The bees will use this as a guide, modeling the worker cell grid and quickly add their own wax in the gaps. A frame that holds plastic foundation is known as a top and bottom groove frame with a solid bottom.ĭuring heavy nectar flow, we take several strips of plastic foundation, usually about 2" wide and place two or three in a frame. You cannot use wax foundation in a frame built to hold plastic. The plastic foundation that we sell is coated with real beeswax helping the bees to take to it better.Īlso, be aware that different foundation types require matching frames. However, I have also seen this with wax foundation and especially with Duragilt One side of a frame can be drawn out into the empty side of the frame next to it. Bees need nectar to produce wax to draw comb. However, this is true with all foundation. When there is not a strong nectar flow, bees can be slow in drawing out the comb on plastic. Sometimes there can be challenges with plastic. You can scrap the comb off with a hive tool and never damage the cell.ĥ) It is very easy to spot eggs against the black brood sheets.Ħ) You can spin it in an extractor at any speed and never blow it out.ħ) It doesn't droop in a hive or bow out.Ĩ) It snaps into frames rather than having to use wire and nail in a wedge.ġ0) It is much more cost effective than constantly replacing damaged foundation.ġ1) It can be shipped without damage in any temperature. I often entice them by spraying each sheet with sugar water.Ģ) It is VERY durable. Here are the reasons I have gone totally to plastic:ġ) Bees love it and pull it fast. In fact, my queens love deep frames that are solid one piece plastic. I'm not as impressed with the one piece plastic frame and foundation. I love plastic foundation in wooden frames. I use only the beeswax coated sheets of plastic. This is my preference! This is a very thick piece of plastic, probably 1/8 inch think and has the hexagonal worker cells embedded in the plastic. Then, there is plastic foundation by various names: Ritecell, Pierco and Plasticell. I'll teach you via video that you can watch when you want! CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO NOW. I know this can be confusing, so let me HIGHLY encourage you to take my ONLINE BASIC BEEKEEPING COURSE from the comfort of your home, on your schedule at your own pace. I've never tried it due to the fact that it is expensive. It sound great as it would allow a fresh package of bees the ability to immediately start storing honey. In other words, it is a plastic version of a fully drawn wax comb. Permacomb is fully drawn plastic foundation, not wax comb. To reuse the frame means a lot of disassembly and cleaning, pulling out nails, and removing the wires. I like pure wax foundation, but I don't like the complexity of the assembly and how venerable it is to mice and wax moths. Rarely can I get an even frame of comb off of Duragilt foundation. The bees drew it out unevenly or in small pockets. What's new :) I have tried Durgilt and it proved unsuccessful for me. Some beekeepers enjoy using Duragilt and others do not like it. In addition to the pure wax foundation, we now have various types of plastic foundations.ĭuragilt, Plasticell, Pierco, Ritecell, Permacomb and the option of an empty frame with no foundation at all.ĭuragilt is a sheet of very thin clear plastic that is coated with beeswax and has the hexagonal worker cells embedded in the wax. But for many, this has become too time consuming. Sound complex? It can be, especially to the new beekeeper.įor the hobbyist who has one or two hives, it can be fun, spending time putting together all the little frame pieces and embedding wire into your wax. This means that there is a top wedge bar of wood that must be nailed to hold the wax, and that the bottom of the frame has a split piece of wood in which the thin layer of wax fits into and then is nailed.Īdditional side pins are used as well. These are commonly referred to as split bottom and top wedge bar frames. Otherwise, the heat of the hive will cause the thin layer of wax to fall out of the frame.Ī small strip of wood is nailed to the top of the frame, catching little hooks on the wax to help it hang. An additional wire has to be added horizontally to give the foundation strength.
This type of foundation is still widely used. In the past, there was only one kind, plain beeswax formed into thin layers of foundation with embedded wire to hold them in the frame. When starting out keeping bees, the beekeeper must decide what type of foundation is best to use.
If you are new to beekeeping and trying to figure things out, let me HIGHLY encourage you to take my ONLINE BASIC BEEKEEPING COURSE from the comfort of your home, on your schedule at your own pace. To refresh your memory, the frames hold the foundation within the deep hive body or honey super.
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