Bee Frame Foundation

Bee frame foundation supports the bee colony in brood rearing and honey production.   Bee foundation frames can be made with plastic or wax and each has their benefits.

• Wax foundation is natural for the bees and  can sometime lead to quicker buildout
• Plastic foundation is durable and wax coated so the bees will typically draw it out quickly
• Max Wax plastic foundation has extra wax applied to allow the honeybees to even more quickly build out frames
• Bettercomb foundation is composed of completely drawn sheets of foundation made with synthetic wax
• Wax foundation can be reinforced with wire to help it hold together through routine handling and extraction

Bee Frame Foundation for Brood, Cut Comb and Small Cell Work

Start With the Job, Not the Sheet

What the frame is for matters as much as what it is made from. Brood foundation goes in the boxes where the queen lays. Thin surplus is cut comb foundation, milled light enough that the finished comb goes straight onto a plate. Small cell suits anyone working toward a smaller natural cell size. Wired sheets come with hooks or without, depending on how your end bars are drilled. Support pins, an embedding board, an electric embedder, and a wax tube fastener handle the fitting.

Meyer Bees keeps it all beside the rest of its beekeeping supplies. Through our bee frame foundation, we are committed to supporting the bee colony and making sure that it thrives.

Bee Frame Foundation FAQs

Which foundation goes in a honey super?

Either the standard foundation sheets or thin surplus, depending on how you plan to use it. Standard foundation is available with and without wires - the wired version is more durable and can last a long time in the honey supers. Thin surplus is for comb honey, where the whole foundation is cut up and sold or eaten as the bees created it.

What is small cell foundation?

Foundation milled with cells slightly smaller than standard, based on the idea that a smaller worker bee may be less hospitable to mites. Opinions on how much it helps vary, so treat it as one part of a mite plan rather than a solution on its own.

Hooks or no hooks?

The version you need depends on your top and end bars. Hooked sheets catch on the "wedge top" of the frame and hold themselves in place while the bees draw out the comb on the frames. Split bottom frames allow the wax foundation to hang through the bottom and the bees will fasten it in place. Sheets without hooks need pins or wire instead. Check what your frames are drilled for before ordering a full case.

Do I need an embedder?

This technique is used to put wire into wax foundation. The embedder melts the wax just enough to sink the wire into the sheet. A board and a manual wire roller do similar work by hand. These tools move in and out of stock, so order early if using wax foundations is your plan.

How much foundation should I buy at once?

More than the frames you are building right now, if storage allows. Wax keeps well somewhere cool and dark, and the larger cases work out considerably cheaper per sheet. Just keep it flat and away from warm temperatures and sunlight.