|

Build a
"Bee Safe"
Throughout history, rural people have used their
beehives as a "safe" to keep their valuables from being discovered.
During WW II, some rural farms had two or three different armies go
through their area, yet they emerged from the war with those valuables
kept in a "bee safe" being completely untouched.
The safe shown above is for a standard deep hive body, and measures 17
7/8" long, 8 3/8" high, and is 1 3/4" wide. It was made wider than
a normal frame, but fits perfectly into a 10 frame hive with 9 frames
spaced properly. The bottom and sides are pine, while the sides are 1/8"
Masonite. The opening on top is covered with a 1 3/4" slat when in
use as a safe...that is enough to keep the bees out and no one can see
inside.
While it would be possible to wall off one side of a hive for use as a
safe, anyone looking inside could see the unused portion. But with
a single frame-sized bee safe, the top just looks like any other frame
top and therefore does not appear out of place. I place the bee
safe on one side of the hive, with the other 8 frames being normal wood
construction frames. If the bee safe is placed in the lower hive
body, it would take a very brave amateur to dig through the hive to find
a "bee safe"!!!
 |
My book "The Honey Factory" is now available as a downloadable
eBook! Updated, with many full color photos.
"I find the depth of information contained
staggering, this book would be beneficial for anyone
starting out with bees, right through to the more
experienced beekeeper. It contains diagrams, drawings,
photos, personal stories on beekeeping, hints, ideas,
thoughts, an annual diary, storage ideas and much much more.
You really do need to read the
list of chapters to get more of an idea on what they are
offering here in this ebook." Robyn Parry.
Click here to get your download copy now.
For a printed or CD
edition of "The Honey Factory," click here.
|
The inside of a hive is quite moist, as for every pound of honey the
bees consume they exhale 10 gallons of water vapor. Anything
placed in the safe should be in sealed bags to protect the contents from
moisture.
With an interior space 16 1/2" long, 1 1/4" wide and 7 1/2" deep, a lot
of valuable can be stored in a bee safe! Jewelry, gold and silver
coins, valuable small objects, all will fit into the "bee safe," as as
those items are heavy for their size, the interior space is more than
enough to hold that weight.
 |
Those beekeepers who use plastic frames could
easily modify an inside the hive feeder (as shown at left) with a
black plastic top, so their "bee safe" would look like all their
other frames. These feeders are very inexpensive, less than
$4.00, and used as a bee safe just might save your valuables in
hard times!
|

|