My new hive ...

[madasafish]

Looks lovely. I shudder to think of the work involved.. and the skill required.. Reminds me of a Dartington - the shape and work involved.

 

[beebopalula]

For the bee who has everything - even has a cuckoo clock on the front!

 

[pargyle]

My only concern would be that vertical row of holes down the centre. Are they air holes for the 'nuc' section? If so I think the bees will soon stop them up with propolis!
Brilliant job tho, envious!

Hi Enrico ... do you mean the horizontal row of holes along the bottom ? ... the only holes in the upper part of the hive are the entrance holes and two of them are blocked by corks whilst the colony is still small. The only ventilation is at the bottom of the hive and is just above the mesh floor - that row of horizontal holes - the idea is that I will block those with corks to control the hive ventilation ... at present they are not blocked as I can't drink fast enough ! The ventilation holes are covered with mesh on the inside of the hive so that any rodents or insects can't get in.

I'm looking at installing a temperature and humidity sensor in the hive to monitor what's happening with the colony ... £13.99 on fleabay.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/400218814698?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

 

[pargyle]

Sounds like fun.. Could you not have changed the shower tray for.a smaller one???

Great work by the way.. Is it a top bar system.your running?? Can't see all the pics on my phone.. :-(

Tiger

Sent from my LT18i using Tapatalk 2

Don't be silly ... you're talking about a bloke who only measures something after he's found it doesn't fit ... the chances of me actually admitting that I had bought the wrong tray was slight - to acknowledge it and buy ANOTHER shower tray, admitting defeat ... non-starter. Having said that ... it did occur to me very late in the refit that I could have saved myself a lot of work ... only a fleeting thought, it soon passed !!

It's not a top bar ... there are 14 x 12 frames, foundationless with a timber triangular starter strip with a dribble of Th's organic extra special beeswax on them. The frames are wired horizontally to support the comb.

 

[pargyle]

Looks lovely. I shudder to think of the work involved.. and the skill required.. Reminds me of a Dartington - the shape and work involved.

Shhhh ... don't tell Roger - I really didn't know a lot about Dtgntns until about a couple of months ago ... but yes, you are right - it is similar and other people who have seen it have suggested that there is a similarity.

There's a few hours work in building it but perhaps the major part of the time was not actually doing the work it was more the 'patchwork' nature of the materials that I had available ... and the continually changing design - it started life as a narrow Tanzanian TBH with a hinged but solid floor and single pallet wood sides with a telescope roof and sort of evolved !

 

[madasafish]

. and the continually changing design - it started life as a narrow Tanzanian TBH with a hinged but solid floor and single pallet wood sides with a telescope roof and sort of evolved !

Eek

Sounds like a hybrid born of the union of a mongrel and a horse.. with advice from Dr Frankenstein...

 

[pargyle]

Eek

Sounds like a hybrid born of the union of a mongrel and a horse.. with advice from Dr Frankenstein...

YEP ... But it's not where it started out that's important - it's where it finished ! It's only timber and the beauty of timber is that you can cut it up and start again. My ideas of beekeeping have changed ... there are lot's of people and posts on here that have made me think about what was the ideal solution (for me) that suits my requirements and meets what, I think, are the criteria for a hive that will also suit the bees - there are compromises to be made.

I don't know whether it will work for either me, or the bees, but it's a starting point ... I'm suffiiciently flexible to change, again, if I have to ... or take the best from what I have and modify it. Like I said, originally, it's a journey but not a crusade, I'm not looking for followers !

Much appreciate all the comments ... thank you.

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

I'm not looking for followers !

Requeening is such a chore!

Dusty

 

[pargyle]

.

Yes you know now a stronger chain is required personally not a fan of the hinge lid approach I will always be thinking it will come crashing down on my hand one day.

I knew I had a length of proper chain somewhere ... just had to empty virtually the entire garage to find it - if this one breaks I'm in real trouble !!

 

[Bee Bumble]

It must have taken a long time to build - looks good.

 

[pargyle]

It must have taken a long time to build - looks good.

Thanks.

I could build another one much quicker ... the biggest issue in building hives (or anything) from scraps you have to hand is that it is difficult to plan - so you spend an inordinate amount of time trying to figure out how to get the dimensions you need (and I was aiming for 14 x 12 size) out of what you have to hand. I'm fortunate that I have a bandsaw, a radial arm saw, a saw table, a planer thicknesser and plenty of other tools that make life a lot easier. Don't get any ideas of grandeur on my part - the saws and planer are all over 40 years old and were bought for peanuts and refurbished. I'm a cheapskate but I think old tools are often better built and will last longer then newer stuff.

So the hive actually evolved rather than was planned. In hindsight it would have been better if I hadn't changed my mind so many times about various aspects of the hive ... it's like everything in life - the more you know the more you realise you don't know !

Now I've got the basic shape, design and dimensions my next hive build will be planned and I can spend a few months over the winter building it, I'll have time to skip hunt and make sure I have the right materials in the right sort of sizes before I start building.

 

[pargyle]

Hi Guys, well - one week in and I've got a laying queen. Just had a peek this afternoon as it was warm and sunny and the hive is in a sheltered spot. I was very quick as well. They've drawn out three frames of comb this week - all foundationless but wired ... starter strips are triangular with a dribble of wax brushed on to them. Straight as a die and almost wall to wall in the frames. Who needs foundation with bees like this ?

The frame that came out of the nuc last week is wall to wall with capped brood and if you look closely you can see eggs and larvae popping their noses out. Bees look really fit and clean ... only four varroa have dropped since last Friday onto the tray.

Going to let them get on with it for another week - I gave them another empty frame - it was either one frame or four frames as that's what my crown boards would allow me to do. So, if they are still going strong next week I'll add another four frames and use the crown board I've just taken off.

It's destined to be cold and wet for a few days so I've left them with half a litre of 1:1 - they've had a litre since last Friday.

 

[Tom Bick]

Wicked classic foundationless frames nice to see

Just add I would bet they built the comb faster than if they were drawing out foundation.

 

[pargyle]

Wicked classic foundationless frames nice to see

Just add I would bet they built the comb faster than if they were drawing out foundation.

Yes ... the week before they were in a Nuc on 5 frames with plastic foundation from MikeA who collected the swarm ... they drew a fair bit out but they have gone berserk on my foundationless home made frames bless 'em !

 

[Tom Bick]

Yes not surprised by that and they will turn it on and off when the time and conditions are right.

It looks like a cracking queen and bees with from what I can make out little drone comb apart from the last frame that looks as though it has some but it will come, later in the year they only concentrate on worker for obvious reasons.

If they continue like that then you will have a great hive and very enjoyable one to.

 

[pargyle]

Yes not surprised by that and they will turn it on and off when the time and conditions are right.

It looks like a cracking queen and bees with from what I can make out little drone comb apart from the last frame that looks as though it has some but it will come, later in the year they only concentrate on worker for obvious reasons.

If they continue like that then you will have a great hive and very enjoyable one to.

I'm loving them ... was drilling holes in the hive roof after this (not ventilation just a bit of modification which I'll post when it's finished). In my shirt sleeves ... they didn't give a stuff !

 

[Tom Bick]

I have been looking again at the photos and the top two photos seem to be the same frame and the bottom frame without doubt foundationless but is the top frame foundation?

 

[pargyle]

I have been looking again at the photos and the top two photos seem to be the same frame and the bottom frame without doubt foundationless but is the top frame foundation?

Yes. the top frame was a frame that came out of the nuc that the swarm was collected in, it was pretty much fully drawn out and so it was transferred to the hive along with three of the foundationless frames, the two photos are either side of it - the hive was dummied down to just four frames (3 empty and the one drawn out).

That one frame had plastic foundation in it ... the other foundationless frames just have a few eggs at present and somce stores at the top you can see the nectar near the top bar ... it's early days.

 

[madasafish]

Always a pleasure to see nice new combs...and nice new capped brood..



Know what you mean about adapting to suit the materials available . The only wood I buy is for topbars and plywood for feeders. All the rest are pallets..

Envy you your tools. I have handheld jigsaw, circular saw and drill and sander.. Bit rough and ready results....

Yours by contrast look superb.

 

[Tom Bick]

Thanks pargyle for letting me know on 2nd look it was too well attached to the frames and although not impossible to have a frame with no drone comb is a bit unusual.

Your bottom frame is classic and you will find that the bees tend not to attach the comb to the bottom bar and the last third of the side bars apart from a bit of brace comb. If the bees are pushed for space then they fill this gap in or use it to hide queen cells so take a good look in the gaps if you suspect swarming.

Also sometimes the bees will build comb around the wires this is not always a problem but I often run my hive tool along the comb and wire and lightly push the comb into the wire.

Good luck your bees will benefit from building their own comb. (now that could start an argument)