[Mike S]

What is the easiest way to clean used frames? It takes a whole ton of patience to scrap each one by hand. Would it hurt to boil them in a pot? Would this work? Im sure you old beeks see the same old questions by the season. Thanks for any info....... Mike

 

[Ski]

Hey Mike S,
I hate cleaning frames, I am not an old beek I am just old lol. I use a torch and heat up a hive tool and it helps cut through a lot of the built up wax and propolis. I got my solar wax melter built this spring so I will be putting some frames in it to see how that works.
Hope you get some additional ideas.
Ski

 

[honeyman46408]

I hate cleaning frames, I am not an old beek I am just old lol.

I agree with "Ski" on this one I use a turkey frier with water and boil them it makes the wax and propolis easy to remove.

 

[Mike S]

I agree with both of you and think I'll try boiling, I already have the setup. I'm way too lazy for all the scraping!! I did 4 this morning and I don't have the patience.

 

[mike haney]

perhaps you are getting them cleaner than neccessary. i seldom do more than a quick scrape on the end bars to keep them the right width. if i'm 'specially active, i'll hit the burr comb on the top bars. good luck,mike

 

[Mike S]

We cut the comb out of these and hand squeezed the honey, their really a mess, need to load new foundation in them. Buying an extractor setup very soon, done with the hand squeezing.

 

[mike haney]

let the bees dry'em off, pop out the wedge, run a screwdriver through the divided bottom bars, use the hive tool to give a scrape up each of the end bars, replace the wax sheet. i did it while watching the news for years. good luck,mike

 

[fish_stix]

Try using a frame cleaner, about $4.00 at Dadant. Along with a hive tool or putty knife they make the job a lot easier. The other thing is to get some grandkids or slave labor!

 

[jdpro5010]

Wax foundation frames or foundationless frames are easy just toss them in the wax melter. The plastic foundation frames I don't think you have a choice but to scrape them or scrap them. Boiling them is definitely out of the question unless you like warped frames!

 

[Mike S]

OK, Im in the middle of building a solar wax melter, I'll give it a try when its done.

 

[Roland]

When lye was still available, a small amount added to the boiling water would saponify(sp?) the wax. The frames would come out looking bleached.

Roland

 

[pbuhler]

Hi: I shared this recently. The ratio of lye to water was found in a number of posts. Take a look.

http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=243199&highlight=NaOH&page=2