Finish for a Bee House

[Lignum]

Morning all - new to woodworking, and it's amazing how finishing doesn't seem interesting until you need to know something about it!

I'm planning on building a bee house for the garden - really just an open carcass that blocks of wood with holes drilled in can be placed in - and wondered if anyone had any advice for what to finish it with? Creosote etc seems like it might not be the best thing to have next to bees...

Many thanks in advance!

 

[Aggrajag]

Sorry to threadjack a little bit here, but bear with me... I'd never heard of a bee house so I've just looked it up and I know my other half would love one for the garden but wouldn't these just make easy pickings for spiders? (Which a) I hate and b) I don't want to slaughter bees.)

 

[Aggrajag]

And in answer to your question, whilst trying to answer my own question, this site recommends untreated wood but shielded from the elements:
http://www.foxleas.com/make-a-bee-hotel.asp

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Nothing is your best bet - they are susceptible to all sorts of things, and possibly deterred by others. If you are drilling the holes obviously ensure they don't hold water - for one you won't get bees in them. You'll be surprised how long something will last so long as it doesn't HOLD water - it's not getting wet that does the damage.

 

[Lignum]

Well I was going to really stretch my ability to cut two straight lines at an angle and put a little roof on, so hopefully the water will run off (one corner more than the other, because hahanostraightlines). So untreated is the way to go - thanks very much!

 

[woodpig]

My wife bought one from Lidl for a few quid and I don't think it has any kind of finish on it. It's nice though that folks are making or buying things like this though! Post a picture on here when you're done, it might inspire others. At the old house we just used to hang up bundles of canes or drill out small logs.

 

[Lignum]

Sorry to threadjack a little bit here, but bear with me... I'd never heard of a bee house so I've just looked it up and I know my other half would love one for the garden but wouldn't these just make easy pickings for spiders? (Which a) I hate and b) I don't want to slaughter bees.)

Susbsequent googling reveals the stuff of nightmares; crab spiders lurk in flowers and ambush bees. Never leaving the house again.

 

[ED65]

I don't think you need to be too fussed about this because people have painted theirs with all sorts of things and had bees colonise them. But if you would prefer to be completed faster these days we have low-VOC paints and these could be ideal. In practice this means an exterior paint where you clean the brush with water.

In the past oil-based paint was used for beehives and this appears to be perfectly acceptable to bees, although I would think you'd have to allow for a very thorough drying time with anything like this, possibly until it has no solvent odour which might take weeks.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I used to keep bees (30years ago) but I've never seen a painted hive or indeed a hive treated in any way. All the good ones were/are cedar (that's the outers of course).

 

[NazNomad]

I've made several bug-hotels and never put a finish on them, just put them out of the rain.

Leafcutter bees tend to like them a lot.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Mason bees round our way.

 

[Rorschach]

I would say no treatment but if you wanted to waterproof the roof somewhat how about painting it with melted beeswax?

 

[NazNomad]

I would say no treatment but if you wanted to waterproof the roof somewhat how about painting it with melted beeswax?

... or just rub a bee on it? :lol: :lol:


Edit: No bees were harmed in the making of this post.

 

[ED65]

I used to keep bees (30years ago) but I've never seen a painted hive or indeed a hive treated in any way.

You must not watch much TV It must be quite common to paint, my recollection is that on nearly every program I've watched that features beekeeping when the camera comes in close to remove a frame you see weathered or worn paint (usually white) on the outside, contrasting with the bare wood on the inside.

 

[woodpig]

I used to keep bees (30years ago) but I've never seen a painted hive or indeed a hive treated in any way.

You must not watch much TV It must be quite common to paint, my recollection is that on nearly every program I've watched that features beekeeping when the camera comes in close to remove a frame you see weathered or worn paint (usually white) on the outside, contrasting with the bare wood on the inside.

Yes, there were over a dozen bee hives in a garden near to where I grew up and they were all painted white.

Edit. Just found this!

http://www.beverlybees.com/how-to-paint-a-beehive/

 

[thetyreman]

I would say no treatment but if you wanted to waterproof the roof somewhat how about painting it with melted beeswax?

... or just rub a bee on it? :lol: :lol:


Edit: No bees were harmed in the making of this post.

bee careful!

 

[lurker]

Mason bees round our way.

You need to use a compass and a square for making houses for them

 

[custard]

Nice bees, the kind you really want at your BBQ and garden parties, will generally insist on Farrow & Ball.

traveller bees, the sort that swig all the Pimms and pee in the pool, they couldn't care less.

 

[woodpig]

traveller bees, the sort that swig all the Pimms and pee in the pool, they couldn't care less.

I think you're getting confused with gypsy moths ... :lol:

 

[John Brown]

All the hives I saw in Turkey were painted light blue.