Layens Supers and Half-Frames

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Two big advantages of horizontal hives: 1) only one frame size and 2) instant access to all frames. However, in some situations it may be useful to expand your horizontal hive vertically by adding a box (called super) filled with half-frames. These shallower frames come handy in queen rearing (see Raising Honeybee Queens) or when the honeyflow is so abundant that the bees start running out of room (Layens himself was supering his hives in good years – see Keeping Bees in Horizontal Hives). And even if the top bars of your frames touch, there’s a simple trick to help bees access the upper box.

How to make a Layens half-frame

A Layens half-frame is 12-15/16” long by 7-13/16” deep, with a 14-5/16” top bar. It consists of four parts:

• Top bar — 14-5/16” x 1-1/8” x 3/4”, with 1-1/16” x 3/8” rabbets cut on two ends.
• End bars (2) — 7-7/16” long x 3/8” thick. The wider part is 1-1/2” wide and 3-3/4” long; tapering down to 1” wide.
• Bottom bar — 12-3/16” x 1/2” x 3/4”.

All parts can be made on a table saw from “two-by” and “one-by” untreated boards.

An assembly jig for Layens half-frames

This simple jig holds frame parts in place while you nail or staple them together. It makes frame assembly easy, fast, and precise.

The jig is very easy to make. Prepare the following parts:

• A — 15” x 9” x 3/4”, untreated plywood, very square and flat.
• B — 12” x 1” x 3/16”, untreated softwood.
• C — 10-3/4” x 3/4” x 3/8”, untreated softwood.
• D (2) — 1-1/4” x 1” x 1/4”, untreated softwood.
• E (2) — 5-3/8” x 1” x 3/4”, untreated softwood or plywood.
• H — 12-15/16” x 1” x 3/4”, untreated softwood or plywood.

Assembly sequence (all parts are glued and stapled/nailed to A):

• Attach H to A along the bottom edge of A, 1” from the left bottom corner.
• Attach two D flush with the right and left ends of H. 1” side of D touches H.
• Attach C along H between the two D.
• Attach two E along the left and right edge of A, 2” up from the bottom edge.
• Attach B 3/16” from the top edge of A and 1-1/2” from the left edge.

To use the jig, insert the left end bar into the jig. Apply wood glue to both ends of the bottom bar and press it against the left end bar (the 1/2” side of the bottom bar is facing up). Insert the right end bar. Apply glue to both rabbets of the top bar and insert it between the end bars. Drive two 1” narrow-crown staples through the top bar into each end bar, one staple through each end bar into the top bar, and one staple through each end bar into the bottom bar.

Wiring the frames depends on their intended use. Typically run three strands of stainless steel wire horizontally 1”, 3-1/4”, and 5-1/2” from the top bar. (Predrill 3/32” holes on the center line of each end bar 1-3/8”, 3-5/8”, and 5-7/8” from its top end.) Some people prefer to wire vertically, the same way as in the full-sized Layens frame. Vertical wires make it easier to cut out queen cells or chunks of comb for comb honey.

How to make a Layens super

A Layens super is a bottomless box 8-3/16” deep, 13-11/16” long on the inside, and as wide as the hive it goes over. It is typically built of “one-by” boards that are 3/4” thick. Here is how to make one that fits our 14-frame solid wood hive that has 11/16” thick walls.

Part list

• 23-11/16” x 8-3/16” x 3/4” (2), untreated softwood boards. NOTE: adjust the length to fit the measurements of your hive.
• 14-7/16” x 8-3/16” x 3/4” (2), untreated softwood boards.

Using your Layens super

Put your super over the hive box. If the top bars of your regular Layens frames touch, raise 3 last frames, containing no brood, into the super (they will be hanging halfway down into the hive body), as shown in the diagram. Bees will use the raised frames as ladders and will have good access to the super even though the top bars of Layens frames touch. They may build combs from the bottom bars of the raised frames. These combs can be removed at honey harvest time.

Layens supers and half-frames are very versatile:

• Use them to hold an especially abundant honey crop.
• Divide the super box into several compartments to serve as a mating nuc for queens.
• Two super boxes will accept standard Layens frames and can function as a stand-alone hive.

    LAYENS HIVES & FRAMES AVAILABLE FROM OUR STORE >>
    Hives include all frames, fully assembled & ready to go

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— Dr. Leo Sharashkin, Editor of “Keeping Bees With a Smile”