Old brood comb and frames: recycle or chuck?

[Amari]

After nearly 50 years of beekeeping I'm getting fed up with recycling frames of old brood comb. I no longer melt down old black comb - the wax yield is minimal and they make good firelighters. It's cleaning the frames for reuse that is beginning to get me. Wooden brood frames, especially the grooves in the side bars, are tedious to get clean enough to insert new sheets of wax. A few years ago I changed to plastic frames (easy to insert foundation in new frames because no nails needed) but they are expensive @ c. £2 ea and wax moth larvae lurk in the spaces of the mouldings.

I'm wondering how many folk on the forum recycle their brood frames or chuck?

I've decided to chuck - profits from honey sales have paid for all my equipment and will more than cover the cost of frame renewals - maybe even treat myself to ready made up??

 

[Beefriendly]

I just stick them in my apimelter for 30 minutes or so and apart from a very minimum of scraping they are good to go again....Side bars are usually clear unless a lot of propolis there. Some wax can get stuck between the two bottom bars but takes seconds to remove.
Before apimelter used to steam them, did same job but could only do 10 frames at a time. All clean and sterile.

However, I do understand the temptation to buy ready made with wax already fixed.....Making up frames and adding wax is a tedious business at the best of times.

 

[JazzJPH]

I'd be happy to buy a couple of frames of old comb if you don't want them.

 

[Millet]

I'd be happy to buy a couple of frames of old comb if you don't want them.

What do you want old comb for..(swarm traps maybe) ?..

 

[Stiffy]

Steam my frames clean and recycle with clean foundation, wax is cleaned and used for candles.
Frames cost a lot of money considering what they are, so unless broken are soon cleaned and back in hives!
S

 

[JazzJPH]

What do you want old comb for..(swarm traps maybe) ?..

Yeah swarm traps

Hopefully my first bees will be free bees...

 

[Millet]

Steam my frames clean and recycle with clean foundation, wax is cleaned and used for candles.
Frames cost a lot of money considering what they are, so unless broken are soon cleaned and back in hives!
S

How do you steam them..do you use a wallpaper type steamer in a wooden box of some kind..

 

[Millet]

Yeah swarm traps

Hopefully my first bees will be free bees...

If i get the timing right i might be able to give you some wax but not the frames as i reuse them.. i have a Queenless hive getting robbed at the moment by my own bees..once they stop i can remove any old frames and cut you some comb out..all you will have to do is use elastic bands to hold it in place in your own new frames..if that is any help..

 

[SDM]

Dont they stop robbing every evening?

 

[Beefriendly]

Dont they stop robbing every evening?

Oh very droll.....

Geordie rules ko.....

 

[Stiffy]

How do you steam them..do you use a wallpaper type steamer in a wooden box of some kind..

Old floor and roof with hole large enough for wallpaper steamer hose, seal, steam soon done. Most frames come out very clean, any that don’t get another blast. Best part of this is I can leave and get on with something else while it ‘steams away’
S

 

[Millet]

Old floor and roof with hole large enough for wallpaper steamer hose, seal, steam soon done. Most frames come out very clean, any that don’t get another blast. Best part of this is I can leave and get on with something else while it ‘steams away’
S

Thank you.. i have a rough idea and you have now clarified it..

 

[JazzJPH]

If i get the timing right i might be able to give you some wax but not the frames as i reuse them.. i have a Queenless hive getting robbed at the moment by my own bees..once they stop i can remove any old frames and cut you some comb out..all you will have to do is use elastic bands to hold it in place in your own new frames..if that is any help..

Hi Millet, that would be great yes please. Thank you for the offer.
What can you do to get the queenless hive right? I'm sure the answer is in my Ted Hooper book but I'm not up to that page yet

 

[Millet]

Hi Millet, that would be great yes please. Thank you for the offer.
What can you do to get the queenless hive right? I'm sure the answer is in my Ted Hooper book but I'm not up to that page yet

Nothing at this time of the year..

 

[Millet]

Dont they stop robbing every evening?

I will get you a little tent and a stool to sit on if you are that interested..

 

[Goran]

Cost for one good quality new lang frame here is 0,23 to 0,29 GBP.. I have in the attic pile of boxes with old frames, which eventually will go on bonfire.. But still have no " heart" or will for it.. We use lime wood for frames..
These days 200 new frames wait me for finishing them.. Orchard keeps distracting me..

 

[citrus]

i clean my ones out as best I can then leave them out in the rain from october to january to let the slugs and weather soften everything out.

after a brush and a few weeks drying out they seem ok to use again

 

[drex]

I bung them in home made solar wax melter during summer, and do obtain a good amount of wax to exchange for fresh foundation. I never pay full cost for foundation. Still a fair bit of crud on the frames. I then boil them in an old Burco boiler, and they come out pristine

 

[enrico]

Maybe I am weird but I find it quite nice on a cold wet winter day cleaning frames and getting them all ready for the next bee year! Radio on, insulated warm room, get a system going......the best bit of kit I have is the little sharp hooked thing that Thornes sell. It cleans the grooves out so easily. I just remove one bottom bar from each frame to make putting the new wax in at a later date so much easier.
Send your frames to me, I could start a cleaning service! Now there is an idea!
E

 

[For want of a better word]

Recycle!!
Steamer only good for very small number of frames... we even went to the trouble of building one with 2 wallpaper stripper steam generators as found that steam needed to be injected from above and below the frames.

Now use apimelter device as found that the cost of the electricity using steamer method made it not cost effective compared to the small quantity of wax and frames recovered... api can be loaded up and left to collect the wax....and do not forget the time saving!

From Apimelter into 175 liter oil drum... propane gas ring... five bags of washing soda...
boil 10 ~ 20 minutes... jet wash ... into another drum...soak in 5% bleach 20 minutes to kill off any possible surviving nasties ( NBU advice)... jet wash again.... hang out to dry next to AGA.... re wax... job done.

Have made up a couple of steel racks to hold 24 brood or 48 super frames.... makes handling easier... cleaned 200 or so yesterday... many more to go!!

Wax is worth as much as honey.... and quality Cornish Black bee beeswax # Approved Origin ~ Cornwall Council~ Product of Cornwall..... Cornish Amm sells for a premium!

Frames that are broken or have simply have served their time ( some have to be 30+ years old!!)... are used to light the woodburner!

This could be scaled up for an Association group.... and with all that bleach and propper biosecurity and a risk assessment in place would serve better than a dodgy group honey extraction session!

Caution... wear protective apparel... goggles , long waterproof gloves, waterproof coat , trousers and wellies..... hot caustic liquids involved!!

The Danes use a commercial " cage washer" to clean their frames... after the wax foundation has been cut out....... another "project" perhaps???


Yeghes da