I spent about $80 on some cedar boards, acrylic plastic and screws to build a 3 foot top bar hive. Plans for the beehive were downloaded from the Bare Foot Beekeeper. A few modifications to his plans were made, mainly due to sizing. His plans are for 12 inch lumber, but most lumber yards and hardware stores only carry cedar that is milled down to 11 1/4. None of the local lumber yards had a 14 or 16 inch wide board that could be ripped or a rough cut 12 inch board, though I can't imagine what the cost would be for those.


A bottom was added even though, Jacqueline and the Bare Foot Beekeeper mentioned this is an optional addition. Because of the measurement changes, I screwed up and had a 5 1/2 inch bottom instead of a 5 1/4 inch bottom which is what a 6 inch cedar board milled down to. I ended up getting an 8 inch board and ripping it down to the 5 1/2 inches I needed. I used the remaining wood for the trim along the top.
To make the top of the hive, cedar fence boards were used. They were tacked over each other, then caulked the seam where they met. Hinges were added to the back of the hive and lid. One issue that arose, is the lid is heavy and will tip the hive over when open. I will have to work on this with the next hive, maybe scrap the idea of hinges.

In our classes Jacqueline recommend a shelf for the bees to sit outside of the entrance to cool themselves. A small piece of wood was screwed below the two 3/4 inch openings. She also mentioned a screen on the bottom for mites to fall through. The mites then get trapped under the screen and stay out of the hive. I used a window screen for that. Two little blocks were added inside and I stapled the screen tight to the sides and the blocks so that a gap was present between the floor and screen.

Lastly, the hive was painted with a wood paint that I had left over from painting the chicken coop. While the wood is cedar, a coat of paint will make the hive last a bit longer. With all the rain this should also stop the wood from becoming soaked. The inside was not painted to allow a healthy environment for the bees.

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