An Indoor Beehive in My Bedroom Wall
24 comments
·June 28, 2025giantg2
The comb doesn't look like it's on frames. The vast majority of states require comb to be on a frame or top bar to be capable of being inspected. There are plans online for in-wall mounted observation hives that would be much better than this.
wredcoll
Wait, what? Inspected by whom? How often? Who requires this??
ajdude
In my state, routine inspections are required by a State Apiarist:
> All honeybee colonies must be registered and inspected for diseases, mites, and Africanized bees. Surveys are conducted for Africanized bees along Delaware’s coastal anchorages and in the Ports of Wilmington and Delaware City. By law, the State Apiarist and state bee inspectors may enter any public or private premises and have access to and from all apiaries or places where bees and bee equipment are kept to inspect them for pests and diseases. The State Apiarist may also declare a quarantine and order the destruction or treatment of hives for serious pest or disease situations.
https://agriculture.delaware.gov/plant-industries/honeybees/
quinnjh
This article is a great introduction to the topic of indoor (or rather in-wall) beehives, which I was curious about after seeing a father-son duo construct an impressive setup with hexagonal 3D printed enclosures. The authors voice is very enjoyable. Give it a read if you have a few mins
dumbmrblah
This year I put a beehive in my backyard. I can sit for hours (not really, minutes more likely) just staring at them working, going in and out of the hive. Maybe in a year or two I'll actually get honey.
HappMacDonald
Just makes me wonder what Erika Thompson's take on this project would be
gorfian_robot
hmm. bee's can easily cause a lot of damage inside your walls. not sure how this is avoided.
giantg2
Technically the bees don't cause much damage. They will do things like remove insulation. Fermented honey, moisture, ants, wax moths, etc are all more damaging but technically a result of the bees. At least in an observation hive you can see what's happening before it spreads.
schwartzworld
If the space is sealed, how would they get into the walls?
userbinator
This gets a solid "nope" from me, and probably everyone else who has a memory of a very painful sting in their past.
nkrisc
I would classify a bee sting as more of an irritating pain, like a stubbed toe.
jader201
You must not be allergic, then, because it lasts a lot longer than a stubbed toe, and much more painful than simply “irritating”.
I’d rather stub my toe 10 times than get stung by a bee — well, maybe not the same toe. :)
giantg2
I have bees and it gets a nope from me for the inconvenience and potential damage factor. If it were better constructed, maybe. Bees can potentially bend the plexiglass or chew holes in the wood to escape. There are better designs out there.
phyzome
I've been stung a number of times by bees and wasps, but I still find them fascinating, and I would love to have one of these in my wall.
SoftTalker
Honeybees aren’t very aggressive with stings. Yellowjackets in the other hand are vicious if you’re disturbing their nests in any way. Any that establish themselves near my house will be dispatched with as soon as I notice them.
bigstrat2003
Yeah, I have no particular animus towards bees but they terrify me. Without a doubt the thing I'm most afraid of on this earth. I would be a nervous wreck if I had this in my home.
accrual
> For now, it feels good to know that behind me stand centuries of bee-lovers who have had the joy of listening to the hymns of bees far into the night and smelled the intoxicating aroma of honey and propolis waft out across the room before the dawn light begins.
I wonder what that's like. Is it just another nice smell, like coffee brewing while sunlight hits your face?
otherme123
My grandpa had one of these (the traditional they talk about), and the smell fades away. I guess it smells like honey to everyone visiting, but for you isn't there.
quantadev
Made me realize for the first time Bees are the only insect that most people don't find disgusting. I mean we literally eat what they create: Honey. It would be fascinating to watch them build their hives.
SoftTalker
I think there must be others. Butterflys? Fireflies? Ladybugs?
quantadev
I stand corrected. You found 3 more. :)
And I like Praying Mantises because I think they're probably secretly alien robots. I wonder if biologists have ever taken one apart to see if they're truly biological or a machine. I've seen one take down a humming bird, so it's gotta be some kinda machine bro.
> they sing me to sleep
I read this at first as “sting” and was briefly horrified.
But bees singing is still, to me, quite horrifying, and would not at all help me fall asleep.