Swienty vs Abelo

[Poly Hive]

Yes they come painted in bright steal me colours so the poster was I think asking if anyone has painted OVER the carnival colours.

PH

 

[Beefriendly]

Yes they come painted in bright steal me colours
PH

They do green ones.
Seems a pointless exercise buying something painted to then repaint it.

 

[ericbeaumont]

They do green ones.
Seems a pointless exercise buying something painted to then repaint it.

I checked the spec. on the paint chart and it came up as Steal Me Green.

 

[linoleum bonypart]

Yes..... I do like lals camo effect

 

[BMH]

errr The National hives come ready painted...

FYI - you can actually get them unpainted now for £15 less! Bargain

 

[Beefriendly]

I checked the spec. on the paint chart and it came up as Steal Me Green.

...Nice one Eric.
Anyone had one stolen yet?
Nope.....thought not
Another beekeeping myth exposed...
Paint them whatever colour you like....it's only another beekeeper who is going to steal them from you. The colour of your hive is irrelevant he will have sussed out where your apiary is long time back.
But if it makes you feel any better...paint 'em whatever colour you like.

 

[ericbeaumont]

FYI - you can actually get them unpainted now for £15 less! Bargain

Yes, if you discount the work & materials to spray. The paint is a pretty tough* Lyson special and gives a lifetime base layer. I talked to National Bee Supplies about a bulk order of the unpainted Abelo they sell (for a corporate colour job) but decided against, and will respray the green. ITLD recommends gloss on bare poly which works cheaply for a lifetime.

*Only bird droppings will remove it; takes it off right back to the poly.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

...Nice one Eric.
Anyone had one stolen yet?
Nope.....thought not
Another beekeeping myth exposed...

Yes, regardless of colour, being beehive shaped sat on a stand out in the open is a bit of a giveaway.
Maybe lock them away in a shed or buried in a hole would be better.

 

[ericbeaumont]

Paint them whatever colour you like.

Luckily, the military don't agree. One of the easiest ways to find apiaries is to look on Google earth, where all those square metal roofs are easy to spot.

 

[Beefriendly]

My point exactly...colour is an irrelevance when it comes to nicking hives.

If you where really interested in that sort of thing..... go out on the heather moors anywhere in Yorkshire...1000's of hives easily visible from the road.
Thefts to date....Non...

Thefts of beehives are (thankfully) rare...so spreading misinformation about nick-able colours is quite humorous. Plus I like my blue and yellow hives in the garden...much more decorative than that stodgy old wooden stuff.

 

[Millet]

Luckily, the military don't agree. One of the easiest ways to find apiaries is to look on Google earth, where all those square metal roofs are easy to spot.

It makes no odds what colour they are..they stick out like a sore thumb whatever colour they are..it is the shape of them that gives the game away..now if you cover your hives in sheets of tree bark that would be a different story...for the record however i have painted quite a few roofs and boxes of my Abelo hives not so much for the colour issue but to tidy any repairs up to filled dents and the odd bit of bubbled paint.

 

[ericbeaumont]

Thefts of beehives are (thankfully) rare.

Last year a beekeeper had more than 30 nucs taken in west Essex (with hindsight, it was discovered that the boxes were visible from the M11, even at a distance) and a month later twenty-two went near Dagenham. Anything that reduces risk is worth doing (round here, at least) and colour is only one factor.

 

[Beefriendly]

Presumably all these nuc's were painted in camouflage or "do not nick me" colours?

 

[Murox]

Last year a beekeeper had more than 30 nucs taken in west Essex (with hindsight, it was discovered that the boxes were visible from the M11, even at a distance) and a month later twenty-two went near Dagenham. Anything that reduces risk is worth doing (round here, at least) and colour is only one factor.

So more than just a hobby keeper then.
Nowadays I should have thought a relatively cheap plug and play wifi camera system or similar smart camera system that syncs to your smartphone would provide you with cover 24/7. They can record footage and sound various alarms easily. Remoteness of site only being limited by the lack or strength of a mobile phone signal. All at a very modest cost.

 

[ericbeaumont]

Presumably all these nuc's were painted in camouflage or "do not nick me" colours?

No. They're both the sort who go through life looking but not seeing. Probably would never have occurred to either to disguise the nucs, and one runs his white Lang. polys unpainted.

I agree, Murox, basic smart cameras may be part of a strategy, but the minimal cost would deter many from appreciating maximum benefit until it's too late. Then again, any smart thief would dispose of identifying boxes asap. ITLD told his story of hives gone, suspect known, beekeepers and police turned up in a yard to find a bonfire with a lot of nails in it. Everybody knew what had happened but all the police could do was wag a finger.

 

[Murox]

If theft is really getting to bee an issue perhaps embedding a smart tracking device into the hive box could be an option, similar to the better car tracking systems.

 

[Poly Hive]

All the smartest kit in the world is useless with no signal.

No use to me then.

PH

 

[Newbeeneil]

If theft is really getting to bee an issue perhaps embedding a smart tracking device into the hive box could be an option, similar to the better car tracking systems.

As PH says signal is a problem but the biggest limiting factor I have found for a tracking device is power. I have a system in some of my hives that texts me when the hive is knocked and is trackable if moved, but the standard battery lasts approx 48 hours if in permanent tracking mode, if I add a back up battery I can get it to last several days!
To overcome the problem I have set it up to text me if it's disturbed and I can then set it to track the hive remotely. Using the biggest rechargeable battery that I can secrete in the hive I now only have to recharge every 4-5 months.
The system costs about £30 but to be honest it's too clunky to use on lots of hives. I'm sure if someone wanted to they could design quite a smart system at a reasonable price but I'm just a guy who likes to play.

 

[mbc]

With tens of thousands of pounds worth of equipment in dozens of places around the countryside I can't help thinking getting paranoid would be a sure way to lose sleep. I rely heavily on community and a bit of com si com sa, I often give gifts of honey to people not directly owning land my bees on but in the vicinity and I get myself known to farmer's and workers being seen out doing pest control on pigeons and rabbits etc. it goes a long way in the country and people let me know if trees go down or any suspicious activity is seen around the apiaries. I can only imagine trail cameras and such are a weak 21st century replacement for a community.

 

[Murox]

All the smartest kit in the world is useless with no signal.

No use to me then.

PH

Not much use to me either