I’ve been through three winters in my life where it was -40 F. One of those it was -40 F every night for a month and a half. I’ve never noticed any degradation or change in plastic once it was warmed back up. Obviously while it’s cold a lot of things are brittle at those temps.
Hey John, that is a really good link! I am bookmarking that one for sure!
However, the first type listed is not very UV sensitive, so it is unlikely to be that type solely.
However, it must be a component because it does match the maximum recommended temperature rating that they list in their sterilization FAQ, Good call.
Numbers 1,2,4 & 5 are BPA free so that narrows it down.
Numbers 2-6 are listed as “fair” for UV tolerance at this site:
https://www.sks-bottle.com/PSHelp.html
Numbers 2 & 4 are fine with cold, but number 5 is not at all…
Judging from Michael’s experience, we could infer that it would have to be 2 or 4 since 5 would likely deteriorate quickly with repeated freeze/thaw cycles.
I am quite certain that they are using an amalgam of several types of plastics to get the qualities that they wanted for this purpose. So that is where a chemical engineer steps in and does the hard part of calculating what happens to the whole as the parts are combined, if blended. Otherwise, if each part is made of a single type, then the extremes are simply the least of each part. In that case, it should be easy for them to determine using the handy page you posted.
I decided to just ask them directly by posting in the sterilization thread. Although I think we have safely divined an answer in our discussions here, nothing beats straight from the horses mouth.
Thanks Stephen for a really interesting link, beyond the plastics. I have an obsession with maps & mapping…
Well,
I happened across this thread where Flow states exactly which plastics are in the Flow Frames:
That seems to indicate PETG on the ends, which falls into number 1 and has a temp range of -40c to 70c, and number 5 (PP) for the comb, which means 0c to 135c.
Everything I can find on PP states that is remains chemically viable at temperatures below zero but becomes very brittle and glass-like. So as long as they are handled with extreme care in the deep-freeze, all should be OK. PP is used for freezing organic samples at cryogenic temperatures.
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Really good of you to do this homework & share with everyone @CheezWiz - thanks!
I am so thankful for this website and all the knowledge that is stored here. And I use the word stored to indicate not necessarily the data but the people that are providing all the input.
Now for my question:
Came back and reread this thread because I am now doing my final harvest for the year. One thing I could not find directly answered to my situation and yes I understand every situation is different.
I have 2 brood boxes queen excluder and the flow frames on top. I’m harvesting the flow frames. Having done a high the inspection and looking inside the 2 brood boxes and being a very new beekeeper, I’m not sure I understand how to determine if they’ve got enough honey to get them through the winter.
My situation allows me to look at the hives every single day, and many times once in the morning as I leave for work because I’m taking a thermal image and then after work with my glass of tea to relax. So keeping an eye on them is not an issue.
Having described that situation what concerns do I need to have and/or what should I keep an eye on.
And always as I asked this question in many meetings I’m in, is there something I’m not asking or thinking about?
How many frames of capped honey do they have in the brood boxes? They will need 40-80lb to get through the winter, depending on climate and the type of bees (Italians eat a lot, and I suspect you have Italians). A full Langstroth deep is about 5-8lb of honey, to give you an idea. If they don’t have enough stores, you will need to feed them. Deciding on feeding them depends on you repeatedly weighing or “hefting” (estimating the weight by lifting one side of the hive) the hive during the winter, to work out how much food is left.
Hi everyone. This is my first summer with a flow hive and I started with a nuc after my bees didn’t overwinter. In any case they didn’t like the flow frames, so I put a box of drawn wax comb above it & they filled that & also started working on the flow hive.
Now it is time to harvest & get ready for winter. The wax box on top is completely full & capped. The flow hive has some nectar and some new wax, but nothing capped.
I have a chest freezer that is dedicated to storing my wax frames every winter. I love to freeze partially full frames of honey, becuase it is amazing giving them that in the spring - it gives them a super start. Plus, if I end up with a swarm or a nuc - I have food frames ready to go.
So, the question: can I freeze the partially full flow frames? Will I ruin the frames if they sit in the freezer with some nectar, all winter long? I’d be careful when I handle them when they are frozen. I know the nectar will likely expand, but uncapped there should be room for that right?
Thanks!
Louise
Portland OR USA
I can’t answer your question about freezing the entire frames- but we removed a flow super that had partially capped nectar- and what we did was harvest the frames and then freeze the nectar. We then fed it back to the bees over winter and early in spring.
When the frames are uncapped they are more likely to leak when you harvest- so if you decided to do that you could remove the super- harvest it over a tray to catch the leaks- then freeze the nectar for feeding (you can also eat some of it- or make mead 
)
Everyone’s situation is different. I want to say that and say every nuance in detail about the situation may influence something else. I’m in Dallas Texas and last year after doing my last harvest of 2016 I left the flow frames on for a week to two weeks after harvesting so the girls could start removing whatever money was left for I knew they moved it around. After that period of time I went out and removed the flow frames and the box that held them. And I place them in my freezer chest. I did have the setting on the warmest freezing temperature the chest would operate at. This is not a refrigerator it’s strictly a deep-freeze so it was either frozen or even more frozen.
I left the flow frames in until late March 2017. I made sure not to touch them for I know some items become really brittle when they are colder than their normal state.
Additionally after pulling them off in late March I let them sit for about three days before putting them back on the hive. After doing so the girls took to those frames remarkably well. Very very pleased with how quickly they filled everything up. You can certainly review back at previous post I made and photos. I will be doing it again this year. This year I have two sets of flow frames started my second flow frame hive earlier this year.
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Great thread on this topic. I live in southern Canada where winter temperatures will drop below freezing, and cycle up and down over the winter (several freeze /thaws are common). I just (Aug 9) harvested about 30 lbs of honey from my Flow Hive, and my plan is to let them clean up the empty frames for a couple of days, remove the frames, wash them, and store them for the winter. I share the same concern about the cold temps damaging the plastic, and it seems to be a prudent thing to do, given the cost. Any honey the bees make for the rest of the summer is for them.
Hi Louise,
It is safe to freeze your Flow Frames if they are not fully capped and ready to harvest.
You just need to wrap them in some plastic first.
We know that freezing won’t affect the plastic but it looks like it does change the nature of the wax/propolis as, according to one Flow Frame user it becomes more brittle/breakable - more easy to harvest after it had thawed.
I hope that helps 
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Hello again, although I’m not quite ready to remove the super I’m curious as to how our northern friends stored their Flow supers over winter.
Freezing the frames then sealing in plastic seems to be the recommended procedure but wonder about other ideas.
One of my thoughts is to get a plastic storage crate that will fit a complete Flow super and fill it with nitrogen to terminate any pests then seal it with tape.
Ideas? Thoughts?
Thanks.
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I don’t have a flow super but I store my traditional supers extracted but wet, stacked up, strapped and left in a cool shed. Seems to me that one you’ve drained it you could just store it Ina box in the cool. Is there any need to freeze it?
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Thanks Dee, storing the frames wet being after harvesting the frames I presume. So if the frames aren’t fully capped when it’s time to remove the supers do you extract anyway and store the frames wet? Will the unripe honey go off over winter? I wonder if purging the box with nitrogen will halt the spoiling process due to the lack of oxygen?
I’m glad it’s ok to store the frames wet though, nice and easy.
Oh and I thought, @Dee, you finished up getting a Flow hive from someone over there…
I wouldn’t bet on that. If you have ever brewed anything, you will know very well about the anaerobic ability of yeasts… 
last winter we drained the flow super before removing it- the honey was not ripe- quite watery. We froze it and used some to make mead- and fed the rest back to bees in spring. We left the frames near the hive for a few days for the bees to clean them up- then we washed them in a tub of warm water. Then we simply stored them in a plastic tub with a lid over winter. they looked pretty messy with all the broken wax cappings. next spring we put them back on and the bees very quickly cleaned them all up.
This winter- on at least a few hives- I plan to test leaving the flow super on. this is because in Adelaide it is not that cold in winter- no frosts- and the bees tend to keep foraging whenever the weather is good.
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Fair enough, so how then do you store or what do you do with uncapped honey? If I drain the frames I’d rather not have to wash them as I’d need to remove the cappings to wash thoroughly. I guess an option is to remove the qx and leave the supers on. We don’t have harsh winters here however propolising could be an issue.
It’s in a box 
Uncapped honey goes to the bees. I put the super under the brood box and they move it up