Beeswax Foundation 5kg

01 · THE WAX

100 % beeswax: no paraffin, no blends

This is pure beeswax, with no paraffin and no additives, and that includes the rigid version: its stiffness comes from the milling, not from anything added to it. Cell size is 5.4 mm, the standard for European bees; do not expect it to do anything about varroa, because small cell does not hold up with European bees.

02 · RIGID OR FLEXIBLE?

Pick by your climate, not by quality

Both come from the same wax; the difference is how it cools as it is embossed. Rigid cools straight onto the roller and sets firmer; flexible is worked warm and keeps its give. You feel it while handling the sheet, not in the finished comb.

03 · FORMATS

Seven cuts, and the sheet count changes with each one

The pack weighs 5 kg including the wrapping, so what changes between formats is how many sheets fit in. Approximate counts per pack:

· Layens 35 × 30 cm — about 45 sheets

· Langstroth 42 × 20 cm — about 55

· Dadant 42 × 27 cm — about 40

· French Dadant Blatt 41 × 26 cm — about 45

· Lusitana 33 × 26 cm — about 50

· Super 42 × 13 cm — about 90

· Dadant Blatt super 41 × 13 cm — about 90

If you are torn between the two Dadants, look at the frame: frames of 48 × 30 cm (Spanish Dadant) take the 42 × 27 sheet; frames of 47 × 27 cm (French Dadant Blatt) take the 41 × 26. The sheet always sits a little smaller than the inner opening of the frame: that gap is normal.

04 · DRAWING AND STORAGE

When they draw it fast, and how it reaches next season in one piece

How quickly a sheet gets drawn depends as much on timing as on the wax: it goes in well with a nectar flow and enough young bees, and it sits untouched — or picks up brace comb over it — if you give it during a dearth or to a colony short of nurse bees. Store the packs flat, somewhere cool and dark: on edge or near a heat source the sheets press together and warp, and a warped sheet will not give you a straight comb.

FROM THE APIARY

If you are fitting foundation in winter, bring the pack indoors for a few hours before you open it. Most breakages with rigid foundation are not the wax: they are the temperature it is being handled at.

05 · BEFORE YOU BUY

Size and milling are two separate choices: you can order Layens flexible or super rigid with no problem. Check the format against your own frames before adding to the basket.