Hi, I am maybe going to build a hive this weekend for fun but don't know how to treat the wood (I will be using dimensional pine). What sort of paint should I use? Latex or Oil?
I use oil base. The first hive I bought was painted with exterior latex about 2 years ago and it was already showing signs of peeling and wear. I ended up stripping it and completely refinishing it. Oil base paints just seem to last much longer. The new hive I bought, and the new hive I recently built are finished with oil base primer, then oil base paint.
Since you don't typically paint the interior surfaces of a hive, the paint itself is not a threat to the bees or their products. After a finish has dried and the fumes are dissipated, there should be no problem. The purpose of a finish is to seal it against the elements. If it were still highly reactive with the surrounding atmosphere, there would be no reason to finish the hive at all. The main reason for waiting 1-2 weeks after painting to place bees in the hive is for curing of the paint and evaporation of any remaining fumes.
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