Cool. Very nice, easy to follow project.



I'd like to expand on your article if I may...



Hint: Your starter strips will work better with the screw head hidden

and with a sharp edge rather than a half-round. A bead of wax tapered to

a sharp edge works well too.



Hint: Even a thin layer of expanded polystyrene stuck to the inside the metal roof will help with solar radiation cooking the hive.



Does the plastic not heat up too?



I would say that TBHs are not the best option for beginners although they appeal due to being cheap. They are virtually unmanageable and so often lead to failed colonies in the first year, causing people to give up - which is a great shame after investing time and emotion into their bees.



A semi-circle may help, but the "perfect" shape for a hive is thought to be a catenary, this seems to offer the least amount of bridging comb to the side - one of the main problems with TBHs



ANY hive type can be a TBH, and specific (so called Warre) TBH hives are sold, and so your point about commercial hives is perhaps disingenuous?



If you have not already done so, then you may be interested to read the history of the KTBH & the TTBH, where, how and why they were developed, you may be surprised. The "Warre hive" was "invented" (chosen from many 100s) as a cheap hive for the French peasants, made of fruit boxes. Alongside the hive, Warre "developed"/stole/collected his odd ideas about bee keeping and seemed very much vested in the idea of not spending money. His main argument against frames was in fact the cost of them and the newfangled extractor. In fact early editions of his book show some odd 3 sided frames with dowel sides (emphasis on cheap manufacture). The Warre hive and the ideas are not inseparable, even though many worshippers of Warre would disagree!

I would urge you to read his books not "Warre" websites, then make your own mind up. IIRC Warre hives were "rediscovered" in Wales in the 1970s and were soon latched onto by the hippy culture of the time. Unfortunately they have a cult following that is clearly not borne out of understanding, and with the liberal use of the word "natural", more well-meaning people are sold a fabrication. There is no need to whitewash with words like "appropriate", "natural", "holistic". argumentum ad nauseam just proves a lack of strong argument. Just tell it like it is - it's not very good, but I like it, why don't you try it?



Some very nice ladies came to our club to teach us all about Warre and "natural" bee keeping. We were very gentle with them, but it took just minutes to find that they had no idea about what happened in a hive, how to manage swarms, check for diseases etc. We then took them to the apiary and showed them just how easy bee keeping can be.



Bee keepers moved away from TBH, skeps, tree gums, etc. in favour of framed hives from about the 1850s for very good reasons. TBHs are certainly not more "natural" than framed hives - bees are wild animals. If they didn't like framed hives, they certainly wouldn't arrive as uninvited swarms! At the end of the day we are interfering with the bees, but framed hives make this easier and less destructive. No mysticism, just easier, more expensive? yes. And if you want to follow Warre and not open the hive (because he couldn't) then that's fine too!



That's not to say that TBHs in all their forms are not interesting, and certainly have a place in the corner of an apiary as an oddity (our club has a couple), and in some parts of the world they are de facto due to cost.



This is certainly not aimed as a barb at the author, but at prospective beekeepers who will see a super-cheap hive.



To all bee keepers, keep up the good work!

