Cirque SolEvans - AZ hive shed - Plans (kinda) -

[@markdelpiere4788]

Thank you soooo much for posting this - will be a great help as we our just starting the construction of a bee house! We decided to go the route of a Slovenian style bee house due to the climate we live in - central mountains of Colorado at 8675' elevation and, well, cold . We are planning on using Drebbieville hives from Georgia in the shed. We've had OK results using standard Langstroth hives protected behind a wind/critter fence and utilizing Bee Cozy hive wraps in the winter, but feel that this will give the bees a better chance.

[@JAleksandr]

Mark Delpiere let me know when you get it done!!! I’m east of C.Springs and would love to check it out!!!

[@edwarnock9884]

I really like this plan. I would consider the following for our area. Looking at the overhanging roof, which also needs to be adjusted to your latitude. You want winter sun on the front of your bee house, and conversely no sun on the front in the summer months. I also would see an advantage to roof or attic ventilation that can be opened up for warm weather or sealed shut for colder weather. In my climate temps can range from just above zero at night to 100 degrees plus in summer. These warm temps alone are enough to cause wax to melt in a hive under direct sun. We used Langstroth hives back in the seventies and eighties, but today's sun is a bit hotter than it was back then due to magnetic changes (weakening) of the Magnetosphere.

[@danielwnyman]

The floor under the hives are for insulation, necessary if the winter temperature goes under 40 degrees! Normally the size are dimensioned whit the golden-ratio to be more "harmonic" in the shape. For example: if the width are 102" then the depth are 165".

[@cacurious]

Thanks for the response Daniel. Others have mentioned the need for the insulation under the hives (colder climates) and even partially open in more temperate climates to promote airflow. That being said, do you have any thoughts on why the designer left off the sub-floor under the hives? The best guess/opinion that I have heard, so far, is because it may leave an inaccessible space, prone to mold and mildew. Any thoughts? Thanks again.

[@danielwnyman]

@@cacurious There should not be possible for any mould or mildew to grow, it should be built so hi of (from) the ground that the wood-material don't get wet (depends on the mount of precipitation on the site and how it distributed over the year (how vet the ground are and over how long period's). My guess is that its just a wast of material and time to build the ground floor there under, because of the reason you mentioned. And yes, the higher air-moister level or the higher air-temperatures are the more important there are for air-flow true the hives and the building. So any diseases not get hold and the same with moulds and mildew.

[@paulwoodley489]

Great help! I tried to join the fb group but haven’t had an acceptance or rejection yet, can you look into this? I’d love to see what people are talking about and chat with like minded people!

[@rapunzeleh546]

i built a bee 'house' last winter, in pieces, in my workshop, so as soon as there was enough snow gone, i could put it together outside so it was built when i got my new nucs (could heat the space so they didn't fly for two days from new zealand to come to canada in the snow and dark!)... just recently found the slov hives, so over the winter i want to build some and move the girls into that - have you found the plans for the actual hives? have seen a few pictures and some sketchy diagrams...

[@cacurious]

Rapunzel, Come on over to the AZ Hive creators Facebook page. facebook.com/groups/1388921391159912/ Look under the files section. There are some amazing plans there. (Some of the sketchier ones, may be mine...I apologize. ;) Just keep in mind that many people who seem to design their own AZ hives have done so around their individual needs. That being said, it's a great collection of very clever (and nice) DIY Beekeepers.

[@rapunzeleh546]

not sure iif you're remotely interested but... i'm in british columbia, zone 4 at 4000 ft. last year we had a few 1-2 week stretches with -35c... i had insulation around the hives and little heaters IN the hives, but still had huge losses - heartbreaking when you open the hive in the spring and only see a few signs of life.... so i built my bee house, but also 'pimped' my hives... WS1209 thermostats with little 12v 12 heaters in each hive... 2x100 w solar panels plus a 400w wind turbine power 10 220ah 6v batteries (which sounds like a ridiculous amount but i had them from an old project and the batteries are probably 8 years old), plus a secondary set based on AC just in case the batteries die. also built a solar furnace out of an old sliding door panel and about 100 dog food cans, and that has a pipe that goes into the beehouse, which has a fan inside and ANOTHER ws1209 that turns on the fan when it gets to a certain temp.. even with snow on the ground, with a bit of sun, the air coming in is always around 40-50C so it heats the house up nicely.... gives me an opp to put some flowers and some crystallized honey and some water out so they can at least get a chance to stretch their wings. just watiting for an arduino so i can cut a 4" hole in the side, and put a servo powered door in... i put the entrances on the inside of the house, so i have to open the doors to let them out - a few years ago i had them flying around on sunny days, and ended up spending hours walking around picking up bees in the snow and warming them back up again... with the servo door and arduino i can do some logic - if the temp outside is above X and the time is between A and B, then open the door. maybe overkill, but the technology is easy to use, and the themostats are about a 1.25 on aliexpress, so if it makes their lives better, why not? nice thing about the house is i can build the az hives, turn on the oil heater in the beehouse to get it up to warm temps, and move them at any time - don't have to wait until spring. and checking hives during the winter is nicer for all of us!

[@cacurious]

@@rapunzeleh546 That is absolutely amazing!! I love hearing about the bees, but especially the clever use of alternative, up-cycled materials. A man after my own frugalness! I have been building myself a small place and attempting to incorporate as many, alternative energy, type ideas as I can, including a solar heater similar to yours. I am also running a length of solid galv pipe in my attic, in an attempt to recapture some of that heat, as well. I hope you will consider posting a video or some pics of your amazing project. If not on KZbin, maybe Facebook. Keep me in mind if you do. I would enjoy seeing your project.

[@rapunzeleh546]

well... not a man, but i DID do a video just a little while ago - might put it on youtube... it won't be the steven spielberg fancy-pants editted videos that most people do... so if you don't mind that, i'll put it up so you can see... i'm planning on finishing reviving an old chicken barn in much the same way... it's what happens when you mix a nerd with an animal lover i guess.

[@cacurious]

@@rapunzeleh546 My apologies. :) I should've been more aware of the user name. Yes, please do post your video, and let me know when you do. "Spielberg fancy-pants" videos are not a requirement. Trust me, if they were, my videos would remain in boxes, where they belong. lol

[@radheshyama16]

Can someone in or near Tooele build a Slovenian Bee House for us?