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Rustic Element Bees is the world's only manufacturer of the famed Kerkhoff Beehive. Our modified Kerkhoff hive has all the features and advantages of the old, out of production Kerkhoff hive with several new innovations added. We call this new iteration of the Kerkhoff hive the Harvey Heritage Hive (H3 Hive).
Bad news: Rustic Element Bees is closed due to health reasons. I'm not sure when I will be able to reopen.
We are proud to bring back this proven hive. Although, we have made a few improvements. We have added a screened bottom board (not necessary back when the Kerkhofs were built), adjustable vents and better carrying handles.
We have been praised many times for the workmanship in our hives. We insist of premium quality. All joints are fitted to the closest possible tolerances and glued with waterproof glue. Edges are sanded and all units are inspected before shipment. All feeders are sealed and tested.
We offer complete H3 hives as well as H3 components. If you already have some Kerkhof hives and you need some parts, all of the H3 components are compatible with the old Kerkhof hives.
We offer the H3 hives in two main configurations: 1) As the Kerkhofs where with two 13 frame supers, or 2) with four 6 frame supers instead. This configuration is much easier on the back. The smaller supers are really just modified brood boxes. You could just as well use brood boxes as supers if you wish.
So, what is a H3 Hive? As mentioned earlier, a H3 is a modified Kerkhoff Hive. In a H3, all of the advantages of a Kerkhof hive are maintained, with a few added innovations.
First, the Kerkhoff Hives were invented and produced long before there was a mite problem in North America. So we've added a screened bottom board. A screened bottom board is nothing new, but the H3 screened bottom board makes allowances for the Kerkhoff ventilation, as well as making that ventilation flow adjustable.
The H3 screened bottom board vent sliders are removable for easy maintenance. And the mite board is in a drawer that fits tight enough to keep most critters out, yet loose enough to allow for painting.
The picture here shows a single bottom board. Two of these would be needed for each hive. I've switched to a common screened bottom board for simplicity's sake. I'll post a picture of the common style SBB as soon as I can get a decent shot of one. If you would prefer 2 separate SBBs, let me know when you order and I'll make them for you.
The front entrance is the same as a common screened bottom board. The fronts of the Kerkhoff brood chambers have an extra entrance on the front end of each brood chamber. This allows more bees to come and go during busy times and can be closed during quiet times.
The front of the brood chambers are the same as the Kerkhoff with the addition of better handles on the front and back for better grip.
Venting is accomplished with a double wall system. Bee space is maintained in all areas to keep the bees happy. Each brood chamber holds six standard medium frames. Three brood chambers on each side are normal (six all together).
The queen excluder not only keeps the queens out of the honey super area, but keeps them away from each other as well. Ventilation is maintained through the queen excluder. Vents are also screened.
Honey supers hold 13 standard medium frames. The honey supers are positioned such that the frames are perpendicular to the frames in the brood chambers. This allows easy access for the bees between the two.
Moving 13 frame boxes can be heavy (my wife complained). So we also offer the option of using four six frame honey supers instead (two on each level). The six frame supers are the same as the six frame brood chambers except without the door. This means you can also use the small supers as brood chambers in a pinch, and visa versa (my wife can handle these :)).
The feeder we make for the H3 is the standard Miller type feeder. It has two chambers so you can feed your bees a little or a lot, depending on what they need at the time, without worrying so much about the feed going bad. The screen between the two chambers is removable for easy cleaning. Our feeders come pre-finished on the inside with 3 coats of spar urethane. If you would prefer to finish this part yourself you can order unfinished feeders.
The inner and outer covers in a H3 are one unit. It is fully ventilated, which completes the ventilation system. The top of the cover is finished with a single piece of aluminum.
All hives are made of premium grade #2 pine (our lumber supplier seems to be able to get some pretty good stuff for #2) and we take pride in our excellent workmanship. All joints are both nailed with galvanized nails and glued with waterproof glue. We only offer fully assembled units since they would be far too difficult to assemble without the plethora of specialized jigs we use.
Copyright © Sep, 2010 Michael R. Harvey