Styrofoam hives are not difficult to make with your own hands. But before you get down to business, it is necessary to study all the pros and cons of the design, rules of care and maintenance, as well as find suitable drawings and follow all the rules of assembly.
At all times and in all countries at any works it is possible to use rather universal material - a tree.
But, today progress has gone so far, that the tree can already be replaced, as partially, and completely.
At the same time, artificially created materials have excellent characteristics and are no worse than wooden structures, and often even better. Beekeeping in this regard is no exception.
What are the pros and cons of expanded polystyrene?
To date, houses for bees, made of expanded polystyrene, are becoming increasingly popular, replacing old samples of wooden structures. What is the reason for the popularity of expanded polystyrene??
To begin with, it is necessary to highlight its advantages:
- lightness of the material, and hence the design, that was made of it;
- quite simple processing, as well as the ability to manufacture the required structure yourself;
- Styrofoam hives are excellent protection against moisture, heat, and cold;
- low cost;
- ease of maintenance and easy repair if necessary.
Of the disadvantages is the lower strength compared to wood and the perfect lack of moisture absorption, as a result, condensate droplets will accumulate inside such a structure.
Also, the disadvantages include high activity of bees in winter, therefore, it will be necessary to take care of more food at this time (close 30 kg per strong family).
The way out of the current situation may be the organization of additional ventilation.
reference information
The first hives made of expanded polystyrene appeared in the 60s of the last century. At the beginning of production, the evidence from this material was made of solid grades of foam.
But over time and under the influence of progress, beekeepers switched to Styrene food, which turned out to be much more economical, and the quality is not worse than previous counterparts.
To date, beehives made of expanded polystyrene produces more 20 world-renowned beekeeping companies.
So, deciding to use just such options, you can buy ready-made samples or use drawings and sketches, taken from the internet, buy the necessary materials and do everything yourself.
Especially since the process of making such a hive is not particularly difficult and does not take much time, and the result will not be worse, than on the counter.
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Styrofoam hives: main advantages and main disadvantages
If you have decided on that, that you will make a beehive with your own hands from expanded polystyrene, then you will be sure - in this house your bees will be quiet, comfortable and clean.
That fact is also considered to be an undoubted advantage, that you can make multiple enclosures, completely identical in parameters and then change their places or rearrange. A distinctive feature of polystyrene structures is that, that hives from it become only multilevel.
If the hive of the tree a lot of allowances, then for expanded polystyrene such problems are not relevant. Also, the walls of the house will be smooth and even, without knots and any chips, without cracks and withered fragments with large holes, where bees strive to climb, if you do not close the hole in time.
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Having made beehives from expanded polystyrene, you can forget about the weight and cumbersomeness of wooden structures, as well as on wood rot and the need for repair.
Beehives have a collapsible design, durability in use, as well as ease of manufacture with their own hands, which will be much cheaper, than buying a new finished design.
The disadvantages of polystyrene hives are considered:
- not the ability to pass and absorb moisture, due to which water droplets are collected at the bottom of the structure;
- to clean the hive from propolis in this case is much more difficult, than in a wooden house: if in the second variant it is possible to use a blowtorch, then in the first case only special chemicals will help, which can damage your bees if handled improperly;
- fragility of internal rebate housings;
- high feed consumption, which can be combated by creating a lower temperature in the nest or by arranging additional ventilation;
- not suitable for keeping strong families;
- inability to adjust the cells, due to which there may be cases of theft and penetration of rodents.
Features of the use of hives, made independently
One of the features of such a hive, made independently, can be called the use of film instead of canvas, as well as the need to properly ensure thermoregulation in the nest.
So, in summer, ventilation is carried out through a hole in the bottom of the hive, fixed with a lattice. Its dimensions should be close 20 on 30 cm.
Also, keep the eye completely open for the width of the entire body.
Most often in such a design is made one fly. If you use partitions, then at the time of active medical collection you may need the top, as it will be difficult for bees loaded with nectar and pollen to pass through the lattice to the top of the hive.
It will not be difficult to make such a hole on the spot, using a stationery knife. The approximate size of the upper flywheel should be close 3 on 3 cm.
For the winter, the lower hole must be left completely or partially open, as well as a mesh about 5 cm. The film is stretched over the frame (need a whole year).
This design eliminates the ingress of cold air into the club, and moisture from the breath of bees is excreted through condensate on the film and walls, which drains into the lower hole.
On the one hand, this can be called a plus, because fields and icicles will not be formed.
When spring comes, the hole in the bottom can be closed, and leave the eye open on 2-4 cm.
Don't forget that, that the hives are very light, therefore they need weighting, so that in windy weather they do not overturn. One or two bricks on the cover of the structure are enough for this.
Another feature is the need to use handles on the body, but they must be fixed to the walls, where are the falsetto for that, so that the load inside the hive is distributed correctly.
Sharing the case, do everything carefully and slowly, so as not to damage the overall design.
Winter warming of bees in beehives from expanded polystyrene does not demand any warming.
What will be needed to make a beehive from expanded polystyrene?
Before you start working on making a hive of expanded polystyrene yourself, you need to take care of that, so that you have everything you need to create it.
You will need it to make it:
- The main material is extruded expanded polystyrene, which will be the basis for future proof - sold in specialty hardware stores. You can take letters from any manufacturer ( Technonicol, Ursa and others).
Pay attention to that, that this material comes in different shades, depending on the purpose. You need that, which is used to create an insulating layer of buildings. Thickness - not less 3 cm.
Known cases, when the material was used in the work, in which large household appliances are packed, as well as clippings from large leaves. - Item for cutting parts - better stationery than a new blade or scalpel.
- Liquid nails or construction adhesive type "Titanium".
- Mounting foam for clogging small holes.
- Metal profile, 1 sheet for making the cover.
- Shallow sandpaper.
- Grille for ventilation with small cells (to 3,5 mm). Some note, that a good option would be to play for car bumper tuning.
- Metal frames.
- Self-tapping screws in length 5 and 7 mm, screwdriver.
- Ruler (long and metal), as well as a pencil or pen.
- If your bees have a tendency to heavily contaminate the hive with propolis, then buy more plastic corners, which are used for processing. They will need to be pasted into the folds.
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Drawings for beehives from expanded polystyrene
If you do not intend to spoil the material or you do not want to get a lot of scraps, unusable for further use, as well as for that, to properly cut all the details, before you start making a hive from expanded polystyrene with your own hands you need to make drawings on paper.
Frame sizes for hives
This is a variant of the finished sketch, which can be used in the manufacture of hives:
Picture 1. Styrofoam hive body
Picture 2. Drawings of the bottom of the hive
Picture 3. Hive roof design
Picture 4. Side of the bottom of the hive with polystyrene foam
If you decide to use your own drawings, then it will be, no doubt, more correct decision, because you can take into account all the necessary and important nuances for you.
Hive manufacturing technology
When you have prepared the necessary patterns on paper, then the next step will be to create blanks of expanded polystyrene of the required size for the future house.
Marking is best done with a pen and ruler. Thus when you cut out a detail, it is necessary to make cuts with a knife parallel to a ruler and densely to it at right angles to full cutting of expanded polystyrene.
The edges of all components must be smooth and smooth. If they do not meet these requirements, then carefully align and treat all imperfections with sandpaper.
Make a fitting before gluing the components. After that, you can start assembling the complete structure.
Use glue or liquid nails to join the parts, and then about every 10-15 cm fasten with additional screws, drowning their hats in the case on 0,2 — 0,5 mm.
When you gathered the evidence, then check, whether there are gaps and holes at the joints. If such flaws are detected, then carefully cover them with foam. If you don't, then there will be a draft in the hive, and also light will get into cracks.
The bees will quickly find this place and make an extra eye. It is better to cut off any protrusions and other superfluous parts of a design, to make everything look neat and whole.
The next day, leave the houses and do not touch, providing them with complete drying of glue and fastening of a design.
If your house is multi-storey, then carefully assemble all components before assembling the solid frame. Only then can all parts of the future large hive be glued into one multi-level structure.
Be sure to consider that fact, what is needed on certain sides (usually the back and front) make special folds to install the frame.
It is best to make thin wooden slats on them, on which the framework itself will apply.
The roof is made last, when all other design is ready and pleasing to the eye. To create it, you can use the same polystyrene foam, tree, plywood sheet or metal profile.
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The main rule - it should not be too heavy, so that the whole structure can withstand its weight.
It is important to remember when creating a hive from expanded polystyrene
A very important point in the long-term preservation of your hive in its original form will be painting all the details, under the influence of external factors.
Be sure to use non-toxic, non-toxic paint formulations, so that your bees are not harmed in any way. Water-based paint is ideal, without the use of acetone in the composition.
Do not forget to apply different paint composition on the houses - this will help the bees to distinguish their nest from someone else's.. For yourself, it is better to make a mark on each of them by serial number
Remember that, that you should always have a few sheets of expanded polystyrene in stock for that, so that if necessary you can arrange a quick repair or replacement of components.
cleaning the hive
Regular cleaning of the hive is required in any case. This fact does not even depend on that, what material was used in its manufacture.
If your hives are made of expanded polystyrene, then a sponge can be used for cleaning and, if necessary, disinfection, moistened with a detergent diluted in water or propolis tincture on alcohol.
If you have an infection in your hive, then caustic soda will cope well with it, diluted in the right proportions with water.
After any treatment, the case must be well washed with plain water without additives, and then dried in the sun.
damage to hives
The most common damage to this type of hive is caused by birds and rodents. For this reason many beekeepers still refuse to use this material in the manufacture of records. In fact, the problem is quite easy to overcome.
Finnish beekeepers, who have been using expanded polystyrene hives in their work for a long time, upholster the outer walls of houses with thin sheets of tin.
This does not have much effect on weight, but greatly complicates the lives of rodents and birds.
The advantages of the hive, made independently
Styrofoam is a simple material to use, just put a little effort, dexterity and time. Especially since the Internet has a lot of drawings of finished structures.
What is the difference between self-manufacturing and buying in a store?
- You will not spend a lot of money to buy materials. If you decide to buy a ready-made version, then it will cost many times more.
- Use that, that he made with his own hands, pleasantly, and if the bees remain grateful for the construction of a new nest, then it brings twice as many joyful emotions.
- Practice shows, what are those designs, that you do yourself, have a longer service life compared to those purchased in stores. This is mostly due to a more careful attitude towards the subject of their work.
- Making a hive yourself, you think through every detail and adjust it to the millimeter, which allows you to carefully study the structure. Such knowledge will be useful during operation.
- You can make drawings for the hive yourself, which allows you to create exclusive options, which no more beekeepers have. The beekeeper also thinks through every detail, making the design comfortable for personal use.
- You get immense pleasure from the manufacturing process, and the end result will please you for a long time.
Summing up, it should be said, that modern beekeepers have much more opportunities, than their predecessors had. They should be used to the fullest and do not be lazy to invest in your business not only money, but also personal work.