Long langstroth?

[Wandering Man]

I’m laid up for a few weeks thanks to foot surgery.

3Reds has read some information on how great long Langstroth hives are, specifically 4’ long hives. She thinks she would be able to check on the hives without me, if we had our bees in them.

I’m willing to move one of our 3 colonies into one just to see if we like it. I’m wondering what experience others hear may have had with this type of hive?

[riverbee]

i think you should enjoy your recovery and drink a lot of local beer..............

wm, just kidding!.....just had to wish you well in recovery from the foot surgery.  i have no experience with 4 foot long langstroth hives.  best wishes to you and 3 reds if you decide to try it, and if you do, i look forward to reading about your experience with it!

i can be sort of traditional, but my veil is off to anyone trying something different.  it's how we learn, and what works and what doesn't.  it just adds to our knowledge, and gaining knowledge from others.

[Wandering Man]

i think you should enjoy your recovery and drink a lot of local beer..............

wm, just kidding!.....just had to wish you well in recovery from the foot surgery.  i have no experience with 4 foot long langstroth hives.  best wishes to you and 3 reds if you decide to try it, and if you do, i look forward to reading about your experience with it!

i can be sort of traditional, but my veil is off to anyone trying something different.  it's how we learn, and what works and what doesn't.  it just adds to our knowledge, and gaining knowledge from others.

It's gotta be whiskey or wine now.  Beer no longer agrees with my system.

Thanks for the wishes.  I think I've overdone it on my foot the last two days.  Just now learning that I shouldn't be on my foot for very long.  3Reds & I spent 2 1/2 hours at the local Junior College promoting a backyard beekeeping lecture we'll be giving in October.

We'll get a long hive built, and report back to everyone as things progress.  I'll have to give up my Freeman Bottomboard, and probably won't be able to use my Oxalic Vaporizer for the hive.

[Lburou]

I have an unused long lang hive you could trade me out of.  I've spent a lot of time making it.  Just finished a new top for it.  It holds 24 frames and you can put 8 frame supers on it if you wish.  I've used it for queen mating NUCs, NUCs, and overwinter hive.  One year I entered Fall with two colonies in it, and when one colony went queenless, I just removed the divider and they combined themselves into one hive that made it through the winter.  The next summer I made four hives from those bees. LongLangs are easy to work and are versatile. 

[Bakersdozen]

I know of a local beekeeper that builds long Langstroth hives.  He uses them when working with disabled and developmentally disabled young people.  He built them so they would hold a regular brood frame.

[Wandering Man]

I have an unused long lang hive you could trade me out of.  I've spent a lot of time making it.  Just finished a new top for it.  It holds 24 frames and you can put 8 frame supers on it if you wish.  I've used it for queen mating NUCs, NUCs, and overwinter hive.  One year I entered Fall with two colonies in it, and when one colony went queenless, I just removed the divider and they combined themselves into one hive that made it through the winter.  The next summer I made four hives from those bees. LongLangs are easy to work and are versatile. 

Looks nice.  I'll visit with 3Reds about it.  She read an article in an old ABJ about them and is convinced we need something 4' long with the entrance on one end, rather than the side.  It looks like you've got it set up with a permanent robber screen?  That's smart.

[rober]

I designed & built one for a guy last year. I built it so that 3 standard supers fit on top so it's 48 3/4" long. it has 2 removable dividers so it can be used as 3 separate hives or the dividers can be removed & used as a single hive. the dividers are tall enough that when the separate inner covers are installed the sections remain isolated. there is a single telescopic cover. there are 3 of those metal discs entrances on the long side so with the dividers in place each section has it's own entrance. w/o the dividers you can have 1 or 3 entrances. there is a landing board at each entrance. there is a screen at the bottom that's over a sealed bottom area that holds 2 standard baking sheets that can be filled with oil or diatomaceous earth  for hive beetle control. I welded a rod to a piece of light weight angle iron to be used a scraper for cleaning out the bottom. it's on removable legs & stands about waist high so there's no bending while working it. for stability I used 5/4" material for the sides & ends. it looks similar to the one lburou posted. he likes it.