Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => EQUIPMENT USAGE, EXPERIMENTATION, HIVE PLANS, CONSTRUCTION TIPS AND TOOLS => Topic started by: PerryBee on December 10, 2008, 12:19:09 PM

Title: Observation Hive
Post by: PerryBee on December 10, 2008, 12:19:09 PM
Took a while to figure out how to post this, hope it works. My attempt at an observation hive.


(http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/8052/2008060hg8.th.jpg) (http://img135.imageshack.us/my.php?image=2008060hg8.jpg)
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: Natalie on December 10, 2008, 07:09:39 PM
Hey awesome job! Congratultions on being able to build something like that.
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: Cindi on December 10, 2008, 07:31:31 PM
Perry, excellent, you did a beautiful job of carpentry and you also did a great job of figuring out how to get the picture into our forum, yeah!!!  Good for you, have that wonderful life, day, health.  Cindi
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: Michael Bush on December 10, 2008, 07:47:19 PM
It looks great!
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: JordanM on December 10, 2008, 08:29:59 PM
Perry did you use plans to build it?

It looks beatiful maybe i will get time next year or this winter to build one.
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: BBees on December 10, 2008, 09:46:47 PM
Wow,

Looks beautiful! Very nice craftsmanship.

Steve
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: PerryBee on December 11, 2008, 07:05:19 AM
Thanks folks :-D
I used the plans I got off the web and just modified it to make it take three deeps. I hope to use it at the Farm Markets next year.
If I could change anything I think I would try to have the "glass" sides open like doors rather than slide up and down in the tracks.
I have a feeling that it might be difficult to get into once the bees have glued things up. I read here somewhere that vaseline might help.
  Perry
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: Kathyp on December 11, 2008, 03:42:23 PM
mine open but they are hard to get into anyway...at least messy.  they build on the glass. 

yours looks great.  you could go into business!!
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: JordanM on December 11, 2008, 10:10:32 PM
So how much are you charging again?
;)
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: Scadsobees on December 27, 2008, 11:25:23 PM
Cool!  That looks exactly like mine! (except without bees  :roll:)

I know what you mean about the making the glass open differently.  I did change mine slightly so that on one side there is actually a strip that holds the glass.. 4 screws on each side and the plexi comes off...

On the bright side, though, you don't open them up but very rarely...I think it has been once when populating the bees and then once more last spring for a SHB cleaning :-x.

Rick
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: specialkayme on January 07, 2009, 08:13:32 PM
I bought an OH almost exactly like this two years ago off ebay. It was super sweet, and I used it for a year, but then the bees got super angry. Like totally unmanagable. An angry OH in your room doesn't add up to good news, so after several attempts to get them under control, I said screw the whole OH thing for a while, and put it in my back yard.

About a month ago I figured it would be fun to try it again. Went to the back yard to get the oh and it just fell apart. Termintes and rot, the whole thing just disolved in myhands. So angry.

So I spent my whole winter break rebuilding it. It was fun. If you want pictures, I'll post.
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: Cindi on January 08, 2009, 12:23:28 PM
SpecialKayme.  Of course we want pictures, we love to see pictures -- you may have to wait until you have posted a few more posts though, or ask a Moderator to post them for you.  I am not sure what the post numbers are, but you have to have made a certain number of posts before you can bring pictures into our forum.  Have a wonderful and awesome day, life, health.  Cindi
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: specialkayme on January 08, 2009, 08:38:13 PM
http://img525.imageshack.us/my.php?image=ohive001ny4.jpg

http://img123.imageshack.us/my.php?image=ohive002qa4.jpg

http://img525.imageshack.us/my.php?image=ohive003gh8.jpg

http://img525.imageshack.us/my.php?image=ohive004xf9.jpg

Pictures, as requested :)

One question for you guys though, I introduced the feeder with 2:1 water:sugar in it, but the bees have yet to find/use the syrup.
What's up with that?
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: justgojumpit on January 08, 2009, 09:17:40 PM
Nice photos!

Seeing as you're in North Carolina, there may be some other honey flows in your area.  Are they bringing in nectar from outside?  If there is real nectar to be had, the bees are likely to ignore the McDonalds Dollar Menu items that you are feeding them  :shock:

justgojumpit
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: specialkayme on January 08, 2009, 10:31:36 PM
It's still too early for them to be foraging. Still too cold.
Title: Re: Observation Hive
Post by: slaphead on February 21, 2009, 10:12:05 PM
PerryBee,

I came across the pictures of your observation hive today.  You made a fabulous job of it, congratulations.

SH