Free PDF Ebook on How to build a Top Bar hive

[journey11]

I hear ya, I get overwhelmed looking at the catalogs because there is just so much stuff and you wonder just how much of those things you really need--it adds up fast. I bought 2 different beek books, and of the two Beekeeping for Dummies was more helpful for me. I may not do everything their way, but it's a good place to start. I am going to go ahead and join my local organization this year. It's hard to sort through everything on your own and this is one hobby where you really benefit from a mentor.

 

[lesa]

Joining a bee club, is a great idea. Ours takes a field trip into one of the members bee yards. Nothing likes hands on experience! You won't end up doing everything they recommend, but it sure helps to be able to sit down and talk to "real" beekeepers! I am living proof that you don't need to know much to be a beekeeper! The bees pretty much know what to do without my help!

 

[Ariel301]

This is the style hive I ended up with when a friend gave me his hive. It's easy to make them, but I've found the downside in mine is that the bees didn't build tidy strips of comb hanging down from each bar, they've just sort of gone crazy in there and it's all stuck together, so when I lift any one bar I end up breaking pieces of comb because they are sometimes suspended between two bars, or built up into the cracks between bars, or other weird things. There's plenty of room to expand, so it's not like they're just getting cramped and filling in how they can, they've only filled half the hive. Is it just my bees, or does this happen a lot with these hives?

 

[lesa]

Ariel, this is the one complaint that I have about that style hive. I really don't want to tear apart the bees "house" every time I open the hive... With the lang, you can pull out a frame, without disturbing any other part of the hive. Since I am in a cold climate, it seems cruel to tear apart all that hard work- the bees may not have the time, or conditions to rebuild in time for winter...
That being said the top bar hive is very popular, and must be working for a lot of people and bees! How are your bees doing, now?

 

[Jared77]

Did you space the bars out per the dimensions? And put a runner in the bar to encourage them to build off that?

How often are you checking on them? How long have you had this type of hive set up?

Havent built it yet but thinking seriously about doing it.

 

[vfem]

Thank you for this link! We're still going to build a hive at some point. I wish it was now so I could order the nuc in time for spring... but money is tight and my husband is putting his hobby on hold for the better of the family. So sweet!

Thank you for all the info you shared with me earlier in the fall.

 

[Collector]

I am going to build one of these type hives next week. There is a plan for one on backyard beehives for $10 I think that may be the one i will build. It has a veiwing window on one side that is full length of the hive. That way you can see what is going on in the hive without taking the top off. With the veiwing window you can see if you need to harvest some of the top bars if they are getting to thick. Also I have read that having the hive level is important for them to build the honey comb perfectly straight. We will see how it goes, I still have a lot to learn about bees!

 

[Ariel301]

Ariel, this is the one complaint that I have about that style hive. I really don't want to tear apart the bees "house" every time I open the hive... With the lang, you can pull out a frame, without disturbing any other part of the hive. Since I am in a cold climate, it seems cruel to tear apart all that hard work- the bees may not have the time, or conditions to rebuild in time for winter...
That being said the top bar hive is very popular, and must be working for a lot of people and bees! How are your bees doing, now?

Yeah, I'm definitely thinking I am moving these bees to a langstroth, I don't care for the top bar even though it's so simple to build. I think the aggression issues I had with them stemmed mostly from them getting mad at me tearing up their home. They're not out and about much lately because it's been cold. Also, we lost a good portion of the colony because some critter pried the top of the hive open and removed some bars (I'm thinking packrat...) and then I didn't find out until after we had several days of hard rain, and the hive took on a lot of water, which then froze solid faster than it could drain out through the drainage holes in the bottom. I'm going to put a feeder out for them tomorrow as it looks like they don't have much left inside the hive.

 

[thistlebloom]

You might want to take a look at the website journey started the thread with before you decide Ariel. I just finished the Barefoot Beekeeper and the author has some very compelling arguments in favor of the top frame method. Your problems may be stemming from the type of top frame your bees are housed in, unless I'm confusing you with a previous poster who inherited the hive and was having difficulty.

 

[journey11]

The bees are very specific about the width of the bars. I tried using just the top bars off of a lang frame this summer and it was too narrow; they wouldn't build on it at all. Many top bar beeks use a starter strip of wax and a wooden guide to help the bees build a straight comb. The distance between the bars is another factor. If you were going to do the top bar hive, you want to follow exactly the dimensions and directions of someone who has done it successfully (i.e. The Barefoot Beekeeper). An 1/8th of an inch might seem like no biggie to us, but the bees are very particular!

Anyone interested in trying a top bar hive, I really recommend you go over to the forum at www.beesource.com They have an awesome beek forum all the way around, but they also have a very active natural beek section. You can get a lot of answers there.