Very aware, but in the end it will give it character.
As I mentioned earlier, I haven’t even opened the boxes they came in. It will be an over Winter project. I’ll be sure to take some pics along the way and post them for everyone to have a look.
As for reaching out for a swap… I choose the Araucaria for the wood itself. Where I live there are more Pines than people…lol Plus I enjoy a challenge. The one I’m considering painting will def prove my lack of skills at being artistic… Scenery, designs, etc… Hard for me to draw a square…lol
Ha ha I’m not artistic either - I just used left over house paint - practical but ugly - then saw how beautifully some of our customers had painted theirs and got a little envious! Enjoy your project, and your bees when the time comes
I just assembled one of these- and I was also struck by the variability of the color of the cedar. I actually like it - and after staining with 3 coats of tung oil the hive has come up superbly. I also want to add that assembly went without a hitch all parts fitting very exactly and no damage anywhere. The hive is wonderfully light compared to my wax dipped pine hives. The new base design with tray is a big improvement and all the little features are really nice. I’ll be putting the bees into it in a week or two.
I painted the roof panels- giving them 4 coats including the primer. It’s all come up real fancy like:
Jack @Semaphore that looks amazing. The Cedar really pops with the Tung Oil. In my never ending quest to achieve similar results with the Araucaria, I believe I have found the solution.
I just got off the phone with a Rep from Structures Wood Care in Minnesota. They have a product called Nature One 100% Acrylic Exterior. It’s offered in Natural, Cedar, Teak, Mahogany, Walnut, and Pecan. https://www.structureswoodcare.com/products
We discussed the properties of the Araucaria, Grain, Texture, Rot Resistance, etc. Their product is Micro-Porous, provides UV Protection, Water Repellant, Fungi Resistant, Flexible, and VOC Compliant.
After educating her on the FH2 structure, setup, and my planned location. It appears this product will fit my needs well and last 3-4 years between Re-Coat (Their Renew line). Showcasing the wood and it’s beauty. She is sending out 4 samples to me to test on some White Pine. It is a little pricey, but for the price of the FH2, I feel the added cost is worth it to protect my initial investment.
They do not sell directly. I saw it listed for $76 and change USD on westernloghomesupply.com The closest distributor to me is a Sherwin Williams in Myrtle Beach, SC. However the rep told me if I choose to order they will drop ship to me through which ever distributor I select.
Hiya NuBee, I stained a pine box and painted it with a few coats of a polyurethane based satin clear in a 100ml tin I had lying around in the shed. Colours came out close enough, a matt finish would have helped, it’s waterproof and up stabilised. Should be good for at least 10 years.
You only need to paint the outside so don’t need much, I wouldn’t have used 1/2 of the tin.
Hi there. I’ve tried that as well in the past on a pine bench for my Mother. I actually put 7 coats of Poly on. Knocking or roughing each coat with 00 Steel Wool between each coat. Had a wonderful glossy finish.
Although the Heat and Humidity in NE South Carolina took it’s toil in only 3 years. Did that twice again, only to strip it and paint on some latex paint…lol. When I get the samples in I will do a test piece and post some pics.
this is my first year bee keeping and im desparatly trying to find some information on winterizing my hive!!!.. i live in wisconsin, and i feel this should have already been done!! i dont know what to use, how to do it, if i should feed them throughout the winter and how to do that, and when insulating, do i leave any areas open?? or do i cover the entire hive up??? COULD SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME ASAP??? I DONT WANT MY BEES TO DIE!! I NEED THE WHOLE SHABANG AS
FAR AS WHAT TO DO!!.. ive called flow hive themselves and this is where they sent me to get the info i need!! thank you in advance for anyone that takes the time to help me!!.. Amanda
Click on the little magnifying glass and start doing keyword searches. Start with:
Preparing for winter
Winter feeding
Cold weather
Overwinter
I don’t have the issues you do given my location but I’ve seen countless posts about preparing for winter here over the last few years.
Also, judging by your comments, you seem to have an awareness of what you likely need to do so I’d actually just get cracking and do that as a starting point.
:sob:. You rich NuBee:wink: