Paint colour on hives

[BernardBlack]

Are there any colours that are recommended when painting hives or nucs?

Or any colours to be avoided?

 

[Mabee]

I personally like to paint mine to blend in with the surroundings so they don’t draw attention.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Any colour you like if they are secure

 

[JamezF]

I personally like to paint mine to blend in with the surroundings so they don’t draw attention.

I have been considering painting some of mine in a DPM or MTP camouflage pattern if they're in an out apiary. My daughter wants to paint something more creative on the ones at home though.

I thought it might be fun to paint cartoon characters on the sides in such a way that they join up sensibly when one box is stacked on another, there being no guarantee that once in use the boxes will end up with the same character on all of them, obviously No, I don't have too much time on my hands, but my imagination sometimes does...

James

 

[Mabee]

I have been considering painting some of mine in a DPM or MTP camouflage pattern if they're in an out apiary. My daughter wants to paint something more creative on the ones at home though.

I thought it might be fun to paint cartoon characters on the sides in such a way that they join up sensibly when one box is stacked on another, there being no guarantee that once in use the boxes will end up with the same character on all of them, obviously No, I don't have too much time on my hands, but my imagination sometimes does...

James

I’ve got a stencil I cut that I use on mine to give a bit of camouflage as well as the base colours being similar to the environment.

 

[JamezF]

I’ve got a stencil I cut that I use on mine to give a bit of camouflage as well as the base colours being similar to the environment.

I think a stencil would definitely be the right way to do it. I really wouldn't have given it a second thought to be honest, but I noticed a "For Sale" sign go up this week in the garden of a house neighbouring a new out apiary that I'm setting up. When I had a nose on the estate agent's website to see how much they were asking (an absolutely eye-watering amount in my view, even if the house does have a lift) there's a lovely photo taken from a drone with one of my hives quite obvious on the other side of their hedge.

At home I'm really not worried. I think anyone trying to pinch hives from here should compost down quite nicely in a couple of weeks

James

 

[Lazy K]

I've read that bees like blue green in purple best . That's the color of flowers they are most attracted to. Supposedly they see 'Red' as black. And yes, it's a good idea to camouflage your hives if your bee yard is not where you can watch them. I don't have that problem. Here's one of mine:

 

[fian]

Although bees and humans coincide in having a trichometric light spectrum (three color receptors), they differ in bandwidth (expressed in nanometers).
Humans 750 (Red) to 390 (Violet).
Bees 600 (Orange) to 300 (Ultraviolet).
The three receptors of the bees present the peak in Green, Blue cyan and ultraviolet.
They also have the ability to perceive certain microroughnesses.
Proposal, light background in its spectrum and spots in its opposite color mixed with sawdust or metal shavings.

 

[blackcloud]

Whatever lovely colours and patterns we daub just bear in mind that after six months of birdsht,green bloom and bumps and knocks the boxes will progressively less marvellous.
Was all that time ,effort and pollution really worth it?
Good.

 

[philipm]

I have a load of white masonary paint I didn't want that colour so mixed in a tube of artists acrilic paint now have a tin of green but it could have been any colour.Tubes are cheap from the likes of Home Bargains.

 

[user 20297]

Abelo hive parts can be bought ready-painted. In my experience the colours so far have been light grey, pink, yellow, blue and two shades of green. To that I have added plum, olive, lemon yellow and turquoise....I'm always on the lookout for new, bright , garden shades.
If any of these colours or combinations of them mattered one way or the other to my bees they would have long ago let me know. It pleases me to have this random mix and match, but where I have a hive in a remote and unattended location it's entirely grey in order not to offend or entice humans too easily.

 

[madasafish]

I use dark green, light green, brown and grey. as base colours. (with yellow and blue daubs for entrances to aid recognition.)

Primary aim is to avoid attracting attention so I also mix and match my base colours to get some random effects

After a couple of years with knocks and bird damage, and repairs with the current paint colour,## there is no logic to any scheme..

## I buy paint in seconds/old stock cheap as a distressed purchase so only have one base colour available normally.

 

[Swarm]

Currently using a mixture of Garden Shades and black masonry on some tired looking nucs, the result is an understated, dark grey. If I have enough left over I'll start repainting the old green Abelo roofs, never liked that green.

 

[judy12]

James, there used to be children's books, each page with a drawing of eg a sailor or a dancer, the pages cut into 3 horizontally so that you could turn each flap separately so that the dancer would end up with eg hairy legs and builder's boots (ho ho). So your lifts wd work like that. Endless hours of fun!

 

[JamezF]

James, there used to be children's books, each page with a drawing of eg a sailor or a dancer, the pages cut into 3 horizontally so that you could turn each flap separately so that the dancer would end up with eg hairy legs and builder's boots (ho ho). So your lifts wd work like that. Endless hours of fun!

I seem to remember something like that. Perhaps it's what inspired the idea.

James

 

[Curly green finger's]

A lot of ours are country shades with a bit of kitchen/bathroom paint added for good measure
Sanding the boxes first helps to

 

[user 20297]

My store of boxes.

 

[judy12]

What paint did you use?

 

[judy12]

A lot of ours are country shades with a bit of kitchen/bathroom paint added for good measure
Sanding the boxes first helps to
View attachment 34583

Gorgeous.

 

[Ian123]

View attachment 34583

He’s got no arms!