The bienenkiste operates the same as a Quinby hive. Accessing it from the bottom does not change the way the bees act nor the way the hive is managed. Italians are not good bees to keep in this type hive because they overwinter with large colonies and would tend to starve on the amount of honey left in the hive. It is the perfect hive for Carniola or Mellifera. The only disparity is that in some areas with high honey production potential it would limit the amount of surplus the bees could store. The standard size of a bienenkiste gives a bit over 6000 cubic inches of volume which is adequate for most areas. If the back area were completely filled, the beekeeper would harvest roughly 100 pounds of honey.
The AZ hive is adapted for trailer based beekeeping. It is still a frame based system of beekeeping.
I've found this list invaluable for evaluating hives in terms of beekeeper ease of use.
1. How many frames have to be manipulated to manage the hive and/or find the queen? Langstroth 16 or 20, Dadant 11, 12, or 14
2. How many boxes are required to hold the brood of a prolific queen? Lang - 2, Dadant - 1
3. How many boxes are required for wintering? Lang - 2, Dadant - 1
4. Can it be set up for 2 queen operation? If so, how is it oriented? Lang - Vertical, Dadant - Horizontal
5. Does it "crowd" the bees in spring triggering swarming? Lang - yes, Dadant - less so
6. Does the entrance permit easy ventilation for hot climates? Lang - yes, Dadant - yes but better
7. How compact is the brood nest i.e. how many frames does it require? Lang - 16, Dadant - 12
8. Is a special extractor required? Lang - no, Dadant - Yes (I happen to own a 50 year old 4 frame tangential designed for Dadant frames)
9. How easy is it to produce queens in the hive? Lang - moderately easy, Dadant - a bit simpler
10. Can existing equipment be leveraged for use with the hive? Lang - yes it is standard, Dadant - Yes (I reused all of my shallow honey frames)
11. How efficient is the hive for space utilization? Lang - poor, Dadant - significantly better
12. How cost efficient is the hive? Lang cost $100 (2 boxes, top/bot, 20 frames, foundation), Dadant $76 (1 box, top/bot, 14 frames, 14 foundation)
13. Is being blown over by wind a problem? Lang - yes, Dadant - significantly less (calculated at 42% better stability for the same volume)
14. Is the hive easily palletized? Lang - yes, Dadant - yes
15. Can honey storage areas be reoriented easily? Lang - no, square Dadant - yes (rotate the super 90 degrees to improve filling efficiency)
16. Does the hive provide forager clustering space outside the brood area? Lang - no, Dadant - yes
17. Does the hive provide efficient flow of foragers from the entrance to the honey storage area? Lang - no, Dadant - yes
18. Is the hive designed to easily increase or decrease the number of brood frames according to queen capability? Lang - no, Dadant - yes
19. How much does a box full of honey weigh? Langstroth - 90 lbs, Dadant 125 lbs (ouch!)
20. Is it standard equipment easily resold? Lang - yes, Dadant - no (except in Europe)
21. Do suppliers sell the hive as standard equipment? Lang - yes, Dadant - regionally limited
22. Can splitting a hive be done by moving boxes? or frames? Lang - boxes, Dadant - frames
23. How is honey harvested and are any particular harvest tools required? Lang - relatively standard, Dadant - bee blower is less effective
24. Is the hive adapted for use with tropical bee races? Lang - moderate, Dadant - Moderate
Evaluate a horizontal hive such as the bienenkiste according to the above list and some of the answers are interesting.