# Built a TBH and have questions



## AdamBeal (Aug 28, 2013)

I built my first TBH but have a couple of concerns. Here are some pics and questions:

Side view:








End view:








Top bars I am wondering if these look ok also using 1.5 inch cedar from home depot to make will that be too wide? Will the nails cause problems?








Here is the big question my top bars are higher up than the end of the hive. How would I make a top for this just lay some tin directly on the top bars and weigh down with a brick or do I need to build a square frame around the whole thing to make space between the top bars and roof?









Thanks for the help I need it! I am new and have bees ordered which I pick up April 15th. 

Adam


----------



## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

I wouldn't be concerned about the nail heads, the bees will build around them. Same for the roof - a piece of tin will be fine. As far as the bar widths, you can read Michael Bush's comments about that here:
http://www.bushfarms.com/beestopbarhives.htm#barwidth

I would take advantage of that difference in height between the bars and and hive end and use that to incorporate a top entrance. Leave a gap between the endwall and the first bar and avoid drilling holes in your hive.  You can call it a design feature.


----------



## taydeko (Jan 3, 2012)

I agree with Rader. The nails shouldn't be an issue. I also use top entrances as Rader describes. The roof can be almost anything that keeps the rain out of the hive. A corrugated roofing metal top can be handy if it is wider than the hive. You can tie it on with string or rope, make it dome shaped, and put feeders under it. I typically just use plywood or cement board for my tops.

I have top bars with triangular cross sections like this. I found that the bees make a very small connection to the top bar. I now recommend just a flat spline on the top bar 3/8" wide and extending 1/4" below the top bar. This gives the comb a stronger attachment to the bar. 

On some of my hives I made a top with a frame and put some 1" Styrofoam insulation inside to help protect from the sun. If there is space between the bars and the roof, you can build top feeders for sugar and patties. In extremely hot climates some protection from the sun helps avoid comb collapse. You may find in the heat of summer you will want to give the hive a little shade. Just put another cover on top of the normal cover and a couple bricks between covers to provide a ventilated airspace.

Ted


----------



## AdamBeal (Aug 28, 2013)

Thanks taydeko I like the tip on the additional top cover with bricks to help air flow in the summer might need that trick it does get hot sometimes here.

Hey Rader I am from Rogersville and my wife is from Russellville so I know the Greene Co area pretty good. My dad runs a radio station still in Rogersville called WRGS and my father-in-law owns Wolfe Garage in Whitesburg he does tractor repairs. Used to go to Augustinos when it was over there from time to time. 

If I want to make the top entrance do I need some kind of spacer there to enforce the gap size or just eyeball it? Also would the gap they come in and out be the length of the bar or just a crack on one side?

Thanks!


----------



## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

I screwed a small block into each sidewall of my TBH to act as a backstop so I didn't accidentally close off the entrance by getting the bars to close. 

My top entrances are generally full length year round. I do not have open screen bottoms or other lower holes in my hives so the top hole is both entrance and ventilation.


----------



## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>Top bars I am wondering if these look ok also using 1.5 inch cedar from home depot to make will that be too wide? 

For the honey storage, it will be just right. For brood it will be .25 inch too wide. I'd make a few extra and cut half of them down.

>Will the nails cause problems?

Not for the bees. You may find them frustrating when you are scraping them down to wood someday after they went queenless and the wax moths took over... but that could be a long time from now... I'd rather use a nail set and make them flush so my hive tool won't catch on them.


----------



## AdamBeal (Aug 28, 2013)

Thanks Rader and Michael. I will try a 3/8 inch gap at the front which I read in the link posted above from Michael's page.


----------



## Duncan Thacker (Feb 4, 2014)

AdamBeal said:


> If I want to make the top entrance do I need some kind of spacer there to enforce the gap size or just eyeball it? Also would the gap they come in and out be the length of the bar or just a crack on one side?
> 
> Thanks!


If you are building TBH hives and your method for determining the length was the total length of all the bars added up, you forgot one crucial measurement. Your first and last bars should be 1/4 inch wide to maintain the proper bee space. you can make a top entrance by leaving the front one out, That's advice I followed from Michael a looooong time ago. Again just keep it simple.


----------



## hvdmerwe (Jan 24, 2014)

Hi Guys

Hein from Mozambique here, I have some top bar hives with a corrougated sheet for a top mounted on a wooden frame with a small latch which sits on either end of the hive, just a small piece fo wood loosely nailed into the top of the hive, quite nice for keeping the top on during windy times. All my bars are the same size and it doesn't seem to make any difference, but then we have really mild winters, I find that the bees tend to block any cracks or spaces between the bars with propolis, makes it interesting to get them out. Something you have to watch out for is the bees bouilding comb diagonally across the bars, this can be a real pain in tha butt. I susally put a strip fo beeswax along the bar to try and give them direction. Just cut a groove along the length of the bar and press the wax int it. I also made a feeder by attaching a plywood box to one of the frames, and sealing it with wax.

Hope some of this is useful


----------



## Rader Sidetrack (Nov 30, 2011)

> watch out for is the bees building comb diagonally across the bars

You may be interested in Michael Bush's comments about different comb guides:
http://www.bushfarms.com/beesfoundationless.htm#combguide


----------



## AugustC (Aug 7, 2013)

nails.. no problem.
roof.. no idea for your climate, my roof is pitched with space for a feeder or insulation. The roof frame sits on the top of the legs at each end. In my opinion you would be better to have some way to insulate the top to allow the bees to more easily maintain an internal temperture.


----------



## onesojourner (Jan 9, 2014)

both my hives tried to cross comb once they got to the 1.5 bars. Going back I would make all my bars 1.25 and have spacers handy when needed.


----------

