Assembling a Basic Langstroth Hive.

The Langstroth-style hive is built in layers, stacked vertically in the following order:

1. Bottom Board (with entrance reducer if needed)

2. Brood Chamber(s) with 8–10 frames

3. Queen Excluder (optional)

4. Honey Super(s) with 8–10 frames

5. Inner Cover

1. Bottom Board

The bottom board serves as the base of the hive. It’s a flat platform on which the rest of the hive boxes are stacked. Bottom boards come in two main types: solid and screened.

• Solid bottom boards are traditional and help retain heat during colder months.

• Screened bottom boards include a mesh surface that improves ventilation and allows debris (including mites) to fall through. This can aid in pest management and hive hygiene.

The bottom board also serves as the main landing area for bees entering or exiting the hive. It includes a small opening at the front (sometimes adjustable with an entrance reducer), which acts as the primary entrance to the colony. If you are in a cooler climate, a solid bottom board is preferred. For hotter regions, screened bottom boards can assist with cooling on hot days.

2. Entrance Reducer

The entrance reducer is a small piece of wood or plastic placed in the entrance slot of the bottom board. It allows the beekeeper to control the size of the entrance hole, which is especially useful in different seasons or hive conditions.

• In winter, reducing the entrance helps keep warmth in and cold drafts out.

• In summer, it can help guard against robbing by other bees or wasps.

• For new or weak colonies, a smaller entrance is easier for bees to defend.

Entrance reducers are removable and can be adjusted as needed, depending on the size and strength of the colony. Generally, the entrance is reduced in winter and fully opened during the honey flow season.

An entrance reducer is a very simple but very important piece of beekeeping equipment, especially for hobbyists. It’s usually a wooden or plastic strip that fits into the hive entrance, narrowing the opening.

Why Do We Need an Entrance Reducer?

1. Temperature Regulation

In cooler months, bees need to keep the hive warm. A smaller entrance reduces drafts and helps them maintain heat with less energy.

2. Pest & Robber Protection

A wide-open entrance makes it harder for guard bees to defend against robber bees, wasps, hornets, mice, or other intruders.

A reduced entrance gives bees a smaller “doorway” to patrol, making defence much easier.

3. Colony Size Adjustment

A weak or small colony can’t defend or regulate a large opening. Reducing the entrance matches the opening size to the colony’s strength.

4. Winter Survival

In cold climates, an entrance reducer helps keep out chill winds, snow, and mice, while still allowing ventilation.

How to Use an Entrance Reducer

• Spring / Summer (strong colony):

Use the larger notch or remove the reducer entirely to improve airflow and traffic. Bees need wide access during nectar flows.

• Late Summer / Fall:

If robbing is a risk or colonies are weaker, reduce the entrance to the smaller opening so guard bees can protect it.

• Winter:

Keep the entrance small (just enough for a few bees to pass) to block mice and drafts, but always leave some opening for ventilation; otherwise, condensation can build up.

•Inspection & Adjustment:

Check colony strength and local conditions every few weeks. Adjust the entrance accordingly.

An entrance reducer is like a door regulator for the hive—it helps bees defend, stay warm, and stay healthy. Hobbyists should learn to adjust it seasonally and according to colony strength.

3. Brood Chamber (Brood Box)

The brood chamber is the heart of the hive. It is where the queen lays her eggs and the colony raises its young. It is generally at the bottom, on top of the bottom board. Brood chambers are typically deeper than honey supers and are often called "deeps" for this reason.

Inside the brood chamber:

• The queen lays eggs in the lower central part of the frames. Eggs turn to larvae, then to bees.

• Worker bees care for the larvae, build comb, and store pollen (protein) and honey (energy) around the brood area.

A healthy brood chamber is crucial for the sustainability of the colony. Most hobby beekeepers begin with one brood box and add a second box on top when the colony becomes large and productive.

4. Frames

Each box in the Langstroth-style hive contains several frames, which are rectangular wooden or plastic structures that hold the wax or plastic foundation.

• In a standard deep brood box, there are typically 10 frames, although 8-frame versions are also common.

• Bees build their comb on these foundations and use them for storing nectar, pollen, and brood (developing bees).

Frames are removable, which makes inspections easy and non-destructive. This modularity is one of the key advantages of the Langstroth system. Beekeepers can:

• Inspect for disease

• Monitor the queen's performance

• Remove excess honey

• Reorganise the comb or requeen as needed

Frames are the working area of the colony and one of the most important components for both bee activity and beekeeper management. When setting up bee frames, one of the choices a beekeeper faces is whether to use plastic foundation or wax foundation. Both have their strengths, and both come with trade-offs.

Plastic foundation is durable, easy to reuse, and generally lasts for many seasons. Because it doesn’t sag or break as easily, it is popular among commercial beekeepers who manage large numbers of hives. Bees usually draw comb on it quickly if the foundation is coated with a thin layer of wax. On the downside, if bees dislike the coating or if the surface feels artificial, they may hesitate to build on it. Some hobbyists also feel plastic doesn’t fit well with a natural approach to beekeeping.

Wax foundation, on the other hand, feels more natural to the bees. It encourages them to build comb willingly, and it smells and behaves like their

own wax. However, wax sheets are fragile: they can break during hot weather, slump in poorly supported frames, or tear during extraction. They also need to be replaced more often, which means higher costs and greater effort over the long run.

For a hobbyist with just three hives, wax foundation is often the gentler and more satisfying option—it lets you enjoy watching bees work with a material close to what they would choose in the wild. Plastic foundation can still be handy in honey supers, where durability during spinning is a big advantage. Some beekeepers even mix the two: wax in brood boxes to keep the bees comfortable and plastic in honey boxes for easy harvesting.

Ultimately, the “better” choice depends on your style. If your goal is convenience and long-term use, plastic has its merits. If you want a more natural experience and don’t mind replacing foundation more often, wax is hard to beat.

5. Queen Excluder

The queen excluder is a flat mesh grid placed between the brood chamber and the honey super. The queen bee is always larger in size. So this grid allows

worker bees to pass through but prevents the larger queen from entering the upper boxes.

The purpose of the queen excluder is to restrict the queen to the brood chamber, ensuring that she only lays eggs in the lower part of the hive. This keeps the upper boxes, the honey supers, clean, free of brood (eggs and larvae), and dedicated solely to honey production. This makes honey extraction easier and more hygienic.

Some beekeepers choose not to use queen excluders, arguing that bees may hesitate to move up into the honey super if the restriction is in place. Others use them only once the colony is well-established and active in all boxes. As a hobby beekeeper, I do not use a queen excluder. The queen is free to move around. She mostly lives in the bottom area anyway.

6. Honey Super

The honey super is the box (or boxes) above the brood chamber, separated by the queen excluder. Supers are typically shallower than brood boxes to make lifting full boxes easier, since honey is heavy.

• This is where bees store surplus honey that beekeepers harvest.

• Supers also contain removable frames, usually the same size as those in the brood chamber but shorter in depth.

Depending on the flow of nectar in your area and the colony's size, you may add multiple supers during peak season. Once the combs are fully capped with wax, the honey is ready to be extracted.

The use of removable honey supers allows sustainable harvesting without disturbing or destroying the brood in the bee colony, a significant advancement over traditional fixed-comb hives.

7. Inner Cover

The top cover (also called the outer cover) is the hive’s final protective layer, sitting on top of the hive and shielding it from weather. It’s typically made of wood or metal, often with a waterproof layer. Underneath it lies the inner cover, which provides insulation and allows moisture to escape.

• The outer/top cover acts like a roof, protecting the hive from rain, wind, and sun.

• The inner cover creates a small airspace between the top box and the roof, helping regulate moisture and temperature inside the hive.

Some inner covers include a small hole that can serve as an additional top entrance or as ventilation during the summer. Together, the inner and outer covers help maintain the climate control crucial for healthy bees. The inner cover (sometimes called a crown board or top cover, depending on region) is an often-overlooked but very useful part of a beehive setup.

Purpose of the Inner Cover

1. Improves Hive Insulation & Ventilation

Creates a dead-air space between the hive and outer cover, helping regulate temperature and moisture.

Often includes a small hole or notch for ventilation, reducing condensation in winter.

2. Prevents Bees from Gluing the Outer Lid

Without an inner cover, bees will cement the outer lid down with propolis, making inspections harder.

The inner cover acts as a “sacrificial” layer that is easier to remove.

3. Reduces Bee Disturbance During Inspections

When you remove the outer cover, bees stay calmer because the colony isn’t suddenly exposed to the outside.

4. Feeding Access

The central hole in many inner covers allows placement of a feeder jar or fondant directly above it.

In winter, this lets you feed without fully opening the hive.

5. Escape Board Function (optional)

Some beekeepers use modified inner covers with bee escapes during honey harvest, allowing bees to exit supers but not return.

When to Use an Inner Cover

• Year-round use:

Always keep it between the hive body (or supers) and the outer cover.

It protects the bees, makes your work easier, and improves hive climate.

• Winter:

Use with a notch facing downward or upward for controlled ventilation and moisture release.

Can be paired with insulation or a moisture quilt box above.

• Feeding times (spring or fall):

Place feeders above the central hole without disturbing the colony.

The inner cover is like the hive’s ceiling — it keeps bees comfortable, helps you manage the colony more easily, and provides options for feeding and ventilation. A hobby beekeeper should always use one, year-round.

The inner cover is like the hive’s ceiling — it keeps bees comfortable, helps you manage the colony more easily, and provides options for feeding and ventilation. A hobby beekeeper should always use one, year-round.

8. Outer (Top) Cover

Each part has a clear function and contributes to an efficient, accessible, and sustainable beekeeping experience. From managing pests to harvesting honey to simply observing bees at work, the Langstroth-style hive allows hobbyists to engage with their bees thoughtfully and respectfully.