How much do you have wrapped up in your hobby?

[GLOCK]

What do you have wraped up in this hobby we call beekeeping i have 4 years and 8000.00 so far. I have enough wood ware to make 20 hives 20 nucs i have 2 bee yards and are fenced in with electric /3 bee suits/ 1 bee jacket / every book out there/ foger/. the list is long this hobby is very addicting

[red]

I'm to big to be a hobbies't and to small to be commercial. It's not what I have spent that bothers me but what it is costing to finish the jump.

[KQ6AR]

Hi Glock,
We are very similar, without doing the math almost the same. I don't have any bear fences, but do have Maxant extractor.
I like you're style.

[Mr.Beeman]

Easily have 3k if you add up all the woodenware, trailer, equipment, tools, vacs, and advertising.

[rweakley]

I would say at this point in time that I have 0$ in my beekeeping. Entering 10th year of beekeeping and I am fairly certain(I didn't start keeping good records of income and expenses until last 3 years or so) I have made more $$ on honey sales and bee sales that I am at a break even or profit (Don't tell the IRS) LOL I have grown slowly thru splits, swarms, and cut outs. At this point in time something doesn't get purchased for the bees unless they pay for it. I am attempting to put this same philosophy to work with my chickens, but I haven't found enough customers for the eggs yet

[ralittlefield]

I've sold enough wooden ware to break even or be ahead alittle.

[WWW]

I have not kept records on my costs, I guess I really did not want to know how much was spent. Someday I will break even but I will never know when this will occur. Not knowing how much i have spent keeps beekeeping less stressful for me.

[Michael Palmer]

Everything but our house.

[JRG13]

Red, what's the main cost holding you back? Not sure how much I spent. At least $3k.

[red]

The cost of equipment. I don't want used or stuff that is only going to last a short time. I do build my own tops and bottom boards and assemble my frames and boxes. This year I plan to add 60 or 80 more hives a second 20 frame extractor, a capping spinner, and a clarifier. It's also time to start looking at barrels instead of buckets. With this comes more cost and I only have so much cash so i'm going slower then I want.

[ccar2000]

I am in for about $4K since 2009 learning beekeeping. Don't get me wrong, I love it! It just does not seem to be easy in my climate and I am in AHB territory so I always purchase packages from up north. The most I have kept is four hives never having more that two overwinter. I have enough equipment to have four hives with two deep brood boxes and three supers on each. Including tools, supplies and gadgets.

[MAB52]

We've got about thousand in it. Building two hives and buying two packages, we should get them around mid Apr. This is first time so everything is new.

[DamSutt1986]

I will have about $3,500 into 16 hives by spring. Another $2k into investing to build hives for other people, and to buy bottles and such for honey. Hopefully that $2k will have a quick return on it though.

[Gypsi]

Less than $1000 if you don't count my fencing. But I spent oh, about $1200 on fencing to keep the bees safe from harm and the neighborhood safe from the bees. There were other benefits to the fencing. Well I forgot that first $300 that was a total waste. I want to say less than $1500 though, plus the fence. I'm at 5 hives and they are "robust".

[jdmidwest]

I have one hive. I bought it off Craigslist last July complete with bees and transported it to my place. Since then, I have spent over $1000 on bees. Lumber and metal for hives and frames. Foundation and frames. Tools and odds and ends. Bee Jacket. Table saw, cordless tool set, woodworking clamps, air nailer and compressor, misc other stuff. I did not skimp much other than make the stuff myself. I can state I do not really save much by making it myself, but I enjoy it. And I don't really skimp and try to save, it is a hobby. My profit is not monetary.

I have 2 nucs coming in March, 3 complete hives built, 3 nuc boxes completed, some swarm hives, and misc equipment.

[EastSideBuzz]

Probably 30k last year headed to 50k this year invested.

[westernbeekeeper]

For my personal operation-
1 20-frame 1400 Maxant extractor
1 40 gallon bottling tank
4 uncapping tools, different styles
3 hive tools, different styles
2 full body beesuits
3 veils
5 pairs of gloves
1 fogger
1 powdered sugar duster
1 bee vac
6 mini mating nucs
1 3-frame observation hive
4 3-frame (deep) nuc boxes
2 deep 5-frame nuc boxes
1 frame grip
2 bee brushes
2 smokers
100 10-frame deeps with frames
35 10-frame mediums with frames
3 10-frame shallows with frames
15 bottom boards
20 inner and outer covers
3 migratory covers
2 fume boards
3 triangle bee escape boards
10 queen excluders
2 cloake boards
2 double screens
15 entrance feeders
3 hive top feeders
2 division board feeders
15 entrance reducers
8 grafting tools
I'm sure there's something I'm forgetting, but I think thats all of it.
Oh yes, 6 live hives worth of bees.

I have spent about $8,950 on all of it. I make alot of my own things, and also got started with alot given to me.

[Joel]

Everything but our house.

I feel your pain Michael - I think we have around 250K over the 20 years but don't worry - the bee business is great and I'm sure we could get at least half that if we sold it tomorrow (minus capital gains, current debt load and such)

[Michael Palmer]

No pain Joel. I'm lovin' it. I paid $100 or less per hive for my production yards over the last 40 years. I build all my nucs from scrap wood and raised the bees myself. All costs were expensed. I've kept up with rebuilding my equipment with cheap pine so it's in pretty good shape. Apiaries are selling for $200+/colony.

[bevy's honeybees]

For 2012 I started keeping better track of my spending and sales. Good thing I did because as the year went on I decided to do the farm form for IRS. I didn't keep some of my receipts, like for mason jars and some of my hardware, but over all with all the new equipment and supplies I got I came out a few hundred ahead. I increased from 8 hives to 18 with enough equipment to have 21 hives and 3 nuks, more extracting equipment etc, odds and ends to make the work easier and faster.

For 2013 I hope to have much more coming in than going out, plus all the more fun! Still, it will only be extra money for me, never a main income. I love that it pays for itself with a little pocket money and plenty of honey to give to family and friends. What other hobby can boast that claim?