[demonfarmer2630]

me and my gran are wanting to start keeping bees we have done classes and have spoken to some locals but we need advise on where to get a cheap hive second hand even if its a bit beaten up i can fix anything lol
things we need to find are
 
1.a hive or 4
2.bee suits for 2 people
3.hive tools
4.bees (best breeds or swarms )
i know it wont be cheap but im looking for as cheap as possable im in kennoway near leven in fife hoping to find a local close to me who could lend a hive or sell one cheap or on payment plan pm me asap thanks for reading 

[Caroline1]

I use thornes a lot and had a local store that stocked their stuff, they are not always the cheapest but will give you an idea of price.

For cheap second hand your local beekeepers association are normally a good place for those giving up the hobby and selling their equipment or you have Facebook groups/ebay/smallholder association. Be careful with second hand though as you have no idea what diseases they could be carrying and will need through cleaning/burning.

We started 6 years ago and decided to buy a nuc from a beekeeper as we wanted an easy temperament of bee to start with, with a swarm you can never be sure what you get.

Good luck I love the hobby!

[Bionic]

I would echo everything that Caroline has said.

Our local club has a sale once a year where everyone can take the items they no loner want. Some very good bargains to be had. So its worth checking out if there is something similar in your area.

If you do buy a second hand hive I would make sure that you give it a thorough cleaning before you use it. OH has just invested in a steam cleaner from Thornes. It's very similar to a wallpaper stripper but seems to be doing a good job and wasn't too expensive.

As for bees, local is best. At this tine of year when there are usually plenty of swarms you may find your local group will help a beginner to collect a swarm.

I guess the overall message is join your local group if you haven't already

[sss]

To keep cost down you can look at top bar hives, if you are handy with wood then you can make them yourself.  Poly hives can also be cheaper than wooden.

[cloddopper]

me and my gran are wanting to start keeping bees we have done classes and have spoken to some locals but we need advise on where to get a cheap hive second hand even if its a bit beaten up i can fix anything lol
things we need to find are
 
1.a hive or 4
2.bee suits for 2 people
3.hive tools
4.bees (best breeds or swarms )
i know it wont be cheap but im looking for as cheap as possable im in kennoway near leven in fife hoping to find a local close to me who could lend a hive or sell one cheap or on payment plan pm me asap thanks for reading 

 To save yourself a lot of money perhaps look at a simple long hive and buy a tablet of bees wax to run a bead of wax on the underside of the top bars . The bees will draw the comb , this has advantages in that you can use it for cut comb.
 You still have need of a back board and a queen excluder. As the hive grows you move the back board and QE backwards as the bars get filled .
Till when you have about 14 frames of bees & brood nest  insert the QE and add four or five top bars then insert the back board . The bees will make comb on the bars and store honey . My queen excluder was a 4 inch square of 6 mm grid Kevlar welded plastic mesh stapled over a 3 " square hole in a blocking board .
 Most 8 foot long or so long hive sides are easily made with cut lumber standardised ( CLSs ) 40 x  100 screwed together , you can also make the ends out of the the same and set it on an X set of legs , one at each end and one in the middle , again well screwed on .

 If you can get hold of floor joists be aware that some may have been treated with insecticide , mould /fungi killer which will kill or damage your bees .
 We found that having  split lids that we covered over with a rubber sheet & a plank was a good idea . They were cut to 2 foot lengths for the middles & 28 inches for the outside ones ( for a rain lip ).   Having sections like this was much better to handle & work the hive than an 8 foot long lid .

 The longest long hive I've come across was not strictly a hive , but a feral nest in between 12 "x 12"  adze hewn oak beams set 20 inches apart in a 15 century farmhouse.  It stretched back 14 feet from the wall entrance where the bees had got in .

[demonfarmer2630]

Thanks for all the info and help hope to have bees soon

[cloddopper]

That's good to hear, if your able tp please post plenty of pictures for others to see how you set things up .