Aah…wonderful black plastic foundation combined with a wooden frame…the best foundation/frame scenario I’ve found to date.
Although my reply shows my bias in the frame style that I have in my apiary, Hexacell or BetterComb Drawn Synthetic Wax Comb or plain beeswax foundation would not give me as many options. For my style of beekeeping, the black plastic works so well. It gives me the following options:
No wiring…it’s so sturdy that frames in their 1st year can be spun out centrifically at high speeds without damage.
Brood frames or honey/pollen frames that aren’t built out/filled with to what I consider advantageous can just be scraped down and the bees start over. Dark brood frames can be easily converted to white honey frames…photo shows a strip of former brood comb left for comparison.
The video below shows the scraping process. The removed honey and beebread are fed back to the hives as a spring tonic or as a fall supplement to stimulate an extra cycle of winter (long-lived) bees.
Bear damage is a real problem in parts of North America…my experience is that the bears destroy the replaceable wooden frames and just scrape with their claws down to the plastic foundation…the sturdy plastic foundation sheets are rarely damaged.
Thanks for you input @Doug1 I find it interesting as what works for everyone based on Geographic regions, types of Nectar sources, and the various critters ones have to consider for their Apiary.
It’s good to see people showing interest in the thread.
Every product will have its merit for whoever buys it. @Doug1 above said why he likes black plastic foundation in wooden frames for the valid reasons he mentioned. I personally won’t touch it, but then I don’t have bears, and I’m not a commercial operator.
For me, a backyard beekeeper with a handful of hives, nothing will beat natural wax foundation and letting the bees build their own. My preference for my circumstances is natural wax comb and it has nothing to do with being a futurist or traditionalist.
I also want to point out that building up some hands on experience will go a long way to help you decide what might work, and not for your own circumstances. I say that from my own experience - I had a lot of ideas when I started out, that turned out to be not so great.
I used to be…now I just try on doing an adequate job on ten or so hives…maximizing bee health and honey yields. I immediately saw the advantages of flowhive technology and continue to work with FHs and traditional hives.
Easy fellas @Doug1@Zzz no need to throw daggers. I applauded each of you for your efforts in sharing your knowledge.
@Zzz I certainly hope you don’t use the Flow Frames in your Brood Box. Kinda defeats the design…lol. Joking, in case your humor is drier than mine.
Besides guys I simply was asking all of you was if anyone had experience with the product. At the end of the day 1 thing I have learned to be true, the bees will do what the bees will do. It’s my privilege to offer them assistance with their endeavours.
If you think that offering bees synthetic wax comb is assisting them, well go for it. I beg to differ. I’ve seen for myself how quickly bees draw wax foundation out. It’s over & done with in one night. Plus the bees have got comb of their own making. What price would you put on that?
Hang on, you’re paying more money for the privilage of giving the bees something they didn’t produce themselves. Something synthetic, it doesn’t make sense.
It seems like you’ve struck a brick wall by asking that question on this forum. Just to put a different slant on the advice you’ve been given. It wouldn’t be difficult to total a centuries worth of experience from the advice you’ve been given. I know @Peter48 alone has 45 years experience.
I don’t think anyone is throwing daggers at you at all, just offering you their own experience, something that you are yet to acquire. Well done for asking the question.
I checked those links and videos, and there is nothing in there to convince me that synthetic comb is of any benefit at all, or superior than natural bee’s wax comb. I’m not even considering the extra cost. I am actually seeing a few problems with using artificial comb.
What I want to add is that because someone comes up with a way to take money off you, and market a product that you may not really need, doesn’t make that product useful, or futuristic at all. Having said that, I’m sure someone will find it handy for their set of circumstances.
I think that most of us here on this forum, owning a Flow Hive, have had our fair share of dealing with naysayers, and we mostly look at new technologies with an open mind. Like many other hobbies and industries, not all gadgets and products end up to be that useful for most, and it is often the newcomers that fall for them first. I still have a few bits and bobs that I bought when I started out, that I never ever used.
Edit:
I just thought of one advantage it might have which I can’t find on their website: do wax moths attack this synthetic wax? I’m have some wax moths myself at the moment.
Beware the synthetic plastic wax moth Olly. they would love a frame of that.
I guess when Tim asked our thoughts he didn’t expect we could think differently to him, but nobody is throwing daggers in any way.
I can’t see a reason to use plastic comb when the bees are more than able to produce the genuine article. Cleaned and filtered bees wax is a very saleable item but I suspect there in no value when the plastic comb is due to by cycled out of the hive so it ends up in landfill or even worse. Clean bees wax is money in my wallet, so I nothing positive in those plastic combs for my bee keeping.
Cheers Olly
As they don’t say what the plastic is, and I wouldn’t expect them to do that either, then there is no way of knowing what toxic gases would come off as it burnt as you say, but I certainly wouldn’t like to breathe the fumes. I’m no ‘tree hugging greenie’ but I steer clear of anything plastic where I can.
Cheers
I was thinking there is plastic involved as they say it has hydrocarbons in it, They have certainly spent a heap of money in their marketing with very little information disclosed.
Cheers Fred
They claim they contain no plastic, which is rather pointless because they are still made of an artificial material. You do have a point about their end of life though. As pointed above they can only be turned into candles.
How they compare with pure beeswax candles we do not know. In this household, paraffin wax candles are banned.
In my opinion, missing out on harvesting beeswax, is a major disadvantage.
Just so everyone is clear about my thread and replies to others I will say this. I am proud to be apart of the Flow family. Also I enjoy reading the posts people share and the insight you all offer. While I may not reply or start threads often, I do a lot of reading here. Over my time in the forum I have seen some threads get a little carried away on responses and some feelings being hurt along the way. That is not my intention, nor do I desire to get anyone all riled up about someone’s opinion or different way of doing the same task we all in one way or another, are here for to begin with.
Some have questioned why I chose the Hexacell over allowing the bees to draw their own natural comb. Some think it’s pointless or excessive, or perhaps even toxic or adulterated. Some question viability of the product in regards to Pests infestation in particular Wax Moths. It is my understanding that in the Hive if the colony is strong they will not allow Wax Moths in infest their Hive (As best defense of Wax Moths is a Strong Colony). In a weakened colony the wax moths don’t care who makes the wax, man or bees, they are going to set in, lay, and destroy what is left and the bees are gonna leave the hive anyway. And thus the list has the potential to go on and on. So we either digress or move forward. I choose the latter, and hope all of you do as well.
To be clear, I am not promoting the use of Hexacell / BetterComb. I am not being Paid nor have I received their products for favorable reviews. I Purchased these products with my own money. Yes, Money. While the costs including wired frame runs me around $8.00 US per frame. Considering I already spent over $2000 with Flow Hive. It seemed like a small investment to add the Hexacell/BetterComb, that is my choice. Not that my costs are any concerns of everyone here. But only to make this point. I am not in the business to sell Honey, Propolis, Beeswax, Royal Jelly, Bees, or Queens, or any derivatives of the Hive Products. I simply wanted to get into this as a hobby, and learn all I can about the bees, and be able to enjoy a taste of all the hard work and efforts they put into surviving as long as they have. Added benefits for me will be of pollination in my vegetable garden and wildflowers.
Yes I could’ve spent a lot less to achieve my end goals as I am sure so many of you may say. I could’ve used my old igloo cooler for a hive, or even beelined a feral nest and became a Honey Haver and not a Beekeeper. It comes down to this for each and every one of us. It’s different strokes for different folks. It’s wonderful to know as humans we all share thoughts on some things, and have vast differences of opinions on others. That’s what makes each of us unique and some may say obstinate, defiant, or just a dummy… Either way I want you all to know I value your experiences through the trials and tribulations in the art of Beekeeping. I look forward to reading the threads and responses you all share, some each and everyday…
