I am only going to allow this one thread to stay, apart from this one: http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?307501-Extractor-less-honey-by-Flow-Hive

For those who actually have the hive/frames and want to share their experience with them, do it here.

 

Canyou move this thread over to the main flow hive forum? Or should I resubmit?

 

I believe Barry is allow this thread to be separate from the other one. This thread is for those who want to report on their actual experiences with the flow hive, vs. giving their opinion on it. I think it's a good idea, 'cause the other one was too big, in my opinion.

 

Gotcha!

 

I am curious to the idea it looks neat. You say it was exspensive. How much was it?

 

There are at least two other members who have been gifted flow-hives by well-intentioned friends.

 

Aunt Betty,
I told you that in confidence dang it!

 

Too expensive now. The price will go down once tooling and volume is established. Even lower after the patent expires in 15 years.

I will have a set next spring to play around with.

 

$340.00 for just 6 deep frames, plus $40 shipping. I did get a nice founding member hat with veil. It better work!

 

Yea that's a lot of money, but its neat if it works. That would be a lot of deeps and frames. Keep us posted.

 

I don't plan on using the Flow Hive until Spring

Perhaps you can have the title of your thread changed to:

"Flow Hive, firsthand experience coming in the Spring of 2016"

 

just got my frames and the complete hive. i was impressed with the quality of the frames. the cedar hive bodies quality control and finish leave a bit to be desired. mine has a couple of chips and cracks and scratches everywhere. im no perfectionist when it comes to my hive woodenware but at this price i expected a product with no issues. i am waiting for a response from the flow hive team to see what they can do to remedy the situation.

anyone know whos is making their woodenware. i have a hunch that its www.beethinking.com since mine shipped from oregon and they are the only manufacturers of cedar hives that i found....

 

>> anyone know whos is making their woodenware.


See post #1478 of the main Flow Hive thread ...
http://www.beesource.com/forums/sho...1-Extractor-less-honey-by-Flow-Hive&p=1301503&highlight=beethinking#post1301503

 

Dam, keeping in mind that most of Edison's inventions were flops in the beginning, I will be looking forward to real world results. No matter what else, a couple of beekeepers worked hard to figure out, design and manufacture a dream. Now we (and they) will find out how well they dreamed! Thanks for your investment in the equipment and moreso for being willing to share it with us.

 

thank you

 

fivekai,

I'm sorry your hive arrived with some damage -- we're in communication with Flow about your parts and we're working to resolve it. The scratching will be hard to avoid entirely given the fact that cedar is so soft. The quality has been top-notch coming from our mill, and I assure you they aren't leaving our facility with scratches, cracks and chips! Since these were the first hives to ship out I'm sure we'll find packaging improvements as we get feedback from customers like you.

Sincerely,
Matt

 

Thank you for the reply but the box was in perfect condition. Looks to me like they were packed that way. Three chips which I will post pics of tommorrow and also a cracked roof piece

 

fivekai,

I hear you and I've seen the pictures sent so far. We ship many thousands of hives each year and while the boxes often look great, it's the shifting of the parts within the box that usually lead to chips/scratching. This is especially the case with cedar since it's such a soft wood. We have strict quality control processes at both our mill and our shipping facility to prevent off-specification parts from getting packed in the first place. Being that this is a new product for us, I think it's going to take a bit of time to perfect the packing within the box to minimize contact between the most fragile parts (shingles/box sides). Regardless, we'll be working with the Flow folks to get your issues rectified ASAP.

Best,
Matt

 

Thanks for the quick reply I hope the issue is solved quickly. I have waited a very long time for this hive and paid alot of money, I actually ordered 2 of them. And to have an this issue when I have bees arriving next week is a real inconvenience.

 

I know the Flow team is working round-the-clock to keep up with customer inquiries. I just figured I'd do my part here on Beesource since I'm not sure if any of them monitor it! I can tell you from communication with them that resolving any issues you're having is of utmost importance!

Best,
Matt

 

i need replacement for the following parts

qty 2 pieces roof singles
qty 1 short side of brood box ( the deep box)

 

1. Buy the box with the frames. Even with a shop and tools (and help) it was a full day of modifications and a trip to a big box store and the robotics lab to acquire the parts to finish the box. Make your life easier - just buy the box.

2. The flow arrived in June, just after the nectar flow stopped. I took my time with the box, and paint, and took the entire set to the local beekeepers meeting so they could get a look at it. It finally went on the hive around Labor Day to catch the fall nectar flow. I could see bees up in the box checking it out within minutes. The Flow went on the strongest of 7 hives, one that had been in existance for three years. Honey had already been pulled from hives at this point, with two medium boxes of honey on top of the three brood boxes still in place.

3. I have been in the hive to inspect a couple of times, and each time found 100+/- bees in the Flow, but no nectar. I was asked to take the Flow to the Beekeepers annual dinner last night. I went to inspect the box, and found that the bees had completed the cell seams with propolis. I could not get the frames into the open position. I tried for about 45 minutes to use the key to manipulate the frames. No success; the frames are locked tight with propolis. I finally took the box off the hive to work on it (didn't want to be late for dinner!), and took it to the meeting. I have asked FLOW HIVE for comment on how to get the frames open. The bees put no nectar in the 6 frames. I don't want to force the frames to the point of breaking. I'll let you know what FLOW has to say. To say that I'm frustrated with the product is an understatement. Pics soon.

4. The good news for the season: 245 lbs of honey from three hives, on top of 40-60 lbs left on each hive - with standard equipment.

 

You need to smack it with a hatchet (the sharp end...many times).

 

^About there, Betty. From oberservation of hives, bees don't put honey where they have propolis. My concerns are less with getting the frames open than with the bees putting nectar in the frames.

 

You need to post this in the flow hive forums. Flow hive has their own forums set up on their site. The People from flow hive aren't checking this forum. I posted my issue there and they got involved quickly.

 

You need to post this in the flow hive forums.

Actually not. Barry allowed this thread specifically for these types of first hand accounts.

 

I meant the flow hive forum on the flow hive website.

 

But what Jim said still needs to be stressed. People from this forum need to post their experience here, not be sent to another forum to post. I don't follow what is going on there. So Native Plants, keep us updated!

 

Agree, sorry bout that.