Flow(TM) Hive may be the innovation that finally gets me (and you) into beekeeping!

I just found this on Indiegogo and it looks like the most amazing invention! I have always wanted to get hives but the labor in harvesting has put me off. Not anymore!!

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/flow-hive-honey-on-tap-directly-from-your-beehive#flow_complete

I love the concept and theory, it's kind in nature and ideal. However, part of beekeeping is managing the hive and this would, in my opinion, lead to unsustainable and unhealthy beekeeping practices. We've put bees in a standardized box, evolution is too slow for the bees to adapt so we have to help them adapt to the circumstances that we expose them to. Manipulating the hive allows the bees to better clean it, and it helps to break up established populations of pests as well.

It would be nice to see frames that "decapped" honey cells in this manner, theoretically an easy adaptation to the design.

Elia, with a top-bar hive all you do is take the honeycomb directly off of the top bar. It's healthier and in reality more simple, and easier.

Colin Nelson wrote:Elia, with a top-bar hive all you do is take the honeycomb directly off of the top bar. It's healthier and in reality more simple, and easier.

You can in a lang as well. Any hive can be ran naturally and harvested using the crush and drain method.

That's very true!

I got another email I just had to share with the group!

They Are setting up an online community for the FLOW hive! How awesome is that? This is a game changer for some of you folks. Here is a copy and paste of part of the email...

I wonder if they would do a podcast with someone...

"Dear supporters,

We’re really proud that Flow™ has been embraced by so many new and existing beekeepers worldwide.

For the hobbyist beekeeper, honey is a delicious bonus. But there is so much more to it, and “newbees” really have a treat in store in getting to know their hives.

But beekeeping, like all animal husbandry, is not without its challenges. For beginners, there’s much to learn and we’ll be making sure that when your hive arrives, you won’t be on your own.

Flow Community

In the coming months, we’ll be rolling out an online education and community portal.

Among other features, we’ll be including instructional videos and articles, and forums where the Flow community of experience and new beekeepers alike can exchange tips and ideas, images and success stories.

We’ll continue to stay in contact as we work on the portal and soon will ask for your input regarding what you would like to see there."

OK. Saw one of their several new YouTube videos and just had to share some of the facts about Australia and the FLOW hive I gleaned.

1. In this video the hive they were inspecting only gets opened about 2 times a year.
2. Australia does not have the Verroa mites... but does have SHB.
3. He recommends that you get an experienced inspector when checking the brood until you learn the ropes of what to look for.
4. He DID design the FLOW frames to discourage the queen from laying eggs in there. However, He suggest that everyone Should use a queen excluder. Reason being is that if the queen does not have any place lower in the brood box to lay Drone eggs... she may work her way up there and lay some drone brood into the FLOW frames.


So I suspect that if you do a stack of brood boxes with a few honey boxes on top... that the queen would never go that high and you could get away without an excluder. Especially if you do a Warre style hive and let the bees build all natural comb from top to bottom. Then just super the FLOW frames on top of the Warre after the hive gets well developed. You could even use the Lang as a Warre.

http://youtu.be/MrRzp78NHcc

One more fun fact post...

The Indegogo campaign for FLOW has finally ended. End results....

$12,181,405 USD raised
17,402% funded
36473 funders

Is that possibly 36,473 new bee keepers out there? Who knows...

Marty Mitchell wrote:
Is that possibly 36,473 new bee keepers out there? Who knows...

Liet knows.

tel jetson wrote:

Marty Mitchell wrote:
Is that possibly 36,473 new bee keepers out there? Who knows...

Liet knows.

Who is Liet?

The marketing was incredibly well done. Their timing was good, there is a huge wave swell for interest in beekeeping. Most of all they selling instant gratification for little effort. They convinced people that beekeeping was effortless and that using their product was will make anyone a beekeeper with an endless supply of honey. I still stand by my prediction that millions of bees will die in the hands of starry eyed inexperienced keepers and many of these hives will be offered on the market for pennies on the dollar and sitting in bee equipment boneyards. I also will stand by my promise for a full, public apology if I am wrong.

I'll stand with you, Ernie. I've tried to see a good side to this invention, but I'm not seeing it. I'm also heartened to read posts by other people who are not impressed with this invention.

To me it's no different to an invention that automates the picking of fruit from my plum tree so that I don't have to walk all the way out there and connect with it and check for any problems it may have.

For all we know, it may end up being the greatest thing that ever happened to bees and bee-keeping, but I can't help having a bad feeling about it.

Marty
read "dune" by Frank Herbert http://www.dunenovels.com/
to find out who Liet is

David

Lol... nice. Now I remember who Liet is. Thanks! I am so slow sometimes!


Also, just got another email from the Flow Folks. Their new bee network/support website is up. Just a little hatchling though.
http://forum.honeyflow.com/

If you guys want to help the newbees out... feel free to chime in over there. Help save some bees!

I totally agree. My bets are also towards thinking that there will be some cheap Flow hive parts all over the market some day. That seems to be the nature of all mechanical/electronic gadgets. So I have a feeling that you folks are 100% correct on that aspect. Ernie... I have seen you on a few YouTube videos. Would ask you for your autograph but I can't. : )

I do hope that this new thing will not lead to bee genocide. Then again most large Commercial apiaries tend to be doing that already if they really are loosing 30% to 50% of their hives every year.

Just wanted to let everyone know that the Flow folks have started a video series on how to keep bees on their YouTube channel. They recommend letting the bees build their own natural comb... leaving their own honey stores for the Winter... etc. Nice.

Chiming back in to post a link to Micheal Bush and his opinions on The Flow Hive. Fast forward to minute 45 or so....

Just for fun I did a local search for Flow frames, now that they will be flooding the market at low prices. So far there is one 3 bar set for sale, for the full price by some guy who says he is going to use a Ware hive instead.