Top Bar Hive Design Plans
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Top Bar Hives are Beautiful in Simplicity
They are the minimum needed for a movable comb hive. Elegant in their design, simplistic in their management, and wonderfully inexpensive. Per dollar spent on hives, top bar hives produce more honey than langstroth. For this reason, and their ability to be produced correctly in rural third world locations without power tools, they are the right hive in the hinterlands where the poorest of the poor live. The US Peace Corps endorse and teach these hives, that speaks volumes.
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (1.6MB)
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Top Bars in Texas need a little design change. Wider and Shallower as this distributes more weight on more length thereby reducing comb failures. The 100+ F heat we get here can lower the tension capability on wax comb, if you manipulate it, you can break comb easy. If you do break a comb, use a woman’s hair clip to clip on the comb, then tie – wrap the clip to the top bar. The bees will reattach.
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As for designs…
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The design I like best is the one from Les Crowder
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I did modify it a bit. Instead of using the 1×10 for the sides, i used two 1×6 instead because they were free fence planks from my neighbors old fence. Put the extra overlap on the bottom side, keep the ‘upside’ even with the top of the end piece.
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The video on how to make them is . . .
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Be sure to watch my video on how to make your top bars, themselves.
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.[audio:http://learningbeekeeping.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/STE-002.mp3|titles=Top Bar Beekeeping]
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Greetings,
Looking at your videos has been very educational. I am in the planning phase of building my TBH. I have been noticing that in some of your videos for maintaince, I see your hive openings at the bottom ends running horizontally. On the making of TBH videos you have the 2 inch diameter holes drilled. On the plans here on your website it shows a opening made on the long side at the bottom. In your experiences with the forementioned entrances, what works best?
Respectfully,
John
What are the dimensions of your hives? (upper width, lower width, depth, length of hive?)
Good day, MT. I notice you use the sloping side of the Kenyan TBH. I have read repeatedly that this does not inhibit side attachments. I think it does offer the advantage of better support for the comb from below in hot weather. What are your thoughts?
All the best,
Gerry
The construction of the Top Bar hive is fairly simple, just a couple questions:
You use 1×10, how long?
How long should the top bars be?
What are the angles for the end pieces?
Thanks,
Jeff Da Ref
You designed this from models used in hot countries. I live in Canada. What would the changed be for cold weather. Should the wood be thicker? Would the bottom be closed up in stead of the open hardware cloth?
The video is great but would you please email me the plans for making this beehive? My father will help and he is not computer savy but is a great builder. What modifications would you make to the plans for cold weather because I live in Michigan.
ty