# Species of wood to make Bee hives.



## LMN (Aug 17, 2005)

Does anyone saw their own wood from logs to make Bee hives?
Has any one ever used Eastern Red Cedar or Black Locust for hives? 

I have a Band Mill and I was thinking about using some cedar or Locust that I sawed for the hives because of the rot resistance. The Cedar will last 25 years with ground contact, the locust 40, osage orange or hedge apple 60 years.

The Cedar might have some mite control, just a thought.


----------



## King bee apiary (Feb 8, 2005)

I work at a custom millwork shop that makes custom doors and windows and anything else that's custom..
But I have built them out of red cedar,spanish cedar,mahogany,pine,popular,cypress. Yet to try teak,epi or mock orange..
One thing to consider is the weight of a completed box,add 60# honey and that box could be very heavy.
I'm gonna stick with the pine.


----------



## Robert Hawkins (May 27, 2005)

Isn't cedar an insect repellant?

Hawk


----------



## MichaelW (Jun 1, 2005)

Also is the wood you have more valuable sold as lumber then use that to buy crappy pine? Or maybe saw pine in the first place. It seems like the good wood would be wasted on a beehive, unless looks is a consideration, garden hives, etc. If you keep the hive up off the ground, pine should last long enough.


----------



## Dannny (Mar 23, 2005)

anyone ever use penderosa pine?


----------



## George Fergusson (May 19, 2005)

I always thought poplar would make good hives- it's technically a hardwood but it's softer than most and grows fast. It is often used for flooring. What seems to go on boxes the quickest is the frame rest area where the wood is thinner, and the bottom edges of course. A hardwood might hold up well, but weight would be greater of course.

The big wood in Maine is Northern White Pine and it is great for hives but I think Hemlock would be worth trying too- it's extremely hard when dry, so hard that I've bent 16d nails trying to drive them into beams. It also heavy and splits easily so nail holes would have to be drilled. I bet a hemlock box, glued and screwed, would be awesome. I'll have to try it sometime.

George-


----------



## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

The locust will be pretty heavy but will last nicely. The cedar will be nice and light and also last nicely. I have several cedar boxes. I would NOT expect any difference in the mites or the wax moths. I haven't seen any difference with cedar. But cedar makes very nice boxes. It's just usually too expensive unless you're getting it as scrap. Cypress is usually cheaper and works just as well.


----------



## Aspera (Aug 1, 2005)

150 years ago beekeepers preferred building hives from ceder as a method of moth control. They didn't seem to think that this would have a negative effects on the bees.


----------



## guatebee (Nov 15, 2004)

Down here in the tropical partws of Guatemala, the preferred wood is called Conacaste (Enterolobium ciclocarpum)because it is quite durable, and also because it is easy to get from sawmills in wide dimensions.

Some other people use pine or cedar (our cedar being a broadleaf tree).

Last year I manufactured some samples of conacaste and cypress, following exact Langstroth dimensions. There was no market for either with local beekeepers, because the end price was a bit higher than they could afford.


----------



## bee crazy (Oct 6, 2005)

I see your from Borden...I have a sister that lives near the Knobbs. Anyway I bet you have a Woodmizer, find yourself an old closed gas station on 60 there in town...if I remember right there a couple. get permission to park that mill there a weekend. Run an add in the local paper for a few days before, announcing a sawmill demonstration. Take in some logs to cut. as you cut the boards sell them to the audence...you would be suprised what poeple will pay for those cuts, green and all. Also have the people sign an attendance log and explain if they buy a mill, Woodmizer will pay you a demo fee..I think it's two hundred dollars on each sale...anyway the money you get from the cuttings turn it into money to buy your pine for your wooden ware and other equipment.

If your willing to put forth the effort you can set yourself up in bees in about four demos and I'm talking extracting equipment too.

Steve


----------



## BerkeyDavid (Jan 29, 2004)

I helped a buddy build a horse corral. He hired a guy with a Wood Mizer at $45 bucks an hour. We hauled red oak to the Mizer, he cut it up faster than we could stack it. We had so much wood in one day we could not use it all, I brought a trailer full home.

Only thing you have to watch for is bullets or fence or other steel in the tree. It was surprising how much of that we ran into.

If you nail it up green you can drive a nail right through it, but once it is seasoned you have to drill it.

Back on topic, I built some cedar bottom boards and they work great, but they are heavy. I would not want to haul them around. SOme cedar is lighter, though.

I would not use poplar or basswood. ALthough it is lite it will not last like pine.


----------



## tecumseh (Apr 26, 2005)

I have a shop built (actually junk yard variety) band saw mill and I cut a bit of yellow pine and resaw some cypress for boxs. Western red ceder is a very beautiful wood but the cutting is a bit tricky since the wood dulls the blades fairly quickly (me thinks enbedded silica?). It is also much more economical to sell the cedar and buy manufactured equipment.

A great deal of the cypress is new growth and unlike the old growth (with large heart areas) it is unlikely to last any longer than pine if it is not treated.


----------



## thebeeguy (Oct 10, 2005)

Speaking as a full time lumber processor who makes all his own woodenware: Rot resistance becomes an issue only when the wood is either always damp or in direct contact with the ground. Locust is hard to work, crack and warp prone. I would use the locust to make hive stands. Saw them into 4x4s, for example. Stack crosswise and you have the hive 8" off the ground, or even better, 3 high. Now the bottom boards are off the ground and can be any cheap and easy to nail species.
We don't have red cedar in commercial quantities in upstate NY. I use yellow poplar for most hive parts, but would also use basswood or white pine.I believe poplar lasts longer than white pine(unless you can find old growth all heartwood pine). Off the ground,out of direct rain, unpainted poplar will last at least twenty years. Kept painted it will last longer than you.


----------



## liljoe (Sep 26, 2005)

This is a very interesting topic. I was just thinking about this the other day. I buy my lumber from a local guy with a small saw mill and can get poplar very cheap. Thanks guys.


----------



## The anonymous buzzing bee (Jul 26, 2005)

OK, so taking all these factors into account, what is the best wood possible to build hives out of for a british climate?

(ABB ducks out of the way as argument commences







)


----------



## George Fergusson (May 19, 2005)

Whatcha got growing over there ABB? Do you even have a lumber industry? Sorry for my ignorance. I'd have to say "the cheapest wood you can get that fits the bill."

Here in the US, there are regional preferences based on what's growing locally. Here in Maine, it's northern white pine. Hemlock is common and would probably work fine for hives but it's rarely sawn into boards, has a tendancy to shake, and when dry it so hard you can't drive a nail in it without drilling a hole. It is significantly cheaper than pine so I may give it a try one of these days.


----------



## The anonymous buzzing bee (Jul 26, 2005)

I am in the north of England, and it rains amlost constantly for 11 months of the year







. Whilst there is a bit of hardwood grown in southern england, the vast majority of timber here is shipped in from abroad. This means we can get just about anything if you are prepared to order it and wait a couple of weeks. Price is an issue for me, but I want something that will last for a while and not just rot away. So what is the ideal timber for a fairly damp, cold climate with long winters?

[edit]OK, so the first statement was a bit of an exaggeration[/edit]

[ April 10, 2006, 07:26 AM: Message edited by: The anonymous buzzing bee ]


----------



## fhafer (Mar 27, 2005)

I cut some Deodar Cedar (Cedrus deodara) last week.....after it dries I'll give it a shot. I have a friend with a Hud-Son Oscar 28".


----------



## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

Cedar makes nice hives. Cypress makes nice hives. Redwood makes nice hives. All will outlast pine, usually. But as long as it's off the ground pine lasts pretty well. I like a light weight wood. Heavy boxes are just more to lift.


----------



## Len (Feb 16, 2006)

Louisiana has an annual rainfall of 60 inches! I have tremendous problems with dry rot on Ponderosa pine that I did not have 40 years ago. I switched to cypress from Rossman Apiaries. I cannot say enough good things about Fred, the owner. He solves all of my problems. Additionally, his cypress bee equipment represents furniture quality. Order some inner covers from Rossman Apiaries and you will see for yourself the quality of Freds cypress products. His cypress bee equipment is still the best on the market.


----------



## Joel (Mar 3, 2005)

I know a newbie who is using either pine or spruce that is not kiln dried. he is actually dovetailing the corners. Am I right though that this lumbe will likely warp as it dries throughly?


----------



## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

Probably.


----------



## blkcloud (May 25, 2005)

>I would not use poplar or basswood. ALthough it is lite it will not last like pine.

how long would you want it to last???I know of a popular log house my buddy lives in that has logs over 60' in length that was built over 100 years ago..the logs are as sound as a anvil..imo popular will out last pine..I do have a woodmiser and saw my poplar to make my tbh's with..its light and stout..


----------



## King bee apiary (Feb 8, 2005)

Popular is a hardwood,pine is not,popular is heavier.
If it is a wet area use a wood that grows in water,hint cypress...
Being over there in England,I'm sure you have some wineries somewhere around you.Give them a call they may have some old wine vats they wish to get rid of.These can be cut into hive material and may not smell great but will out last plain wood.
I think cypress would be your best bet,soft,light and yet durable to the elements.It will turn gray with age.Can be painted or sealed with lindseed oil (not sure of the spelling),but you will have to do that every other year or so.
Have you considered the styrofoam hives?These will last forever if you don't drop or pry too hard on the corners.(just what I've read from others)

Good luck


----------



## Sundance (Sep 9, 2004)

Sell the cedar and locust. Then buy pine and with the nice profit left over.... buy bees.

I agree that poplar would be a good wood. It will rot badly if the bark is left one. It gets "punky" quickly. It is clear and straight. Getting width for deeps would be more difficult.


----------



## mwjohnson (Nov 19, 2004)

I like kiln DRIED wood.
I wouldn't hesitate to build almost anything out of air DRIED lumber.

Dimensional stability relates more to species,moisture content aside.

I'm not shouting,just can't figure out how to italicize.








Mark


----------



## BTG (May 1, 2014)

Interesting discussion. My $0.02, the sawmill local to me sells 8 foot rough cut 1 X 10 hemlock for $4.00 So I can get a deep hive body for $4.00. Will it warp? a little. Will the bees care? probably not. Is it heavy... it seems to be getting lighter all the time. Will it rot? eventually but so will anything else. Strictly from an economic standpoint, with a table saw and a chop saw the bees won't care if they have a cheap hemlock box to live in. As far as lifting, I use long Langstroth hives so for the most part I don't have to lift. I do have nucleus colonies that I do have to lift but for the most part I do very little lifting.


----------

