On 28-Jun-14, at 10:54 PM, Lionel Evans wrote:

> Sounds silly to me to rob each brood chamber of 10 percent of
> brood rearing capacity.

Hi Lionel and All

Each frame side contains 3000 cells so that a 10 frame box contains  
60,000 cells.  The queen, laying 2000 eggs per day lays 42,000 eggs  
in 21 days before those laid the first day emerge as adults.  This  
means that there are 18,000 'extra' cells (3 frames) that the queen  
will never get to lay in.  Removing one frame reduces the 'extra'  
cells to 12,000.  As has been said on this  thread, only the  
watermelon shape in the centre is laid in, eating up some of the  
'extra' cells.  Many use double brood chambers providing 60,000 more  
'extra' cells.

My single brood chambers with 9 frames, the brood often extends from  
end bar to end bar and almost from top bar to bottom bar, leaving a  
narrow honey band of deeper cells(giving proper beespace) across the  
top and in the corners.  The brood cells are standard depth, as the  
bees require.  Often brood food is stored above the queen excluder.   
I don't remember who said it or where, but " number of frames should  
be consistent in each box(brood and honey) from bottom to top of  
hive, so that the spaces line up providing improved ventilation".   
The biggest advantage of 9 frames over 10 is that you don't need  
explosives or jackhammers to get frames out!

Bob Darrell
Caledon Ontario
Canada
44N80W

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