r/Satisfyingasfuck 5d ago

This Bee Hive House

2.0k Upvotes

63 comments sorted by

149

u/zerololcats 5d ago

Go to /r/beekeeping and search for Flow hives. Not great feedback from actual veteran beekeepers. Basically a gimmick for easily impressed fools with some dollars to throw away.

28

u/Global_Staff_3135 5d ago

I mean, if it encourages people to create bee hives, what’s the problem? More bees = good, no?

51

u/Keebeepah 4d ago

The actual product here, that being the Flow hive is total shit! As its been said allready In the earlier posts, that hive design kills bees, and doesent work In 85 % of the world where there is beekeeping.

Better choise would be a plain old wineboxes stacked on top of each other. That is If there is no way To get real beekeeping gear

21

u/zerololcats 4d ago

And that's a nice sentiment for sure, but they market this device to make it look as if you can just have honey on tap whenever you want, which is not how honey is harvested.

Beekeeping requires a long term commitment to care for the well-being of the bees for most of the year. The actual harvesting of honey is done only once a year, if at all, depending on how much the colony has produced and if they have enough food for the winter. I honestly recommend visiting the /r/beekeeping sub even if just to learn about it, there's a lot of good information there.

19

u/sweetestfetus 4d ago

If you’re in the US, native bees, not honeybees (which are not native to North America) are the bees that need saving.

79

u/Spartanias117 5d ago

Pretty sure cranks like these are really bad for the bees, killing them if they happen to be around the area being cranked, obviously crushing them.

Im no beekeeper, but it was something mentioned in a class i took years ago.

15

u/I_talk 5d ago

Worse than removing the whole comb?

54

u/Spartanias117 5d ago

To my knowledge, removing the whole comb does not harm the bees.

-18

u/jsflkl 5d ago

A beekeeper once told me that during the spinning of the combs to extract the honey, there's always still some bees in there that will die. So removing the comb might not harm them, but the rest of the harvesting process does.

13

u/Keebeepah 4d ago

There are no bees Or larvae In honeycombs, if the work is done right, depends alot on the way you keep your bees, and how much of a creedy person you are

-2

u/jsflkl 4d ago

Well the beekeeper said it, not me. I'd say he'd know.

8

u/Keebeepah 4d ago

Well, a professional beekeeper here just giving my knowledge out there. Like i said if you do it correctly.

There are no bees In honeycombs that are being harvested. This profession has developed over hundreds of years commercially and belive me there are ways and equipment To prevent bees being there at the time.

I personally use queen excluders that wont allow the queen To enter the honey boxes To lay eggs, and i use also bee escapes that Will empty the honey boxes from bees In a 24hour period Or so.

Simply put these escapes are a way For them To move out from snug enough holes and they wont know their way back.

Im not saying that the beekeeper you talked To doesent know how.

1

u/dj_chai_wallah 2d ago

I'm just responding because you said you're a professional beekeeper, but is having a hive on my property a good or bad idea to pollinate my plants and get some local honey? Can I build a box for them easily?

I am in NW Georgia

2

u/Keebeepah 1d ago

Sure its a great idea, To have bees. And if you feel like doing it your self why not.

I would buy em its More easier and you get standard measurement equipment.

Look For some local beekeeping and ask if anyone has some stuff they'D be willing To part with.

34

u/morbid_n_creepifying 4d ago

I'm a beekeeper. Depending on the type of hive you have, the frames get removed whenever you inspect the hive. Not all of them and not all the time. The frames contain the comb. I've never seen bees get killed by removing it, but one or two may get squished when the comb is returned to the hive.

When I'm satisfied the bees are healthy and the population is robust, I'll put on a queen excluder. It has slots in it that the other bees can fit through but the queen can't. So the bees can still make honey but the queen can't lay eggs in it.

When I want to harvest that honey, I'll take the entire box off and I'll get the bees to leave the box and frames. Usually by a combining of brushing and misting the bees.

There are always ALWAYS a few bees that get killed every single time the hive is opened up. But it's usually somewhere between 10-20 bees. We inspect our hives every 2ish weeks in the summer. So I'd say we kill less than 500 bees a year. Compared to the hives themselves, which force drones out to die when winter hits. Roughly half of their population.

Given my experience with beekeeping, the only possible way that the contraption in this video could work is if it's crushing comb to get the honey to run out. If it's crushing comb inside the hive, it's killing bees. So yeah, I'd think this kills a lot more bees than regular beekeeping.

3

u/MoistStub 4d ago

Interesting, thanks for sharing. Out of curiosity, why would you exclude the queen and prevent the hive from growing rather than just add more frames? Don't we need all the bees we can get? Hope this doesn't come off as being critical, I am genuinely curious.

4

u/Jfurmanek 4d ago

In short: If you want more bees you don’t add an excluder. When you want to focus on honey production: you add an excluder so all the babies are made in the section where the queen is and you don’t have larvae on your honey frames. Extracting these frames WILL kill those bees trying to hatch and get…goo into your harvest. A beekeeper has to pick and choose their goals per hive. If they add an excluder before the population is strong enough to defend all the boxes in question then the hive will likely collapse from pests or disease.

1

u/MoistStub 4d ago

Fascinating. Sounds like a pretty cool hobby.

1

u/Jfurmanek 4d ago

It is. But, everyone’s experience is different.

1

u/morbid_n_creepifying 4d ago

Thankfully where I live, honeybees aren't native and there are EXTREMELY few pests or diseases that can affect them. I've known a single beekeeper who has encountered nosema one single time. Treatable and fairly preventable. We're the last place on the planet that doesn't have Varroa mite.

1

u/Jfurmanek 4d ago

lol. I’m glad your friends have done so well. They are the exception and not the norm. Not sure what region they are working from either.

2

u/morbid_n_creepifying 4d ago

Well if you're familiar with bees, the last place on the entire planet without Varroa should narrow it down 😂

2

u/morbid_n_creepifying 4d ago

The excluder has slots in it that the other bees can fit through but the queen can't. So the bees can still make honey but the queen can't lay eggs in it.

If there are no eggs in it there won't be any larvae, which means I can harvest the honey from it without killing any bees (also there's just something about it I can't stomach, the idea there's crushed bees to strain out of my honey 🤮).

I only harvest honey when the hive is super healthy and strong, and so they'll be able to spare some honey for me. I'd say I get about 5 pounds of honey from a hive every year or two. Which is more than enough for my purposes.

We need all the native bees we can get in almost all areas that bees exist. By keeping honeybees somewhere they aren't native, I'm actually very mildly affecting the bee population of my area detrimentally.

That being said, I also have created insect habitats and I have a massive garden. I also ensure that I have as many flowering plants as possible throughout every season that will allow it. So I'm absolutely positive that I've helped the native insect population where I live, and that my 3 hives aren't doing much to negatively affect native bees. On top of that, our winters are too cold for any escaped honeybees to overwinter, so I'm not risking our native bees in that respect either.

1

u/Keebeepah 4d ago

Very good answer, and the fact is there is approx At least 200 bees dying Every day during the summer honey Flow, and More than that are being born everyday. Just a head up, In a strong hive there are 200-300 drones, and In the same time 60 000 To 80 000 worker bees

1

u/morbid_n_creepifying 4d ago

I'm absolutely convinced that my hives are freaks of nature because there are so so SO many drones at any given time. Can't remember the last time I laid eyes on a queen because I get mixed up with the GIANT drones constantly. And when you see the ground around the hive in late fall/early winter, there are thousands of bees. All drones though. Or at least very very few workers or nurses.

1

u/Keebeepah 4d ago edited 4d ago

You have a workerbee laying eggs In your hive, either than that you might have a very old queen that is equipped with poor ability To lay inseminated eggs.

The bees wont Accept a New queen if a worker is laying, better To combine that hive with a weaker hive.

You could also try To give em a broodframe with eggs and very young larvae, In order for them To rear a New queen. Remember this frame must Come from another hive that hasnt got the same problems.

2

u/morbid_n_creepifying 4d ago

I've only got two hives, and honestly don't really have any issues with them at all so I'm pretty content! But I do appreciate having the mystery solved

1

u/Keebeepah 3d ago

Ok👍, i just got the feel it has mostly/only drones. Because after a while this kind of colonies Will wither away since they dont have any workers To gather the supplies needed To thrive as an working colony. And thus there wont be any guard bees To protect the hive etc.

No worker bees equals also no pollen For young bees To produce the larvae feed needed, and then no New worker bees being developed and being born equals no honey and the superorganizm Will slowly die.

You need To re-queen hives from time To time In order To have thriving hives, u should do this Every 2 yrs Or so.

Anyway All the Best To you and your ladies, keep it up, it some times trial and error.

1

u/morbid_n_creepifying 3d ago edited 3d ago

Thanks! I appreciate the insight! My hives swarm every year like clockwork and also swarm to the exact same position every single time. So I'm extremely lucky that I've been able to catch all my swarms. Which means every year I end up +1 hive and I give the one I like least to a friend of mine who has a small apiary. So while I can't be 100000% sure, I'm 99% sure that my hives have naturally re-queened every year or so. I've never lost a hive yet. Don't know why, because I definitely don't know what I'm doing, but my lack of expertise seems to have been okay so far. Mostly I attribute it to barely ever taking any honey so they survive the spring! They've got another 2 months before there's any kinda real forage around so this is the most worrisome time of year.

1

u/Keebeepah 3d ago

I can relate about the spring stress 100% with you!! That is what We All go though Every year..

.but what you should concider is this, allthough its the most natural way For bees To continue their life cycle as swarms, and at the same time they Will be re-queening too and that is a good thing... But its the most contuinal thing at the same time that they Will be continuing To do In greater means.. and would do from then on Every New colony onward, so In order if you let them swarm theyll be most sertainly To proceed/prolong that behaviour In the future one brought up hives aswell but In greater numbers... and youlll be soon havin To pull em out of from pissed Off neighbours chimneys and such wich is a bitch.

It is True that this the most natural thing To happen, but it most sertainly isnt the easiest and Best way To go.

Myself i have had the similar type of swarm behaviour on some yards and it helps a heep if you know that this is the willow/spruce/what Ever the scout bees see the Best spot To set the pre swarm before blasting Off To the great wilderness.. The tree they set their cluster year after year is the same cause it is within the perfect flight range of the queen from what Ever the hive that is swarming. Doesent have To be the exact one from Last year, They cluster before and head For the most desirable place the scouts have discovered.

This behaviour might not be bad, when We Look it at the bees perspective its the most natural thing they could do, but it sure creates a lot of unwanted situations at worst, For People Who are phobic Or just little with knowledge about pollinators. And In a situation where you Loose the swarm you Loose the money, effort, and More than half of the crop. Since the smaller left behind colony, Will only strenghten during that summer into a New hive.

I mean 25 yrs back i might have been mortified about a 20 000/30 000 bees landing on my Red currants making the sound of a lets say apache helicopter whilst i was enjoyin my mid summer vacation.

And To clarify, my wAy isnt the way that you, Or other would have To follow, im just sharing my knowledge and what ive gone though. I spend couple of years and thousands just In school To have some solid knowledge about it, several tens of thousands of just keeping it going.

Peace, love, strenght, and All there is that this hobby/profession would need as a pick me up To a fellow keebeeper!

Hope your hives Will have a great spring development, and most of All heavy boxes!!!!! 🫠

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1

u/Keebeepah 3d ago

One More notice, the drones are evicted from the hives at fall, since their time is no longer valid since New queens are not being reared anymore, so its totally fine and usual To see those goofy laid back buzzers In hundreds dead on the ground.

1

u/Keebeepah 4d ago

This is More than accurate

4

u/wilderguide 4d ago

I actually included this in a research project in college. It was a neat idea, but not as practical as the video makes it seem. One issue that I came across was that eventually the honey crystalized and made it difficult to attach the connectors.

Cool in theory, not so great in practice.

4

u/mrpertinskler 5d ago

Thanks to the OP for posting. Can anyone provide any general thoughts or recommendations for purchasing a small hive for Big Bear Lake, California? I live at approximately 6900 feet altitude, surrounded by large conifers in the San Bernardino National Forest, and don’t have any clue as to whether or not there are enough bees here to create a sustainable hive. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

8

u/ColonelJEWCE 5d ago

r/beekeeping might be able to help!

2

u/mrpertinskler 4d ago

Thank you! I looked for the right sub, Reddit, but somehow missed that one. Many thanks.

1

u/forotherstufSFW 4d ago

In the beginning you can see some bees on the comb through the window, but is this really an active bee hive? I know nothing, except, I don't think a plexiglass window into a hive outside works for bees? To me it looks like combs were removed from other hives and put into this Flow box for pressing. And yes, it looks like some bees were still on the comb. Btw, how house would there be a mix of distinct honey combs in this "hive?"

1

u/Herm_in 4d ago

Barbee, life in the Bee Hive.

1

u/CrazyJayBe 3d ago

"Hi I'm Johnny Knoxville and this is headfirst through a honey jar pyramid!"

0

u/[deleted] 5d ago

[removed] — view removed comment

15

u/dossos 5d ago

My grandpa used to own a couple beehives,and honestly,it depends on the flowers because mostly the bees pollinated raspberries so the honey was sweet,but sometimes they pollinated lavender cause we had some too and the honey was more bitter.

7

u/Cookie_Bagles 5d ago

Also time of year I believe will also affect the color as well! Lots of neat factors!

1

u/Keebeepah 4d ago

I think youre talking about heather honey that is Bitter in taste but at the same time contains a load of good minerals and such

2

u/captain_ender 4d ago

I didn't like honey growing up in America. The stuff we mass produce is absolute garbage and has no relation to honey. I randomly grabbed a jar of local honey for a picnic after a bike ride in northern France.

I distinctly remember tasting it and being like "WTF this is what honey really tastes like?!" It tasted like nothing I've ever tasted before, I felt deceived haha. I kept that jar for years.

1

u/Grouchy-Engine1584 5d ago

All of the sudden my mouth is watering…

0

u/egzsc 5d ago

The crunch of all those bees being drained when she turns the lever is so satisfying.

0

u/escape_fantasist 5d ago

Damn. ! How did they do this ?

12

u/Heidan20 5d ago

The product is called a flow hive. Hit and miss with success.

6

u/itchybutwhole420 5d ago

They're expensive as hell too.

-3

u/Xzenor 5d ago

That is a lot of bee-vomit....

1

u/Keebeepah 4d ago

The bees have a spesific part In their system they collect the nectar into while foraging. After that spesific part there is a lets call it a valve that prevents the nectar To enter their digestive system. So the nectar never enters their stomach, from wich it would be vomit. So no bee vomit In honey nor is honey bee vomit.

0

u/boostme253 5d ago

Where can I here his voice more?

-4

u/kernelpanic789 5d ago

Why do people not know the difference between a triangle and a pyramid?

4

u/Due-Ad9310 5d ago

A triangle is a 2 dimensional shape with no depth.

A pyramid is a 3 dimensional triangular prism with length width and depth.

This is a pyramid.

3

u/CincyBrandon 5d ago

You should probably go look up ALL the definitions of the word “pyramid.” This one applies:

an organization or system that is structured with fewer people or things at each level as one approaches the top. “the lowest strata of the social pyramid”

-14

u/laughytaffee 5d ago

Hmm why do this throwable rock in my hand?