nwe ktbh

[3pepper]

just curious . i just built another ktbh and i am thinking of selling it .
its 48" long and 17" wide and 11" deep
made with 3/4 yellow pine

my digital camera batteries are down so i can't post a picture yet .

what would be
just an average fair value of a ktbh?
thanks
stephen

[Scot Mc Pherson]

It cost me $56 to make mine from all new materials, cost including hardware and paint.

To sell one new, I would want at minimum $150 to make any profit. A mature colony with bees? Well I would want more, but you have to have a buyer. I may next year be selling TBHs along with a NUC of bees, but we shall see how I fair this winter without pollen first. I may be pooling my resources just to build back up again.

[Scot Mc Pherson]

I forgot to mention, I buy materials for and make batches of 50 at a time. That how much lumber I can fit in my basement. I spend approx $2500 for lumber, and a couple hundred on hardware and paint. It's cheaper to buy in lots if you can. I also get it rough cut (to length) for free since I spend about $30,000 a year. I finish it with the ripping and routing necessary to make the hives to design.