# Got a new Brushy Mountain Ulster Hive



## psm1212 (Feb 9, 2016)

for my birthday. I plan on keeping the nuc section of the hive outside. I will likely make a new top for it so that the original one does not get weathered and warped. Any suggestions on how I should stain/paint/poly the hive body? Products, techniques, methods? I want to try to preserve it as best that I can. Thank you.


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## D Coates (Jan 6, 2006)

I've got one of those too and I've had it for years. However, I don't keep bees in it except for when I am going to showing it to a group. It's not designed nor robust enough to handle the outdoors for any extended period of time. Once I've shown it I move the hive back into their original nuc and put it away.


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## camero7 (Sep 21, 2009)

D Coates said:


> I've got one of those too and I've had it for years. However, I don't keep bees in it except for when I am going to showing it to a group. It's not designed nor robust enough to handle the outdoors for any extended period of time. Once I've shown it I move the hive back into their original nuc and put it away.


:thumbsup:


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## Phoebee (Jan 29, 2014)

Mine has three vents on the top. I'd worry that those should not be exposed in the weather. We put a half-piece of plastic drain tile over ours.

We treated ours with a clear epoxy finish (the Camcote Bushy Montain sells ... we had a can of it left over after a project). 

We used ours outdoors when I needed to set up a nuc in a hurry and that was what we had ready. The bees seemed to like it just fine. One unexpected benefit was the other hives did not seem to know this was a hive. We've had splits get robbed before, but this one was ignored.


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## psm1212 (Feb 9, 2016)

Thanks for the replies. I guess I could keep the colony in a normal nuc box outside and transfer the day before I want to display it. Does anybody keep a full time Ulster Observation Hive, either inside or outside?


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## Phoebee (Jan 29, 2014)

I can think of a number of downsides to keeping bees full-time in an Ulster.

The Brushy Mountain Ulster has a queen excluder below the observation tower. If you want to show off your queen, you need to move her up there for show and tell. One frame is too little space for her, long-term.

Given time, the workers will happily propolize the glass of the obs tower. The less time they spend in it, the less you'll have to clean it.

Nucs grow fast. If you use a conventional nuc for raising them, it is easy to super. You could use supers on an Ulster, but you'd have to add straps or latches and worry about the mis-matched fit and look.

I would raise in a regular nuc, move to the Ulster for show and tell.


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