I'm making a hive and looking for a source for aluminium sheet and mesh floor

[nolkov]

Hy guys
My name is Martin and I m from Bulgaria. I recently found your forum and can say it is really interesting to see how well organized you are and how helpful to one another you are.
In regards to the topic I can probably contribute by sharing my experience from Bulgaria. For aluminium tops we use sheets from printing factories. If you have some around your area you can call them and ask for. The price for a piece in Bulgaria is 2 leva or 1 EUR if you buy it from beekeeping shop but if you find it from a printing company you will be able to buy it for 1 lev or 0.5 EUR...
Hope this will help you.
Cheers!

 

[hairbear]

Try looking for a local company that makes air conditioning ducting or similar, I picked up am 8x4 sheet 3mm for £20 plus £5 to cut it to sizes I needed (in Swansea)

hairbear

 

[greenegg]

Cliff, Fragile Planet in Oswestry sell inexpensive reclaimed aluminium.
Ian

 

[oliver90owner]

I picked up am 8x4 sheet 3mm for £20 plus £5 to cut it to sizes I needed

I would certainly not be wasting a 3mm thick sheet on beehives! About for or five times too thick for the duty, I would have thought. Still much better value than FP. Those are only about 0.3mm thick!

I believe there was another supplier mentioned on a post recently (simon something?), an epay seller, I believe. If it is the person I have bought from in the past, I would recommend dropping him an e-mail.

The shipping, for a few sheets, is less than hunting around with fuel costs as they are, and, as for ringing around, you don't often get the right person for a sensible response!

Regards, RAB

 

[PeteN]

Printers plates, made up 5 nuc roofs today, got 3 out of a B1 plate. The other two came from the offcuts left from some National roofs done the other week. Cuts easily and bends very nicely if you clamp the fold line between two pieces of wood.
Also recommend mesh company.

 

[SixFooter]

Fragile-planet sell the Printer Plates quite cheaply. Easy to cut with heavy duty scissors or a stanley knife. I fixed it onto nuc roofs with drawing pins.

 

[BobH1]

A local printer gave me six just for the asking. A lovely strong Ali Alloy, as you say it can be cut with scissors and bent with your fingers round a piece of wood. I fixed them in place with frame pins.

 

[hairbear]

3mm to thick, you use whats available the bees have not complained and the weight has meant the roofs have stayed on.

Do all printers use the plates and what do you ask for, just printing plates?

 

[BobH1]

Do all printers use the plates and what do you ask for, just printing plates?

I visited my nearest Lithographic printer - I did a Google search and found about 10 within four or five miles - and asked if they could let me have some scrap used litho plates. The first printer I called at gave me eight. I don't know their exact size but they're about 600 x 800 mm.

My printer said that they normally recycle the used plates back to their suppliers, but they wouldn't miss eight!

I promised them some honey later in the year.

 

[enrico]

definitely lithographic printers. Often comes with a pretty pattern or writing on too!

 

[Baggyone]

We just got some 0.7mm galv 600mm sqaure sheet for £3.50 from Bullet Engineering in Spilsby.

 

[adrian wilford]

how about searching the car boots for old fire guards, many have a suitable type of mesh for hives. check skips for alloy etc, bloody typical yorkie, owt for nowt

 

[ladyrose1956]

Go to fragile planet i got mine from there £1.50 a sheet then 50p p&p

 

[Hombre]

If looking to use a plastic/fabric mesh for nucs or hives, be aware that the lighter stuff the bees can eventually chew through and the heavier stuff can be shredded by hungry mice or rats in the twinkling of an eye.

So no point in re-inventing the wheel again this year. It seems like a cheap option, but has very limited application. For use as travelling screens it might be ideal, with their low usage.

 

[craigavonb]

Your local newspaper uses metal plates that are perfect for hive roofs and they can be cut with scissors. If they do not have their own press ask them for details and address of their printers, if the printers are printing for other newspapers they will have 100's of plates available every week