Frame Spacing

[OldScout]

Hi All, I read in several sources that 9 frames in my standard honey super is better than 10. Ok, but do I just remove an empty frame and then eyeball the spacing on the rest? Equal spacing or all nine together with lots of spacing on the ends?

[rwjedi]

They have spacers you can attach to your hive body that will put the proper spaces between the frames. I'm so cheap I might try to space it myself. http://www.beesource.com/ubb/smile.gif

[OldScout]

Ok, buts what's the spacing?

[2hives]

Just equalize them across the width of the super. You can make a spacer by equalizing the 9 frames, then lay a wooden paint stirrer across the frames, perpendicular, mark the center of each space between the frames, then cut out a saw tooth pattern on the stick. Then you can use this spacer to equalize the frames, first one end, then the other, untill they all line up nice.

[Ian]

Use your finger and thumb

[Barry Digman]

Are you using drawn comb or just foundation? My experience with putting the 9-frame spacers in the super and using new (undrawn) wax-coated foundation was less than satisfactory. Several catalogs warn you not to do that, and the consensus here is not to do it that way.

[Michael Bush]

I put nine frames in when I have drawn comb. I don't when I have bare foundation. Sometimes with bare foundation and 9 frames they will draw it fine. Sometimes they will crosscomb it into a mess.

With drawn empty comb they almost always draw it out nice and thick and it's easy to uncap.

I bought a spacing comb made by Maxant. I think mine is from Brushy Mt. but most suppliers have them.

You can also buy spacers that are a frame rest. Two prolems with that are:

1. You have to buy them for all your supers.
2. Your supers are now a different box than your brood chamber. Unless you run 9 frames in the brood chamber, which, haveing tried it, I never do.

I recommend the spacer comb.

In fact with small cell, I plane a 1/16" off of each side of the end bar and put 11 frames in a brood chamber instead, which is the opposite.

[OldScout]

Being a newbie, all of my foundation is undrawn, or just drawn this year. And it seems that if I use the crush and strain method of harvesting, I will never start out the year with drawn comb in my supers.

[5TR-Apiary]

I have frame spacers in every one of my supers--broodchambers and honey supers! Even had my husband cut the spacers to fit in my nucs! I love not having to spend the extra time spacing each frame...No problems here..

[Oxankle]

I use the frame spacers; have them in all my supers. Walter Kelley reccomended using 9 drawn frames in the brood chamber too. I just re-read his book and found that little item, will try that next spring as he says it cuts down swarming.

One caveat; always start your boxes with ten frames of foundation, not nine. Once the comb is drawn, take out one.
Ox

[djuniorfan8]

Interesting! So 9 in the supers give you more honey then 10. What is the advantage of 9 in the brood chamber? will they draw the current comb out deeper?

[jfischer]

> 2. Your supers are now a different box than your brood chamber.

This is a GOOD thing, as one wants to be aware of which comb and
boxes are used for brood, and which for honey. One basic way to
prevent the spread of disease is to keep track of comb (all my
supers and hive bodies have stenciled alpha-numeric sequence numbers)
and to never, never, never move brood comb from "weak" hives, as they
might be weak due to disease. Someone who is very organized can even
avoid moving honey supers between hives, but I limit this to putting
extracted supers back on the same hive from which they were harvested
for cleaning.

9 frame spacers are just one more reminder of which is which.

[honeylocust]

The ten frame, new foundation supers I have are now getting drawn out and just a couple are starting to get capped 1/3 of the way down.

Could I go ahead and take out one frame at this time to make it into a nine framer? Or would I be better off just waiting until next year to convert these to nine frames?

If the frames that are just starting to get capped are a problem, I could always move those few frames together and keep them in a ten frame box.

Just curious to see if this would make any sense.

[Oxankle]

Honeylocust:

Once the bees get a set of 9-frame supers they proceed to draw out the comb past the frame and fill up the space just as they would a ten-frame setup. The comb sticks out past the frame and is very easy to uncap.

If you let them cap the comb and then take out a frame they might draw the uncapped portion, and they might not. Best to let them draw out a full ten frames, extract and then next year give them a super with 9 spaced frames. You will appreciate the difference. Just remember not to give them a nine-frame box of foundation.
Ox

[honeylocust]

Thanks Oxankle.

I'll have to learn patience.