time on your hands

copper12

In the coming weeks all if not most of us, will have more time on our hands than we ever expected.
So I thought I would start a post.
For the last ten years there were absolutely no honey bees’ in my garden, at east none that I could see.
I had hundreds if not thousands’ of bumble bees’ visit a beech hedge every May; so much so, that I
Changed the way I cut; the hedge’ every couple off weeks’ rather than once a year, over the last five or six years to prolong the new growth.
I would sit outside in the evening and listen to an orchestra off bumble bees.
The bumble bees, farmed the aphids’ that fed on the new emerging leaves, the bees fed off the honeydew
2017 I saw what I thought was a honey bee it was so long since I had seen one I was not sure.
2018 again none were to be seen
So last year I decided to do something about it
I built swarm traps and pleased them all around cork city about fifteen I total
And caught two swarms, one on the Southside of the city and one on the north side.
I then made two splits; of off these’ so went into the winter with four hives; all as off today, have survived.
Anyone making here own beehives and frames
I started last year making them from recycled wood
Anything from pallets to lover doors and in between .
Since a picture pants a thousand words I will post what I have done so far
I use modified Rose Hive method ten frames instead of twelve.

copper12

not sure if this works

copper12

https://youtu.be/KYC9Ybdgm1g

https://youtu.be/NVWAfJpmOlk

https://youtu.be/80-GnWdA6wE

lets see if this works

copper12

The above video links are of the second swarm I caught last year.
Since early march’ while driving around the area where I live; I would stop and search where ever I found rapeseed growing wild; on the side of the road.
Catch them in a jam jar’ like when I was a child, and bring them home and fed the sugar syrup.
After a number off weeks I had some regular visitors’
From watching these bees coming and going; I knew I had colonies’ to the north and the south of my location .once I saw honey bees on flowers and the beech hedge I stopped feeding.
To the south the bees were very dark in colour, to the north they wee much lighter in colour.
The swarm I believe came from the north of my location.
Believe me I got some surprise when they arrived

AubreyMartin

Yes we'll all have plenty of time to catch up on the outstanding jobs for the next few weeks or perhaps months!
I love the way you are using old materials to make new ones, I try also but not to the same extent as you. I love your workmanship in the frames.
Thank you for the videos of the swarms. I've had a large swarm landing and the experience is incredible. It is nothing that a video can portray, you have to be standing in the middle of them when they arrive, you have to feel the ground under your feet humming, and feel the odd one bumping into you.
I would advise everyone to try it sometime, as its quite safe to do!
Thank you again for posting and starting this thread!

copper12

top bars from the louver doors wax guide
I only use foundation less frames
I did however use some foundation; when I first started ,however it gave more trouble than it was worth.
So out of the four hives, that I have’ there are about a dozen with foundation strips.
I then went with hemp string stabled onto the top bar and waxed.
If I have to I will roughen the underside of the top bar first.
Now I just go with a strip off melted wax put on with a small artist brush
I have found that if I level the hives; side to side, and tilt the hives, back to front; frames running back to front; they build better comb.
They almost, always’ start building close to one of the corners

Boardnashea

Copper12, you are doing great work. Well done on securing and splitting.
Have you been beekeeping before?

How are you cutting the frame parts?

copper12

i have ment to make one of these for a long time

copper12

The bee barrow can be taken apart by removing four bolts
I.e. the flat section if necessary
Empty boxes it can carry at least four
Full maybe two
I will most likely have to replace the handle bars
I wait and see

copper12

Frame parts
There are numerous types of pallet’s out there
I tend to go for the pallets with a board thickness of 22mm.
However beggars’ cant be choosers’ and 18 to 20mm will do.
22mm will give me two end bars 9x 25mm or two side bars 9X35mm one top bar 25x15.
I then cut the rebate 45mm X 10mm two or three passes with the saw.
I raise the saw so I cut the rebate leaving a half to 1mm cut in the corner
This helps prevent splitting at the corner where the side bar attaches
This will give me four or five top bars per section cut to length.
Bee space for the side bars; I use a rougher to cut this, they then have to have the end piece corners rounded.
so the when sliding the frame down they will slide past each other’ without catching, or having to use to much force.
This is done with a modified grinder; with a flap disk attached, I also use this grinder to sharpen blades’ so it performs two tasks‘, handy tool to have. saves a fortune’ in blades as you can easily blunt a blade, if you hit a nail.
When assembling the frames the smoothest side I face towards the bees the roughest side inwards towards the hive.
These frames go into a ten frame modified Rose hive box

copper12

I have tried several ways’ to get the bees to build strait comb
Some more successful than others
This year hopefully I will use this method.
I see no reason why I should not work as the hemp string guide worked out well .
Tools
Slow cooker
Jig
Paint brush to moisten the jig with water
Artist brush to apply wax
Wax

Top bar is 25mm wide
Jig 12mm wide when wax applied it runs right down the middle of the frame
Its applied just over a third of the way along each frame, leaving the centre free’ as this is where I usually handle empty frames; as the wax is very brittle it breaks off .

manonboard

I know nothing about bees and keeping, but this was just incredible to read and watch. Well done good sir! You are obviously very resourceful!!

copper12

Feel free to share any of these post on any media
It may well encourage someone to tackle something they would not otherwise try
All if not most of my tools are from the twins Alde or Lidl even the nails

copper12

Just thought I would share my router set up

The photos tell the story

Pulley system to store workbench
Black and Decker workmate
Car jack to raise and lower the rougher
""No Volt Release (NVR) Switch

copper12

last few

copper12

I had to modify the bee barrow
It now looks like a chopper

copper12

Foundation less frames
Opened my hives yesterday first time since October
These frames are from the lower box as they winter on two boxes
The splits I made in June made it threw the winter brood and larva in both
The swarms are full of bees also plenty of brood and larva pollen
On the very dark queen has four or five frames of caped honey
This hive I will make plenty of splits hopefully

Apiarist

Amazing stuff, copper12! Thanks

copper12

I have no shame’ when it comes to recycling; and will use just about anything to make beehives.
Old mahogany and teak furniture
Old pine furniture’ its usually of the finest grade
Old beds; kitchen sideboards
Church pews
If its untreated’ but painted, or varnished, it can be used
If I pass a household skip; ill have a look
House renovations the same
No one has ever refused me access’ to the stuff they are about to dump
Some times it can be either a feast’ or a famine
As seen from the photos
These boxes are from some reclaimed plywood and pine bunk beds
Slatted rack’ the outside edge, are from a mahogany Coffey table
I made several of these from the underside of the table and legs

copper12

Vacuumed out of a skip it has variable suction function on the handle
If I do manage to use it the sliding panel can be removed if I have some brood come

copper12

Vacuumed out of a skip it has variable suction function on the handle
If I do manage to use it the sliding panel can be removed if I have some brood come

Effects

What's that atmos machine with the bluedoor?

Apiarist

Effects wrote: »

What's that atmos machine with the bluedoor?

http://mlarge.com/shop/atmos-dc40gs-wood-gasification-boiler.html

copper12

Yes victor
Wood gasification boiler
Next to it is an oil boiler
Top right hand corner system link controller

copper12

Preparing swarm traps
I don’t know if I will be able to place them around the city like last year
I will get a few put up around where I live
I enlarged some to have a volume of between 35 an 40 litres
Fitted handles to the top; as coming down off a ladder, you need at least one hand’ to hold on to the ladder.

AubreyMartin

When are you putting the swarm traps out Copper.
Was going to try a few this year to see what happens.

copper12

from now when when i get a chance

copper12

I was hoping this method would work.
I put in a few of these frames in; hoping that the bees would work these, the same way as the other types of frames, that I had used last year, foundation strip’ and hemp string.
As you can see they made perfect comb.
There’s a lot of larva in this frame’ so it only took three or four days’ to build out this frame,
for the queen to lay; the frame was put in several days ago.