Frequently Asked Questions

We recommend the Double Brood Box set (from $395). It comes with two deep boxes, so your colony has room to grow through its first season. Add a honey super once the bees have filled both deeps.

Not sure? Read Which Apimaye hive set should I buy?

All Ergo sets are 10-frame hives with the same insulated boxes and parts. They differ mainly in how many boxes come with them:

Prices are without frames. Mediums are lighter to lift when full of honey. Compare all hive sets

Every set includes an insulated top cover, top feeders, a screened bottom board with a pollen trap, IPM tray and built-in adjustable entrance (works as an entrance reducer and mouse guard), a queen excluder, a division/uniting board, 2 frame spacers, and stainless steel latches and handles.

Frames are optional, so you can reuse your own. When you order, choose no frames, wood frames, Core Frames or PRO Frames. All framed options come with Premier double-wax foundation. PRO Frames come in deep size only. Which frames are best for you?

Yes. Apimaye hives arrive assembled and ready to use. There's no painting, and the boxes won't rot or warp.

Yes. The 7-frame NUC hive is lighter and easier to handle. It's a good fit for small colonies, starting a new colony, queen rearing, catching swarms and making splits. Supers are sold separately.

Yes. Start with the Hive Kit for Apimaye Supers, which includes the bottom board, Dual Feeder and insulated top cover. Then add as many Ergo medium supers as you need. They're sold separately.

The kit's bottom board comes set up for medium supers, so your first medium latches straight onto it. The kit is for a single colony, and a division board can't be used with it.

Apimaye hives have an independently lab-tested R-value of 6.93. A standard 3/4-inch wooden hive wall is about R-1, so that's 6–7 times the insulation of a wooden hive. Polyurethane foam is sealed inside the walls and top cover. See the test results

Colonies in insulated hives use less stored honey to stay warm in winter and spend less energy cooling the hive in summer. See what USDA and university studies found

No. Insulation slows heat moving in as well as out, so the hive stays cooler in summer. Fresh air enters through the screened bottom board, rises through the ventilation ducts and leaves through the louvres in the top cover. In very hot, sunny areas, we recommend white hives, which reflect more sun.

The same steady airflow carries moisture out of the hive, helping keep the cluster dry through winter. For extra ventilation, you can slide out the bottom tray so the hive works as a full screened bottom board.

Usually not. By fall, bees usually seal the feeder vent holes with propolis. Vent covers are mainly useful at high-wind sites with no windbreak. Tape over the holes works too.

Yes. Apimaye hives are made from food-grade virgin HDPE, the same durable plastic used in household food containers. It's BPA-free, and the additives for UV protection and color are food-grade.

The shell is UV-stabilized, and the color is molded into the plastic rather than painted on, so there's nothing to peel or repaint as the hive weathers.

Everything manufactured by Apimaye has a lifetime limited warranty. It doesn't cover other brands we sell. Warranty details

They're included on purpose. Many beekeepers in high-wind or bear country prefer to screw the bottom board to the hive instead of relying only on the latches. For extra security, tighten the screws that are already in place. If you plan to remove the bottom board often, you can take the screws out completely.

Yes. Ergo hives have the same internal dimensions as standard 10-frame Langstroth boxes, so your wooden frames fit inside and your 10-frame wooden boxes stack on top.

Yes. Apimaye supers sit securely on top of wooden Langstroth boxes, though they won't latch to them. See Apimaye for Wooden Hives for feeders, bottom boards and other upgrades.

Yes. A Flow Hive super sits on a 10-frame Ergo hive. Please don't drill or modify Apimaye boxes, since that voids the warranty. Does a Flow Hive super fit an Apimaye hive?

Yes. PRO Frames work with both plastic and pure wax foundation. They don't work with fully drawn plastic comb like BetterComb.

Ground shipping is free on Apimaye products over $50, and on every hive set. Alaska and Hawaii ship by custom quote, so please email us before ordering. Shipping details

We ship to Canada by custom quote with FedEx. Canadian customers pay GST and any duties on delivery. We don't ship to other countries. Contact us for a quote

You can return items within 30 days if they haven't been used with bees. If we made a mistake or an item is defective, we'll send a free return label. If you change your mind, the return label cost is deducted from your refund. Return details

Yes. Mix-and-match quantity discounts apply automatically in your cart.

Yes, from local dealers. Find one near you on our Buy Local page.

You'll get a tracking email when your order ships. We ship with FedEx, UPS and USPS from two warehouses, one in Arizona and one in New Jersey. A larger order may ship in more than one box, or from both warehouses, so you may get a separate tracking email for each part. All of them are for your order. If something doesn't look right, contact us.

Please use a physical street address. FedEx and UPS can't deliver to PO Boxes, and most beekeeping equipment ships with them.

Pollen Points are our rewards. You earn them by buying products, writing reviews, referring friends and joining promotions. To redeem them:

1. Sign in to your Apimaye USA account and click the Rewards button at the bottom left of the page.
2. Under Pollen Points, you'll see your balance. Click Ways to Redeem.
3. Choose a discount. You'll get an email with a coupon code.
4. Enter the code at checkout.

Pollen Points coupons can't be combined with the automatic bulk discounts at checkout. If you want both, email a screenshot of your cart and your coupon code to support@apimaye-usa.com, and we'll set up a cart with both discounts applied.

10-frame Ergo hives: slide the pollen trap in from the back slot when pollen is flowing. Bees enter through small holes that knock pollen off their legs into the tray below. Check the tray often, and pull the trap out (and insert the red plug) when you're not collecting.

8-frame bottom board for wooden hives: the pollen trap is built in and isn't removable. To turn it on, slide the entrance reducers so the entrance is open in the middle. To turn it off, block the middle entrances. How does the Apimaye pollen trap work?

We don't sell shims or spacers, but you don't need one for the common treatments. Always follow the product label, and remove honey supers before treating.

• Oxalic acid vapor: use our 10 Frame or 7 Frame OAV Adapter with an InstantVap, or treat from under the hive or through the front entrance. See our step-by-step oxalic acid guide. We also sell Lorob Bees InstantVap vaporizers.
• Apiguard: if your colony fills a double brood, put an empty medium super between the two brood boxes and place the trays on top of the lower brood box. If it fills one brood box, remove the feeders from under the top cover and set the tray directly on the frames. Put the feeders back when treatment is done.
• Formic Pro: place the strips over the brood frames and take the feeders off during treatment. For fully open entrances, remove the three screws and take off the entrance reducer, and open the round dials. Keep the bottom tray in so the screened bottom is closed, as the Formic Pro guide recommends.
• Norroa: in a double brood, put 2 pouches on top of the frames with the feeder removed. When the bees have emptied them, add the other 2, finishing the full 4-pouch dose within 3 weeks. In a single brood box, put 2 pouches on top of the frames with the feeder removed for a few days.

The bottom board is the whole bottom unit. It has the latch kit and includes the bottom tray, pollen tray and pollen trap. The bottom tray is a removable piece that slides out of the bottom board.

The 10-frame bottom board is 17.25 inches wide and 20.25 inches long at the base (longer with the landing board). The 7-frame NUC bottom board is the same length and 12 inches wide. Bottom board dimensions with photos

All manuals are on our Product Manuals page.