Thanks again for your help, @Dee.
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@Dee - āMy best mate paints his cedar with a mixture of raw linseed/beeswaxā¦ā I was thinking of using just beeswax for my hive, or is that not a good idea - does it need the linseed to thin it down? (as you can see, Iām completely new at this). If the beeswax isnāt going to be a good idea, I will go with the tung oil that Dragonfly found - I like buying local 
Sounds good. I wouldnāt even bother with the beeswax. Donāt use boiled linseed it stays sticky forever
I received my order of Tung Oil from Woodworks but didnāt bother with Citrus Turpentine because I thought Iād get it easily enough locally, bad mistake! Bunnings have a Gum Turpentine which looks like its made from eucalypt but would it be too strong for them? There was another post about Gum Turpentine but I didnāt see any reply. Anyone have any idea if Gum Turpentine will do instead of Citrus Turpentine to mix with Tung Oil?
It will work, but it can be toxic. It is not recommended for use on wood which will be in contact with food (bowls, wooden chopping boards etc), so I wouldnāt put it on or in my hives. You might have a different opinion.
I would just use the Tung Oil neat if you canāt get citrus. Should work fine. I only use the citrus to get better penetration and a more even first coat, but it is isnāt absolutely necessary.
Dawn
Thanks for the feedback Dawn_SD, My thoughts were that bees live amongst eucalypts but the concentrated distillate might be too strong. Would you believe that whilst nobody sells citrus turpentine locally, I came across a local company that manufactures bulk cleaning products for commercial market and one of their base ingredients is Citrus Turpentine (d limonene) so they were happy to sell me a litre of it, which I pick up tomorrow, so hive gets the Tung Oil treatment this weekā¦ready for Queen and nuc at end of the monthā¦woohoo! 
Hi All! I have started a blog about my flow hive and gardening experience. I posted about my experience with using Tung Oil on my Flow Hive. Just wanted to let everyone know about it. Thereās lots of pics. Hope itās helpful:)
http://www.scholarsrusticgarden.com/
What is the general consensus on how long to wait between coats to apply my second coat of tung oil? TIA.
I would wait at least one day. More than that doesnāt hurt - it is up to you.
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Depending on the ambient conditions drying time will vary. Iād not used Tung oil before, the oils Iāve used never really dried but Tung oil dries to a hard shiny finish which is why you should apply thin coats and wipe the excess off with a cloth.
Iām two coats through (thanks, @Dawn_SD for the 1 day tip). Just for reference for the next person, I ordered Tung oil and Citrus solvent (Milk Paint Co. Brand) from Amazon. Both came in 16oz jugs, and I mixed them 50/50. The first coat (on 2 deeps, 1 medium, roof, & base) took about 12oz of sealant. The second coat took less than 4oz. Iād suggest taking the plastic for the viewing window off before you treat your super, just to avoid having to clean it later. I think Iāll do one more coat in a day or so, then let it all sit for a good while before I move it outside.
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Hi all,
Everything Iāve read says that Tung Oil is an interior oil since it is susceptible to UV breakdown outside. What are your thoughts on this?
Wondering if anyone had use the Organoil brand of oils?
They have one called Woodwipe which is a blend of natural Tung Nut oil and Citrus oils. This sounds like the mixtures of Tung and Citrus people above have mentioned. They also sell these separately and they also have a Danish Oil and a few others.
Which one of these should I use and how much would I need to get to cover one full flow hive (base, brood box, one super and roof)?
These are available in Australia and I saw the Woodwipe at Hardware & General in Dee Why.
Thanks!
I mixed a lite of pure Tung Oil from the Woodworks with a life of citrus turpentine ((d limonene) and put three coats on my flow hive over a period of a week and I have over a lite of the mixture left over. The hive with the bees in it has been out in full sun for about three weeks and with several heavy downpours and it seems to be handling the weather OK. .but time will tell.
Itās citrus turpene ā¦bl##dy spell checker! 
Did you use it on pine Redneck, or did you get a cedar hive?
I ordered the tung oil while in the process of swapping from pine to cedar, but ended up having to swap back again because it was going to be a lot more (double) expensive than I anticipated. So, I now have a litre of tung oil and am waiting on a pine hive Iām not sure I can use it on.
From what Iāve read on this site, the tung is best on cedar, and the pine is best painted. Can anyone confirm that I shouldnāt use it on the pine?
You can use it on pine. I have done that late last year. If you donāt like the way it looks, you can paint over it later - you donāt even have to sand it off, a Tung Oil seal takes paint quite well once it has cured.
Hi there I was trying to be clear. I wanted to treat each piece of the hive with Tung oil prior to putting it together. Do you not recommend to have interior treated because the bees will coat the interior? Best to treat exterior only?
Correct, best to treat the exterior only. Plus best to treat it after construction - if you need to sand anything to get parts to fit, you will be sanding off the sealant.
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I agree with Dawn_SD, I had to do a bit of chiselling and sandpapering in various areas to get it all to fit and oiling the pieces before hand would have been a bigger nightmare. Once I had mine all assembled then I gave it the three coats of tung oil/citrus mixture over a week but only the surfaces that would be exposed to the weather, no internal areas. There was a bit of seepage through joints and on the top board around the hole but nothing that seemed to worries my bees whoāve been in it for about three weeks now. I donāt make a move with anything to do with the hive or bees without searching this forum to see what the gurus think first.
@Jaydub I used it on a cedar hive, but Iāve also got a pine hive ordered, for same reason as youā¦cost and my plan was to paint the pine hive instead of oiling it. I believe the pine wonāt be as durable as cedar, but the painting is primarily because my 6 yr old grandaughter is taking a keen interest in the bees and Iām going to put bee cartoons on it for her. The things we do for the little ones! 
Iāve seen a great example somewhere on the forum.
@Dawn_SD and others have said that the tung oil, that I was trying to give away locally, can be used on the pine hive, but Iāll see how hard the painting becomes first.