Description
We all think of feeding the birds, but what about the bees? Let’s be honest, bees are much more important to us humans than birds are; bees pollinate our food crops and without these efficient, hard-working little pollinators it’s been estimated that the human race would die out within a very short timespan. So I decided to do my bit for our little stripy friends through the medium of 3D printing.
(And yes, I know bees still sting but they’re much less likely to sting you than wasps. Wasps are just assholes).
My end result was The BeeBar, a small tray with little raised islands which you can fill with water or sugar-water and leave out for the bees to slake their thirst and get their energy back (‘Eww, sugar water means I’ll have to clean it all the time!’. Yes, but the bees need that sugar and they work so hard for you. Don’t you want to give them that little bit extra? You monster). It’s printed in tough, weather-proof ABS and you can order it with or without the hanger cradle; You can leave it on a flat surface somewhere, or you can put it in the cradle and hang it somewhere easy for the bees to find it. But best not, like my dear mother, to hang it from the bird table. Birds do eat bees after all, so it’s not so much feeding the bees as baiting the trap….
You can also now, as an option, order your BeeBar with or without a custom-made bee-themed filler cup! One bit of feedback I’ve had a few times to date is that it’s a little awkward to fill the BeeBar when it’s hanging (with various measuring jugs and/or watering cans) and filling it before hanging just ends up with spillage. Fear not; the new Filler Cup is very solid and holds approximately twice as much water/sugar-water as you’ll need to fill one BeeBar. Handy if you have several BeeBars to fill! It’s printed as standard in a black and yellow striped design but if you’d like yours printed in different colours please let me know when ordering.
For Spring 2022 we also made some more options for all you bee-carers out there (and you’re ordering bee feeders like mad right now so I know you’re there!). Not only is the BeeBar now available printed in UV fluorescent yellow, orange and pink (bees see better into the UV range than we do), I’ve also designed a ground-level holder so you can put the BeeBar right in among the flowers. I call it The Groundspike, it’ll be shipped disassembled (to keep shipping costs down) and I’ll provide instructions on how to put it together. The parts are designed to fit together snugly (to the point that I almost gave myself a hernia taking the prototype apart for photography) so you won’t need to glue it, but if you want to glue it together you can just use ordinary superglue.
The BeeBar measures 105mm x 105mm x 10mm. Order it today! Go on, do it for the bees… 🙂
NOTE: I’ve actually just redesigned the cradle, making it fully 3D printed with no string (which is a pain in the bum to put on, and has been known to rot). It’s been field-tested and the very nice lady who tested it for said it worked great)
VERY IMPORTANT NOTE!!!: if you’re wanting to use the BeeBar with clove oil, to attract Orchid Bees, please contact me BEFORE YOU ORDER – It seems, from field-testing, that clove oil absolutely DESTROYS ABS plastic, which is what I print the BeeBar with. If you’re wanting to use clove oil I can print it in either PLA biopolymer or PETG, both of which are safe to use with clove oil. I take no responsibility for dissolved BeeBars if I’m not informed prior to ordering and production!
Weloveourbees –
They visit it every day – I put some cotton balls in it soaked in clove oil, and these little green shy Orchid bees (the males) come and gather the clove oil, and rub it on their legs, to attract the ladies. It’s easy to maintain – just basically screws apart – has provided me HOURS of entertainment and has helped the orchid bees woo their women. Brilliant invention and design!
joanna diamond –
Mine is the large version, so it holds a lot more water and in Florida, it’s so hot that water evaporates quickly – which is why I asked Trevor to make me a giant one! It’s BEYOND my wildest expectations! It’s just fantastic – a real quality product – same color as the previous bee waterer he made me (that the bees love – except that one didn’t have a thread for a water bottle, so it dried up too quickly in this heat) – deep so holds a lot of water, numerous stepping stones and rims so that if a bee falls in (which she will), she can easily get out. It easily fits my sport top water bottles (so the thread is perfect) – It exceeded my expectations. Just WONDERFUL!
Weloveourbees –
My Bee Spa is fantastic – it’s very large (diameter wise), so will hold a lot of water – FITS MY WATER BOTTLE PERFECTLY – it’s quite deep, so that means it will hold a lot of water, although the stepping stones and rim edges are very convenient so bees have something to climb out on to if they fall in – this is the BEST bee watering station I’ve ever had. It’s a quality product. I am BEYOND thrilled with it!!!!
Eugen –
I got my package today all good thanks
trujilla1netzeronet –
As usual, Trevor has created another masterpiece. A very cool item!
Thank you.
trujilla1netzeronet –
As usual, Trevor has created another masterpiece. A very cool item!
Thank you, Trevor!
Weloveourbees –
I actually got this for a friend of mine who is super wealthy, has all the jewelry she could ever want – and I didn’t know what to get her for Christmas – she also loves bees and when I gave her these earrings, she was absolutely THRILLED! They’re fun, bright – well made – and she wore these to a fancy Christmas party and got LOTS of great comments!!!!! I have a pair myself and am always getting great fun comments – they are just too cute for words!!!!! Great gifts for the bee lovers in your life – you can get regular honey bees or green orchid bee earrings – love love love them! Shipping was quick, but took a while to get here over Christmas (mail delays) but Trevor was very helpful and quick email responses. Great experience. Will buy more from you.
Weloveourbees –
I live in Florida, and we get beautiful, shy green orchid bees – the males love clove oil, so I put clove oil on cotton balls, put it in the bee pod, and the little dudes come right away – rub the oil on the legs so it attracts the ladies! The bee pod is easy to take apart to put more clove oil in there – and several openings mean several orchid bees can come at the same time – it’s the most ingenious design – LOVE LOVE LOVE IT. You have made me and many male orchid bees very happy. The design is really cool, this little sphere hanging from our deck shade, so it looks cool as well as being very functional for the orchid bees. Trevor was super responsive to a question I had about shipping, great customer service, will be back. Thank you!
Weloveourbees –
Outstanding customer service – the Bee Feeder is amazing, I put some cotton balls soaked with clove oil (must be food grade) and the male orchid bees flock to it – I like this design because of the canopy, protects the base from rain – will be ordering more. Trevor is very responsive to email inquiries (was a slight delay with mail over Christmas) – buy with confidence from him, I have bought quite a few things and he’s one of the best sellers out there. LOVE the bee feeder and the color is awesome!
Ben Sharples –
Brilliant! Just brilliant! Original design and fun and cute as well! Really well printed, cool looks, and stupid (in the best way), perfect gift!
Ben Sharples –
Absolutely superb design! Very cool, nerdy, and well coloured too! Perfect combination! I got them for my wife and she loved the mix of Trek and style! Great idea!
joanna d. –
Outstanding customer service – the earrings are amazing! Great gifts for bee lovers – very happy with quality and service.