Undoubtedly, the invention of such a device as a collapsible frame-based hive was a real breakthrough in the field of beekeeping. The making of beehives was introduced into practice by the famous Russian and Ukrainian scientist P. I Prokopovich. Until then, people had no idea how to organize the work of insects, and the procedure for collecting honey led to the ruin of the nests from which the combs were broken.

The structure should be large enough for reproduction and honey storage, as well as unified so as not to disturb the bees during assembly and disassembly.

Manufacturing can be done by any craftsman. The technology is not particularly difficult and does not require specific skills.

Material selection

The following trees are optimal materials for hives:

  • pine;
  • fir;
  • aspen.

This takes into account the moisture content of the material. It must be thoroughly dried. The moisture coefficient should not exceed 15%.

Making beehives with your own hands requires the selection of quality wood. Do not purchase boards with cracks, rot, knots and wormholes. Pore \u200b\u200bmaterial is also not recommended. Its use is possible only for facing work.

Basic principles for making hives

Making hives at home involves the following rules:

  • Details for the future product should be smoothly planed. Burrs and notches are not allowed. The cut points should be at right angles to the longitudinal edges.
  • It is necessary to ensure that when sewing the cases, the cut from the side of the core is on the outside.
  • The planks are connected with nails. Their thickness is selected taking into account in order to avoid splitting the material.
  • Dry wood may crack. To avoid this, it is recommended to subject the outer walls of the hives to a linseed oil primer. A light shade of paint is added to it: white, blue or yellow.
  • Bee houses can be made from boards of any width. The walls from the inside are recommended to be made from one solid board or from two, which are connected by a tongue or groove. The outer sheathing can be made of gaps of any size. They should be located at different levels.
  • Do-it-yourself hives are made according to the pattern. Drawings are of paramount importance. Without them, it will be very difficult for the master to imagine what he is doing.

Possible deviations from dimensions

With a process such as making beehives with your own hands, the dimensions, drawings must be accurate. The amount of possible deviation is 1 mm, according to the diagram. If it has a higher indicator, then additional fitting will be required.

Extending the life of the hives

The manufacturing technology of hives has its own characteristics. But devices require and further care... If you want the design to serve you for many years, you must adhere to a number of rules:

  • use only quality material;
  • paint the outside of the hive every 2-3 years.

How to make a beehive?

Making bee hives with your own hands has many advantages. The service life of such a design is at least 10 years. You save money and enjoy the work done.

In such a case as making hives with your own hands, the dimensions of the slats are very important. In beekeeping, they often resort to making a double-walled model of 16 frames. The dimensions of the frame are 435x300 mm.

Making hives involves the following steps:

  • First of all, the inner walls of the house are cut out (back, front and side parts). The thickness of the boards is 2 cm. They are assembled like shields. They are connected by means of a tongue or casein glue. The size of the back and front panels is 605x320 mm, and the side ones are 530x320 mm. Grooves are selected in the sidewalls. Their depth is 5 mm and their width is 20 mm. The distance between the grooves is 450 mm.
  • Next, proceed to the manufacture of the rear and front outer walls. They are collected in temporary structures in the form of shields. The thickness of the boards is 15 mm. The size of the boards is 675x500 mm. The outer side walls are 560x500 mm in size. Each outer wall board is nailed separately. Fitting to the location is important here. The glued interior walls are secured with temporary nail strips. All corners should be straight and the bottom edge should be horizontal.
  • In the case, which consists only of internal walls and does not have a bottom, a lower notch is made. Its size is 10x250 mm. It starts 50 mm from the right side of the hive. The notch located on top has a size of 10x100 mm. It is located 120 mm from the right side of the hive, and in height - 30 mm from the extreme side of the frame bars located on top.
  • A wedge-shaped hole is made in the back wall of the hive at the bottom level. It extends into the space under the frame, which is necessary to protect against varroatosis. It is closed by a similarly shaped insert. Its size is 450x40 mm (inner side) and 450x45 mm (outer side).
  • The openings of the entrances help to fence off the space between the walls of the hive by small corridors based on planks. Their thickness is 10-15 mm, and the width is 20 mm between the walls.
  • On the body, which has only inner walls, parallel to the front one, the first layer of the boards that make up the floor is nailed (their length is 635 mm). The first board protrudes forward by 10-15 mm beyond the structural redistribution. Arrival platforms are mounted on the ledge. In this case, the straightness of the corners between the bottom and the walls of the house is checked. Then, subject to accuracy, the boards of the first floor layer are nailed, while the wall space should not be blocked. A sheet of roofing material or cardboard is placed on the first layer of the floor, and then the bottom layer is nailed. It also blocks the space between the walls of the hive.
  • The outer front and outer rear walls are nailed onto the area of \u200b\u200bthe ends of the walls located from the inside (protruding by 20 mm). Work begins at the bottom of the hive. Each board is nailed in turn. The end of each plank should also protrude 20 mm. In parallel, the walls are insulated. A notch is made in the first front wall. A hole is cut in the back wall into the space under the frame.
  • To keep the outer walls stable, in the area that forms the rim over the nest, the boards are nailed from the outside to the corner plates. On the ends of the rear and front walls, which protrude 20 mm beyond the side inner parts, the side outer parts are stuffed. Their thickness is 15 mm.
  • On the inner walls of the hive, strips measuring 40x20 mm are nailed along the entire perimeter, which overlap the space between the walls with the upper part.
  • In the strips that are nailed on the front and back of the device, 10x10 mm folds are selected in order to put the frames. The planks should fit tightly to the insulation in the space between the walls, and with corner splices - merge into a single plane line.

How to insulate?

To insulate the space between the walls, they resort to using various materials.

For example, when making a hive on inner wall you can spread out an even layer of sphagnum moss and press tightly against outer wall... Moss is used not dried, but dried. Elasticity is inherent in it.

Styrofoam sheets can also be used. Their thickness for the above design should be 22 mm. They are also placed on interior walls.

They also resort to the use of a building insulation board, as well as soft porous cardboard, the thickness of which is 12 mm. Plates or cardboard are cut to the shape of the walls and pressed by the boards from the outside.

The use of tow, cotton wool, or wool as insulation is not recommended, as these materials do not allow air to pass through and often contain odors.

Making a hive roof

The roof of the hive should be light. The beekeeper often takes it off and puts it on. In order for these procedures to be performed without the help of outsiders, the design should not be bulky.

The height of the roof rail is 120 mm. It is assembled from 15 mm thick boards. Above the nest under the roof is formed free space... Its height is 240 mm (120 mm of the side under the socket and 120 mm for the roof rail). In this space, there is a semi-frame store, and a warming pillow is placed on top. It sits on top of the nest between the beads on the canvas that covers the frames. The pillow should fit snugly.

The pillow and pillowcase are large in comparison with the inter-board space by 70-100 mm. Therefore, the recommended size of the pillowcase is 750x538 mm, and the thickness after filling is 70-100 mm.

The pillow is placed on the nesting frames. It is laid between the sides. It helps to retain heat. This is especially important in the spring, after the first flyby, when the lack of heat becomes disastrous in the northwestern region, where the spring bees grow.

The choice of material for the pillow

The best and cheapest material for a pillow is moss. But many beekeepers are of the opinion that moss is not suitable for insulation both in the pillow and in the side walls. Pillows, in their opinion, are subject to sediment. As a result of this, an empty space is formed in which it will always see through, since the insert board also does not differ in tightness. The microclimate in the hive suffers.

Instead of moss, an option is offered from slabs or foam. Such designs are extremely warm.

The size of the board for the passage of bees is 8-10 mm. It is important that insulation in winter is used along with ventilation. Good insulation required, as we said, in the spring.

The hive can be constructed using 12 and 14 frames. Then the indicator of its internal length will be 450 and 530 mm. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the size of other parts.

For greater clarity, when making hives, it is advised to resort to using drawings. They will make your job much easier.

Each beekeeper, striving to improve his apiary, is looking for modern drawings and materials. The innovative designs include beehives made of expanded polystyrene. The material has thermal conductivity and lightness.

Conservative beekeepers will not trade wood hives for any other construction. In their opinion, there is nothing more practical than making hives out of wood. But no material is absolutely perfect.

Advantage of styrofoam hives

The design has a number of advantages:

  • a house is obtained, characterized by silence and strength;
  • hives are not subject to hypothermia or overheating;
  • cases can be made of the same size and interchanged;
  • there are few allowances in the design;
  • hives do not allow moisture to pass through and do not crack;
  • they do not contain chips and notches;
  • they are durable and comfortable;
  • easy to disassemble;
  • protect insects from bad weather;
  • ensure the stability of the microclimate for bees;
  • expanded polystyrene is not subject to decay;
  • the walls of the body are smooth;
  • no additional insulation with canvases and pillows is required.

It should also be noted that the house is easy to make yourself. Its drawings are quite simple. This design is economical. But many beekeepers note that making such a house with their own hands is somewhat difficult.

Cons of such structures

There are a number of disadvantages in this design:

  • Internal seam parts are not strong.
  • The cases of propolis are difficult to clean.
  • In wood hives, you can disinfect with lamps, but here you cannot. Chemicals will be required that can be harmful to insects and disrupt the design itself. Some beekeepers resort to washing the hives with water or alkaline agents. For example, the ash of sunflower tops is used.
  • The body does not absorb moisture, it flows down to the bottom of the structure.
  • In expanded polystyrene hives, the amount of food eaten by bees increases. If a family of bees is strong, then it produces up to 25 kg of honey. This requires ventilation, which reduces feed intake.
  • The hive is more suitable for weaker insect families.
  • Due to the impossibility of regulating the entrances, bees begin to steal honey from each other, and the microclimate is disturbed. It is possible that rodents will penetrate there.

What tools do you need?

Making hives from expanded polystyrene requires the following tools:

  • pencil or felt-tip pen;
  • self-tapping screws (5 cm and 7 cm);
  • glue;
  • stationery knife;
  • meter ruler made of metal;
  • screwdriver;
  • plastic squares for decoration (for a start, they are glued into the folds so that when the frame is removed, the material is not painted).

It is important to carefully make your own beehives. Dimensions, drawing should be clearly marked. Expanded polystyrene is fragile.

There should be no gaps, as light rays can begin to penetrate between the walls of the case, and insects will begin to gnaw the hole. As a result, an additional entrance is formed.

All tools should be at hand. must be well sharpened.

The bottom houses a solid ventilation mesh, which corresponds to the size of the cells no more than 3.5 mm. An excellent choice would be a mesh for car tuning, made of aluminum.

Manufacturing steps

For the manufacture of a structure from expanded polystyrene, they resort to using a drawing. Everything should be marked out in advance.

  • A knife is taken and along the marked lines, observing a right angle, is carried out several times until the plate is cut to the end. This is how the blanks are made.
  • The surfaces to be glued are coated with glue and compressed tightly. Parts are fastened by means of self-tapping screws. Fasteners are made with a retreat of 10 cm.

They are accustomed to hiding their homes in hollows or dense tree crowns. Therefore, in order for insects to quickly acclimatize in a new environment, experienced ones try to create optimal conditions for bees to reproduce and create delicious food. In this article, you will learn how to create a beehive with your own hands, which materials are better for bee housing and arrangement options.

Basic structural elements

Before sketching a design, you need to know what a bee hive consists of. This is because the beekeeper is trying to create shelter for insects that supports their biological needs. However, this design will not always be convenient for bees.
Basically, all hive structures consist of a body, two compartments, a cover and a store.Outwardly, it looks like an elongated box with a solid roof and bottom.

The enclosures are composed of walls. The dimensions depend on the type of construction. There may be several of them. Bee entrances are located on the walls.

The store may be optional, however, it is suitable for preservation when honey collection is taking place. There is also a roof liner (another version of the store, but without recesses). It is located between the roof and top. It serves as a heater. A feeder for bees can also be installed in the liner.

The bottom is located under the body and can be removable or non-removable. The first option allows you to properly care for the bees if they need medical attention. Non-removable forms a ledge that serves as an air landing.
Some beekeepers make a ceiling that will keep the hive warm. You can position it at the top of the socket above the frames.

The roof is the protection and main element of the hive. She is able to shelter insects from atmospheric phenomena. The roof is flat and gable. The first allows you to transport the hive.

The frame is used for arranging honeycombs for bees. It consists of a top and bottom bar and two side strips. The frames are equipped with dividers and are located in the bar from above.

How to choose materials and tools to create

Only natural and high quality materials are used to create the hive. In the following sections, you will be able to understand what are needed to build a nest, as well as learn the advantages and disadvantages of each of the materials.

Most popular materials

The first and quite popular material for creating a hive is wood. It “breathes” well and releases steam outside. Basically, they choose wood, such as, and. You can also take poplar or aspen. Wood has low thermal conductivity, protecting bees in hot and cold weather.

Important! To make hives, choose a material that is free of rotten areas, knots and cracks.

The only drawback of this material is its ability to retain moisture that enters the hive.

Plywood hives are characterized as environmentally friendly and durable. They are quite heavy and can be transported well. Plywood is superior to wood in terms of thermal insulation and dryness.
To do this, plywood must be covered with special acrylic paint and the walls of the hive must be insulated with expanded polystyrene.

In such hives, bees spend less energy on heating, because all the comfortable conditions for living and producing honey are already created inside.

Many beekeepers choose polystyrene foam, as it is cheap and has a high level of thermal insulation. It is easy to work with and carry out repairs.
The only drawbacks of this material are low strength indicators and an unpleasant taste of honey, since bees can taste expanded polystyrene.

If you want to produce honey, but you have a small amount of cash available, then you can make a hive from foam... The construction turns out to be light enough, keeps warm in winter and keeps cool in summer.

The only drawback is painting the finished hive to protect the foam from atmospheric agents.
Polyurethane foam used to insulate buildings. It has a low level of thermal conductivity, but this property will be useful for creating a hive. Polyurethane foam does not allow moisture to pass through, does not rot, does not react to solvents and protects the nest from germs and fungi. The material is strong enough, and mice cannot damage it.

The only drawback is flammability. But this can be corrected by an additional ventilation system.

Polycarbonatecharacterized by strength, lightness and durability. The material is suitable for keeping insects as it withstands low and high temperatures, he is not afraid of exposure to direct sun.
Inside the nest, this material will maintain an optimal microclimate for the bees.

List of bee house building tools

To create a hive you will need the following tools:

  • Ax
  • Hacksaws different sizes
  • Hammer
  • Drills
  • Jointer
  • Bit
  • Plane
  • Marking tool
  • Electric tools
  • Corner spikes
  • PVA glue"
  • Nest frame (can be borrowed from an experienced beekeeper).

How to make a beehive with your own hands

Now that you've chosen for yourself optimal material and collected everything the right tools, we proceed to the most important thing. In the following sections, you will learn how to assemble a bee hive from different materials.

Wooden

To make a beehive, choose wooden boards with a humidity that fluctuates around 15-16%. The amount of material is selected depending on the number and dimensions of the body. Drawings are best taken from experienced beekeepers.

Important! Stick to the basic parameters of the main elements to simplify operation.

Hive body

You will also need 4cm boards for the bottom and body. We make grooves in the boards to connect the walls of the case.

We make strips 18X4 mm in size.

We connect the boards into shields, lubricating the grooves with PVA glue. It is very important to press them tightly against each other so that no gaps form.
And so we make 4 walls. You need to assemble the body in the form of shields, which can be connected using a tongue and groove and casein glue. The dimensions of the back and front walls are 605x320 mm. Side walls - 530x320 mm. In the side walls we make grooves 5 mm deep and 20 mm wide.

Important! Distance between grooves- 450 mm.

Let's start creating the back and front walls. They should be collected in temporary boards made of boards (thickness - 15mm). The dimensions of the walls are 675x500 mm. The dimensions of the outer side walls are 560x500 mm.

On the permanent place, the boards of the outer walls must be nailed separately in order to fit correctly into place. We fix the inner walls with glue, the corners must be fixed strictly straight. The bottom edge of the case is best positioned horizontally.

Lower and upper trays

The lower tray must be made according to the following dimensions - 1x25 cm, placing it from 5 cm from the right wall of the hive. The upper tray has dimensions of 1x10 cm, it should be located at a distance of 12 cm from the right wall of the hive. Its height is 3 cm below the edge of the upper bars of the frames.
Underframe space

In the back wall at the level of the bottom, it is necessary to make a wedge-shaped hole to make it easier to deal with varroatosis. It can be closed with an insert (dimensions 45x4 cm).

With the holes for trays, you enclose the space between the walls of the hive with small corridors made of planks. Dimensions - 1.5x2 cm.

Parallel to the front inner wall on the body, we will nail the first floor layer. Floor length - 65 cm. The first board must be positioned so that it protrudes 1 cm beyond the body. On this ledge we make arrival boards. Then we nail down the rest of the floorboards. After that, turn the case upside down and lay a layer of cardboard and roofing material. The next layer of the floor is boards.

Outer walls

After you have made the floor and nailed down the inner walls, install the outer walls. We nail the front and rear from the bottom of the case each. The ends should protrude 2 cm beyond the side walls. At this time, we lay insulation between the walls. Cut holes in the front board for the tray. There should be a hole in the back wall for the sub-frame space.

Also, for stability, it is necessary to nail the lining to the corner outer walls.

At the ends of the rear and front walls, which protrude 2 cm beyond the side inner walls, it is necessary to fill the side outer boards with a thickness of 15 cm.Around the entire perimeter of the inner walls, strips of 4x2 cm should be nailed.

On the planks on the front and back sides of the hive, folds (dimensions 1x1 cm) should be selected to install the frames. The planks must be placed tightly on the insulating material.
Insulating material

Moss should be used to fill the space between walls. It should be more dried, since such moss will fill the voids well.

Also used are polystyrene, insulation board, cotton wool, wool and tow.

Since beekeepers have to very often raise the roof and put it back, the product should be lightweight. This requires a strapping. It should be made 12 cm high from boards 15 cm thick.
Above the nest under the roof, it is necessary to leave a free space with a height of 24 cm. In this place we place a store on a half-frame and a heating pillow.

Pillow

The pillow is placed between the sides on the canvas so that it fits snugly against the side walls.

The pillow is 1 cm above the nest. Dimensions - 75x53. The thickness of the padding is 10 cm. You can also use moss, but it is best used for insulating the side walls.

Bee entrance

Leave 1 cm between the bottom and the bottom edge of the housing for the passage of bees and ventilation in winter time.

Did you know? It is better to paint the hive white, as this color is better remembered by insects.

Styrofoam

To make a styrofoam hive, you will need styrofoam leaves, self-tapping screws (5 cm), fine sandpaper, water-based paint, liquid nails, a paint roller, a ruler, a screwdriver (screwdriver), a stationery knife, and a circular saw.

Important! All the objects in the hive are connected in the same way as the wooden bases of the bee nest.

Styrofoam sheets should be following sizes - 3x5 cm. On paper we prepare a sketch of the structure and transfer it to the foam using a marker and a ruler.

We cut out the structure with a clerical knife, saw or hacksaw for metal. We clean the edges with sandpaper.
We fasten the side walls with overlaps (cut out quarters at the joints and drive the walls tightly into each other). We fix the elements with liquid nails.

To secure the result, use self-tapping screws around the perimeter.

Polyurethane

You will need 8 metal plates for the case. Four slabs will form the outer contour and the other four will form the inner contour. Spacers must be installed between the opposing inner plates. The outer tiles should be bolted together.

To the inner sides of the outer tiles, you need to screw metal plates, which form recesses in the body for grip.

The base and cover are made with grooves. Plates will be inserted into them. Strips of metal are applied along the edges and the parts are bolted together.

Holes should be drilled along the inner and outer perimeter of the housing and cover. During assembly, threaded metal rods will be inserted into them.

Bolts should be screwed onto the rods, holding the entire structure firmly. Holes for filling the mixture and a valve with a plug should be made in the cover. They will close this hole. Bottom and roof

The roof needs 2 rectangular pieces. One should have protruding sides at the edges, the other - a protruding rectangular inner part.

The bottom is a rectangular frame with metal mesh in the middle. It is made from individual polyurethane foam blocks. You can fasten them with bolts.

You should have 4 bar molds. In all the bars, you need to put a strip of metal along the inner perimeter, which will form folds. We lay a metal mesh on them and nail them with a stapler.

The front block is best positioned lower in height to create a slot for the tray. After casting with a cutter, select the grooves in the inner side walls for the bottom valve. We cut it out of polycarbonate. We also place the back bar lower in height in order to insert the latch into this slot. Preparation of a mixture of polyurethane foam

This material is obtained from the reactions of polyol and polyisozonate.

When pouring the mixture, the total mass for the process must be calculated correctly. This can be done by calculating the volume of the hive part: multiply it by the width, thickness and length. The resulting amount must be multiplied by the technological loss factor (1.15) and the estimated density of polyurethane foam (60 kg / m2).

After processing, we collect the form. The inner plates are installed in the grooves of the base, and plastic corners should be placed inside the plates, which will serve as folds for the frames. The corners can be secured with thick thread.

We install and fix them with screws and braces of the inner strut. Then we install the outer plates and fasten them with bolts, placing the top of the form with grooves on the walls. We twist all this with metal rods.

Pour the polyurethane foam mixture into this form, but not completely, as it expands. As soon as foam begins to show from the hole, the mold must be closed with a latch.

In the same way, we fill the molds for the lid and bottom. After pouring the mold for the lid, pour a small amount of gravel into it so that the lid will hold firmly in the wind.

The mixture hardens within 30 minutes. After that, we unscrew the bolts that hold the rods. Using a wooden block and a hammer, knock down the upper part of the mold.

After that, we unscrew the bolts on the edges of the form, doing this little by little, so as not to deform the structure. So we go through two circles over all the bolts, after which we remove the spacers.
Parts of the mold are cleaned of polyurethane foam particles, and the excess along the edges of the body can be removed with a sharp knife. After that, the structure is cleaned with fine-grained sandpaper.

Then we cover the product with facade acrylic paint to protect the hive from ultraviolet radiation. This coating will not be damaged by temperature changes.

Coloring occurs within a week after production, but not earlier than after 8 hours.

Arrangement of the hive

Now we should start building a hive for bees.

In the American method of brooding bees in the apiary, 5 types of insect families are created: maternal, paternal, starter, incubator and family educator. For this method, you need to have a hive-lounger for 24 frames, an entrance, two diaphragms that will move freely in the hive, one blind diaphragm with a rubber band, one diaphragm with a dividing grid. A feeder and pillows are also needed.
In autumn or spring, we populate a family with a good breeding uterus. In the autumn they are fed with honey and treated for varroatosis and prophylaxis with anti-ectopic agents. In the spring

3 years ago

New!!! The elevator for the router in this table: Part 1 - https://youtu.be/RA4-75ijmWg Part 2 - https://youtu.be/GHqP4Wceu08 April 2015. Topic continued: table for hand router Bosch 1400 ACE. This time I finally made a pedestal for a milling table - a pedestal, frame, table base, whatever ..) The most important thing is that the milling table is now independent and does not need workbenches or anything else. I did not bother with the curbstone and made, in fact, a frame, but quite strong and stable for working on a milling table. In the future, you can make plywood walls, make shelves. But this is still in question, because perhaps I will make a system for lifting the cutter (the cutter extends over the table surface) using a car jack (as many have already done), for this I will need full access under the tabletop, from all sides of the cabinet. So for now, it's just a frame. I also made a switch with an outlet for my milling table and now it became very convenient to use it, and at the same time I did not have to cut the plug at the device, because it will be needed more than once as a hand router 🙂 Made a bracket for fixing the table in a raised position, so that with both hands you can adjust the overhang or, in fact, change the cutter itself. It's not over yet. There will be videos about clamps for the milling table, guides, side carriage and I don't even know what yet ... The topic is rich 😉 First part: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v\u003d1CiOU66Sers Second part: http: // www.youtube.com/watch?v\u003drF7BVRbK4hE THANKS FOR VIEWING AND SUBSCRIBING !!! http://maximkozlov.ru

PHOTO STREET LLC "KALINKA"

Good day, dear visitors!

This section of our site is a photo gallery where you can see photos of the entire assortment of beehives of LLC Kalinka "without embellishment", that is, photos are posted here without any processing, so that each of you, even not having the opportunity to come and look at the hives “Live”, nevertheless I could see the products “as they are”. We have nothing to hide, so we hope you enjoy our photo tour.

Below are photos of Dadan-Blatt hives. We produce them in two types: for 10 frames and for 12. You can install as many cases as you need. Convenient recesses are made on the sides of the hulls in order to make them more convenient to remove. On each hull, on the notches, entrance barriers for 4 functions are installed.

DIY beehive

They are included in the basic equipment of the hives. In one of the photos on the hive there are canvas, which can also be bought from our company.

Such a retractable anti-varroatous bottom with a special mesh can be installed on any of the hives. It is not included in the basic set of hives, but is installed at the request of the buyer. On the site in the article "Anti-Varroatous Bottom" you can see a video describing its structure and how and for what it is used.

Photos of beehives of LLP "Kalinka" at the agro-industrial exhibition-fair.

If you are interested in our products, then you can always call and place an order. Beehives of LLP "Kalinka" can be purchased not only in company stores in Moscow and St. Petersburg, but also to place an order in any city in Russia with delivery to the apiary.

PS: If you need a small number of beehives, in order to reduce delivery costs, you can unite with other beekeepers from neighboring apiaries and make a single order, then the delivery cost is about 200-300 rubles per hive.

Interesting on the topic:

Advantages of beehives LLP "Kalinka" (video)

Prices for hives and beekeeping equipment

Beehive lounger. How to build it yourself

A bee hive is an artificially made housing for bees. For a long time, bees lived on tree branches, in crowns, hollows, in rock crevices, in pits and stumps, under the roofs of houses. Later, people began to tame honey plants, settling them in non-collapsible hives - sapets, nest boxes. Well, now bee colonies live in frame hives, which can be bought in a special store or made on their own, if there is time, desire and the necessary tools for this.

Today we will devote our article to how to make a bee hive? This question is asked by all novice beekeepers. First, you need to take a closer look at this design in order to understand what you have to deal with. Nowadays, the most common hives are Dadan Blat and Langstroth-root with some modifications and changes. Beekeepers have heard another name - the Alpine hive or, in other words, Roger Delon's hive (with a reduced frame). There are other bee houses - Lapunov and Ozerova with an enlarged frame, hives with glass, and some still use old logs.

Any hive consists of the following parts:

Housing - the walls of the hive. Hulls vary in size, hives have one or several hives, depending on the type of construction. Each body has parallel grooves on the inside for the frame hangers. In some types of hives, the grooves for the frames are placed in a different way, but for self-made they are complex. In addition to grooves, the body can have tap holes. If the hive has a removable bottom, then the entrance is made above the middle, round, with a diameter of 25 to 35 mm. If the bottom is nailed to the lower body, then a slotted notch with a width of 100 mm and a length of 10-20 mm is made. All these indicators depend on what kind of hive is made and what the beekeeper wants to make.

Bottom - can be integral and detachable. It is better to create hives with the last type of bottom, since in this case caring for the bees will be easier: you can clean the nest quickly enough, it is easy to work with hulls without touching the frames (this is an important part of many methods), if necessary, carry out the necessary treatment of bee colonies. The non-removable bottom is simply nailed to the lower part of the body so that it protrudes slightly from the edges in front - the formed ledge serves as a landing area for bees.

The shops - these are hive bodies shortened in height.

Do-it-yourself bee hive

They are an optional part of the design and are used for storing honey during honey collection to facilitate the work of the beekeeper. In addition, they are very convenient to use in weak families that do not collect large reserves of honey.

Roof liner - this is a store, but without recesses for frames. It is placed between the upper body and the roof. It helps to improve the living conditions of bees during their migration, you can put a feeder in it or place an insulating material. Some beekeepers put it under the lower body, thereby creating an underframe space that has a beneficial effect on the microclimate of the nest during wintering.

Roof - made of a harness (sometimes beekeepers make ventilation holes in it) and flat shield (plywood, boards). Cover with a thin sheet of iron. It is put on the body (roof cover, store) in a quarter or in a slip-on.

Framework - we will talk about them a little later. One has only to say that frames come in different sizes, depending on the type of hive.

Drawings for beehives

All frame hives are similar in design, but vary in size. The dimensions of the hive primarily depend on the number of frames that will be used in a given hive, their size. Also, the size of the bee house depends on the thickness of the walls. As a rule, for hives with a frame of 300 use a board with a width of 40, with a frame of 230 - 30. According to GOST, the recommended thickness of a board for a frame is 300 - 37 mm, since wood is processed from standard 40 mm to 37. There are designs with double walls, and others. drawings from different sizes enough. This happens because the regions where bees are grown are different, have different conditions, and every beekeeper has his own opinion on caring for families, which he adheres to. So it is difficult to name any specific dimensions.

Remember from the whole mass of information about drawings for hives you need the following:

  1. the width of the hive directly depends on the number of frames and is equal to the number of frames multiplied by 37.5 mm;
  2. the length of the hive directly depends on the length of the frame itself (from the left side bar to the right, I include the dimensions of the bars themselves). It is equal to "frame length plus 14 mm";
  3. the height of the hive is determined by the formula "fold height plus frame height".

Everything else in the design of the hives is done at the request of the beekeeper. Of course, each type has its own drawings and rules. Consider, for example, the well-known design of the "hive-lounger". This bee house is a frame horizontal hive. It resembles an elongated box with a nailed bottom and a removable roof. During the growth of the family, frames are added to the side of this structure, in which the uterus lays eggs. This hive has shops that are used during honey collection. The lounger allows you to keep next to the main family and a reserve one, with a spare uterus. The beehive-lounger for 16 and 20 frames has become widespread. The dimensions of the house with 16 frames are 615x450x330 mm. The bottom plate protrudes 35 mm beyond the front wall. The extension is built with a height of 165 mm, the thickness of the walls is the same as that of the walls of the case, the frames in it are also 16. The dimensions of the lounger hive for 20 frames are 810x450x330. If you think that given view a house for bees suits you, then we present you a drawing of a lounger hive, which shows all of its most common sizes:

How to make frames for the hive

But now it's worth talking about frames, or rather about making them, because if you yourself made a hive, then you will make frames very quickly. The hive frame is considered one of the most important elements in the bee dwelling. Her standard sizes for a two-body hive - 435x300 mm. They need to be made from linden, since it does not crack when knocking the structure together. But this material has one drawback - it absorbs moisture and increases in weight. For this reason, experienced beekeepers advise making frames from spruce wood, the main condition is that it should not be resinous.

When creating a frame, it is worth making sure that there is a distance of no more than 9 mm between the bottom and the lower strips of the frames. This is the most optimal passage for the bees. If it is larger, then insects will begin to build up on it. There should be 8 to 10 mm between the hive wall and the side bar. If the distance is less, then the bees will fill it with propolis, if more, then they will build up with honeycombs. If all dimensions are met exactly, then it will be easy to get the frames.

For more information on creating a frame, see the video below:

I would like to note that in the created bee house it is necessary to maintain conditions that are most optimal for the bees of your region. The hive is not just a dwelling or a means of production. All this together - both the house and the beekeeping factory, which supplies some of the most useful products in the world.

Bee hive device

Every beekeeper knows that wild bees live in natural hives: a hollow of a tree, under a roof, etc. But if you decide to engage in beekeeping, then you will need to put a lot of effort into equipping a bee housing. Bee hive construction begins with collecting useful information about the types of hives, materials that are needed for construction, with approximate drawings.

Bee hive device

What types of hives are there?

Before you start building a bee hive, you need to understand what kind of design you want to get as a result. The fact is that today the following are considered the most practical types:

  1. The hive is horizontal. The beekeeper can expand it by setting up additional buildings.
  2. A vertical hive is a 2-3-tier structure, on each tier of which there are about 10 frames. You can expand the vertical structure by adding new tiers.

Also, hives are conventionally divided according to the types of frames, because it is the frames that are the main element of the entire structure. Depending on the width and height, they are square, narrow or, conversely, low wide.

What is the best material for making a hive?

Hive material is a very important topic. The bees may simply not like their house, and the beekeeper will be forced to remodel it.

There are a huge number of different materials on the market today, but not all of them are suitable for the hive.

Wood is a safe bet. It is better to purchase coniferous wood, this is pine, spruce, fir, etc. Before starting, make sure that there is no rot or mold on the wood. Note that the tree has one drawback, it is high humidity inside the hive.

To equip the bee house, choose boards 5 mm larger than the design requires. They will decrease in size at the time of grinding. Boards need to be well planed so that there are no chips, roughness, protruding chips left on them.

Plywood is another great option. It is an environmentally friendly material that is durable. Beekeepers say that plywood surpasses even wood in terms of thermal insulation in terms of its characteristics.

To make a plywood hive, it is necessary to cover its outer walls with a layer of acrylic varnish, and put polystyrene foam inside the house. By the way, hives are also made from the latter, which are characterized by fragility and fragility.

You can make such a plywood hive only according to a drawing; it will become optimal for the comfortable life of insects.

Polycarbonate is a hard plastic that cannot be attacked climatic conditions... Differs in stability, durability, does not suffer from rot, fungus, washes well.

Polyurethane foam can act as a heater, which does not rot and is not covered with fungus, it is not gnawed by mice.

DIY beehive: videos, drawings, dimensions of frames and hives

Its main disadvantage is flammability, and when insulating the hive with polyurethane foam, be sure to design a small ventilation system.

Bee hive device

The hive consists of the following elements, fastened into a single structure:

  • bottom (wood or mesh) and ceiling, front, rear and side walls;
  • roof liner, insulation cushion, canvas;
  • strips and overlays for them, folds;
  • gable roof and lid rail;
  • ventilation hole;
  • entrance, arrival board, nesting frame;
  • waste tray or pallet;
  • glass for observing bees and a board that covers the glass when needed.

How the hive works: dimensions and additional details

Sizing correctly is fundamental to creating the correct hive. The beekeeper involved in the construction must comply with the dimensions with great accuracy. We provide universal sizes for all hives that you can use as a basis:

  • The distance between adjacent frames is 3.75 cm.
  • Streets, subject to a honeycomb thickness of 25 cm - 1.25 cm.
  • During the installation of the second body or additional magazine, a gap of 1 cm is made between the upper bars and the lower bars.
  • The space between the front and back walls and the side strips should be 0.75 cm.
  • The space between the bottom bar and the bottom is 2 cm.

The deviation from the dimensions is allowed within 0.1 cm. If there is a large discrepancy with the dimensions, you will have to adjust other structural elements, and the hive will no longer be composed of equivalent parts that you can replace in the future.

How to assemble a hive: instructions

So, all the elements are ready, and the drawings are drawn. It's time to collect the hive. Begin the assembly by preparing the four walls, machined and cut according to the drawing. One of the front walls is connected to two side walls, after which the last wall is fixed. After that, the side frames are attached to the side panels of the hive, then a wood floor or mesh is attached. And on the front wall you need to cut through the notch.

The structure is knocked together, set on the floor and a pillow with a canvas is reported, covering everything with a lid. Pillow and lap are needed for control temperature regime... The bottom of the hive is best made of galvanized material, it should be removable, which will facilitate transportation of the hives. For frames, choose a good, but not resinous, wood.

Do not forget about the feeder, which is most often made from a nomadic net. In winter, at low temperatures, the hives are heated with electrical appliances with a power not exceeding 10 W.

Summing up, it should be said that making the beehives on their own requires great attention and strict adherence to the drawing. It must be remembered that the hive should be comfortable for insects in all respects: cool and cold, without chemical odors emitted by some synthetic materials, with a normal ventilation system.

http://medovoemesto.ru

The honey bee spends a lot of energy on repelling the attacks of enemies, but not always the attack can be repelled. In this case, the enemy, a red mite of the species Verroa, clung to the thoracic region of the drone.

  • KEY FACTS
  • Name: honey bee (Apis mellifera)
  • Area: Europe, Western Asia and Africa; in other regions of Asia, as well as in America and Australia, it is distributed by humans.
  • Number in a typical hive: 10,000 to 60,000 worker bees; uterus; at certain times of the year, a small number of drones and young queens.
  • Development stages: egg, larva, pupa, adult.
  • Lifespan: 21 days of development from egg to adult; in summer, the worker bee lives for about 30 days.

The bee family has a strict social organizationin which all work in the hive, such as building honeycombs for the queen's eggs and storing food or collecting nectar, is done by worker bees.

There are about 20,000 species of bees, but only about 800 of them are truly social (eusocial). The amazing details of the organization of their community (family) can be learned by observing the life of the honeybee, or domestic (Apis mellifera).

Bee history

The honey bee is a very evolutionarily successful social insect that originally lived in Europe, Africa and Western Asia. Wild honey bees make their nests in natural cavities and shelters: hollows of old trees, depressions in the ground, or rock crevices. The man provides them with artificial housing - hives.

By arranging a nest in a natural cavity, honeybees build double-sided honeycomb sheets from wax, which are attached to the ceiling of the cavity. The hexagonal cells that form the honeycomb are made of wax secreted by the glands located on the bee's abdomen.

A queen who checks the cell before placing one of the 2,000 eggs she lays per day. The sex of the future bee depends on which egg the queen has laid.

The distance between adjacent honeycomb sheets (the so-called "bee space") is usually from 6 to 9 mm - quite enough for the movement of bees on their surface. Beekeepers try to recreate similar conditions in the hive by installing removable frames in it, the distance between which is also equal to the bee space. The base of the honeycomb is attached to the frame, on which the bees build cells.

Breeding offspring

Honeybees use honeycomb cells for two purposes: as containers for storing food (honey and plant pollen) and for breeding (brood). In nature, bees tend to fill the cells of the honeycomb in a specific order. Egg cells are located in the center and bottom of the combs, while honey is stored in the top and side cells. The pollen cells are located between the egg and honey cells. In the hive, however, the combs in the lower boxes contain mostly brood, while the upper boxes contain only honey and pollen. This distribution of the contents of the cells is due to the fact that the lower and upper sections of the hive are separated by a wire mesh called the uterus restraint. Its cells are large enough to allow a worker bee to pass, but too small for a queen to pass. As a result, the queen is confined to the lower section of the hive, where she lays eggs, and the beekeeper can take out the upper boxes filled with honey combs without disturbing the queen. In hives, honey bees live in the same highly organized community as in nature. Most of the bees are working bees, females with underdeveloped genitals, in some hives there are up to 60-80 thousand of them. The queen is also a female, but with fully formed genitals. Its only function is to lay eggs, all worker bees emerge from eggs laid by one queen. In the spring and summer, the uterus also lays a small number of eggs, from which males, called drones, emerge. Drones do not work, and they lack the sting with which worker bees protect the hive from enemies. Their only purpose is to mate with queens, after which they die.

Queen's life

The queen of honeybees lives for about 5 years, during this time from spring to autumn, laying about 2,000 eggs every day. When a family of wild honey bees grows too large in spring, it divides in two (swarming). In this case, the queen leaves the nest and flies away with about 70 percent of the worker bees.

When the weather permits, the worker bee can move 11 km from the hive every day in search of nectar and pollen. This work is usually done by older bees, whose life is already coming to an end.

The worker bees remaining in the nest grow a new queen, after which the colony begins to grow very rapidly. However, bees that are bred in hives do not create swarms. With an increase in their number, beekeepers add additional sections to the hives, thereby reducing the overpopulation of the hive.

Unlike the queen bee, worker bees live for about 30 days in summer and up to 6 months in winter. A worker bee develops in a closed cell in 21 days, going through three stages: an egg (about three days), a larva (about seven days) and a pupa (11 days). On the last day of development, the bee, with the help of its mandibles, destroys the wax cover that covered the cell, and immediately starts to work. According to her age, she performs various tasks. A young bee spends almost all its time in the hive: first, it cleans the cells of the combs, then cares for the offspring, feeds the queen, and builds or repairs the cells.

A little later, she moves closer to the exit from the hive and works as a food receiver, taking nectar and pollen from the collecting bees returning to the hive, or becomes a guard bee, protecting the hive from strangers. Finally, at the last stage of her life, she becomes a gatherer, flying away in search of water, nectar and pollen at a distance of up to 11 km from the hive. The protection of the hive and the extraction of food are the most dangerous jobs, so they are performed by "elderly" bees, approaching the end of their lives.

Worker bees honey beewho lowered their heads into the honeycomb cells. Their name speaks of their functions in the family. They do all the work both inside and outside the hive: raising the young, collecting nectar and pollen, cleaning and protecting the hive.

Labor and conflict

Life in the hive is well organized, with each individual taking care of the family first.

In fine weather, the bees will leave the hive for water, nectar and pollen. If they find areas with nectar-rich intact flowers, they take the nectar and immediately return to the hive to report the find to their relatives who remain in the hive and thus increase the number of gatherers in this rich area. If you are able to observe the surface of the honeycomb, for example, through the glass wall of the research hive, you can see how the returning bee, surrounded by "spectators", moves up and down the honeycomb, describing the figure eight, the so-called. "Wagging dance". With this dance, one of the most difficult forms of communication in the animal world, the bee informs the audience about the direction in which the rich food source is located and about the distance to it. This information is especially important when the stock of poverty in the family is small.

Hives in Bavaria (Germany). When such a structure is overflowing with bees, the beekeeper adds additional sections, thereby preventing the swarm from flying out.

Pickers may be aware of a decrease in food supplies. It does not take much time for the collecting bees to "unload" the collectors returning from distant feeders. On the contrary, if a picker has to wait for a long time for the help of the pickers, this indicates the simultaneous return of many pickers with a large amount of nectar, that is, an increase in food reserves. In spring and summer, any food that is not consumed immediately is stored in a honeycomb. You will need it in winter or when bad weather will not allow collecting nectar. Over time, the nectar stored in the combs turns into honey.

Pheromones

Another well-known example of collective action by bees is protecting the hive. Whenever a threat arises, the guard bees secrete alarm substances or pheromones, having caught which, the defenders gather at the entrance, and each tries to hit the enemy. This is undoubtedly selfless behavior, because, having stung the enemy, the bee loses its sting and dies. The venom on the sting of the bee also contains the alarm pheromone, attracting new defenders to the battlefield and stimulating their attack on the enemy.

Working bees on a honeycomb with a queen cell. In the initial period of life, worker bees spend a lot of time caring for and feeding the queen, as well as building new and restoring old cells.

However, in the honeybee hive, cooperation does not always happen in perfect harmony. It is often believed that only the queen can lay eggs in honey bees, but this is not the case. Although worker bees cannot mate, they retain a functioning ovary and can lay unfertilized eggs from which males develop. Why do they raise the mother's offspring, and not their own? Oddly enough, it is not the queen that prevents the worker bees from participating in reproduction; all other worker bees do it.

This moment in the life of a bee family was called the "workers' police", it consists in the bees eating any eggs they find from their sisters. Bees can easily determine which eggs need to be destroyed because the queen marks the eggs she is laying with her pheromone.

Do-it-yourself hive for bees: how to make, drawings

Such cannibalism is practiced due to the fact that all worker bees in the hive have one mother, but during the mating flight she mates with about 30 drones, that is, the bees have quite a lot of fathers. This means that any bee is genetically closer to its siblings, produced by a queen, than to any "nephew" developed from the egg of another worker bee. As a result, each bee prevents the others from reproducing and cooperates with them in caring for the queen's offspring. By doing this, honeybees guarantee that the next generation of the family will pass on as much of their own genes as possible.

  • Did you know?
  • Before starting to lay eggs, the queen of the honey bee sets off on a mating flight, and then stores about 5 million sperm in herself, using them throughout her life. Each time she lays an egg, the queen determines the sex and type of the future bee. If a worker bee is to develop from an egg, the queen fertilizes it with one of the sperm stored in her body and deposits it in a cell of normal size. If a drone is to develop from an egg, the egg is not fertilized and is deposited in a cell bigger size... The eggs, from which new queens should form, are fertilized and look exactly like the eggs from which the worker bees develop, but they are deposited in special cells - queen cells, shaped like an acorn, and the larva is fed with a special food called royal jelly for the entire period of its development.
  • The expression "work like a bee" is related to our idea that bees are tireless workers, carrying honey to the hive "tirelessly." This idea is wrong: each bee rests, staying on the combs, 80% of the working day.
  • To survive winter months, a family of honey bees needs to stock up on 20 kg of honey.

A good hive must meet the following requirements:

1. The hive should be warm and protect the bees well from sudden temperature changes, rain and moisture. In summer, the walls of the hive should not get too hot. If the hive is single-walled - up to its thickness -30 mm. Double-walled hives - the space between the walls is clogged with moss - cuckoo flax.

2. The hive should be large enough to accommodate the brood of a good queen, as well as store honey and bee bread in it. At the same time, it should be designed so that, depending on the season, its volume could be increased or decreased, and ventilation could be regulated.

In winter, the nest is smaller, the number of frames is reduced. The remaining space should not be empty, it should be filled with insulating cushions and separated by a special diaphragm.

3. The hive should be easy to work with, easily and freely disassembled into its component parts and reassembled so that during inspections it does not crush or disturb the bees too much.

4. All parts of each hive should be exactly the same size. This will make it easier to set up shops, rearrange frames (or buildings), relocate families and a number of other works.

Frames of the same size enable the beekeeper to: 1) if necessary, rearrange the frames from one hive to another; 2) apply the same methods of caring for bees in all families; 3) have beekeeping equipment designed for a frame of a certain standard. Identical hives in the apiary will simplify the care of bees and reduce labor and time costs.

6. Beehives should have in their design special devices to combat ticks. This is either a removable bottom or a special net with a pallet.

In Russia, the most common hives of the following designs:
1) a single-hive or Dadant-Blatt hive, consisting of a bottom, a nesting housing containing 12 frames, width 435 mm and height in 300 mm, one or two magazines containing 12 frames half the height; often use two buildings with shops;
2) beehive-lounger, consisting of one large body, containing 16,20 or 24 frames also in size 435 × 300 mm (often frames are made in 300 mm wide and 435 mm high - Ukrainian lounger);
3) multi-hive hive, consisting of three to five interchangeable hulls of the same size, on 8-10 frames, size 435 × 230 mm.

Components of the hive

The hive should consist of one or more buildings, a store, a roof cover, ceiling boards (or canvas), a bottom, an insert board (diaphragm), an arrival board, a stand and frames for nesting and store.

Frameworkare subdivided into nest and store. In typical hives, nesting and store frames have standard sizes and differ from each other only in height. The height of the nesting frames of a single-body, double-body hives and sunbeds is -300 mm, the store frames are -145 mm. The height of the frames of multi-hive hives is 230 mm.

The width of the upper bars and lower bars of the frame is 25 mm, the thickness of the side bars is 8 mm, and the bottom bars are -10 mm. The thickness of the top bar is 20-22 mm. The side strips of the nest frames in the upper part are widened to 37 mm, thus achieving a normal street size and good stability of the frames when transporting bee colonies.


The width of the frame is due to the following circumstances: the length of the honeycomb is 12 mm, equal to the length of the working bee. 1 mm is the transverse thickness of the wax.

How to make a Dadant hive with your own hands

12+1+12=25 .

Housing- the main part of the hive, where the bee nest is located. Hives with two or more hulls are common. The body looks like a box without a bottom and a roof, in the upper edge of the front and rear walls of which a rebate is selected for hanging the nest frames. In addition to frames, the body of many hive designs includes diaphragms and a hive partition. On the front wall of the case in the upper part of it is made letok for the entry and exit of bees. It can be round or slit in shape.

If the frames in the hive are placed perpendicular to the entrance, a cold skid, if in parallel, a warm skid.

Bottom hulls, depending on the design, can be nailed to the hull or detachable. Consists of a shield, knocked down from boards, and a strapping of beams. The front block has a slot - a lower notch with a height of 20 mm, which is regulated by special inserts. At the lower entrance to the front bar of the bottom harness is attached arrival board for bees.

Roof worn over the body or store extension and protects the nest of bees from rain, heat and cold, enemies and pests. The roofs of most typical hives are flat in design.

Roof linerdesigned to accommodate the feeder and create a free space above the frame.

Store or store extension... In height, it is usually half the height of the hulls. Store frames fit into the store extension. It is used to increase the volume of the nest, mainly during honey collection. Depending on the amount of honey collection, one or more extensions are placed on the hive.

Store extensions) are closed from above with a solid ceiling or plaquesup to 10 mm thick. Often used for these purposes canvasmade of loose fabric (burlap).

Diaphragm(dividing board). It consists of a top bar, two side strips and a 15 mm thick shield (thin board) fixed between them. The height and length of the diaphragm must match the internal dimensions of the body. D and phragms are necessary to reduce and insulate the nest.

Hive dimensions

In the hives of all systems, the following obligatory dimensions of the "hive rule" are observed: the corners must be strictly 90 0 (from a dry tree - fir, aspen); the space above the frame (the distance between the top bar and the ceiling planks) must be 10 mm; underframe space (distance between the bottom and the bottom bar of the frame) - 15-20 mm; lateral space (the distance between the side strips of the frame and the front with respect to the tap hole and the rear walls of the hive) - 7.5-8 mm; distance between frames - 12 mm; the distance between the central axes of the frames of adjacent combs is 37-38 mm. If there are several hives in the hive, then the gap between the upper and lower frames should be 10 mm. If it is less, they will close up with propolis, more - with honeycombs.

How hives are calculated (standard 12-frame hive)

12+25/2+25/2=37
+0.5 for propolis \u003d 37.5
12 - frame hive 37.5 * 12 \u003d 450

When examining and working with bees, the beekeeper needs: a net to protect the face from the attack of bees, a smoker, a beekeeper's chisel (for removing frames), a brush for sweeping bees, a box for tools and rot, a box for transferring honeycombs, a swarm (closed sieve), feeders for feeding bees, pillows for warming the hive - top and side (stuffed with moss); cages for queens (Titova non-metallic), a dividing lattice for isolating the uterus (Hoffmann), a mold board for waxing wax, a knife for cutting off a bead (lids on sealed comb), honey extractor (due to centrifugal force - sealed honeycombs with honey are first printed using a special beekeeper's knife, then inserted into a honey extractor and rotated), a wax melter (metal pan).


Arrangement of a 12-frame hive with two magazines (dimensions in mm):

  1. body, 2- nesting frame (cross section), 3 diaphragm, 4 - store, 5 - store frame (cross section), 6- sub-roof, 7 - roof, 8 - upper notch, 9 lower entrance


Hive body section:

  1. - frame, 2 - overframe space -10 mm; 3 - between the frame and the back of the hive 7.5 -8 mm; 4 - the bottom of the hive, 5 - subframe space 15-20 mm; 6- between the frame and the front wall of the hive - 8 mm.


Socket frame (dimensions in mm)


Types of beehives: a - single-frame 12-frame with a magazine;
b - double-hull.


Beehive-lounger


Multi-body (four bodies) hive

Both novice and experienced beekeepers come to the conclusion that it is better to make a hive with their own hands. You are sure of the quality of your own product; if you need to develop it, you can quickly make the missing parts. How to make hives on your own will be discussed.

Popular hive designs

Before building a hive with your own hands, you need to choose its design. Basically, novice beekeepers use two types of hives:

  • Dadanovsky on 12 frames. It has a vertical design and is built up. If necessary, either another standard case or a magazine (an additional case half the height of the main one, into which the half-frames are installed) is placed on top.
  • Lounger - 20 frames or more. It differs in size - it has a greater width than depth. The number of frames used by the bee family is regulated by rearranging the partition.

Both of these designs use standard 470 * 300mm frames, which are widespread. These two types are the most common among beginner (and experienced) beekeepers. Sometimes hives "Ruta" are used, but they have frames of a different format - 470 * 230 mm and it is not so easy to find them. Also, it is more difficult to work with Roots than with Dadanovsky or loungers, more experience in beekeeping is required. Therefore, choose from two options - Dadanovsky or lounger. Which one is specific - it is better to ask the beekeepers of your area.

Beehive drawings

Since standard frames are used in the Dadanov hive and the lounger, they differ only in width: one should fit 12 pieces of frames, in the other - 20 or 24 pieces. The rest of the parameters remain the same.

Variable parameters for hives with a different number of frames are shown in the table. Substitute them in the drawing and get the option that you need.

Number of frames in the case, pcsBody width B, mmWidth of the internal opening of the B1 body, mmExternal installation dimension of the body fold B2, mmInternal installation size of the rebate B3, mm
10 455 375 419 425
12 520 450 494 400
14 595 525 569 575
16 685 615 659 665
20 880 810 854 860

What you need to know before you start making your own beehive

Even before you start making your own beehives, you need to know the requirements for materials and technology for building evidence for bees. A lot of them. Let's start with the material requirements.

What are they made of

The most common material is wood. It can be used as non-milky coniferous wood (spruce, fir, deresined pine), and loose hardwood - poplar, linden, etc. Do not use dense wood - the hive will be heavy and cold.

The requirements for wood are tough. It should be dry - no more than 16% moisture, no knots falling out, rot, wormholes, redness. Blue discoloration is acceptable (it does not affect the quality indicators). If there are knots, they can be removed, sealed with corks from the same wood species and putty. Do not use wood with other defects.

Today hives are also made of plywood, preferably birch. In this case, the walls are made double with a gasket between the layers of insulation - foam. In such hives it is warm in winter and not hot in summer. Their disadvantage is that the walls are vapor-tight, moisture does not come out through them. Therefore, the ventilation system of the hive must be given special attention (make an additional entrance at the top, and, if necessary, open it for ventilation).

Sometimes hives are collected from polystyrene foam, polyurethane foam and expanded polystyrene. Most good option - expanded polystyrene. Even some kind of fastener can be installed in it, neither bees nor other insects gnaw it. The remaining two materials are collected on glue, and the bees also sharpen them, and ants and other neighbors unwanted for bees can settle.

Processing and assembly requirements

When assembling the hive with your own hands, you must strictly maintain the internal dimensions of the body and extensions. Then the increase in volumes will not cause difficulties. Parts of the hive - hulls, extensions, shops, roof - must be connected to a lock and the locking parts must also match. This is necessary for a reliable connection without gaps and drafts, which bees do not like very much. Therefore, the maximum machining tolerances are 1–2 mm.

There are also requirements for the quality of materials processing. Most of them relate to wood, but they can also be applied to other materials:

  • Boards and bars should be smooth, free from burrs, scuffs and chips.
  • Sawing materials must be strictly at an angle of 90 °, avoiding deviations.
  • The hive bodies must be knocked down from solid boards with a thickness of 40-45 mm or using a tongue-and-groove connection, glued for reliability.
  • To mate parts of the hive in detail, choose a quarter - for a reliable gapless connection.
  • On the front and back walls of the hive, folds are made - for hanging the frames. The rebate depth should be such that there is a distance of at least 8-10 mm from the top edge of the strip to the cover or extension. If the distance is less, the frames can stick to the cover, which creates problems during maintenance.
  • If the walls are made two-layer (with insufficient thickness of the boards), the outer ones are connected in a quarter, making sure that the seams in the layers do not coincide. It is better to connect the inner parts and the bottom into a tongue or groove.

Structural elements and their features

Most often, the hive has a modular structure - it consists of several detachable parts. This is convenient as it allows you to increase the volume as needed. Each of these parts is manufactured separately and the manufacturing accuracy must be high - all parts must be interchangeable.

Housing

This is the central part of the hive, which usually contains the nest of bees. By the number of hives, hives can be single, double-hull or multi-hull (3 or more). Corps are mentored as the family grows.

Roof

The roof of the hive can be pitched (tilted back) or gable. In the forehead case, it should be with overhangs - protrude beyond the geometric dimensions of the hive and protect the walls from the effects of bad weather.

The roof consists of a roof plate - a flat body for placing insulation or feeders for feeding bees - and the actual roof planks, nailed to the roof plate with nails or screwed on with self-tapping screws. The height of the pad depends on the thickness of the insulation, and this value depends on the region. Usually the height of the roof liner is 80-140 mm. Ventilation holes are often made in the under-roof to remove moist air from the hive.

When making a roof, the planks are stacked either in two layers with overlapping seams, or from thicker boards in one layer, but the seams are necessarily closed with thin strips. On top of the wooden roof of the hive, you can lay roofing iron, roofing felt or roofing material.

When making a roof, pay attention to the fact that it "sits down" tightly, without cracks. To seal the connection around the perimeter of the body, you can fill a felt strip or nail a plinth outside the body to cover the joint.

Bottom

The bottom of the hive can be nailed to the body (deaf) or it can be pulled out or extended, that is, it can be detachable. The split bottom makes it easier to maintain the hives - it allows you to clean the bottom without disassembling the entire hive. Structurally, the bottom is:

  • cold - from a single board;
  • warm - from two layers with insulating backing.

Also, the bottom is double-sided - with protrusions of different heights on both sides, which allows you to adjust the internal volume. They knock it down tightly, without gaps, connect the boards in a quarter or in a groove with additional gluing of the joint with moisture-resistant wood glue. The cracks must be carefully repaired (with putty on wood), since wax crumbs are poured into them, and then a wax moth starts up. Therefore, from time to time they prefer to replace the bottom, making a new one.

Video about making beehives from different materials

Often, amateur beekeepers keeping 2-3 colonies of bees are faced with the problem of “overpopulation”. After all, bees begin to swarm, which means that the question of acquiring new hives arises. But what about in this case? Not everyone can afford to buy new ones, and used ones are also dangerous. After all, it is not known why they are sold and what diseases can be acquired with the "house". Then the thought arises - why not make a beehive with your own hands? Today we will try to figure out how difficult it is and what is required for this. Surely this information will be useful to those who are just thinking about beekeeping.

Read in the article

Beekeeping for beginners - where to start for an inexperienced beekeeper

The main thing is, of course, to understand whether a person will be able to do this difficult job. After all, not everyone can do it due to physical indicators or health conditions. The first and most important requirement is that you are not allergic to bee stings. After all, some people do not tolerate even isolated cases. If a beginner beekeeper has such a strong reaction, then the path to the apiary has been ordered for him. You should also know that bee venom, entering the body, contributes to a sharp increase in blood pressure... That is why people with heart disease and hypertensive patients are strictly prohibited from engaging in such activities.

Now for the physical condition. Those who plan to take up beekeeping should understand that this is hard, everyday work. You will need to move hives, work on a honey extractor and much more. And you shouldn't think that this is a very profitable business that will start generating income from the very first season. After all, at first, high costs will be required for the bees themselves, hives, additional buildings. And if there are no melliferous fields nearby, it will be necessary to transport the hives from place to place, negotiating with the owners of the meadows about the building of the apiary, resolving issues with its protection. This means that the first 2-3 years there is nothing to think about any slightest profit.


But if it has already been specifically decided to tackle this difficult task, then one of the primary costs can be minimized - to build bee hives with your own hands. True, this will require some knowledge and experience. But with the desire, care and accuracy, this is quite doable.

The device of a hive for bees: general information about what species they are

To understand how the hive works, you need to study all the information about them and figure out what this or that compartment is for. Many beekeepers, sometimes even hereditary ones, do not even know what is called. But this does not prevent them from doing what they love. However, beginners will have to understand this. After all, for construction, you must be able to read the drawings of bee hives, and sometimes draw them yourself. Now we will analyze some of the types and try to understand which one is easier to build to begin with. Those who subsequently take up this business on a larger scale will eventually understand all types of bee houses. For now, let's start with the most common ones.

Dadan-Blatt hive: its description, device and some features of use in beekeeping

Initially, this hive bore the name of only one of its inventors - Charles Dadant. But its design, although it was quite successful, still required improvement. This is exactly what the Swiss beekeeper Blatt made, who added some innovations. But to this day, among beekeepers (perhaps for simplicity), the name "Dadan's hive" is applied to this bee house.

This design is practically not used in industrial honey collection, but among amateurs it is practically the most popular. The dimensions of the beehive are given for 12 frames, the drawing of which is shown in the image below, is 585 × 585 × 815 mm.

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Important information! It doesn't matter what the hive is. It is important to make as many shops as possible. After all, this is the most important thing for honey workers. But fanaticism in this matter is also useless.

In fact, such a bee house is quite simple. In other words, the construction, if there are drawings in front of your eyes, of a Dadanov hive with your own hands, will not pose any particular problems.

What is the Langstroth Ruth hive and how it works

This design is also quite popular. And not only among amateurs, but also among industrial assemblers. It originates from the beginning of the 19th century. At that time, the first version was invented by the beekeeper Lorenzo Langstroth. However, it was somewhat inconvenient due to the fact that the bottom of the hive was not removable. This made cleaning and maintenance much more difficult. However, already at the end of the same century, the industrial beekeeper Amos Ruth slightly changed, and one might even say simplified the design. And even today, his descendants own a company for the production of various devices for apiaries, making such beehives.

The main difference between such a bee house from the previous one is the lack of shops.In addition, the frames themselves are somewhat lower, although their widths are completely identical. Drawings of the Ruta hive can be easily found in the vastness of the network, therefore, it makes no sense to post them all here. Of course for general concept we will present to the dear reader some of them below.

By themselves, the drawings of Langstroth's hives differ slightly from the structure of Ruth. But among beekeepers, the name of this design stuck with only one surname. By analogy with the Dadanovs, they were simply called Rutovs.

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The horned beehive of Mikhail Palivoda - the most budgetary option

Although many of those who have been professionally engaged in beekeeping for a long time and speak of such a design with disdain, for a novice beekeeper, it can truly be a godsend. In addition to the fact that it is much easier to make it than the previous two options, it can also be done from almost any scraps.

Important information! When we say "any", we do not mean oiled or rotten wood. A bee will not live where there is a foreign, even the slightest odor. It is for this reason that experienced beekeepers collect hives with nails or screws and never use adhesives. And staining is used only outside the bee house.

As for the simplicity of manufacturing, looking at the photos of the drawings of the horned hive presented by us, probably even a schoolboy can make it with his own hands.

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It is also good news that almost all breeds of bees can live in such a house. But especially this structure is to the liking of Buckfast and Carpathian. The famous Burzyan bee also feels quite well in it, but for some reason the beekeepers of Bashkiria have chosen other types of structures for themselves. Perhaps because these hives are kept small enough.

Alpine hive or Roger Delon construction

Quite a convenient design due to the fact that as the number of bees in the family increases, there is no need to rebuild a new hive. You just need to add inserts, raising it in height.

Roger Delon is a fairly famous French scientist beekeeper who keeps apiaries in the Alps. Moreover, due to his design of hives, he does not have time to collect honey in the summer, and therefore he does it already in the winter.

The very design of the bee house is fundamentally different from all that were mentioned earlier, and not only in structure, but also in size. It is for this reason that the maintenance of such hives is not very convenient. It is quite difficult to find a suitable honey extractor for non-standard frames. But in terms of productivity, alpine hives outpace any others, even in a non-honey year.

It is also difficult to switch from ordinary bee houses to alpine ones - “it is difficult for new settlers to get used to another structure. For this reason, if a novice beekeeper, having considered all the options, settled on the Alpine one, then you should not start with something simple with the thought that over time it will be possible to change the design. In this case, it is better to immediately build a hive according to Roger Delon's design.


Such constructions have appeared relatively recently, but now they have both supporters and opponents. At the same time, there are several times more of the second than the first. The essence of the design is to save space by narrowing the distance between the frames. This is where the main bone of contention lies.

Experienced beekeepers claim that this will lead to the appearance of layers of propolis between the frames. As a result, they will be inoperative. At the same time, there is no reason not to trust the opinion of specialists.


It also raises doubts about what is advised to do from such material as. Honestly, anyone who understands beekeeping at least a little will say that in such houses there can be no talk of any honey. The bees just won't live there.

Рchalyar: In the early 90s, one of my relatives decided to become a beekeeper. I don’t remember where, like from Moscow, they sent him a brochure with drawings, descriptions and technology of keeping bees in a hive of an original design. The honey harvest in this hive was simply unprecedented. Work began to boil. Sawed boards, from somewhere dragged posters "Give ...", "Glory ...", "Long live ..." from and built 8 pieces. I also built a pavilion, though stationary, not on wheels. Why am I all this? Yes, just that hive and yours are the same. The height of the frame seems to be larger, or maybe not, I don't remember exactly. I must say that he is a guy with hands, everything was done soundly ...

More details at Beekeeper.info: http://www.pchelovod.info/index.php?showtopic\u003d25251

We are not giving the full review, for anyone interested - you can read it in the source. For those who do not have the desire to go to the sites, we can say that in this review a person writes that now no one else lives in those hives. Well, sometimes there are stray bees, only not those that give honey, but those that periodically inhabit it.

Bee hive lounger and how it differs from other bee houses

If you ask such a question to professional beekeepers, you can hear completely different answers. And it's not that some are right and others are not. It's just that its design can be different.


Looking at this hive, you can understand that it looks the same as the others, but at the same time it seems to be lying on its side. The lid also opens upwards, but it is the top wall. Outwardly, it resembles a chest. It was for this that he was called a lounger. The design of such a hive can be similar to any of the above.It can be both Rut's and Dadan's hive.

Let's try to also refer to the reviews of professionals - and what do they think about the sunbed hive with their own hands?

Danichek: I cannot answer in the affirmative, since I have no experience in driving bees, for example, in multihulls, which means that I cannot compare. Although, I remember that in his lectures Kashkovsky claims that in Siberia it was with the help of sun beds that beekeepers achieved record honey harvests both from one hive and from an apiary in general. In my opinion, the lounger most of all allows you to create a strong honey cake (which is what we are striving for), to disturb the bees with examinations less (every examination, whether the beekeeper wants it or not, brings nervousness to the family, and for a couple of days the family gets out of its normal rhythm life) ...

More details on nn.ru: https://www.nn.ru/community/user/pchely/lezhak_na_20_ramok_plyusy_i_minusy.html

Beehive boa constrictor: why it is so fond of amateur beekeepers

The secret of the popularity of such hives is in their compactness and ease of both installation and maintenance. Outwardly, it is somewhat reminiscent of the Alpine, but much smaller in size. Although those who have been engaged in beekeeping for several years say that it will not be easy for a novice beekeeper to cope with such a hive. But, as you know, everything is known in comparison, and according to those who are close to such a design, nothing prevents them from starting with such bee houses.

Making hives a boa constrictor with your own hands according to drawings is not difficult, we will present them to the dear reader for review below. If the ones provided are not enough, you can always find additional information online.

DIY beehive: step by step instructions with photo examples

Let us analyze, using the example of six actions, how to make a hive with your own hands from boards:

Photo example Actions performed


First of all, we align the pre-bonded "thorn" workpieces in a width of 250 mm.

Now you need to align them along the lengths of 439 mm and 434 mm.

We cut out the folds - top, bottom and side.

This is how the finished parts should look like. Now it's up to the little thing - to put everything together.

Approximately the same result should be obtained.

Of course, it is impossible to show everything in the instructions, but in fact it is not necessary. After all, any beekeeper learns all his life, trying something of his own, and therefore you will never find two beekeepers who make hives in exactly the same way. And yet we suggest watching a video on making a beehive with your own hands according to drawings and sizes. We think that after this there will be no questions left .. Do not forget that in different types of houses it is performed in its own way.


You can insulate the building with both ordinary foam and (polyurethane foam). These materials are non-toxic and odorless.

Important! In no case should you insulate the hive from the inside. Otherwise, you will get a situation in which, because of the wax, it will simply be impossible to pull out the frames.

Whenever possible, you should try to avoid sticking. As a last resort, you need to choose a composition that is odorless. You can use hot glue - it is neutral, non-toxic and the bees do not react to it.

The choice is very important. The best option can become aspen or linden. Conifers will also work, but in this case, you need to be prepared for the fact that in the first year the honey will smell a slight but tangible smell of resin.


Difficulties that may arise when building a house for bees

The main task in such work is the exact observance of all specified dimensions. And this is not just a whim of the one who came up with this or that hive. This is a necessity that has been tested over the years. Many people think that you can design and build a house for bees yourself according to your own invented dimensions, and then get honey no less than others. Will not work! It has already been said that if the distance between the frames is smaller, propolis will be formed between them by the bees and they will become inoperative. But what happens if you make the distance more?

In this case, the bee decides that it is necessary to build intermediate honeycombs, and as a result, the first option is obtained - everything sticks together tightly. As for the height - there are practically no restrictions. But it should be remembered that you will have to move the hives, which becomes problematic with a large weight.


Vagrant, alien bees are also quite a problem. Often they come with them. various diseases and it is from such incidents that the degeneration of the breed begins. If we again cite the Burzyan bee as an example, then its degeneration in Bashkortostan has already become noticeable. And the reason for this is the frequent arrival of beekeepers from neighboring regions.

And of course, do not forget about feeding insects with sugar syrup during the winter. After all, the bulk of the honey that they cooked for the cold period is taken from them. It is worth learning about all this in more detail, before making a hive yourself and settling the first guests there.

If you think about it, the process of making a beehive with your own hands is a complicated business, but quite interesting and exciting.

Frames for a bee house - the nuances of their manufacture

Frames are the backbone of the hive. And a lot depends on the quality and their correct execution.

Important! No matter what material the bee house was built from, the frames should always be made of good tree - linden, aspen or apple tree. This will ensure that the honey tastes better. The wire brace must be made of stainless wire if it is not wood.


Summarizing

Everyone knows that honey is not only a sweet treat, but also an excellent medicine. And the quality of the final product depends on what the hives will be, how they will be equipped. So all responsibility for this lies on the shoulders of the beekeeper. Do not forget about this. Well, what type of bee house to choose is up to you, our dear reader.

If anyone has any questions, we will be happy to answer them in the discussion, and perhaps even argue. Indeed, as you know, truth is born in a dispute. In the event that you find an inaccuracy in the information provided by us, we will be grateful if you point it out.

And finally, a video on the topic of making frames.


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