Right a bit of a strange one. I live in a city centre with a small garden I have a small dog and neighbours gardens all around. I was thinking of putting my flow hive inside my workshop (big shed) with some kind tunnel system out the back of the shed. Stop the dog stressing the bees and any stray ball or kid getting too close. Would this affect the bees? I seen the idea in the kelvin art gallery they have a similar set up. Also a mentor in Glasgow area would be great if someone is willing to give me some of their time.
An idea similar to this “bee house” is done a lot in Europe from what I have seen pictures of. The trick would be modifying the entrance to accept the entrance tube but could be done easily enough with 1.5" flexible PVC and standard 1.5" PVC fittings. Or you could modify the roof to fit flush against the wall of the shed and just cut a slit to match the entrance on the hive
The entrance would be a simple bit of plastic hose. That is what we use in our display hive in the museum. However, the real trick is handling the bees in an enclosed area when you do an inspection. You end up with lots of confused bees that cannot get back into their hive.
[quote=“Rmcpb, post:3, topic:6655, full:true”]
You end up with lots of confused bees that cannot get back into their hive.[/quote]
That’s why bee houses have windows that open out-downwards. Bees will try to fly to the light, thus get to the windows and are led outside by the glass. And make sure you can “seal” your shed bee-tight, if you want to. That’s of great use when you start to harvest.
Thank you for all the feed back I plan on designing a section at the door of the shed that I can seal so I can work with the hive open and leave the door of the shed open so the confused bees can escape. Does the pvc tube that allows the bees to leave through the wall need to be the same width as the hive entrance for ventilation and to allow heavy traffic?
In feral hives bees prefer cavities that have an opening approximately the same size as 1.5" pvc. You would likely have to drill a hole in the box to accomplish this unless you get very creative on how to attach a tube to the wide narrow open most bottom boards create
Haha I know I’ll be in the middle of it. I think I’ll try and be creative and make something the width of the hives entrance. I’ve got a bit to go but I won’t be bringing my hive to the city until next year. Until then they can enjoy the country life. Is there a best time of the year to introduce you nuc to the hive? I live in Scotland if that’s any good. Thanks for all the help
Best time is warm weather during a nectar flow. I would say April to June in the UK. By July the nectar flow is generally decreasing. You could still do it, but you may have to feed them.
Hi Barrie - did you put your hive into a shed? I’m considering doing this but can’t think of a way of doing inspections without ending up with a shed full of bees. Did you solve this problem? If so, how? Thanks Steve
The key is to install windows high on the walls. The windows must open out and down. Or slide to one side like a sliding door. This allows the bees trapped inside the hut to fly out unhindered to the hive entrance which they are orientated towards. Once you have finished inspecting it’s a good idea to turn the light out if you have one. This helps guild the bees out the windows or door.
The dynamics of keeping beehives inside buildings…a method with great possibilites.
Bees are kept in darkness…with the exception of a small amount of light that enters via the flight tunnels…that’s all they need. Many beehouses in Europe have windows and they work fine. Bees are very good at orientating themselves…in the video, they can choose either an upper or lower entrance…I leave it up to them to figure it out…which they reliably do.
I work very hard to get a shed full of bees …for the final honeyflow, top shelving is removed and upper colonies(nucs) are joined with lower honey production hives.
The hives (18 single FD brood chambers with queen excluders on top) shown in the above video have the honey removed…that is, honey supers above the queen excluder are packed outside and the “abandonment” method of honey removal employed. Each hive now is configured so a double queen system is in place…and as many supers as possible are stacked on…the whole process takes two people about an hour and includes the application of oxalic acid impregnated “blue shop towels” for varroa mite control. Now there are only 9 hive units in the building. This is all done in anticipation of our last and traditionally largest honeyflow…the video below shows the final configuration. Very seldom is a bee crushed or a beek stung. After the removed honey is extracted, we go on a 3 week vacation…
…for the final honeyflow, top shelving is removed and upper colonies(nucs) are joined with lower honey production hives.