Frame feeder DADANT Blatt 4 kg

01 · MEASURE BEFORE ORDERING

The lugs run a couple of millimetres long

It is the thing existing users repeat most, and it is worth knowing beforehand: the supporting lugs usually run 1-2 mm long and need filing or trimming slightly so it drops freely into the box. This is not a fault on one unit — it is the tolerance between a part moulded to a nominal size and boxes that vary from maker to maker. Two more warnings: at the bottom it is wider than a set of frame spacer bars, so if your boxes have them it will not seat properly; and the body sits about 1 cm shorter than the box, leaving a gap underneath. It is built for Dadant Blatt, not Dadant US.

02 · SO THEY DO NOT DROWN

The floats are inside, and the window gets closed

It comes with two floats included, which is what separates a feeder from a trap: with nothing to stand on, a worker that slips into the syrup does not get out. They also stow in a closing compartment in the feeder itself, so they do not get lost on the way to the apiary. And the rule you cannot forget: close the filling window as soon as you finish filling. Leaving it open is exactly the scenario the floats exist to prevent, multiplied by the whole surface of the tank.

03 · PLASTIC INSTEAD OF WOOD

It stays watertight far longer

Against a wooden frame feeder, plastic does not open at the joints and does not soak: watertightness lasts years rather than seasons, and washing is immediate. Sitting inside the hive rather than over the crown board helps too — the syrup stays at colony temperature and does not become an invitation to robbing. In exchange, the access opening gets propolised over time, as everything the bees handle daily does: you go over it when washing between seasons.

04 · BEFORE YOU BUY

It measures 47 × 29 × 3 cm and weighs 750 g empty. It takes the place of a frame, so the brood box loses one frame while it is in — factor that in when planning wintering or the start of a swarm. The 4 kg capacity is a lot for a small colony: in a nucleus you are better off filling less and more often, because syrup left standing in the hive for weeks ferments.