Beehives as a fashion statement ;)

[flyboy]

I just built some Langstroth Hives. I have this idea to build a roof for it that will have an oriental kind of appearance.

Why? Because I want to and it will make my wife 'appy.

I was also thinking of having a water supply in it, done in such a way that it would not turn into a bee eating bird feeder.


So does anyone have any unique or maybe attractive looking hives that they would show us to give ideas. Or maybe pictures of oriental looking buildings for ideas?

[mikecva]

Just remember to watch the roof's weight.  Also remember: a happy wife leads to a happy life.  -Mike

[BlueBee]

I made a fancy top once and cursed it ever since.  Lifting heavy things is the bane of bee keeping. :(

If I were going to try to make a fancy roof again, I would make the ornamental parts of it out of foam just to cut down on the weight.  Kind of like how foam corbels are now used to replace the old decorative wood corbels on houses. 

[Santa Caras]

If your still in the mood.....look on Pintrest and do a search for bee hives. They have some really neat looking ones in there that may strike your fancy.

[BeeMaster2]

I built 2 lids out of solid live oak. Figured it would be so heavy that I would not have to worry about the wind or a raccoon would be able to knock it off. Problem is that when I weigh my hives I have to make sure it does not have one of those lids. It makes it feel like a the hive is full of honey when there is no honey left.
Jim

[flyboy]

Turns out they are convenient as I have placed the feeding jars under them. Once the feeding is over I will simply cover the underside, so the bees cannot get up into them and start building comb. Bee inspector pointed that one out.

The one with the entry hole in the middle is v3.0.

The roof is made from some old wallboard that was modified by cutting a series of slots in it so it would bend easily. Same way you make tambour. The ends are just 1x cut to shape. I screwed the ends to the table, with the edge at the edge of the workbench to accommodate the overhanging eave. When building I used pocket holes (you can see them in the photos) so that the roof wouldn't shift and twist while constructing. Version one did that, so I have a twisted roof for sale, reasonably priced. I will make a twisted hive to fit it for you, but you'll have to find the twisted bees. :-D I sealed openings with waterproof wood glue then put two coats of shellac all over, then two coats of latex paint. The peak is covered with silver metal tape.

I will make some ornaments for the roof when things slow down. Maybe a https://www.google.ca/search?q=steeple&rlz=1C5CHFA_enCA504CA504&es_sm=119&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=F6yQU4LSI8e9oQTWyIHIDQ&ved=0CEEQ7Ak&biw=1170&bih=1083

Next on the agenda is an oriental looking roof or maybe a temple, mineret, mosque or pyramid style roof..

It was really not much more difficult than a regular roof and doesn't look so industrial.

The idea came from the Bee happy calendar May which featured the fortnum and mason garden, London, although mine is much more pronounced and taller

http://s1048.photobucket.com/user/flyboy453/library/

[GDRankin]

Pretty nice work there flyboy!

Now you've given my wife some ideas and likely created some additional work for me ...lol

Oh and for those twisted bees, just run them thru the bee vac twice ;)