Top bar hives are especially useful for beekeepers with dodgy backs or with difficulty lifting.  Everything is at waist height and the heaviest thing you will lift is one comb of honey.  They're not as productive as stacking boxes but much of the crop can be sold as cut comb for twice the price and half the effort of jarred honey.  Have the entrance at the sunny end as the bees will rear their brood there, putting their stores to the rear so that the cluster can gradually move back during the winter, allowing you to harvest what is truly surplus in the Spring.
If you want a crop of propolis, remove one bar and spread the remainder. Next time you visit you'll be able to scrape off the propolis from between the bars.

Chris

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