Phi Apiaria - Golden Ratio Beehives Description

Phi Apiaria

(Golden Ratio Beehives)

Description:

Apiaria (Beehives)

These hives are a type of top bar hive proportioned in accordance with the Golden Ratio (Phi). The hives are built according to plans purchased from BackYardHives.Com. incorporating the concepts and hive design of its founder Corwin Bell of Eldorado Springs, Colorado. The hives are built in Calgary by Ed Kuntz encourage by Eliese Watson, Founder, Apiaries and Bees for Communities, BackYardBees.ca.

The hive boxes are available in either 3/4” plywood or 3/4” pine. The hives are unfinished but ready for exterior painting or other finishes. A rubbed beeswax/raw linseed oil finish is available. The bottom board is attached to the hive from the side with three screws per side. This allows the easy removal of the hive box for inspection and cleaning of the bottom board.

A glass viewing window is provided along the side of the hive box. This window can ordered for either side of the hive. Please specify when ordering. The viewing window is provided with a cover.

If the hive box is going to be used as a supering box, a queen excluder lid can replace the normal lid and the normal lid can be used on the supering box.

The top bars are made of hardwood to lessen splintering if scraping is necessary. The hive box can accomodate eighteen (18) 1-3/8” wide (normal brood frame spacing) top bars if spacers are not used. Spacers, 1/4” x 3/8” are available to effectively increase the bee space by 1/4” in the honey frame section of the hive. The tips of the top bars are precoated with bees wax unless requested otherwise. Comb built on these top bars hang supported only by the top bar. To provide more stability, bees will attach comb to the side walls and window. During inspection this comb has to be cut from the sides to allow the removal of the top bar and comb. To aliviate this problem, I have designed a top bar with a frame. (See picture below.) The frame is designed so that there is bee space between the sides and bottom.

The 1/4” plywood false back is use in the mid section of the hive during the first week or so after the installation of a new package of bees and for use in the back end of the hive after the brood begins to be established. If the colony is established from a nuc the false back is generally not used.

The lid is made of a pine frame covered with 1/4” plywood. The top is protected with a covering of 1/8” white puckboard.

All metal screws used are stainless steel to prevent rusting.

In order to provide purchase flexability individual hive components are ordered on a piece by piece basis.

For example, if a supering box is required you would order the hive box of your choice along with a queen excluder lid and 16 to 18 top bars depending on the use of spacers in the supering box.

Images are of the Pine hives.

Hive with Lid showing covered viewing window.