The Calgary Top Bar Hive:  A Top Bar Hive for Northern Climates

Metropropolis, Calgary Beekeepers Association, Feb 2014

The Calgary Top Bar Hive is a variation of the traditional Kenyan top bar hive, built  for the requirements of a Northern climate. It is made with extra-thick wood for better insulation, and has extra capacity to allow population growth and the storage of honey surplus.   The extra size will also help reduce swarming, and the accompanying explanations to neighbors.

The CTBH features an IPM screened bottom, and is partitionable for the purpose of running a two-queen colony, queen rearing, or hiving a swarm.   It is also interoperable with Langstroth equipment, and can be expanded using Langstroth honey supers.

This hive is an indirect result of my  analysis on using Top Bar hives in Calgary.  This hive improves upon current offerings by being specifically designed for a Northern climate, while still acknowledging the simplicity of design fundamental to the original Kenyan Top Bar Hive.

Preface:  Why to choose this hive, why not to, and other notes.

If I was space limited, and I had room for only a single beehive, this is the single one I’d have.

This hive offers a great deal of functionality, with a very small footprint.    It can be partitioned to hold two colonies, or to temporarily hive a swarm. With the Langstroth expansion, it can provide up to 100 lbs of extracted honey, in addition to any cut comb harvested from the top bars.

The supers and quilts can be stored on the hive in-place.   This allows the flexibility of expandability while avoiding the nuisance of equipment sprawl.

The increased space allows the colony sufficient space to grow, while still providing space to store honey during the short and intense nectar flows characteristic of Alberta.

This is a very stealthy hive.  It has a very low height, and doesn’t look like a hive.  The narrow base allows the hive to sit quite close to the ground, while still enabling access to the debris board.    The combination of horizontal layout and upward expandability mean that the hive can have a great deal of internal volume without growing too tall.

These instructions are intended to make it easy for anyone with basic equipment to build such a hive.  There is a great satisfaction and pride in building your own hive, rather than buying it. This is consistent with the intent of the original top bar design, and very possible for *you* to do.

So why *not*  choose this hive?

This hive is not an observation hive, and doesn’t have the observation window purchasers of boutique Top Bar Hives may expect.   Those seeking a hive with windows will still want to look towards other models, such as a Golden Mean Top Bar, a Gold Star Top Bar, or a Bowness Observation Hive.

Another reason not to choose this hive is out of a belief that top bar hives are “more natural”.  This hive is no more or less natural than any other hive. “Natural” is determined by how the hive is managed, not by the type of hive.  

Like any KTBH, or other fixed hive, this hive can get heavy, and won’t be easy to move.  If you anticipate that you’d need to relocate this hive, better to consider a modular system, such as Langstroth.

Like any KTBH, this hive doesn’t scale up well – If you’re planning to have 3 or more hives, better to go with a modular system, such as Langstroth.

This document will be under constant revision and improvement as feedback is received.   Please check back often for a more current version: http://members.shaw.ca/metropropolis/

Disclaimer:        I do not necessarily advocate for the use of Top Bar hives in Calgary, but it pains me to see the challenges experienced by those using currently available versions, which may not be suited to the challenges of our local environment.   I’ve developed this hive to provide a better option for those determined to follow the road less travelled.

Table of Contents

Preface: Why to choose this hive, why not to, and other notes.

1.  The Calgary Top Bar Hive: Standard Version
2.  Equipment

3.  Materials
4.  Making the hive body
5.  Making the hive ends
6.  Assembling the Hive body
7.  Finishing the Ends.
8.  Making the Top Bars
9.  Making the Follower board and spacers
10.  Combination Entrance Feeder / Entrance Reducer.
11.  The Calgary Top Bar Hive – Langstroth Expansion. 39
12.  Equipment and Materials: 39
13.  Converting Top bars to Open Top Bars: 40
14.  Quilts
15.  Lid
16.  Appendix I: Converting Langstroth drawn comb for the CTBH
17.  Appendix II: Management tips
18.  Appendix III: Revision History

The Calgary Top Bar Hive:    Standard Version

Equipment:

Table saw Dado blade recommended

Drill with 1/16 bit, 3/4” bit, and Robertson bit

3” hole saw For optional entrance feeder.

Materials:

2 pcs 2 x 12 (8ft)	$20 @ Rona / Home Depot
13 pcs 2 x 2 (8 ft)	$25 @ Rona / Home Depot
1 pcs 1x2 (8 ft)	$3 @ Rona / Home Depot
1 pcs 1x6 (8ft)	$4 @ Rona / Home Depot
#8 Hardware cloth (#8 means 1/8” Mesh)	$13 @ Rona / Home Depot
4’ x 2’ square of ¾ plywood	$10 @ Rona / Home Depot
Box of 3” #8 Deck Screws	$10 @ Rona / Home Depot
Two hinges, two hook-and-eyebolt latches	$10 @ Rona / Home Depot
120 popsicle sticks	$5 @ Dollar Store
4 Cinderblocks	---Scavenge
20" of 2x4 scrap	--- Scavenge.
36” of 2x6 scrap	--- Scavenge.
9 wine corks.	--- Scavenge
1 Mason-style spaghetti jar (Empty)	---Scavenge
	===
	~$100

Making the hive body

1. Curing your wood:     If time allows, clamp your 12” planks together and let cure for a week or two.  Wood must be off of concrete floor. This will decrease any chance of warping or bowing later.

2. Crosscutting sides and ends:   Cut each of the two 2x12s into the following lengths:  49 3/4” and 23”. The remaining 23” piece is waste.

c)   Angling cutting the sides  On your table saw, angle the saw blade to 30 degrees, as shown.    Take your two 49 ¾” pieces and angle the two edges. Cut off as little as possible to achieve the angle.   The resulting width of each piece should be 10 5/8” each. Ensure that the edges are cut parallel to each other, not trapezoidal.

Making the hive ends

3.  Mark one end piece as per the picture below, and then cut it out.

Simensions are 20” along the top, 9 ½” along the bottom, and 10 5/8”  along the diagonal. Angles at the top are 60 degrees. Bottom angles are 120 degrees.

Cut it out on the table saw as follows:

After marking and cutting the first one, us it to trace out the second, so the two are the same.     Cut the second out as well.

b)  Make Pilot holes on ends:

Drill 3 1/16” pilot holes along the side 3/4” from the edge.    Start 3” deck screws.

Assembling the Hive body

1.  Affix both ends to sides as follows.  Verify that top width is 20” and the bottom width is 9 ½ “.

Combination Screened Bottom, Landing Boards, and Debris Board:

a) Affix screened bottom:   Cut #8 HW cloth into a piece 8 ½” ”x 47” , and staple to bottom.   There should be a gap 1 3/8” left between the HW cloth and both ends.  You may need to cut two pieces to make up the entire length. I overlapped the two pieces slightly, and stapled a small 3rd piece over the join, to ensure bee-tightness.

b) Make the landing boards:  Take two  2x4’s and cut into 9 ½”  lengths. On each cut a rabbet 2” wide and  13/16” deep. Also cut 4 pcs of 1x2 into 2” lengths.

 c) Assemble Landing boards:   Assemble the 9 1/2” Lengths and the end 1x2 pieces as follows.

d) Affix Landing Boards:  Pilot and Screw the landing boards to the bottom of the hive at both ens:

e) From the inside of the hive, staple the bottom screen to the landing boards at either end:

f) Rim of Debris tray:  Crosscut 2x2 into 2 pcs of 45 ¾” inches, and 2 pcs of 6 3/8” inches.  Assemble.

Note that this picture slightly misrepresents the way the pieces fit together –  The end pieces go *between* the long pieces, not on the outside as this picture suggests.

g) Cut a piece of ½” or ¾” inch ply into a square  45 ¾” x 9 3/8” . Affix to the 2x2 frame.

h) Dry fit into bottom:

i) Affix with hinges on one side, and latches on the other.  Space ~12” from end of debris board.

j)  Removable debris board (optional):  For a removable debris tray cut a 6 ½” X 42 ½” piece of coroplast.

Cut  1” diagonal off the the corners to make it easier to remove from the debris tray.

k) Hive Feet:  Cut a piece of 2x6 into two 15 1/2” Lengths.     15 ½” is the width of a cinderblock, upon which the hive will rest.   Pilot and Screw to bottom of landing board as follows:

Finishing the Ends.:

1. Top bar ends:   Crosscut a 2x2 into 2 20” lengths.    Screw each to the top of both ends.

2. Entrances:  Mark a horizontal line 2” from the top of the end.  Mark the center spot, which is roughly 9” from either side.    Make marks 2 ½” and 5” on either side of the center mark. Drill 5 upper entrances using a ¾ inch bit.    Do the same on both ends, and on one of the ends, close the holes with 5 corks.

3. Entrance reducers.     Cut two lengths of  1x2”, 6 ¼” long, and 5 ¾” long.   One is an entrance reducer, and other is an entrance closer, which will be used to close the second entrance until it is needed.    Use a sander or table saw to remove 1/8” of thickness, and add screws to make them easier to get in and out.

Save the reducer for use later.

You’ve now finished the hive body!

Next part is the top bars.

Making the Top Bars

1. Ripping:  Set the  fence 1 3/8” from blade.  Rip two sides of 10 2x2s down so they become  1 3/8” x 1 3/8” .

2.  Crosscutting:   Crosscut each of  the 10 2x2s into 4 pcs of 20”each.   You should get 40 such pieces.

3. Cut a groove for Comb guides:   Set the fence 5/8” from the table saw blade, and ¼” high.  Cut a groove up the middle of the 40 top bars. I use a thin “thin-kerf” blade, which is perfectly sized for the popsicle sticks that will go in later, but a regular blade will do.  

4. Top Bar Guides:   Cut a 1 ¾” wide and ¼” deep rabbet on each end of the top bars.     After your first one, test fit on your hive. Top bars should fit on top of sides with only the slightest amount of wiggle.    Adjust width as necessary. Do for all 40 top bars. When done, set aside three for making follower boards and spacers later.

5. Insert Comb Guides:  Grab your remaining 37 top bars, and insert 3 popsicle sticks into the kerf of each one.  It’s easier if you do the center popsicle stick first. You may need a dab of white glue to hold them in place.     

Making the Follower board and spacers

1. Follower Board:  Cut two pieces of  ¾” plywood in to a trapezoid with the following dimensions:   

16 3/8” along the top, 60 degree corners at the top, and 6 3/8” along the bottom.  Height will be 9”

2. Join plywood and one of the Top Bars:  Place one of your top bars kerf-side up on a table.   Pilot, then drill a couple of screws to initially hold the trapezoid to the bar.  Note location and angling of the screws in picture.

c) Next, place the follower board in the hive, and pilot/screw two holes to further affix the trapezoid to the bar.    It should be solid now. I only use two screws on follower boards, so I can easily pick them out from the converted Langstroth frames (more on that later).

3. Size it in the hive.  You may need to do some sanding to get a good fit.     Small gaps along sides or bottom are ok, provided they are bee-tight (< ¼”)
4. Repeat this, to create your second follower board
5. Spacers:     Sometimes expansion and contraction can leave too much gap in the roof.  It is handy to have spacers on hand. To make spacers, rip your remaining top bar in two.

6. Put it together:   Place 34 of your top bars, as well as your follower boards into the hive.    They should fit loosely, allowing a little play. It’s good enough if they’re bee tight.  Once they become wet, they’ll expand to form a solid roof. If you note any top bars sticking up too high, you can adjust their dado with a little sandpaper.  Finally, consider running an orbital sander over the top to neaten things up.

You will have 3 top bars left over – This is to allow you to replace bars when harvesting.    These can also be used to make “Open Top Bars” which are covered later.

Combination Entrance Feeder / Entrance Reducer.

Note:  Making the entrance feeder requires a 3” hole saw, which costs about $30.   The hole can be made with a Jigsaw, but a hole saw is a good investment for a hive-builder.

1. Crosscut and Rip   Take your 1x6 and crosscut it into 3 equal lengths of 5 ¾”.    Take one of the pieces and rip it into three equal pieces roughly 1 ¾” each.

2. Feeder hole:  Mark center on one of the pieces, and cut a hole using your hole saw.   Over that hole, staple a 4x4” piece of #8 Hardware cloth.

3. Affix the back-wall and the “arms” to the base.   I use a little glue and an air nailer, but screwing or nailing is fine as well.

4. Affix the top to the base, screen side down.   

5.  Cut the “arms” down to a length of 1 ¾”.

6. Use a nail to perforate the spaghetti jar lid for your feeder jar.

7. Insert feeder into Hive  .The entrance feeder should fit nicely right into the front, and still leave a ½” gap to one side.    You may need to slightly sand down the “legs” for proper fit. Note that the feeder also serves as an entrance reducer – Allowing spring feeding without opening hive.

You are DONE!    

You now have a fully functional top bar hive that will provide sufficient space for your colony’s first year.    Should you wish to provide the colony additional space to store honey, as well as an insulated roof to improve overwintering, you may proceed on to the next section called “The Langstroth Expansion.”

The Calgary Top Bar Hive – Langstroth Expansion.

While this hive is perfectly functional as a stand-alone Top Bar Hive, it also allows for expansion to Accommodate Langstroth honey supers.     The brood box will remain in the bottom of the hive, and the bees will store honey surplus in supers up above, in extractable combs. Additionally, adding insulating “Quilts”  to the upper story will improve winter heat retention while absorbing excess moisture.

See the section on management tips for tips on making the best use of this configuration.

Equipment and Materials:

6 Langstroth Honey Supers	$60 @ Bee Supplier
27 Langstroth Frames	$50 @ Bee Supplier
2 2x2 boards	$5
Sheet of Plywood, 2’ X 5’	$10 @ Home Depot/Rona

Converting Top bars to Open Top Bars:

1. Converting Top bars to open bars:  Take 10 unused Top bars, and modify as follows so that bees will be able to pass through to the supers above.

First, set fence to 3” away from blade, and blade a ¼” height.   Cut 4 notches – 1 on each side of each end.

Note;   Converting 5 bars is sufficient to start, as you’ll only want to add these a few at time.  See the appendix on management notes for more information on using these.

b)  Next, cut out the space between the two notches.     A Dado blade makes this easy, but it can be done with a regular blade, by starting the blade low, making a pass, and increasing the height slowly.

c)  Here is the final product:

Quilts:

A quilt is a Langstroth hive component used to regulate hive heat by providing cooling in the summer, and insulation in the winter.   This is not a new creation by any means, but is solely my interpretation of an old idea. Quilts were not uncommon on Langstroth hives 60 years ago, but have since fallen out of favor.    They are still a standard feature of Warre hives. Essentially, they are a Langstroth super with a screen stapled to the bottom. In the summer, they are left empty, and provide a buffer against the heat, and in the winter they are filled with leaves, to retain heat and absorb moisture.

The details of making a quilt are well documented in the  article “Making a Langstroth Quilt”, available at: http://members.shaw.ca/metropropolis/Making%20a%20Langstroth%20Quilt.pdf

Lid:

1. Take two 2x2’s and cut each into lengths of 53” and 20 ¼”.

2.  Next, take a sheet of 3/4” or ½” ply, and cut into a rectangle 53” X 23 ¼”.

3. Assemble:   

Here is a picture of what a CTBH with the completed Langstroth Expansion looks like.   Note the row of honey supers, and then the row of quilts stored on top.

After building, the proportions seemed somewhat animal-like, and I couldn’t’ resist painting it up like a ladybug.  The possibilities in this regard are many!

NOTE:  Please do not republish or the above picture without asking first!

Appendix I:  Converting Langstroth drawn comb for the CTBH.

Many new top bar keepers find themselves unpleasantly surprised when confronted with the “crop and chop” process required to install bees from a Nuc into a Top Bar hive.    This is a bee-unfriendly practice inconsistent with the stated desires of most Top Bar keepers.

Using packages, on the other hand, requires installing bees into a bare wooden box that is unappealing to the colony, forcing them to build a wax combs before they can store honey or make brood.  Colony failure and absconding rates are high using this method.

A third alternative is to modify a Langstroth frame of drawn comb to fit into a Top Bar hive, and then populating with a package.   Drawn comb smells familiar to a newly hived package, and provides the colony a place to immediately store honey, pollen, and brood, giving it a head start.

I suggest you’d want from 4 of these to start.   If you wish, you can eventually cycle them out once the colony gets established.

a)  Create a trapezoidal jig:   Cut a piece of ¾” plywood into the following dimensions:    15 ½” along the top, 5 ¾” along the bottom, 30 degree angle on the top, and a height of 8 5/8.   

b)   Trace:  Place the jig over a brood frame of drawn comb and trace the outline in the wax with a sharp object.   

If you are unable to procure brood comb from a trustworthy source, consider using medium frames from a honey super.   All things being equal, honey frames that have not been used for brood will have less chance of transmitting disease.    The will be a bit shorter to start, of course.

c)   First cuts:  Place the frame on the table saw, and cut into the end with top bars, *only cutting halfway down the frame*.

Here’s what it looks like after cutting halfway:

4. Assemble:  Place the frame into a Nuc or hive body and place a Top Bar on top of it, centered.   Drill pilot holes from the top bar into the frame, and then drill 3 2” nails. I use two so I can differential from follower boards at a glance.

This same method can also be used to convert Pierco green drone-frames to top bar for Drone trapping, or to convert top bars from a smaller type of top bar hive.  Just put one of the 20” top bars on top, and pilot/screw it onto the frame/bar below.

We’re not quite done yet, but here is what the converted frame now looks like:

5. Final cuts:   Remove the frame from the Nuc, and using the table saw, finish the halfway cuts.

6. Cut ½” of off the bottom, removing the edge of the frame and a bit of comb:

Here is your finished product.  Note that I’ve labeled the type and source of the drawn comb for later reference.

Appendix II:  Management tips.

1. Orientation:   The hive entrance should be pointed directly south, which will minimize it’s north-side exposure.
2. Queen excluders:  Queen excluders should not be necessary:    The queen is unlikely to go upwards through the wooden gap of the top bars, unless she is congested below.     If you still wish to use a QE, it is recommended that you use a wooden-rimmed ones with this hive. You’ll of course need 3.
3. Partitioning:  Typically, the hive is used with only one colony, and only one end open.  If using to contain two colonies, open up the second entrance. This should be a short-term arrangement, as it could quickly lead to congestion.   The two colonies will share queen pheromone via airflow through the debris board, so they could be more easily combined if desired.
4. Winterizing:  Assuming that you’re wintering with only one colony in the hive, partition off the North side into two separate compartments, to provide a space-buffer against the chill of the north.   The quilts go directly above the main hive body, and the honey supers go above those. Keep it in this configuration until late spring. Don’t allow the supers to be accessible at the same time as sugar feeding.   This arrangement allows the storage of woodenware in-place, to avoid clutter.
5. Populating:  It is recommended that this hive be populated with Package bees.  Package bees typically arrive before spring nectar is available and should be given feed to get them through this period – At the very least until Dandelions are in flower, which is typically Mid May.  When initially hiving a package, reduce the bottom entrance with either the feeder or the reducer. Start with 3 of the top entrances open. Open the remaining two top entrances, and then the bottom entrance as population grows.      It’s about striking a balance between defensibility, and enough space for traffic. You decide.
6. Using Open Top Bars:   I suggest letting the bees build out comb on half of the regular bars before inserting Open Top Bars.  The end goal is to alternate these with the closed to bars, but they should be added in stages, so they can be built out with comb.  Add Open Top Bars in sets of three, starting near the entrance, and alternating with regular top bars. Putting two Open Top Bars side by side is disrecommended, as it would violate bee-space.
7. Feeding:  Prior to main flow, sugar feeding can be used to provide additional calories to help the bees make wax to build out their hive    Feed for the feeder jar can be made by mixing 1L of water for every KG of sugar, and heating on low heat or microwaving until dissolved.   A 4 KG bag will fill approximately 6 Mason-style spaghetti jars.
8. Splits:  Hive could be partitioned into 2 sections in order to create a split.   If you’re going to be splitting-in-place, you’d also need to partition the bottom board to prevent flow of queen-pheromone which would prevent a partition from raising it’s own queen.  Hive can be overwintered like this, but should not be run in this configuration after spring – it should be unpartitioned and reduced to one colony, lest the colonies become crowded and swarm.

Appendix III:   Revision History

June 01 2013 Document commenced

Feb 12 2014 Beta version 1.0 released for public feedback.\
May 24 2018 Converted .doc to html and published online.