What size hives should I build?
 

I don't have bees yet but just built a 7 frame Langstoth medium, foundationless frame swarm trap for next year and I've been feeding bees for 2 weeks now just to attract them to the yard. These bees are coming from a small feral colony about a 1/4 mile away and I never have more than about 100 bees at once. The hive is too high in the tree to get to. Sometime in the near future I'm gonna go into full hive production and build at least two hives with 4 boxes each. I want to use deeps for brood and mediums for supers.

Should I use all mediums instead?

Do you see any problems with this?

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I am no expert but we have 3 hives of bees and we use the 10 frame Langstroth design. We use 2 deep boxes fro brood and mediums for honey supers.

We use purchased products. Your box looks well constructed but I wonder about the weight. Plywood is heavy and the bees will add 50-60 lbs of weight to one of those deep supers.

Don't forget that you will have to lift and move these supers periodically and they will be very heavy.

I made that box for a swarm trap using what I had on hand and to check measurements and yes it's heavy. I have the pine boards to build the rest once I decide what size to go with.

My thinking is using deeps for brood along with 2 mediums and a medium for a super. It would be easier to handle mediums if I had to move some brood frames around or even split the hive if the need ever arose.

Where is the upper balcony going to be so the Queen can come out and give public appearances and announcements.:lol:
Worth

you won't need to move them much in laffyette, other than inspection. placement IS best when first morning light hits the box, and being in the south dappled or shade in the afternoon and evenings.

I put mine on benches, as the ground here can invite marauders. also they make hive beetle protectors that look easy to make. SHB is a pest and can be huge problem. Best to start off limiting access for SHB to hive.

More specific to the question. I always use a super for the bottom, they will fill it soon enough.

[QUOTE=Worth1;593357]Where is the upper balcony going to be so the Queen can come out and give public appearances and announcements.:lol:
Worth[/QUOTE]

She's gonna have to use the front porch like everybody else.:twisted:

[QUOTE=My Foot Smells;593359]

More specific to the question. I always use a super for the bottom, they will fill it soon enough.[/QUOTE]

What are you calling a super? Are you moving the brood box up and using an empty box on the bottom?

[QUOTE=Rajun Gardener;593370]What are you calling a super? Are you moving the brood box up and using an empty box on the bottom?[/QUOTE]

sorry, wrong choice of words, bottom box is a deep hive. i also use screen bottom board for circulation and vented top.

I am in the east and 2 deep supers for brood is all that we use because they can't keep bigger spaces warm in the winter.

We also prop the top open a bit to allow for air circulation even in the winter.

Wait, I thought a super was just for honey and what ever size you choose for brood is brood even it's more than 1 box.

I also understand propping the box to let humidity out but why don't you install a vent or insulate.

A super is the name for a box with either brood or honey. I have always used deep supers so I can move frames around if needed. Some times I need to give brood supers some honey frames from above and that won't work if they are different sizes. Lots of things to consider. Also if you will have a helper, you can build a handle from conduit that two people lift. Works great when the supers are full.

I call them either deep supers or shallow supers. I use shallow ones for honey and deep ones for brood.

I just need a little bit of venting so propping the top up on a couple of popsicle sticks laying flat is all that I need. I don't want condensate forming on the ceiling and then dripping cold water on the bees in the winter so propping the top about 1/4" will provide a constant air flow by pulling air in through the bottom opening and venting it out the top.

Rajun Gardener... 8 or 10 frames is the standard for all commercial boxes. If I was making them I would stay with standard sizes for the convenience of using commercial bodies and supers if I need something in a hurry... like supers when I am short on time and heavy on bees.

I've researched all the commercial boxes and it would be nice to keep it to the standards but I'm going in a different direction. I built the 7 frame for a trap box and because I watched a youtube explaining why it's better to use 7 frames. Then Fusion Power gave me a few links that made me question using the smaller boxes and that includes deeps. Now I think I have to go with square Dadent frames 11 1/4 - 13 Modified Dadant frames, rarely seen in the U.S. but very popular in parts of Europe as the Dadant-Blatt frame.

Since I don't have bad habits yet I would rather go with what others have done successfully using different methods and learn along the way. I'm sure I'll make mistakes along the way but you can't fail if you don't try.
Here's the link to his post. There's years of experience and knowledge in these links.
[url]http://www.tomatoville.com/showpost.php?p=592280&postcount=97[/url]

One place in Canada sells frames and foundation. Also, you can order 10 5/8 foundation from Dadant but have to call and ask for Alvin to set up the order. I just ordered 200 pounds of 10 5/8 foundation with 5.1 cell size at a cost of nearly $1000.

Set out some swarm traps and bait them with lemon grass oil. You should be able to catch several swarms each year. Also, Riverderwent on beesource is a contact in Louisiana if you would like to talk with someone in your climate and general area.