Beecentric Hive

Beehives Built For Bees

Beecentric Hive Diagram

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Beecentric Hive Component Diagram

Whether you’ve ordered a Beecentric Hive through the mail or your just curious about how it all goes together, we’re a brief overview of the Beecentric Hive components and how to assemble them.

The Beecentric Hive has four general components: the Vented Roof, the Screened Quilt Box, Bottom Board, and Boxes.

Top Assembly: Warre Hive Roof and Quilt Box

Vented Warre Roof

The Vented Roof is designed to shed the elements while allowing moisture to escape the Quilt Box. The roof is based on Warre’s original design and is slightly larger so that it can fit snugly over the vented quilt box. Bees do not occupy the space between the quilt and the roof.

Screened Quilt Box

The Quilt Box and Bottom Board are inverted versions of each other. The Quilt Box is deeper to accommodate insulation and sits on top of the hive, with the screened side facing down. The screened Bottom Board sits on the bottom of the hive with the screen facing up.

The Quilt Box is designed to insulate the roof and prevent heat from leaving through the top of the hive while also preventing condensation. When filled with insulation such as wood shavings, excess moisture is wicked from the hive and allowed to dissipate through the vented roof.

Honey and Brood Boxes

8 Frame Medium Boxes

Unlike a conventional Langstorth Hive, The Beecentric Hive uses medium boxes (and frames) for brood and honey. Using one size of box simplifies the management, reduces the need for a queen excluder and provides the flexibility to add boxes to the top (supering) or bottom (nadiring) when managing.

Because honey and brood are on medium farms, before harvesting, I remove any empty frames and condense all the brood and as much honey as I can into the lower box(es). Being able to move frames of honey into the overwintering boxes means that I do not need to rely as heavily on feeding. Excess honey is removed for harvest.

Deep Frame Adapter

A deep frame adapter is a shallow 2 7/8″ box that converts a medium into a deep. Adapters are useful for accepting deep frames from a nucleus colony or for anyone who wants to keep their brood in a deep box.

The deep frame adapter can be used to increase the depth of the quilt box for added winter insulation or used as a have-stand.

Bottom Assembly

The bottom of the BeeCentric Hive consists of a slatted rack, screened bottom board, entrance reducer, and coroplast insert.

Slatted Rack

The Slatted Rack provides an air gap between the hive entrance and the central space (boxes) where the bees tend their brood. This gap acts as a buffer between the temperamental outside world and the carefully maintained internal conditions of the beehive. Slatted racks:

  • Helps bee maintain their desired internal temperature and humidity within the hive.
  • Encouraged brood production all the way to the bottom of the lower frames.
  • Prevents driving wind and rain from entering the hive.
  • Offers an internal space for bees to beard on hot days.
  • Prevents the entrance from being blocks by dead bees during the winter.
  • Encourages winter cleansing flights.

Screened Bottom-Board

The screened bottom is similar in appearance to an inverted quilt box. The bottom board features a 1/8″ galvanized screen and bottom insert for performing mite checks and an integrated landing board. An entrance reducer is provided in order to reduce the opening to a naturally sized opening.

Stacking Beecentric Hive Components

When stacked on top of each other, the Beecentric Hive should resemble the following diagram. From the ground up; Bottom Board with large reducer, Boxes, Quilt Box with small reducer, Vented Roof.

Beecentric Hive, Expanded View

Medium Langstroth Frames

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A Warré Style Beehive With Medium Langstroth Frames

The hive boxes of the Beecentric Hive are designed to work with the same standard medium Langstroth frames that you can buy at any bee supply store in North America. As a result, the Beecentric Hive is compatible with any market honey extractors, medium frame feeders, and foundation.

Beecentric hives use medium frames for brood boxes and honey supers to simplify your beekeeping operation, reduce heavy lifting, and make winter preparation easier. Hive comes equipped with a deep frame adapter to convert a medium box into a deep frame box when accepting a deep frame from a nucleus colony.

Shipped Beecentric Hive Assembly

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Beecentric Hive Components, Diagram, and Assembly

Whether you’ve ordered a Beecentric Hive through the mail or your just curious about how it all goes together, we’re a brief overview of the Beecentric Hive components and how to assemble them.

Assembling Beecentric Hive Boxes

To keep shipping costs affordable, Beecentric Hives in shipped with unassembled boxes. Each box consists of four pieces – two long sides and two short faces. All four parts will have handes nearest the top of the box. When assembling, make sure that handles are on the outside.

To assemble your boxes, you will need:

  1. Identify two side pieces and two face pieces required to build one box.
  2. Pick up one of the long side pieces and identify the handle. Rotate the piece such that the handle appears to be near the top.
  3. Flip the piece horizontally such that the handle is facing your working surface.
  4. Dab or brush the surface of the finger-joints with wood glue.
  5. One at a time, insert the shorter two pieces into the freshly glued finger joints. The frame rests should be facing each other while the handles should be facing outwards.
  6. Gently tap the boards together with a rubber mallet. If you do not have a rubber mallet, use a block of wood and a hammer.
  7. Use a square to test that both boards are perpendicular to the working surface.
  8. Dab or brush the exposed surfaces of the finger joints.
  9. Use a mallet to insert the remaining piece ensuring that the handle is on the outside and nearest the top of the box.
  10. Rotate your box, using your mallet and square to close any gaps and test for square.
  11. Use a brad-nailer to add a nail to the outermost finger joints. Be careful not to nail into the frame rests. If you do not have a brad-nailer, use thin exterior finishing screws or nails. When using nails or screws, it is advisable to drill a 1/16″ pilot hole which will prevent the wood from splitting.

Painting Your Beecentric Hive

To protect your hive from the elements and increase its longevity paint all of its exterior surfaces. Products such as exterior-grade primers and latex or oil paints work well but should be allowed to dry thoroughly before exposing to honeybees.

Only paint the outside surfaces of the hive and leave any internal surfaces natural as the bees will cover it was a layer or propolis – a sticky resin collected from plants.

Painted Beecentric Hive in an Edmonton Backyard
A Painted Beecentric Hive

For a more natural look like the hives pictured on this website, apply two or three treatments of linseed oil. Linseed oil is pressed from flax and is food safe. Though, admittedly, it is not as durable as paint and will need annual reapplications.

For a more durable natural finish, buy or make a linseed oil and beeswax finish. I’ve have been tempted to try tung oil but have not done so yet.

8 Frame Medium Hive Boxes

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Simplify Your Beekeeping Practice With 8 Frame Medium Boxes

8 frame medium hive boxes for honey supers and brood boxes. Beecentric Hive
Eight-frame medium hive boxes for honey supers and brood boxes.

Unlike conventional Langstroth hives, the Beecentric Hive uses eight-frame medium boxes for both brood and honey. No need to worry about purchasing separate boxes or two sizes of frames. The only difference between a brood box and honey super is what’s in them. This is especially helpful for splitting colonies or making nucs. With a common size box, splitting a hive is easy – simply transfer brood, pollen, and some frames of honey from an established hive into an empty hive box. No need to worry about mismatched frames and box sizes. Everything is consistent.

Increase Winter Survival Rates

Eight frame medium boxes are ideal for over-wintering because they are the same width as the brood nest and overwintering cluster of bees. With less space to heat, the bees don’t have to work as hard. In larger 10-frame hives, it’s not uncommon for overwintering bees to starve when the temperature drops down, and they’re unable to reach honey contained within the outer two frames. The 8-frame hive eliminates this problem by matching the hive to the natural dimensions of the bee cluster making is a must-have feature for cooler climate beekeepers.

Lighter Lifting

When filled with honey, eight-frame medium boxes weigh between 40 and 50lbs. In contrast, ten-frame deep boxes filled with honey can weigh between 75 and 90lbs.

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