The bee cosy consists of 3 main units, the body, the top and the roof. In the previous version, the roof and top part were joined together, but it was too heavy to lift off comfortably by one person and this quickly became a nuisance when trying to feed the bees. The structure encapsulates a national hive brood box, super (or half brood), crown board and eek for the feeder. The national hive roof is not used and is replaced by a 460mm square sheet of plywood with vent holes instead. The entrance has a hinging section which allows the removable floor in the hive to be removed, as long as it is forward facing. The hinged section can be closed in severe weather, with the bees flying in through a plain drilled hole instead, if they are at all active.