Beekeeping Beehives

Have Fun and Make Money With Beekeeping Beehives

Beekeeping is an exciting profession. Not only are you having fun with a great hobby, but you are also helping the environment by providing necessary pollination. You can often lessen your financial costs by purchasing used bee hives for sale and make a profit by hiring out your beehives.

Each type of beehive has singular characteristics. These are the three main types of beehives currently used by most beekeepers:

• Langstroth - The Langstroth is the most commonly used type of beehive. It is modular, expandable, and offers easy access for the beekeeper. It has vertically hanging frames, with an allowance between one-forth and three-eighths of "bee space," where the bees will avoid placing combs or propolis. The hive is expanded by adding boxes on top of the existing ones.
• Warre - The Warre is similar to the Langstroth, but is different in that new boxes are added to the bottom of the hive. Another difference is that instead of having vertically hanging frames, the Warre has simple slats that span the top of each box. The bees build their comb downwards, mimicking their behaviour in the wild when in a hollow tree.
• Top Bar - The Top Bar is quite different in design to the Langstroth and the Warre. The Top Bar is a more recent design and is more comfortable for the beekeeper because there are no heavy boxes to lift. There are no expansion features, but the hives are simply designed and easy to maintain. The hive has a long roof with 24 bars, each with a starter strip for the bees to build their combs vertically.

To maintain a healthy hive easily and comfortably, you need some basic equipment. You can purchase a beehive starter kit that includes everything you need for your new beekeeping beehive, or you can acquire items individually. Protective gear is one of the first considerations when installing a beehive. You will also need a smoker for pacifying the bees, a hive tool for scraping and cleaning, a bee brush to gently move the bees, and extracting equipment.

Wearing some type of protective clothing is a must. Some factors to think about when choosing affordable clothing on eBay include the following:

• Prior experiences - If you have an existing beehive, the past behaviour of aggressive or passive bees should dictate the type of gear you will wear.
• Purpose - Your tasks will dictate your gear. If your task is fairly disruptive to the hive, you will want more protection. If you are simply conducting a light feed, then you will not need as much clothing.
• Time of day - When it is hot and sunny, there are fewer bees hanging out at the hive. Less bees mean less possible stings.
• Time of year - Bees may be more aggressive in the fall than in the spring. Dress accordingly.
• Personal comfort - Ultimately, you need to wear what provides protection but is also within your personal comfort level.