In short, no. You cannot harvest beeswax or honeycomb from the standard plastic Flow Frames. The system is specifically designed for liquid honey extraction, leaving the entire wax comb structure intact within the hive for the bees to reuse.
The Flow Hive is engineered for one primary purpose: harvesting honey with minimal effort and disruption. This design choice means the wax comb is a permanent, reusable part of the hive, not a harvestable byproduct like in traditional beekeeping.
The Mechanics of Flow Frame Harvesting
To understand why you can't get wax, you must first understand how a Flow Hive works. It represents a fundamental shift away from traditional honey extraction methods.
How Honey is Extracted
In a Flow Hive, the beekeeper turns a key which splits the pre-formed plastic honeycomb cells vertically. This creates channels inside the comb.
Gravity then does the work, allowing the liquid honey to flow down these channels and out of the hive through a tube, directly into your jar.
Why the Wax Stays in the Hive
Because the comb is never cut, scraped, or melted, all the beeswax remains perfectly intact. Once the honey is drained, the beekeeper turns the key back, which closes the cells.
The bees then sense the empty cells, perform minor repairs to the wax, and immediately begin refilling them with new honey. This saves the bees an immense amount of energy, as they don't have to rebuild the comb from scratch.
The Solution for Wax and Honeycomb
The designers of the Flow Hive understood that many beekeepers value wax and honeycomb. To meet this need, they offer a specific solution without compromising the original design's convenience.
The Flow Hive Hybrid
The Flow Hive Hybrid is the intended solution for beekeepers who want both easy honey and harvestable comb. This hive model combines both technologies in the same honey super (the box where honey is stored).
A Hybrid super typically contains a few standard Flow Frames on one side and several traditional timber frames on the other.
Harvesting from Traditional Frames
To get beeswax or honeycomb from the Hybrid model, you simply remove the traditional timber frames. On these frames, the bees build their own natural wax comb.
You can then cut out sections of this comb to enjoy as pure honeycomb or process it further by crushing and straining it to separate the liquid honey from the beeswax.
Understanding the Trade-offs
Choosing a hive system is about aligning its design with your goals. Each method has distinct advantages and disadvantages.
The Standard Flow Hive
- Primary Benefit: Unmatched ease and speed for harvesting pure, liquid honey. It is far less disruptive to the bees and requires no extra processing equipment.
- Primary Limitation: You get no harvestable beeswax or honeycomb from the Flow Frames.
The Traditional Langstroth Hive
- Primary Benefit: You can harvest large quantities of both honey and beeswax. The wax cappings, which are sliced off the frames during extraction, are a valuable byproduct.
- Primary Limitation: Honey harvesting is a labor-intensive, messy, and disruptive process requiring uncapping tools, an extractor (centrifuge), and significant cleanup.
The Flow Hive Hybrid
- Primary Benefit: Offers the "best of both worlds"—easy liquid honey from the Flow Frames and natural honeycomb/beeswax from the traditional frames.
- Primary Limitation: You still need to perform a smaller-scale traditional harvest for the comb section, and you get less of each product than you would from a fully dedicated hive.
Making the Right Choice for Your Goal
Your decision should be based on what you want to achieve with your beekeeping.
- If your primary focus is pure honey with maximum convenience: The standard Flow Hive is the ideal choice, as it excels at this specific task.
- If your primary focus is producing beeswax and eating fresh honeycomb: The Flow Hive Hybrid or a fully traditional hive is necessary to meet your needs.
- If you want a balance of easy honey and some natural comb: The Flow Hive Hybrid is the purpose-built compromise.
Ultimately, understanding the design philosophy of each system empowers you to select the right tool for your specific beekeeping journey.
Summary Table:
| Hive Type | Primary Harvest | Wax/Comb Harvestable? | Key Characteristic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Flow Hive | Liquid Honey Only | No | Minimal disruption, bees reuse the comb |
| Flow Hive Hybrid | Liquid Honey & Natural Comb | Yes (from traditional frames) | Best of both worlds |
| Traditional Langstroth | Liquid Honey & Beeswax | Yes | Labor-intensive, requires extraction equipment |
Ready to choose the perfect hive for your apiary's needs?
Whether you're a commercial beekeeper focused on large-scale honey production or a distributor seeking the right equipment for your customers, understanding these trade-offs is crucial for success.
At HONESTBEE, we supply the beekeeping supplies and equipment that professional apiaries and distributors trust. Let our experts help you select the right tools—from traditional hive components to innovative systems—to maximize your productivity and honey yield.
Contact our team today for wholesale inquiries and expert guidance tailored to your operation.
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