Pair of hive stand for wooden beam support

01 · HOW IT GOES TOGETHER

Two stands, two beams, one row

Each stand holds the two beams in parallel, 305 mm apart, which is the spacing that spreads the load properly under a hive floor. With one pair of stands and two lengths of timber you build a row, not a perch for a single hive.

The timber comes from any builders' merchant: 60 × 38 mm section and up to 3 m long as the recommended maximum. And here is the criterion not to skip: match the length to the load. Three metres of beam under honey-laden hives will flex; if you mean to fill the row, cut shorter or add a third stand in the middle.

02 · THE HEIGHT

From 230 to 565 millimetres

The adjustment runs from 23 cm — just enough to clear the ground — up to 56.5 cm, where the hive sits at a decent working height. Your back notices in the third year, not the first.

At the base the feet spread 740 mm, so the assembly stands wide and will not tip when you lever a super.

03 · THE GROUND

Four feet that adjust separately

The four feet are multi-position and independent, which is what lets you level on a slope or over stony ground without packing bricks underneath.

Levelling properly is not cosmetic: a hive tilted backwards holds water on the floor, and one tilted sideways has the bees drawing comb crooked.

04 · WHY RAISE THEM

Damp rises

A hive standing on the ground draws rising damp through the floor: the timber rots from below, and the inside takes longer to dry after every downpour.

Getting it off the ground also makes life harder for ants and rodents, and lets you see what is under the entrance at a glance without crouching all the way down.

05 · BEFORE YOU BUY

Sold in pairs and without timber: