Polystyrene BeeMax Hives

 My bees and I are satisfied with BeeMax hives.  Nevertheless, because the natural tendency of bees is to keep the brood nest near the entrance, since 2006 I have been using wooden hive bodies at the bottom of all of my hives (see below).  I did so because I prefer to raise healthy colonies. It is important to remember that propolis provides numerous levels of protection. However, my personal observation shows that polystyrene BeeMax hives with plastic Pierco frames cause the quantity of propolis to decrease by 75% as compared to wooden hives with wooden frames. But as we know - bees make propolis to keep their hives healthy.  When the brood area is more than one hive body (or your queen prefer the second hive body instead of the first one) - it is advisable to use wooden hive body for the whole area of brood nest.   My THSCU (Temperature Humidity Self Control Units) helped me to avoid hive swarming and other problems during all four seasons. To protect the Telescoping Covers from bending in high temperature (under the weight of stones or bricks placed above the cover), I added a 1/2 inch piece of painted plywood between each Telescoping Cover and the stones/bricks.  Additionally, I placed painted plywood (or pressure treated 2x6(8) inch boards) between the Bottom Boards and the cement blocks.  Finally, I closed the square holes of the Bottom Boards to protect the hives from rats during the winter. (polystyrene_wood_test).