I thought it was time to revisit the Log Cabin design. I’ve made a few little improvements and design changes. These have a thicker base and roof and more internal volume. Specs: Timber: Cypress Timber Thickness: 35mm Design: Log
Above – update 2022: I’ve kept the same design and worked out how to get a consistent flower made. The roofs are now fully coated with stain or paint. Below: First made in 2016 This Cottage style roof fits the standard
Edit: 2021 I updated and simplified the Budding Kit in 2021. More photos and info for version 2 here: https://www.nativebeehives.com/buddingkitv2/ Original Budding Kit – below – created 2016 In 2016 I created the Budding/Eduction Kit below. While it was a
Specs: Timber: Cypress Timber Thickness: 35mm Design: Rebated OATH with Super – 280mm x 200mm. Galvanised screws fitted internally so they are not seen from the outside. Internal Volume: 6.8 litres Brood Supports: Cypress Separator Plate: Clear Acrylic Coating: Oil
Just for a laugh i made something a little different, The Outhouse – Dunny Box! This box should provide quite a sturdy and solid home for native bees, something you could use as a feature in the garden and doesn’t
For these boxes I used a “Project Panel” intended for use as bench tops that you would buy from popular hardware stores. This one is Alpine Oak / Victorian Ash. There’s different types of timber like Pine, Karri, Beach and others. This
This one is based on the Brazilian design I’ve made before. It shares the same inner frames so they can be swapped between the boxes for splitting etc. Specs: Timber: Cypress Timber Thickness: 25mm thick individual frames inside a 25mm
Here’s some rebated boxes using 30mm Red Cedar and also some boxes with 35mm Pine. Cedar is very expensive and I’ve used large stainless steel screws which are expensive too so it makes the overall cost very high so this type of box
I thought it might be interesting to make a box in the shape of an old red mailbox… Specs: Timber: Cypress Timber Thickness: 35mm Design: OATH with Super – 280mm x 200mm Internal Volume: 6 litres Brood Supports: Cypress Separator Plate:
These are standard OATHs using my basic OATH Construction Plans Specs: Timber: Cypress Timber Thickness: 35mm Design: OATH with Super – 280mm x 200mm Internal Volume: 7 litres Brood Supports: Cypress Separator Plate: Clear Acrylic Coating: Exterior Paint Screws are counter-sunk and
A standard sized OATH, with a rebated join for the frames and pegged together. No screws or nails used. 35mm Cypress Rebated Joins Pegged Clear Coat Finish Routed Edges Below – Another Pegged box with a Butt Joint This is
This is my interpretation of a South American / Brazilian design for a native hive. Specs: Timber: Cypress Timber Thickness: 25mm + 25mm Design: ? Internal Volume: 4.5 litres Brood Supports: Acrylic Separator Plates: Acrylic Grab some mill sawn timber… Plane
This OATH size hive is made up of many pieces of Cypress, each piece is 35mm thick by 30mm high. This will create the layered effect for a raw timber hive. I started with some rough sawn mill timber 100mm
Treasure Chest Native Bee Hive Based on similar specs as the standard box dimensions of 280mm x 200mm, with a curved shape Honey Super. It’s something that you might have as a conversation piece in your outdoor entertaining area. The
The Crate! All Cypress, the hive is a standard OATH and is a separate structure to the outside crate. The top four slats are unscrewed to remove the hive. This would look great in a patio area. It should be
The Log Cabin Hive I machined down a heap of timber to 35mm x 45mm This is a basic mock-up with all layers just sitting in place, not fixed together… I’ve rounded the edges of one layer, just to get
I’m using the usual 35mm Cypress on these Octagonal shaped boxes. Octagonal Hives involve a lot of work and can take a long time to get done so I don’t think many people would make these odd shapes. Below – I’ve
I’ve called this one Project Octahive. It’s my first attempt at making a hive in the octagonal shape. Using 25mm Cypress, I cut all the pieces and glued them together in stages.. Photo below shows two layers. The Base and
A few examples of the Solitary Bee Hotel frames. Made from 25mm Cypress so will last many years. Possible Tenants: Carpenter Bees, Green Carpenter Bee, Reed Bees, Resin Bees, Masked Bees. You don’t actually “keep” Solitary Bees, you have no real
Updated: 2022 All hives need a good roof… A good roof shelters the box from the Sun and rain. If a colony gets too hot it can die. If water runs down the side of the box it can sit
nativebeehives.com is a project website with a focus on individual design and construction of Native Bee Hives, lots of photos, information about Australian native bees and also a news story thrown in around the place!