Roger asked:
> What do you all do with diseased comb on plastic?

Bob said:
>Depends 

Thanks Bob

I can see where plastics are a great thing for commercial beeks. Labor
savings and durability are a huge plus. 

Disposal issues with plastic is my biggest concern for either plastic frames
or foundation. I am probably worrying too much but I used to work for an
environmental consulting firm and I worried a lot for big companies and
thier disposal issues/landfill permitting/groundwater remediation. I use to
have to think on disposal a lot and old habits die hard I guess.  

I am like you, Bob, I rarely dispose of anything and try not to waste
anything. My folks taught me to reuse/rebuild if at all possible. This is
easy with wood and wax as we all know. Disposal is equally easy and I am
pretty confident I do not expose anyone or anything to disease or unknowns.

Plastic creates a whole new issue in my mind. It is a nasty thing to dispose
of. I can certainly scrape it down to its base and dispose of the wax in my
usual way. But I don't want to burn plastic (what I do with wood frames). I
am sure I could recycle, but I sure don't want to "clean it" to throw it
away (I've seen a lot of companies spend a lot of money on cleaning up to
throw away). I can't make anything out of old plastic frames/foundation
(yet), and I don't want to just throw it away without knowing it won't do
someone/bees harm. If it is still serviceable but may carry disease, I would
want to disinfect and reuse if possible as suggested. That seems partially
doable if you have the facilities. I have both plastic frames and plastic
foundation in wood and like Bob, I seem to like the plastic foundation
better for many of the same reasons Bob listed. I have not had to dispose of
any plastic yet but I am thinking on the issue.

I guess I just need to stick to wax foundation or natural drawn comb until I
see/come up with a disposable process I can live with.


Roger
Independence, Mo.

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