Gardens in my mind never need water
Castles in the air never have a wet basement
Well made buildings are fractal -- equally intelligent design at every level of detail.
Bright sparks remind others that they too can dance
What I am looking for is looking for me too!
A build too cool to miss:Mike's GreenhouseA great example:Joseph's Garden
All the soil info you'll ever need:
Redhawk's excellent soil-building series
find religion! church
kiva! hyvä! iloinen! pikkumaatila
get stung! beehives
be hospitable! host-a-hive
be antisocial! facespace
Dr Leo Sharashkin
Beekeeper and Editor
HorizontalHive.com
Pearl Sutton wrote:What needs to be done differently to account for heat and humidity? . . . What else might be needed for a hive that handles humid heat?
Leo Sharashkin wrote:Pearl, there were actually several articles in American Bee Journal (the most recent in Aug. 2019 issue) about keeping bees in Layens horizontal hives in Florida - beekeepers really love them.
You are correct, good insulation is as important in hot climates as in cold ones. I'm finding that the best design in Southern Missouri conditions is a double-wall Layens hive with 1.5" of natural wool insulation in the walls and bottom, and with ventilated attic space (filled with a wool pillow for the winter, the Layens way). In the Layens hive, the air gets into the attic space through a small gap after the last frame (which you should not close - it is beneficial for ventilation. The wintering setup is shown in Chapter 24 in Layens's Keeping Bees in Horizontal Hives and also in Keeping Bees with a Smile. These techniques have worked very well for me.
Blog: 5 Acres & A Dream
Books: Kikobian Books | Permies Digital Market
Leo Sharashkin wrote:
You are correct, good insulation is as important in hot climates as in cold ones. I'm finding that the best design in Southern Missouri conditions is a double-wall Layens hive with 1.5" of natural wool insulation in the walls .....
A build too cool to miss:Mike's GreenhouseA great example:Joseph's Garden
All the soil info you'll ever need:
Redhawk's excellent soil-building series
Pearl Sutton wrote:I'm in southern Missouri, summers are hot and very humid, winters are very low humidity and high wind chill, although actual temperature isn't too extreme. I'm looking at building horizontal hives based on the ideas in Keeping Bees with a Smile but he mostly glosses over summer heat, as it's not an issue for him. What needs to be done differently to account for heat and humidity?
I'm planning high insulation values, if you have looked at my house design, you would notice I'm into insulation, thermal mass, and good air flow. I don't think thermal mass would help bees. It stabilizes temperatures, problem being if it gets to a temperature you don't want, it's very difficult to change. But insulation and good air flow control make sense to me.
If I make the top bars so they touch each other, where can the excess heat come out at the top? The designs I see have the lid being a hollow space, that can be insulated in winter, and opened in summer, but how does air get into their little attic there?
What else might be needed for a hive that handles humid heat?
Leo Sharashkin wrote:Pearl, there were actually several articles in American Bee Journal (the most recent in Aug. 2019 issue) about keeping bees in Layens horizontal hives in Florida - beekeepers really love them.
You are correct, good insulation is as important in hot climates as in cold ones. I'm finding that the best design in Southern Missouri conditions is a double-wall Layens hive with 1.5" of natural wool insulation in the walls and bottom, and with ventilated attic space (filled with a wool pillow for the winter, the Layens way). In the Layens hive, the air gets into the attic space through a small gap after the last frame (which you should not close - it is beneficial for ventilation. The wintering setup is shown in Chapter 24 in Layens's Keeping Bees in Horizontal Hives and also in Keeping Bees with a Smile. These techniques have worked very well for me.
Alas, poor Yorick, he knew this tiny ad:
Sepper Program: Theme Weeks
https://permies.com/wiki/249013/Sepper-Program-Theme-Weeks
|