The feed level can be determined during the winter period without opening the boxes by using a hive scale to determine the weight and subtracting the empty weight of the hives together with an estimate of wax, pollen and bees.

The same method can also be used to determine the quantity of honey during the collection period.

For this purpose, high-tech hive scales can be purchased for several hundred euros, which are permanently mounted under the hives and automatically transfer the data to an Internet server via mobile radio. Knick-knacks that the world does not need, thinks the garden beekeeper.

Therefore he has built a simple low-cost hive scale: A suitcase scale is attached to the device, in which a vertical and a horizontal wooden strip are connected by a joint. The lever ratio allows the lifting of one side of the hive at a time, without great effort and without damaging the back, and at the same time measuring errors caused by unintentional movement are minimized.