Aromatic Cedar Hive Body?

[thesurveyor]

I know this has been discussed before, but I cannot remember the outcome. Has anyone ever tried to keep a hive in aromatic cedar hive body. If so, what the results favorable or other.

If the cedar smell keeps moths out of clothing, does anyone think it would keep them out of a hive body.

Thanks in advance for refreshing my memory.

[Michael Bush]

>Has anyone ever tried to keep a hive in aromatic cedar hive body.

Yes.

> If so, what the results favorable or other.

I works fine. It costs too much unless you have scraps.

>If the cedar smell keeps moths out of clothing, does anyone think it would keep them out of a hive body.

I can assure you it will not keep wax moths out of the hive nor any other pest. It does make a perfectly good box.

[LtlWilli]

I make almost all of my hive parts from red cedar, and the bees are just fine. The good thing is that I located a small, privately owned sawmill that sells it in 8' boards , and the cost is $1 x the width. So, I get 1x8's for $8, 1x 10's for $10, and so on. Another plus is that his boards are true to dimension.---you really get a board 1" thick. It does increase the weight of the boxes, but I believe that little bit of extra thickness helps in the winter, giving added insulation.....Oh....and I love that smell!!!

[Ross]

$1.25 a board foot isn't bad for cedar. Is it dry?

[LtlWilli]

Yes, it is good wood, with just gorgeous graining and color...I use clear coat on the outsides becuase I cannot bear to cover the pretty wood up. I differentiate between the hives by using different colors on the tops and inside top covers, which I make about 3" tall, in order to make winter feeding easy and also give room for the hot air and moisture to rise up into.
He's the kind of guy who'll look over every piece he sells, and if it has a big knot or some cracking, he'll cut the price. Shoot, when the longest cut you are making isn't even 24", I look for the "bad" boards. He sets up at Trades Days every month, so I try to save my coins, and get what I need for the month all at once.