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Posts Tagged ‘construction’

Reverend Lorenzo Langstroth, the man who pioneered modern day beehives, created his original beehive design based on the idea that bee products could be more easily harvested from a spatially constructed box with frames. Since that time in the mid 1800’s others have manipulated that thought into different versions of the original model.

But one model known as the top bar hive, is different. While still using Langstroth’s concept of ‘bee space’, it uses a frameless design that only makes use of it’s top bars – hence the name. Is this design better than the others? There are pros and cons to this type of hive which serious beekeepers need to know.

The design of the top bar is probably the most simple. It requires the least amount of evenly measured elements. In it’s most simplistic form it is a box with some top bars inserted at the top. It can be constructed from different types of materials, and can even use recycled elements.

Plans are available for the do-it-yourselfer who may wish to build one on their own. Alternatively, because of the easy design these hives can be found for purchase and are readily affordable to those on a modest budget. This makes this hive attractive to those who are just looking into beekeeping as a side hobby.

Top bar hives will allow you to collect the maximum amount of wax. Because the honeycombs hang loosely, the entire piece can be cut across and removed during a harvest without scraping. This makes for easy seasonal harvesting, and a lot of wax for consumables such as soaps, candles, cosmetics, and furniture polish.

Because so much effort is used by the bees to reconstruct the interior of the hives, the honey production takes a hit. Top bar hives will not yield the same amount of honey you can get with a design like the Langstroth.

Additionally, with no sides to the pull out frames the construction of the honeycombs can be unpredictable. Occasionally the bees will keep building and attach to the sides of the box. They may also create an interior hive that connects several bars together making it harder to pull up a single frame. This is known as cross combing.

Later revisions to the Top Bar beehives have worked to correct or minimize these downfalls, but the design is not completely free of this issue. Regular maintenance and supervision will be the best remedy to insure proper honeycomb formation before things get out of sync.

To recap, if you are new to beekeeping and working with a budget, top bar beekeeping may be the right place for you to start. You will get some honey, but also expect a hefty amount of wax as well. It may be a little more effort to keep the hives in proper working order, but in the end you can still enjoy all the honey and wax the hive has to offer.

A businessperson with even a casual liking of pets is positioned to capitalize big-time on America’s pet craze. All you need to do is keep in mind that Americans increasingly treat their pets as children.

As the number of children per household declines, the number of pets is increasing. Baby boomers, a powerful segment of today’s market, are quickly becoming empty-nesters and replacing their grown two-legged children with four-legged ones. Indeed, many people now call themselves pet parents or guardians rather than “owners.”

“By buying pets human-type gifts, we are making ourselves feel good and making them happy,” says Bob Vetere, chief operating officer of the American Pet Products Manufactures Association (APPMA). This trend suggests a hugely profitable strategy for entrepreneurs in the pet business: position pets as members of the family. Here are three ways:

Create human-like products and services for pets:
-Gourmet and specialty pet foods.
-Doggy and kitty treat cookbooks.
-Pet clothing.
-Human-type pet furniture.
-Coordinating “Mommy and pet” jewelry.
-Designer pet carriers, buggies, and strollers.
-In-home grooming services.
-High-end grooming products, such as aromatherapy baths.
-Pet portraiture.
-Pet birthday party supplies.
-Pet communicator services for pets with problem behaviors.

Rename your existing pet products and services:
-Your pet supply store becomes a pet boutique.
-Your boarding facility becomes a pet hotel.
-Your kennel becomes doggy and kitty day care.
-Your grooming business becomes a pet spa.
-Your dog training skills make you a pet behavior specialist.

Capitalize on the fur frenzy with your existing non-pet business:
-Extend your brand to include pet products.
-Feature pets in your ads and sales messages.
-Donate a portion of your profits to an animal rescue group (and say that you are).
-Welcome pets in your store or lodging facility.
-Have a food service? Host regular dog-and-human cocktail parties.
-In the construction business? Offer custom dog baths/showers in high-end homes.

As always, choose a marketing expert with a passion for pets to help you create a marketing plan that resonates with your market. People are eager to spend lots of money on their pets. You might as well be positioned to receive your share.

As mentioned, an unsightly protein scum may appear on the surface of the water. This is the result of dissolved organic waste separating out and attaching itself to bubbles of air. A foam fractionator’s, sometimes known as a protein skimmer, is a controlled mechanical way of removing the protein, or dissolved organic carbon, from the water.

In one design of protein skimmer, fine bubbles of air are injected at the bottom of the device and as they rise through the water, they collect or adsorb the organic carbon on their surface. This action prevents the bubbles from bursting and foam collects on the water surface, from where it is skimmed off to waste.

Switch off foam fractionators when you use a pond medication, otherwise they will remove the medication from the water as well. These devices have been available to the aquarium keeper for many years and some homemade designs work well on ponds. The ozone kills free swimming or motile bacteria and algal cells, producing clearer and cleaner water.

Using an ozonizer would render an ultraviolet light clarifier unnecessary. These are known as anaerobic bacteria and they thrive in oxygen depleted water. If you use an anaerobic filter, it will require very careful monitoring. When construction is complete, the pond and filter system should be filled through a water meter to ascertain its total working volume.

Knowing this figure is important, because it enables you to calculate accurate dosage when the pond needs to be medicated. If a water change is required, a check on the meter reading will enable, say, a 10% change to be made accurately. If possible, plumb a meter into the pond main water supply so that you can always monitor the water usage.

Allow the system to circulate for a few days to ensure there are no leaks.