FLOW HIVE - Success Story | Are they Right for You?

We purchased our ‪@FlowHive‬ (1st Gen) about 3 years ago. The first year we tried it out, we got nothing. The bees barely went up into it. The second year of ownership, we didn't even use it because our colonies were all pretty weak. So this year, in spring we decided to give it another try. At first we didn't have much luck. So we sprayed the frames down with some Honey Water, let it try, and put them back in. We were either patient enough this time, or the honey spray worked. Because the bees moved right on up into the Flow Hive and started to seal up the cells. August 6th we collected our first harvest of a single frame. And on August 7th we collected 3 more frames - which is what this video is about. The remaining 3 frames are getting close, so we'll keep an eye on them.
Also in this video, I'll share with you my thoughts on the Flow Hive, and if they are right for you. Are they good for "new" beekeepers, etc. Here are some of the links as discussed in the video, to other channels that I value. As with this, or anything else, do your own research. And make sure you have a good solid foundation of "bee knowledge" under your belt.
Vino Farm : ‪@vinofarm‬
• FLOW HIVE - Why I have...
Frederick Dunn : ‪@FrederickDunn‬
• My FlowHive Experience...
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#flowhive #beekeeping #honeyharvest

[@FrederickDunn]

Hello! KZbin has a new tool that they give us where we are now notified when someone gives us a shout-out! You have a great eye for video and having the sun passing through those jars during the "golden hour" is awesome! 10:39 flawless! Did you tip your hive back 2 degrees? That helps drain the troughs quite a bit. Thank you for the shout-out at 19:00, so glad to have helped in any way. I wish you all the best!

[@1870s]

Thanks for stopping by Fred! I appreciate you & all the things I've learned from your videos.

[@FrederickDunn]

@@1870s Thank you!

[@lispottable]

You are the man Todd. Love you and Rachels videos!

[@leatricegulbransen8813]

What an enjoyable video ! The amber flow of the honey, the green of the fields, even the crickets in the background. So peaceful. I've been collecting beekeeping equipment for a couple years now and long to have them. You're a good teacher. You two are living the dream. Love all your videos and thanks for being here.

[@wandagray9094]

I love honey, thank you for sharing all of the effort that goes into getting honey. Great job! Tell Rachel hello we missed her today.

[@Steph7274]

The lighting is spectacular! Thanks for sharing the collecting process.

[@indigomoon4991]

I watched a video on the flow hive KZbin channel doing questions n answers and people having issues were told to at least leave it on the season. The bee's will hopefully at least start to close the cells off, so the following season they'll have a Lil Xtra start. I also saw another creator, I apologize, I can't remember where, but they actually put a light layer of their melted wax on the flow hive frame's to help get them started with waxxing the frame's. If I come across it again, I'll get back to you on who. But if you found spraying some light honey water works, that's cool too. I know I'm seeing this a year after premiering, but if you're extracting around now this year, may wanna leave the frame's in so maybe they'll begin to close the cells again. As long as they're also still collecting for the winter supply to get them through. Anyway. Just some thoughts. Thanks for the videos..

[@LuJustLu]

I am fascinated by Beekeeping, but this took it to a whole new level. It amazes me what nature does. That honey was so beautiful flowing into the jars. Great job on explaining things and giving honest tips and information. I'm so glad you shared this with us.

[@vinofarm]

Nice video! We still have our Flow Hive and still haven’t used it. Oh well. Every location is different and everyone has different experiences with beekeeping. Glad to see you finally got it to work for you. (Thanks for the mention!)

[@indigomoon4991]

Love your new hives, regardless! I know you're busy, but I binged all your videos in lock down, so waiting for new ones is hard. I do however love following a issue from A hive, in one video.

[@chandlerwolf7716]

very awesome video thankyou!!!! this coming spring!!!! im buying a farm and truly cant wait to see this first hand again!!!! Save the bees !!!

[@fairytale_after_dark6696]

Hi Todd. I have watched the Canacian Beekeeper on youtube for a long time. Its a great resource tool as he is a farmer and a commercial keeper. When he is at certain times of the year, when the flow drops off and bees get hungry, he open feeds from large open plastic bins of pollen power and also bins of sugar solution. He talks a lot about the bees and has great tips. Just in case you haven't found him I thought it may be worth a look. Also I had a thought that maybe throwing out wildflower seed in the grass field may help with extra resources for the bees and they will also make pretty bunches for you to take home to your lovely wife. That will get you some extra points in her good book too. 🤭🥰🤭🥰You are doing so well already though and should be pleased with your progress. All the best from the UK. 💕💯💥👍

[@jackienoel2864]

This is just beautifu!! Thank you!

[@Victor-cj1pc]

NIce video about the flow hive, Im a beekeeper from northern Germany, from 10 colonies I harvested about 90 kg of spring honey and about 50 kg of summer honey using a radial extractor. last week I feed the colonies about 8 kg of sugar syrup, and this week I started the anti varroa theadment (60% Ant Acid vaporized in 10-14 days using the Nassenheider Professional diffuser) Wish you good luck and full honey jars.

[@michealdraconis6179]

Thanks for teaching us about spraying the cells

[@UrbanHomesteadMomma]

Oh wow... neat beehive... I admit I know nothing about bees or bee keeping... but to me this seems like a really effacent and much cleaner way to harvest honey! And man that honey looks good!

[@EricaD61]

This is a great video. A year ago I know but still very helpful. I think as a new bee keeper only 8 months in ill be better spending the money on a extractor.

[@briannatuttle1028]

This is great! Thank you so much!!! Ive been looking into flow hives, and also bees in general, for when we move.

[@marnieanderson4257]

Oh very cool! Thank you for sharing! I think I may invest in one of those.

[@MsDee1129]

Wow I really like this setup

[@janetlavoie2441]

Beautiful honey

[@Honey-_bee]

That is so beautiful flowing. I’m glad the flow hive worked for you guys this year!!

[@jonabriggs8829]

I just loved watching it flow into the Jars, ty for taking us along, you are so good about taking the time others may not have to film for us :) God Bless...

[@rebeccaantram4165]

So beautiful. I bet it taste amazing.

[@raterus]

Thanks for this information, best advertisement I've ever seen on the flow hive, then you convinced me as a beginner beekeeper to not get one yet!

[@1870s]

Not meant to be an advertisement, just my honest thoughts 💭

[@jamjar5716]

Amazing!

[@judydrouhard2651]

Beautiful honey!

[@terrihart2133]

Honey looks lovely.

[@terryrusselleverydayguy1613]

Wow!!! Great to see a flow hive in use. My late father in law was a bee keeper. He did it the old fashioned way of scraping all. Thanks for the video it brought back memories.

[@conniegant7781]

That is one beautiful sight, the honey flowing like that is mesmerizing. Thank you for all the information and sharing the harvest of your honey.

[@JudiStitches]

🌻 beautiful honey!! 🐝🐝 Yum!!

[@IanCrouse]

Thank you for information... I have made up my mind. No flow hive until year three. I start this year.

[@vjohnson2400]

Such an interesting video. I had never heard of a flow hive before and oh my what a great way to harvest the honey. The flow of honey into the mason jar is such a beautiful sight. Don’t worry at all about wearing your veil, you must protect yourself.

[@sarahmunoz14]

This was fascinating to watch. 👏

[@bethmitchell6981]

This is so amazing and really educational. We wish we could do that here at our farm. We were told that is really very expensive. Thank for sharing.

[@rollingacresfarmstead206]

Id say the sun and filming was perfect🤗

[@glendabyford8074]

Thank you so much for this! We have been thinking of buying one of these

[@denisebrady6858]

Todd that was so interesting & the honey speaks for itself. Please do more bee videos as it is quite fascinating learning about them as I didn't know you have to do health checks etc. Great Video mate - Cheers Denise -Australia

[@coyotecrossingfarm]

We haven't taken the plunge yet with bees but definitely want to. So much good information in this video. Thank you! It was mesmerizing to watch the honey flow into the jars...beautiful and very peaceful.

[@robincook4349]

very interesting

[@joseortiz5965]

Awesome

[@valeriepritchard677]

You may be able to rent or borrow an extractor. Some local beekeeping associations in UK do this, great for beginners or small number of hives.

[@terrihart2133]

No worries about your mesh mask. You are very clear and can understand perfectly.

[@russrobinson508]

I always find honey processing fascinating!

[@dumitracheviorelalexandru9113]

Great footage !

[@tookmyhandle2]

This video is beautiful. Makes me want to start beekeeping. I know nothing about it. Do you have a beginner video?

[@ramonajolley1966]

So interesting. Do you find that the bees arent around you with this particular hive than the other?

[@RoseyReadsAndWrites]

Yes, more bee stuff!

[@CassiEnerson]

This. Is. My. Dream. (3 year goal)

[@awesomeart6637]

Great video :) I have a small backyard is it enough for a flow hive or would it be dangerous ?

[@dalelusk2151]

I have the 8 frame box,So I get the 6 frame Hive flow please reply ,thanks for your video.

[@christinedewing4577]

Thanks for the info, I've been looking at flow hives. No bees yet, but thinking about it.

[@lmd2454]

Seems like the sun was fine for video. Looks really pretty!

[@denisevance1045]

Sooooo cool to watch, good job Todd!!!

[@bondscalper]

You have a great camera . What do you use??? Great video

[@1870s]

Canon EOS M6. Most of the time with 11-22mm lens.

[@Muradyan_Karen]

answer the question how they differ from each other ??? different colors

[@melodycapehartmedina2264]

Thank you so much for this video Todd!! I’ve been playing with buying just one like you set up but it’s a lot of money when you’re just not sure! You answered all my thoughts on it and see I could get one a year and work up. You did a great job on this! Thanks for sharing!

[@marilyncapehart663]

Good luck & God Bless., No Bee 🐝 for me 5-7-2022♥️

[@Muradyan_Karen]

how they differ from each other ??? different colors

[@thecrookeddoorfarm]

Absolutely beautiful!

[@colleenclem7431]

Thank you for all the great tips. Love watching all the videos you two put out.

[@cynthiafisher9907]

Wow, there is so much to keeping bees, it’s intimidating to someone who’s never done it. Kudos to you for learning all this stuff! I hope I never complain about the price of honey. I’m sure I’ll never have bees. You have my respect. Thanks for showing the flow hive, it’s interesting and amazing.

[@charlottesmart750]

That's so satisfying to look at that honey drip in that jar all that goodness

[@RidgeLife]

Wow love it great job that’s so awesome can’t wait to see more.

[@monicabeck1147]

That was fascinating, Todd ! I know nothing about bee-keeping, so I really enjoyed watching this!

[@lynnbarnes1184]

How do you get them ready for winter

[@primitivedaisy]

For what the flow hives cost, you could get two extractors! I found a 3 frame tangential extractor on Amazon for $149 last year. It was totally worth it. I’m able to extract the honey and leave the comb intact. With the tangential, you have to flip the frames, but it’s no big deal. The brand I got was VIngli. But your flow hive works well and produces beautiful honey. The evening light was very nice! 😊🐝

[@1992pv]

have 5 flow hives and my only concern is longevity of the plastic. i live in the south and the sun rot/dry rot gets to a lot of plastics. but i feel like I will get the proper use out of it by then. have the traditional wood hives as well. 12 year bee owner.

[@MommaJessiesCraftyHomestead]

Beautiful lighting for the honey!

[@lisawalters5482]

That is so fascinating to me. I now know why honey is so expensive. But it is the “nectar of the Gods.” Lol. Yum. 👏🏻💕👏🏻 god bless.

[@blueridgehomestead566]

Absolutely beautiful! So delicious.

[@theresamcpherson7352]

It was so nice of you post Fred Dunn's channel, he is my favorite bee teacher. Love your channel!

[@gloriaoscar5505]

Wow! That honey is beautiful! I like to see you in the full bee suit. My husband had bees as a hobby until our 4 children would go out to there swimming pool and the bees would be lined up at the water line getting a drink. I was afraid they would be stung. My husband’s uncle sold his own honey for a living so he had a lot of hives. That is where my husbands interest in bees started. My husband never wore a bee suit when he worked the bees but he was very calm and used a smoker. I could not watch I thought it was scary. We took the honey out with an extractor. Had the hot knife that would melt the caps off but you ended up sticky from head to toe. Haha One time we even had an observation hive that body of the hive was made entirely of plexiglass, instead of wood, set up in one of our bedrooms. The bees would go in and out thru a dryer vent that went thru a window pane. All of this was really interesting. When my husbands parents came to stay a few days they would stay in our bedroom because his Mother could not sleep with the bees buzzing all night. Funny memories now.

[@suemerritt1679]

That is amazing! Thank you so much...

[@ladydaggerstatus]

Really appreciate the advise for beginners. I saw this bee hive and thought it was a great idea but I know I have to research and learn how to bee keep first. It is pricey and no one wants to waste money. Great video! Enjoy the honey 🍯

[@OFFGRIDwithDOUGSTACY]

just something about the sun setting on some fresh honey =)

[@atoadinthegarden2746]

Beautiful color. Do you notice a difference in flavor when you harvest at different times of the year - depending on what's blooming?

[@brendaseader1669]

You've become a thinking beekeeper! What you said in your thoughts is the same thing I teach the people I mentor every year! Your flo hive evaluation was very interesting!

[@stevendowden2579]

i love honey

[@BulletproofPastor]

Thank you! We're planning to expand our livestock into bee's and your video was very helpful.

[@trudymautz4388]

So cool, who knew this was a thing? Great job, amazing amount of honey.

[@robbieragsdalesarmered-dil1940]

They are for warm areas because they are from Australia and it's designed for the heat

[@BuzzLightyear9999]

…You do realise we live in an entire continent in Australia don’t you…? We go all the way from the tropics down to ‘next stop; Antarctica…’ Flow works all the way from Queensland down to Tasmania and from sea level up to the alpine regions… …please don’t mischaracterise Australia. Also, please don’t mischaracterise Flow; it’s a set of frames for a honey super - that’s it. Sure, you need to make some tweaks and adjustments to what you are accustomed to or for your local area/climate, but it’s really just a piece of bee-keeping equipment…🤷‍♂️

[@lynsmith2698]

The honey is so beautiful in the sunset. I havent even pulled my honey yet as the weather has been so horrible and lots of mosquitoes. Thank you for reviewing your flow hive. I probably won't ever get one but am always interested in listening to what people think of them. Great video Todd

[@pegp8590]

Is this a whole flow hive or just a super?

[@1870s]

Just the super

[@terridunning3450]

Todd great video on the flow hive. I have passed this vlog onto my husband who is the beekeeper in the family. I am sure he will get a lot out of watching. Have a good weekend.

[@ashleychanelle1997]

Did you buy the bees with the flo hive?

[@1870s]

No, there is no option to buy bees with the Flow Hive. You should ideally buy bee locally near where you live.

[@turtlelilysgarden5258]

Liquid gold. My dad was a beekeeper. Wish I had paid more attention.

[@emptynestgardens9057]

This is so cool!! High tech lol

[@robinmcmillen7917]

Beautiful honey great job

[@Michael-pv9ux]

Is the flow hive super really worth what they are asking for? the reason im asking is, im doing research and really like the ideas of how u get the honey and it doesnt disturb the bees. I will be new to bee keeping when i get started and was thinking of going the tradition route for a year or so and just learn everything i can but i have noticed that it is way cheaper to stay tradition than buying multiple flow supers but the flow supers seem to be more hassle free

[@phyllis48]

I do not know anything about raising bees or beehives. When you mentioned the peanut butter and honey sandwich it brought to my memory of when I used to watch some of my grands and I would mix peanut butter and honey and then slice up some apples and then dip them into the pb and honey dip. Delicious.

[@leahhitz7183]

If i wasn't allergic I'd have hives of bees here

[@sandyclaus2729]

Liquid GOLD!!! Yummylicious! I love peanut butter and honey samiches! 😆 🍯 😋

[@jeanniepratt1326]

Great video! This is probably a silly question but is it possible to can honey and what is it's shelf life?

[@HerHealthyHome]

Honey already lasts indefinitely, I would think it would be a waste of time, energy, and nutrients as well.

[@jeanniepratt1326]

Thanks...I hadn't a clue

[@HerHealthyHome]

@@jeanniepratt1326 It's best to get it in a glass jar, like they used. It can crystallize over time but it just needs to be heated to melt the crystals.

[@1870s]

So long as you moisture content is correct, it will basically last forever. Too much water in it, and it will ferment.

[@jeanniepratt1326]

@@1870s thank you for the info. Again, great video.

[@believe2261]

In loving memory of the bee that got stuck in the honey jar

[@craigslattery1901]

I don't die, their sisters find her and lick all the honey off, she makes a full recovery.

[@ApiaryManager]

I think you said in a previous video that the majority of your honey comes from clover. This is a nice runny honey similar to borage, although borage is quite pale). I live in an agricultural area where almost every field is bright yellow during April (Oil Seed Rape) or field beans (May). Since OSR is member of the brassica family, it sets very hard in no time at all so the Flow-Hive would be completely unsuitable to this type of honey. The point I am making is the success/failure may be also due to the nectar sources in your area.

[@1870s]

Probably one of the most dry years we've had here in a long time. I think that has had a lot to do with lack of nectar this year. Just had 3 good rains in the last week, so I'm hoping with all the Goldenrod in bloom, they'll fill this thing back up again.

[@paulshimer1870]

That is cool. But how long does it take to extract honey& buy all the equipment? I grew up with a beekeeper friend& helped with it. I have watched Frederick Dunn, and he said it best. It takes a long day with several people helping. I agree with the statement that they need to constraint on just learning the first year or two. But a good radial extractor is pricey as well. And for someone who admits they don't have a extractor; is comparing an apple to a orange.

[@michellebartel]

I love hearing the crickets and the geese in the background. Lovely

[@JoshMoore424]

If you melt wax and coat the flow frames with a heavy coat you will get about a 100% acceptance rate. Now that they took to it once and the wax is built you’re off to the races. You can put it on any hive now and will be fine. Beautiful video

[@1870s]

Thanks friend 😊

[@cheekysaver]

3.5 gallons of raw unfiltered honey is SO expensive. I pay about $40 Canadian per gallon and that is a good price. BUT, it is worth it. I am allergic to bee stings.... so I am happy to let others do that job. I do admit I am fascinated by beekeeping. That is a risk of making mead tho. :D

[@janehutchinson9860]

That is the coolest thing I’ve ever seen. Beautiful honey.

[@jenniferg4380]

I watched this lovely video with deep longing. I have a little homestead but don’t currently have bees. I did in 2013 but due to a number of factors have not been able to have them since. My 2 Langstroth hives sit patiently in my garage. This video was information but also just beautiful. I am in complete awe of what bees can do. And the honey they generously produced for you is such a gorgeous, rich color. Thank you for sharing.