My thread. New bee keeper needing info. will update with pics of my project.

[irishguy]

Ive been fascinated with the thought of keeping bees these last 2 years, making honey etc.. and getting as many hives as i can in the next few years and hopefully gain a 2nd income. Its all prob wishfull thinking at this early stage but its good to dream. Even if i dont make much money at it, im still really keen on the idea of getting as many hives as possible in the coming years.

I started of thinking about building a TBH seeing as its the easiest method for a hive but i really dislike the idea of the combs breaking easy and not being able to extract the honey and use the comb again like i would in a lang/national hive.

Ive decided to go down the route of building a national hive myself and buying some local bees and take it from there. I was actully thinking of investing £6000 into buying 25 nucs(or hives if i remember correctly) from the UK but will leave this for a few years yet because with money being tight at the moment i thought id just leave it for a few years yet untill im fully back on my feet financially without all the doom and gloom thats hanging around here at the moment in ireland. Ill prob look into seeing can i get the same deal in ireland for the amount of bees ill be looking seeing as its not best to import bees from the Uk or so ive been told.

Ive been doing plenty of reading and watching documentaries online and my misses has recently bought me the bee keeping for dummies and im wanting to crack on with my 1st hive. Ill be buying the timber in the next few weeks and building the hive myself and the bees will follow in april/may. Im hoping to get my hands on some local irish bees and have found somewhere not to far away selling buckfast bees for 175euro for 1.5kg. I still have to look into are these the local irish bees because at the moment, the name of our bees has slipped my mind.


Heres a list of what i think ill need. Im thinking 300euro or thereabouts for all what i need for my 1st hive.

timber for hive (see below)
gloves (i have welding gloves)
brush (can any soft brush do )
smoker (wheres cheapest place to buy these, ebay?)
bee keeping suit
beeswax and linseed oil ( for outside of hive for waterproofing)
buckfast bees (would 175euro be reasonable for 1.5kg bees with mated queen)

9 inchx3/4, 8 ft for brood chamber
2x 3/4, 8 ft for stand
2x 3/4, 6ft for bottom board
pvc sheeting for bottom board
3/ 4x3/4 , 8ft for queen excluder
6x 3/4, 16ft for 2 supers
2x 3/4, 8ft for frame for flat roof
felt or tin/copper for roof. (what evers the cheapest)

Or

8x4 exterior ply plus other timber for frame at bottom and roof.

 

[kevrhcfag]

Don't know about building as we bought everything, but started this year.

Gloves tend to be thrown in with a good bee suit, suggest a good beesuit. But gauntlets aren't great I find them too clumsy, better off with washing up gloves or surgical depending on the bees.

I would also tend to try and get a nuc box, made of ply or poly, you might need it and its handy to put teh frame with the queen in safe out of your way. Not sure about making money but wish you the best of luck.

 

[irishguy]

Don't know about building as we bought everything, but started this year.

Gloves tend to be thrown in with a good bee suit, suggest a good beesuit. But gauntlets aren't great I find them too clumsy, better off with washing up gloves or surgical depending on the bees.

I would also tend to try and get a nuc box, made of ply or poly, you might need it and its handy to put teh frame with the queen in safe out of your way. Not sure about making money but wish you the best of luck.

Would the bees not be able to sting through the washing up gloves. Why would i need the queen safely out of the way?

 

[irishguy]

Not sure about making money but wish you the best of luck.

Seen this on a UK website selling bees and would you say this is abit of advertising bulls**t. I have alot of money coming my way soon and wouldnt want it to be lying around in cash so was thinking of investing in something this this below.


Order early for April-May.
ALL April- May orders have to be COLLECTED due to bad delivery services and possible queen damage.
Add £30 for delivery depending post code Mainland only.
Bees for Busness The 25 working hives will cost £250 each = £6250 and should return you about one ton of honey, on average a jar of honey sells for £3.20 a lb there is 2240lbs in a ton thats £7168.0 per season
All nuclei will carry a health certificate for a small fee.

 

[DarynWebb]

Would the bees not be able to sting through the washing up gloves. Why would i need the queen safely out of the way?

bees can sting though leather gloves, washing up one I find less clumsy so happier bees, but I keep a pair of leather with me as a back up.

 

[irishguy]

bees can sting though leather gloves, washing up one I find less clumsy so happier bees, but I keep a pair of leather with me as a back up.

I dont really mind being stung, its just i dont want it to happen to often,lol

 

[kevrhcfag]

I dont really mind being stung, its just i dont want it to happen to often,lol

I have been stung 3 times this year.

I cut a bee in half its back end went in the top of my boot and stung me.

The other 2 were squashing bees as moving the frame around in my hands. Much more likely with gauntlets and keep the smell and harder to clean.

If you are like most people that start you will tend to look closer and longer at frames trying to figure out whats going on, you will probably also move frames move often and unnecessarily we've done and and most newbies do it. I squashed a queen but found having a box to put the frame in with the queen gives you a chance to look to your hearts content confident in the knowledge the queens safe. You may also need to do an AS or indeed want to make a nuc up later in the season so a spare nuc box will come in very handy either way.

You might want to search the forum around hive types, double brood, 14 x12 top bee space against bottom bee space et al. Things we never really thought of, but be warned there are far too many choices.

 

[Luminos]

I dont really mind being stung, its just i dont want it to happen to often,lol

They can sting through beesuits, too...

 

[beekim]

I am a newbee got my bees in june after doing a course very helpful,before i spent any money ,met a lot of very helpful people,are there any courses near you well worth the money i paid.good luck with your venture.

 

[WelshPaul]

Depends what you call often, I got stung 11 times in one go this year due to a thunder clap half way through an inspection.

 

[irishguy]

I have been stung 3 times this year.

I cut a bee in half its back end went in the top of my boot and stung me.

The other 2 were squashing bees as moving the frame around in my hands. Much more likely with gauntlets and keep the smell and harder to clean.

If you are like most people that start you will tend to look closer and longer at frames trying to figure out whats going on, you will probably also move frames move often and unnecessarily we've done and and most newbies do it. I squashed a queen but found having a box to put the frame in with the queen gives you a chance to look to your hearts content confident in the knowledge the queens safe. You may also need to do an AS or indeed want to make a nuc up later in the season so a spare nuc box will come in very handy either way.

You might want to search the forum around hive types, double brood, 14 x12 top bee space against bottom bee space et al. Things we never really thought of, but be warned there are far too many choices.

Ive never been stung by a bee so looking forward to getting a wee sting from one of my own just to see what all the fuss is about, sure ive even read its actully good for us.

Ill be keeping the hive as simple as possible. Ill be starting of with 1 broodbox then adding another and going for the most common spacing.

Im wondering how long does it take before i can actuly split the hive into 2 and isnt it best to bring it to somewhere with plenty flowers etc... What about a bog, theres plenty of bog near me with lots of bog flowers that dont really get touched. Apart from that, all that would be near me would be hedge rows,trees etc and the odd gardens that people have. My house is in the countryside thou most the land near me is all for rearing cattle/sheep etc... I have about 3 acre there myself but most it would be damp. Maybe i could get some flowers that take well to damp ground so then my bees wouldnt have to travel far

 

[Hombre]

Ha ha, were that it was just that simple . . .

Sometimes the weather is grim, the sun is going down, the foragers are all at home and feeling tetchy, but the job just needs to be done.

 

[Chris B]

Don't forget frames and foundation. Probably about £50 in total.

175 euro is okayish as long as it's April or May. Value of bees is partly seasonal. You could probably get cheaper if you look a bit more.
(You quoted a weight implying no frames are included).

 

[irishguy]

Don't forget frames and foundation. Probably about £50 in total.

175 euro is okayish as long as it's April or May. Value of bees is partly seasonal. You could probably get cheaper if you look a bit more.
(You quoted a weight implying no frames are included).

Is it ok to post links of where theyre for sale so you can have a look

 

[rolande]

looking forward to getting a wee sting from one of my own just to see what all the fuss is about, sure ive even read its actully good for us.

That may depend on whether it kills you or not....

 

[susbees]

Um...so someone with cash who has seen a few youtube videos thinks he might be able to manage 25 colonies and process a tonne of honey without ever seeing a live hive...or did I misread (hope so). Bees will not thrive on wet bog disliking damp conditions. Best join your local beekeeping group and ask lots. They are likely the best source of initial relevant info.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2

 

[snoop]

Join your local federation details on http://www.irishbeekeeping.ie/federation/affassoc.html I don't know where you are in the country. You will meet local beekeepers selling nucs . You will also have people to fall back on to help you out when you make a mess of things. You will also make contact with other beekeepers who will show you the ropes, if you ask them.
Learn to walk before you try running.
Firstly importing bees is not reccomended, and there are a lot of skills you need to get before you go investing money in that many hives.
Have a look at the Summer school details in Gormanstown on the website above. They run a week long beginners session

 

[Little John]

If you haven't kept bees before, I'd suggest starting-off with just two colonies for your first year - you can always up that number to several dozen in the second year if you find that the reality of beekeeping approximates anywhere near your dreams !

If the only thing putting you off a Top-Bar hive is the fragility of the combs, then you can either support the combs with skewers (I've see that done very successfully), or simply make a long hive (so-called Tanzanian Top-Bar Hive) dimensioned for either Top-Bars or frames, which is what I've done.

With regard to sourcing bees - ask around your neighbourhood - running local bees is a much better proposition than buying in from a commercial UK source, who may have got their Queens from overseas anyway, and are bundling them for sale with whatever bees are available (it happens). And they'd be a darned sight cheaper, too.

LJ

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I have about 3 acre there myself but most it would be damp. Maybe i could get some flowers that take well to damp ground so then my bees wouldnt have to travel far

For God's sake noone mention HB

Um...so someone with cash who has seen a few youtube videos thinks he might be able to manage 25 colonies and process a tonne of honey without ever seeing a live hive...or did I misread (hope so).

Sounds a bit like the bloke up the road from me

 

[QueenMaster]

You make me thinking of "The milkmaid and her pail" tale, a vast program but will it ever happen ?