unreasonable? If so, where can I buy the cheapest possible frames?

He has quoted us £280 for a full hive with two supers plus frames. Good price?

Also! Lol. We are taking the honey supers off on friday. Thing is, we don't have a clearer board, so my ingenious plan is to shake and brush the bees off each frame, then run like the wind to a spare super sat in a bin bag, and remove them frame by frame that way. Any other ideas? bearing in mind we have no equipment whatsoever.

This is getting quite tedious now. We really have been left in the lurch here. The member of staff who assists me is buying all this stuff on her credit card, hoping we'll get enough back on the honey to clear the debt. I wish I'd known more about beekeeping before I opened my big gob and agreed to caretake. if it wasn't for you lot, I'd be really stuck

 

[Poly Hive]

A clearer board can be made for roughly £2.

PH

 

[oldsalthouse]

Hi

Speak to Hivemaker.....his hives are great and at a good price..

 

[kazmcc]

A clearer board can be made for roughly £2.

PH

Could you advise me how or point me in the right direction? What ingredients would I need?

I was considering asking the hivemakers on here, at least I'd get a well made hive at a fair price. Since looking at prices for beekeeping equipment, I am shocked and disappointed at how these places seem to be making so much money on things that should really be able to be made much cheaper, if you have the skills and tools. It's all about the money though, isn't it? It's certainly priced me out of beekeeping myself for the time being

 

[drstitson]

ask mons ab how to make a clearer board - his are going like hot cakes.
seriously, all you need is a sheet of ply or mdf and some stripwood to make a maze type clearer without buying in any specialist plasticware.

likewise - sheet of ply/crownboard on spare super between each frame addition.

£280 is steep for a hive.

frames budget £1 to £1.50 each (w/o foundation) plus P&P. some on ebay.

for hive parts check out the seconds from the various biggies (not th*rnes) - wyn*e jones, mais*more etc

 

[mignon]

Hi
Are you looking to buy the equipment ready made up? If not you could try wynne Jones as they sell Th**nes seconds in flat packs which might save you a bob or two. I am sure you could make it up yourself, you are obviously a very resourcefully woman

 

[BKF Admin]

Kaz do you have a bee brush/wallpaper brush ?

If you do then for this year you could get away with your idea of frame collection.

Give the super a good smoke to get them down and then move the super away from the hive.

Take out each frame,tap it and then brush off bees then into bagged super...

 

[Davelin]

You can clear them frame by frame with a brush. Just give them a good shake and then brush; have a spare super nearby covered with a board.

 

[thedeaddiplomat]

Alternatively, since I assume that your honey crop is going to be relatively modest (?), you could stick to plan A. We removed ten super frames individually from the super, shook the bees back into the hive, and put the removed frame into an empty super, which eventually went into a bin bag.

Result, lots of lovely honey, and about six rather bad-tempered bees who came home with us inside the bin bag and had to find their way back to the apiary.

 

[fatshark]

Poly National hive + two supers for about £94 minus 10% sale price until the 15th from m o d e r n b e e p i n g ... frames/foundation as stated above, so less than half the price of your quote.

And a tin of paint to protect it from the weather ...

--
fatshark

 

[Compostcritter]

I got a national and two supers in cedar with frames and foundation and postage for 150.00 2nds from Thxxnes look on ebay absolutely excellent quality and bargain. Very pleased

 

[drstitson]

"And a tin of paint to protect it from the weather "

top tip - homebase do tester pots of their exterior masonry paint - enough for a hive. check the reduced shelf for discontinued ones - 49p a pot - ivory, rose pink etc.

oh and i'd second the MB national - even sturdier than the LS with better overlap between parts.

 

[kazmcc]

Thanks guys. I knew that was too much for 10 frames. Seems everyone is trying to make a bit of money from what is only a little school project. If it wasn't for the kindness of members on this forum that has proved otherwise, I'd have to have come to the opinion that beekeepers are all on the make. We have been let down considerably by the people who were supposed to be helping us. It's a good job I found this place and did some reading and took to this as well as I did, or those bees would still be queenless, if they had even made it that far!

We are going to use all our honey money to start the whole project again, after we've paid off Js credit card of course. Only this time it will be myself and J who assists me. That way we know where the money is going, and none of this will be done on trust and goodwill, because around here, there seems to be a shortage of both items. So. Get ready for lots of questions on where to find the best equipment at the best prices, and whether we really need certain items or if we can get away with making do.

Thank you for the suggestions. I will look into them now

 

[Poly Hive]

http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=11959&highlight=clearer+board

Hmm starting over. So lets have a wee think....

For cost effectiveness niver minding the benefits to the bees, look at buying poly hives and supers.

What do you need?

Two hives and 6 supers. 2 x floors, 2 x brood boxes, 2 x roofs 2 x crown boards + 6 supers. Frames and foundation to suit.
Hive tools x 2
Smoker x 1
Veils of some sort.
Clearer board

Further you will need a varroa treatment, so some oxalic acid.

Two poly nucs for swarming, saving you the expense of more brood boxes floors and so on.

Realistically that will get you going.



PH

 

[kazmcc]

http://www.beekeepingforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=11959&highlight=clearer+board

Hmm starting over. So lets have a wee think....

For cost effectiveness niver minding the benefits to the bees, look at buying poly hives and supers.

What do you need?

Two hives and 6 supers. 2 x floors, 2 x brood boxes, 2 x roofs 2 x crown boards + 6 supers. Frames and foundation to suit.
Hive tools x 2
Smoker x 1
Veils of some sort.
Clearer board

Further you will need a varroa treatment, so some oxalic acid.

Two poly nucs for swarming, saving you the expense of more brood boxes floors and so on.

Realistically that will get you going.



PH

Thanks. That is a very helpful list. I was thinking of buying poly, just for the weight.

With regards to the clearer boards. Do they work on the principle that the bees find it easy to get out, but the space is small enough to deter them getting back in en mass? I think I could maybe make something along those lines with the CB we have already. It has two porter escape spaces without the escapes. I could maybe block one and use the other.

 

[Lance Hutchings]

May need to add a couple of Mouse guards to that for winter too ?

 

[kazmcc]

May need to add a couple of Mouse guards to that for winter too ?

Good thinking

We have the stuff we already aquired. £2000 and this is all we've recieved, although that paid for a years tutoring also, plus the expenses from that. I just think the person who spent the money really could have done better. Hence why I wish I knew more about beekeeping before I agreed to take on the role. We were assured this person knew what she was talking about. Hmmm. She didn't.

 

[Poly Hive]

Never used a mouse guard on a poly hive. Never had an issue.

PH

 

[oldtimer]

try fragil planet the are fairly cheap they are all flat pack i got a national hive off them for £60 brood +2super







3

 

[Poly Hive]

Their track record is not shall we politely say stellar.

PH