NZBF: Cleaning 3/4 frames

[Philip]

Unfortunately a lot of my frames (3/4) despite being put in plastics bags, ended up with moth or mold. I have removed the main wax foundation/cells and left with the wooden frames that need further cleaning and then new wax foundation applied. Half of the frames need new wires too, until I learnt to remove the old foundation without cutting the wires out!
Does anyone know of a service for cleaning and renewing these 3/4 frames?

 

[Mummzie]

I would think the cost of having someone do that for you would be more than the cost of new frames. You might be better to look for someone who can coach you in how to do it yourself.

 

[Josh]

I rewired my own frames. Got some legit LEGA s/s wire. Then that combined with a staple gun & quick grip clamp that could reach from one side to the other. Was easy, just a smidge slow.

Rewaxing the frames with foundation is a learning curve. You need to warm the wire (plenty of electric options) and a jig that pushed along the length of the wire while it’s warm. Many will fail… but it does get easier.

I’m hanging out for bioform to arrive in ¾ but I suspect that’s a very long way off.

 

[Mark Lawrence]

I rewired my own frames. Got some legit LEGA s/s wire. Then that combined with a staple gun & quick grip clamp that could reach from one side to the other. Was easy, just a smidge slow.

Rewaxing the frames with foundation is a learning curve. You need to warm the wire (plenty of electric options) and a jig that pushed along the length of the wire while it’s warm. Many will fail… but it does get easier.

I’m hanging out for bioform to arrive in ¾ but I suspect that’s a very long way off.

@Josh . Were you the person testing how bioforme frames burnt compared to plastic.
Apologies if I have the wrong person. Just curious to know difference in environmental impact between the 2 if AFB burns are necessary.

 

[Josh]

@Josh . Were you the person testing how bioforme frames burnt compared to plastic.
Apologies if I have the wrong person. Just curious to know difference in environmental impact between the 2 if AFB burns are necessary.

No, not me. But I did run mine through the tablesaw and cut it down to ¾. The advertising says it burns like pine

 

[Josh]

No, not me. But I did run mine through the tablesaw and cut it down to ¾. The advertising says it burns like pine

I should have burnt the off cuts, but that only occurred to me later.

 

[Philip]

Thanks for replies. I cut down a large drum and tried boiling water to clean frames. Too time consuming and messy. Also I have tried putting new foundation into new frames and I agree, it's quite a learning curve! Not very good at it. I think I'll stick to plastic frames in the future. Cheers

 

[Josh]

I have some plastic frames from a nuc someone saved me with. They are super nice to use, don’t get bound up with propolis so much. No nooks & crannies for sneaky queens and cells. And a the bees can’t modify/chew and create mayhem.

But, “we” need to improve the economics of alternatives and get them going. One way to do that is to not buy plastic. That’s why I haven’t, yet.

Ecrotek kindly replied to my email, and explained that the raw materials for their bioform are prohibiting development of alternate frames at the moment. 🤞 that changes soon.

 

[yesbut]

Ecrotek kindly replied to my email, and explained that the raw materials for their bioform are prohibiting development of alternate frames at the moment. 🤞 that changes soon.

What does that actually mean please ?

 

[Josh]

What does that actually mean please ?

So, apparently the raw material used to make bioform frames is currently in limited supply and therefore expensive. Hence those frames are a premium price. This also makes the costs of smaller, ie 3/4, frames (and the cost to produce them) also expensive & they probably don’t see them being overly popular as a result.

I reminded them that a lot of hobby beeks are willing to pay for convenience and also want to make a conscientious decision to avoid plastic.

The fact I’m struggling to find any suppliers of similar frames overseas makes me suspicious that the economics don’t stack up sadly.

 

[yesbut]

Pleasingly for me, I'm past the stage where economics matter. Mind you they never really have with my pet bee hobby.. I did take a bit of a hit when the nearby commercial took his 40 double queen hives away last year.....no more swarms to scavenge..

 

[Waikato 4]

Unfortunately a lot of my frames (3/4) despite being put in plastics bags, ended up with moth or mold. I have removed the main wax foundation/cells and left with the wooden frames that need further cleaning and then new wax foundation applied. Half of the frames need new wires too, until I learnt to remove the old foundation without cutting the wires out!
Does anyone know of a service for cleaning and renewing these 3/4

Just thought I would put this up to gauge interest

Be interested in your

Thanks for replies. I cut down a large drum and tried boiling water to clean frames. Too time consuming and messy. Also I have tried putting new foundation into new frames and I agree, it's quite a learning curve! Not very good at it. I think I'll stick to plastic frames in the future. Cheers

Just thought I would put this up to gauge interest

Be interested in your

 

[Jhah]

I tried thickish nylon fishing line and dripped hot wax along it to hold the foundation in and then after it was capped cut the line pulled the fishing line out and cut the comb up into icecream container sized blocks and gave it to people as prezzies worked well.This year I put two lengths of thinner line thru and slipped the sheet between as an experiment hoping the bees dont cut the nylon we will see.easy to clean frames quick scrape and start again.If you are worried about your wire method just hold the sheet against it with the right sized bit of wood and drip wax along it works well.Also I scrape and water blast my plastic frames,a bit messy but works well.