At 9:37 PM -0500 01/3/31, Thomas W. Hoyt wrote:
>I bought one of those electric things - that heats the horizontal wire to
>embed it into the foundation.
>
>Can't quite figure out how long to leave the thing heating.  Seems like it
>either (1) melts thru the whole foundation, or (2) doesn't get into the wax
>all the way thru.

        The cheapest & best source of heat I know of for this purpose is a
battery-charger; on the 6V setting, its rate of heating of the (nichrome?)
wire gives you a few seconds as the foundation sheet sinks onto the wire.
        It sounds to me as if the heater Thomas bought heats too fast.

        I can't agree that it's immaterial whether the wire gets embedded.
At least the sort of wire sold here is somewhat avoided by the bees as they
draw out comb.  It is desirable to surround the wire by wax as much as
reasonably possible.  Also of course the purpose of the wire  -  to make
the comb strong enough to withstand centrifugation  -  will be undermined
if too much of the wire isn't embedded.

R

-
Robt Mann
consultant ecologist
P O Box 28878   Remuera, Auckland 1005, New Zealand
                (9) 524 2949