Hive Designs:
I am looking for a bee hive that fits the following criteria:
A. It aligns with natural bee physiology.
B. It is insulated well like a tree trunk would be.
Winters in Canada can drop to -20C (zero F) and I want the bees to be warm in winter without working hard.
Spring and summer has quite a variation in temperatures... from 35C in the day to 10C at night.
An insulated hive will make it easier for bees to maintain nest temperatures.
C. It is easy for a woman to manipulate and work with the bees without extra help.
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The Warre Hive
I started with a Warre hive in 2011. After 5 years of working with this hive, I realized three things:
1. Without a hive lift, it is difficult to work this hive alone.
2. Inspecting the brood/ hive contents is quite challenging.
3. The bees told me in a dream that they are cold in it...although it is built from 1.5" cedar wood.
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So I asked the Universe for a warmer designed hive and Fedor Lazutin's book entitled "Keeping bees with a smile" showed up. Fedor developed a deep one body horizontal hive that worked well in Russia.
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Deep Horizontal One Body Hive
We built a deep horizontal one body Russian hive in 2016 (Based on Fedor Lazutin's book)
The hours to build it will be worth the time to manage it over many years ahead.
It is an insulated hive and easy to work by myself.
We added a screen mesh below the frame bottoms where I can place a tray for regular inspection.
It has 'ant proof' legs on her ...... which might also stop small hive beetle from re-entering the hive.
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I am guided to build other insulated, one body horizontal hives with different depths to see if there is a difference between them.
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This hive is a golden mean dimensions inside where the bees work.
However, this meant that the frames are 21" deep - too deep for me to work.
They might be good for a taller person to work.
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What would I change now?
1. I would make the frames 11' -12" on inner width.
This allows the bees to make comb structurally sound WITHOUT a cross bar needed half way down the frame.
2. I would make the frames 18" - 19" long.
Horizontal Langstroth Insulated Hive
We built this hive in 2017.
We built it to hold 33 deep frames (8") but they feel too shallow for the bees in winter time.
The roof, a salt box design, is heavy to lift at the back.
Although the gable roof is more challenging to build, it is worth the time and effort as it is easy to lift.
I like how we can access the tray under the screened bottom board from the ends.
I do not disturb the bees at all.
What would I change now?
The distance between the bottom of the frames and the screened bottom board must be too much too deep as the bees always build about 1.5 inches of comb below the frames. (Perhaps too much breeze flow?)
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Layens Insulated Hive:
Ok, as I build and use each hive, I am seeing what I like and what I don't like.
DEPTH OF FRAMES:
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In nature, bees like to move upwards inside a tree trunk in winter.
This makes sense. Heat rises and it softens the wax cappings of the honey above the cluster.
So why not build a hive that can mimic, as close as possible, what is natural for bees.
So the next hive will have frames that are 16" deep (on the inner of the frame)
The question is .... is this deep enough for Ontario winters? We shall see.
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WIDTH OF FRAMES:
From what I have read, bees need cross supports if the frame is more than 11-12" across.
People who have removed bees from fallen trees indicate that most cavities are these widths.
So, I am making the frame 12" across and with no cross supports.
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For new beekeepers considering building their own hives, I would suggest
this frame size.
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What I have noticed so far:
Bees can build this frame out without any need for crossbars.
It is easy enough for me to lift when full of honey.
It overwintered as a small bundle of bees last year (2019-2020) and needed some honey fed to them early spring.
I have built an insulated quilt above which can hold 2 X 200 mL canning jars with punctured holes placed above the brood nest for feeding..... it worked well.
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PICTURES TO COME SOON.
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