Top 10 Best Beehives Reviews and Guide
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Beehives are enclosed structures for inhabiting bees, especially in a commercial aspect. Bee farmers usually resort to beehives to safely accommodate bee colonies. There are one or more hive frames within the beehives on which the bees accumulate honey and wax. In a commercial setup, these hive frames are removed from the beehives to harvest honey and beeswax.
Beehives are crucial for producing high-quality honey. They make it easy for the farmer to monitor and inspect the bee colony and the possible yield. Having beehives of multiple frames gives the bees enough space, reducing possible diseases like colony collapse disorder. Modern beehives ensure that no part of the bee colony is destroyed during the collection of the wax or honey.
This is a pre-waxed beehive that has a glossy and smooth finish. The beeswax coating created an instant sense of familiarity for the bees, and it took them no time to adapt to this beehive. The beeswax also provides a pleasant smell to the product. It comes with ten frames inside.
It comes unassembled, but the detailed instructions make it relatively easy to assemble. The top cover is telescoping, preventing water from entering the hive. The product comes as a comprehensive kit that includes everything from the top cover to the bottom board and the tools you may need to assemble.
This is an affordable ten-frame beehive kit. It has medium super boxes and comes pre-waxed. The foundation sheets are also pre-waxed. The metal-covered top cover provides ample protection from rainwater infiltration.
The honey produced tends to stay relatively fresher for quite a long time. It comes unassembled, and you must follow the instructions to assemble it quickly. The dovetail joints make it extremely easy to assemble the product. But it seems pretty difficult to paint on the product due to the wax on it.
This beehive is made of high-quality pine wood. It is pretty affordable and comes with two brood boxes. The wax-coated foundation seems to be fastening the comb-building process.
It has 16 frames and comes unassembled. The foundation has two colors: black and yellow. The black foundation makes it easy to spot the eggs.
This beehive comes with ten frames that are easy to remove and install. The high-quality plastic foundations do not destroy the colonies while harvesting the honey.
The foundation surface has a hexagonal design, but as the surface is not waxed, the comb-building process is a bit slow.
This beehive is significantly larger, with forty hive frames arranged in four layers. This is most suitable if you plan to produce a lot of honey from a single hive. For domestic farmers, this product would be too much large.
It has a pre-assembled, metal-incorporated top cover that successfully prevents water content or predators from entering the hive. The hive’s widened entrance makes it easy for the worker bees to go out and in, which reflects in the high production of honey. There is enough provision for ventilation.
This beehive starter kit comes with a ten-frame Langstroth brood box. It is pre-waxed with 100% natural beeswax. The package includes all kinds of supplies like the queen excluder, entrance reducer, bee smoker, gloves, and many more.
The assembling process takes roughly ten minutes, and the dovetail joints and the pre-drilled holes make the process effortless.
This beehive is suitable for Langstroth beekeeping. It has a total of twenty frames arranged in two tiers. The wooden frames are all removable and support easy harvesting.
Rust-resistant top metal cover reduces water infiltration and offers extra protection to the colony.
This comprehensive beehive kit comes with ten solid wooden frames. It is pre-waxed in 100% natural beeswax.
The product’s highlight is the convenient window to observe and monitor the colony without disrupting them. The pine wood frames enable the bees to grow in a natural-like internal environment.
This large beehive has twenty frames in two layers. It also comes with a set of beekeeping equipment and supplies. The widened entrance makes it easy for the worker bees to travel, which positively impacts honey production.
Although the product comes unassembled, the dovetail joints and step-by-step instruction manual make it extremely easy to assemble the product.
This is a highly advanced beehive. The highlight of this beehive is that it comes with a built-in feeder, so you don’t have to disrupt the bee colony every now and then to feed them. It has a secure latch and insulation to protect the bees from any external elements.
The moisture blocker, the pollen trap, and the entrance reducer make it comfortable for the bees, and these favoring situations have relatively reduced the occurrence of diseases in the colony. The frame spacers quite conveniently space the combs from each other, making it extremely easy for you to collect the products.
Some of the significant features to consider while purchasing beehives are as follows.
Wax coating is an admirable feature in beehives. Wax coating contributes to the longevity of the beehive. The coating provides a water-resistant layer to the material, which reduces possible wear and tears. The wax used in coating the hives is usually beeswaxing itself. Having a coat of beeswax has also proven beneficial to the bees, as they are natural to them and non-toxic in nature. Painting is an alternative to wax coating, but it is generally difficult to ensure the non-toxic nature of the paint used.
The two major types of beehives are assembled and unassembled. Although both beehives have no upper or lower hand in ensuring the quality of the honey or wax produced, they inevitably have a varying impact on the farmer’s convenience. Assembled beehives save a significant amount of time for the farmers. They also ensure that the frames and the entire structure are in proper alignment without any errors that could affect bee farming. Unassembled hives come with assembling instructions and are less expensive, but the chances are high for the assembling to be less-professional and have minor errors.
Foundations in beehives are the surface of the hive frames, which the bees are supposed to cover with their wax and build their combs to collect the honey. Multiple types of foundations are available: wax, plastic, and foundation-less hives. The wax foundation is pasted in a hexagonal design, enabling the bees to follow the shape to build their combs conveniently. As wax is more natural to the bees, they adapt quickly to the hive. Plastic foundation is durable and easy to install and remove. Foundationless hives mimic the bees’ natural environment and are, thus, adopted quite widely.
The material of the beehives is crucial to their strength, durability, and longevity. Wood is the most commonly used material in beehive construction. The most popular woods used are pine, fir, and cedar. Although not so famous, beehives are also available in materials like polystyrene and plastic. These materials are not so natural but are less expensive and easy to maintain.
The design, size, and weight of beehives are pretty vital. The normally-sized beehives have about 19 inches in length, 16 inches in width, and nine inches in height. The weight of the beehives depends on whether you plan to stack the beehives vertically or horizontally. Vertical stacking is quite impossible with heavy-weighing beehives. Regarding the design of the beehives, proper ventilation and the roof design are crucial elements. The roof’s design or shape influences rainwater infiltration into the beehives.
Beehives are manufactured structures that bee farmers use to accommodate bee colonies. They provide shelter, safety, and a convenient location for the bees to build their combs from which the farmers get to collect produces like honey and beeswax. After considering multiple beehives on the market based on the quality of their material, design, dimensions, ventilation, ease of assembling, etc., the Hoover Hives 10 Frame Beehive turns out to be the best of the lot. It features an impressive ten-frame structure, high-quality wooden built, modern design, heavy wax coating, and sophisticated craftsmanship.
This post was last modified on March 19, 2023 7:13 am