How To Build A Beehive In Easy Steps

by Paul Ciocoiu · September 22, 2015

If you have a garden around the house and seek to extend your pastime choices while at home, then a beehive is an option to seriously take into account. It is easy to build while you will reap the healthy benefits of this activity which will help you detach yourself from the daily routine and other stressful situations. To show you how to build a beehive, we have set or eyes on a truly original project, as seen on Instructables.com We start from the premise bee keeping is a job you’re good at so we’re not going to insist on related activities.

The project is original thanks to the final shape of the beehive, entirely different from the classic shape we all know, but also the materials used to build it. To get it done, the handyman in our example used a 55 gallon plastic barrel as the main component of the beehive. The first step is cutting the barrel in half lengthwise, making sure that there is a bung hole in each half. Lay the barrel down like a canoe, so that it would catch water. This is the position it will be in from now on. On one end of the barrel there is a rim of plastic that protrudes. Cut this away. Rub the interior with beeswax. This will remove any foreign smell that remains and make it more attractive to a hive.

How to build a beehive – the project in the final stage

How to build a beehive – cut the barrel in two halves

How to build a beehive – attach the wood frame and legs

The next step is building the wood frame around the barrel and the legs that will support them. Build the frame first which will wrap the edges of the barrel and then attach the two structures using screws. Screw the legs into each side of the barrel. Make sure you screw the frame to the leg and put several screws from the barrel into the leg for a good, sturdy fix.

Get some small wood planks which bees will use to attach their honeycomb. To help them, screw a thin piece of moulding, centered on each top bar, with at least an inch on the ends of the top bar. This moulding will face down, into the barrel, when the bar sits on the frame. Rub some bee’s wax on the molding. At the end of the process, build another wood frame that will fit around the barrel frame. Use this frame to build the tin roof around and then wrap the bungee cord around the roof and barrel, attaching it to itself. This will prevent the roof from blowing off.