Wanted – Everything!

[Marc_W]

Hi, I hope someone can help.

As a total beginner, I’m hive-less! I don’t have so much as a frame to my name, but I’m desperate to start building up some equipment to get me started ready for 2016 when I hope to be in position to start my own hive.

If anybody knows of a hive going spare, please let me know.

I have a lot of stuff to source as I’m starting from scratch so I don’t want to be spending too much as I’ve a lot of gear to collect!

Thanks

 

[pargyle]

It's probably not a good time of year to be looking for spare equipment as just about everyone I know is scrabbling around for frames and boxes to keep up with the bees !

You might be best to think about the autumn when bee suppliers have end of season sales .. Paynes for instance have their October Poly Hive sale and Thornes have a massive sale when they sell off their 'seconds' of frames and boxes at hugely discounted prices.

Also, you need to be aware that beekeepers are generally a frugal lot and we only (usually) sell off items that are either out of kilter with the rest of our equipment, or are past their best. What I am saying is, that as a new beekeeper, you need to be certain that what you are buying is going to be usable and more importantly compatible with the type of hive you choose to keep your bees in.

As a starting point you need to think about what sort of beekeeper you are going to be and what type of hive you are going to use - and then stick to it. There are lots of threads on here that are helpful to beekeepers just starting out so I'm not going to repeat them ... do your research, join an association, get some hands on experience and THEN look for equipment. There are bee auctions around May time but you will need someone alongside you who knows what they are doing - and a tape measure to make sure any boxes that meet 'your' requirements are actually the right size.

Lots of time to think, read, learn, talk and watch the antics on the forum ... April 2016 will come round very fast and then it will get very interesting very quickly so use the time you have available to get it together.

 

[TryingToLetThemBee]

Kit is the easy part; you can keep bees in half a laundry basket, like they used to. Or at least a box you can knock up from ply in an afternoon (plus some frames). Then support is easy but you have to reach out for it and the view on here is you MUST join your BKA. The hard part is getting good disease-free workable non-swarmy bees and your BKA SHOULD be a good place to start but might well not be. Start teeing that up now.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

It's probably not a good time of year to be looking for spare equipment as just about everyone I know is scrabbling around for frames and boxes to keep up with the bees !

You might be best to think about the autumn when bee suppliers have end of season sales .. Paynes for instance have their October Poly Hive sale and Thornes have a massive sale when they sell off their 'seconds' of frames and boxes at hugely discounted prices.

Also, you need to be aware that beekeepers are generally a frugal lot and we only (usually) sell off items that are either out of kilter with the rest of our equipment, or are past their best. What I am saying is, that as a new beekeeper, you need to be certain that what you are buying is going to be usable and more importantly compatible with the type of hive you choose to keep your bees in.

As a starting point you need to think about what sort of beekeeper you are going to be and what type of hive you are going to use - and then stick to it. There are lots of threads on here that are helpful to beekeepers just starting out so I'm not going to repeat them ... do your research, join an association, get some hands on experience and THEN look for equipment. There are bee auctions around May time but you will need someone alongside you who knows what they are doing - and a tape measure to make sure any boxes that meet 'your' requirements are actually the right size.

Lots of time to think, read, learn, talk and watch the antics on the forum ... April 2016 will come round very fast and then it will get very interesting very quickly so use the time you have available to get it together.

 

[itma]

... I’m desperate to start building up some equipment to get me started ready for 2016 when I hope to be in position to start my own hive.

... I don’t want to be spending too much as I’ve a lot of gear to collect!

As per pargyle.

Sort out what way you are going, decide your hive type after having seen some in use (and certainly only after you have handled the frames of the format you intend buying).

And then you'll be in a good position to to take advantage of the new year sales (when stuff can be much cheaper than now).

 

[Marc_W]

All advice is greatly appreciated. I've emailed my local BKA and I'm waiting their reply, also I'm hoping to find a mentor.