Material For Deeps

[Jeffrey Tooker]

I am able to get rough sawed boards for building deeps.  It will be free.  a fellow with a sawmill will mill a log I cut down on my place.  Are there any drawbacks to using roughsawn lumber for hive construction?  Is cedar usable for hive construction?

[Finsky]

40 yars ago I made with simple method langstroth boxes.

The wood piece is 3 x 4 cm and I hit with rough surface nail them together. Look the corner how end of pieces go like crossed fingers.

[Jeffrey Tooker]

40 yars ago I made with simple method langstroth boxes.

The wood piece is 3 x 4 cm and I hit with rough surface nail them together. Look the corner how end of pieces go like crossed fingers.

Finsky:

Thank you for the reply and the pictures.  The lumber I will be getting is Ponderosa Pine.  It is as good as the pine that comes in the box making kits.  I have all of the equipment to make all of the parts including the finger joints.  For longevity is it better to nail AND GLUE the joints?  I will also be making bottoms and tops.

The winters here do no get below about 15 deg. F. and that only at night.  If boxes are insulated with 1 inch of foam board for winter, what is the effect on the bees of leaving the insulation on in the summer.  It will get to 105 Deg. F. here at my place.

We have many Ponderosa pines and oak trees around my area.  In the spring the oaks get tassels and the pines have lots of pollen.  The pine pollen gets on my car and makes it a yellowish color.  Do the bees only gather pollen from these trees or do they actually make honeyfrom them?  Since I have finally gotten here to stay  I find that lots of plants flowers and bushes are blooming in this area through the course of the summer.  I am thinking that starting in the spring I should do a survey of the flora in this area to determine what the bees are actually bringing back.

[Finsky]

I have all of the equipment to make all of the parts including the finger joints.

So it it unnecessay to do my way. I had only a circle saw with which I cleaved the wood.

The winters here do no get below about 15 deg. F. and that only at night.  If boxes are insulated with 1 inch of foam board for winter, what is the effect on the bees of leaving the insulation on in the summer.  It will get to 105 Deg. F. here at my place.

You live in Calirfonia. You need not insulation.

In summer when sun shines on the wall it makes hive hot even if it is white color. You need shadow against middle day sun.

 .

I am thinking that starting in the spring I should do a survey of the flora in this area to determine what the bees are actually bringing back.

Bees don't forage oaks and pines. The pollen of pines have low protein level 2% . In my country bees gather pollen of Pinus mugo but not from Pinus sylvestris (Scotsh pine).

If you have vast pastures it is better that you move your hive. So you get best yields. So hive bodies should be guite light but firm to handle.

The survey of flora is the one key to interesting beekeeping. You make get  3-5 times more honey when you learn to find good pastures and such one where is not other beehives.

The pastures is the issue about which beekeepers do not want to discuss because they want to keep hives in same place.

[Jeffrey Tooker]

<<If you have vast pastures it is better that you move your hive. So you get best yields. So hive bodies should be guite light but firm to handle. >>

All of my supers will be shallow Langstroth.  The brood chambers will be deep Langstroth.


My area is not like yours.  In with my pines and oaks there are many types of brushy plants and flowers.  Also about .5KM West of my bee yard the oaks and pines end it is a great expanse of many types of brushy ( bushes one to three meters high).  It is good pasture and bee keepers move their bees into these areas in the spring and keep them here all summer.  They do not usually put their yards within about 5KM of my yard.  They usually find a space for their yards near the main state highway.  I am well off of the highway so they are not that close to my bee yard.

<<<The survey of flora is the one key to interesting beekeeping. You make get  3-5 times more honey when you learn to find good pastures and such one where is not other beehives. >>>

I will at some time post to this list pictures and descriptions of the flora which makes up the bee pasturage in this area.



<<<The pastures is the issue about which beekeepers do not want to discuss because they want to keep hives in same place.[/quote]>>>

I am fortunate in my location.  One of the reasons I am starting to keep bees again is that there are very few bees up here.  I have watched for them.  All of our vegtable gardens are setting very little fruits and vegtables.  My cucumbers and summer squash have produced very little.  This was not the case when I moved here 15 years ago.  I am back to stay I will raise bees.

[Finsky]

[quote="Jeffrey Tooker
My area is not like yours.  .[/quote]

I am sure about that !

When I have examined my pastures it may be only 3 miles distance and the difference in hive yields maybe 3 times.

It depens how near bees get they load and fast. If pastures are at 1 mile dinstace, yield will be 50% smaller than hives are in the middle of flowers.

I have noticed that when I have kept hives on canola fields.

[Brian D. Bray]

Consider using just medium, you'll find the uniformity solves several problems that can occur when different sized equipment is used together.  There is no real problem with using ruff cut lumber but you will need to calculate the construction dementions of your hives by using inside measurements instead of outside measurement as is done with finished lumber if you expect to use them together.  The ruff cut will be 1/2 inch wider overall using the outside measurements.  You can solve the fitting problem by tacking lathing on the outside of the finished lumber to better match the fit.

Cedar is the best wood there is for bee hives.  One of my old mentors would not use a hive made of any other material.

[Jeffrey Tooker]

Consider using just medium>>

I will do that.  How many mediums for a brood chamber?  Also how are the frames arranged as to brood if one uses three mediums?

 There is no real problem with using ruff cut lumber but you will need to calculate the construction dementions of your hives by using inside measurements instead of outside measurement as is done with finished lumber>>>

I have plenty of clear hard (not soft like the kits) pine 5/8 X 8" (actual) with one finished side.  I will stick to inside dimensions.  I am setting up an old table saw for the dadoed corner joints as per the sticky on this forum.  I can leave it dedicated to dadoing corners which will keep me from having to reset.

<<<Cedar is the best wood there is for bee hives.  One of my old mentors would not use a hive made of any other material.>>>

A friend of mine says we can probably get some cedar and Ponderosa pine to mill after about October.  No wood permits untill the end of fire season.  Woods are closed to wood cutting.

[Brian D. Bray]

>>How many mediums for a brood chamber?

I use 4 mediums which is slightly more than 2 deeps.  Most who use mediums utilize 3 as brood boxes--they sometimes find brood in their supers.  I've found that by using 4 mediums, then a slatted rack (of my own design--the commercial ones are inadequate), and then the supers.

>>Also how are the frames arranged as to brood if one uses three mediums?

1st I use 8 frame hives due to physical limitations (the other reason I use 4 mediums) as I find 10 frame too awkward.  The queen will usually fill the equivalent of 7 out of 8 frames in the 1st 3 boxes (only the outside of the last frame on each side is not used) and then 4-6 in the 4th.

[Michael Bush]

>How many mediums for a brood chamber?

Three ten frame mediums equals two deeps.  Four eight frame mediums equals two deeps.  I run eight frame mediums.  My hives vary from two to five eight frame mediums.

> Also how are the frames arranged as to brood if one uses three mediums?

I shave a little off each (down to 1 1/4" instead of 1 3/8") and put nine in the brood chambers and eight (when they are undrawn) in the supers.  Seven drawn combs in the supers.

[Zoot]

I adopted that method (shaving down the frames to accomodate 9 instead of 8) for my 2 lower brood boxes this summer and was rewarded with an amazing amount of worker brood. But recently I did an inspection (the first look into those 2 boxes in a good while) and the comb with honey that was arched around the brood was so drawn out that each frame's cappings had become stuck together. When I pulled up each frame the caps of the honey cells were sheared off causing a fair amounbt of honey to drip out and down the frame faces. Any solution to this problem?

[Michael Bush]

>Any solution to this problem?

Did you push them together after they were drawn?  That is usually the cause whether going from 9 to 10 in a ten frame box or from 10 to 11.  If you push cappings together they will seal it up.

No matter what the spacing, bees will be bees.

I observe more problems when they are spaced further apart.