I may have mis-read the description, but it sounds like each "hex" at the base of the comb is made of two halves, and when you turn the valve, you off-set the halves so the comb breaks open and honey flows out. Then, you "close the valve", re-aligning the two halves of the base of the comb. The bees see that the comb has been damaged, and remove the broken wax and re-form whole honeycombs (recycling their wax) and then re-fill the hexes and re-cap them.
So I would wonder at the long-term stability of the mechanism, since it's important that the base hexes line up neatly so the bees can build the rest of the comb around them. I'd think that over time, bits of crap (maybe broken wax, or bee parts, or too-dry honey) might get trapped between the pieces, preventing them from aligning cleanly.
Of course, I've never actually seen this thing, just its kickstarter page, so maybe I misunderstood it.
I agree that this seems geared to the hobbyist or small-scale producer. But I'll be curious to see how it plays out over the next several years. Micro-funding innovation is neat, though.
Ginda
On Mar 1, 2015, at 11:33 AM, Peter Chrisbacher wrote:
> BTW, I don't think the frames move, aside from the valve.
>
> -Pete
>
>
> Pete Chrisbacher
> Wilmington DE
>
> On Sun, Mar 1, 2015 at 11:32 AM, Peter Chrisbacher <pxbacher@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Bees need a LOT of comb surface area for the evaporation that is a
>> signifiant part of the process that turns nectar into honey.
>>
>> As a beekeeper managing a honey-producing hive, I provide this needed
>> surface area by adding many more empty honey frames to the hive than the
>> bees will ultimately fill with finished honey. The bees bring in nectar,
>> place it in these frames, and eventually concentrate it down to fewer
>> frames of capped honey which I then harvest.
>>
>> It would not be practical from a cost perspective to purchase enough of
>> these frames to fully outfit all of my hives.
>>
>> An alternative approach would be to purchase 4 or 8 frames to place at the
>> "core" of the honey section of the hive, which the bees would then fill
>> with honey, and which I would then drain repeatedly to harvest. I would
>> drain, the bees would refill, I would drain, the bees would refill. It
>> would probably work (the bees prefer honey stored centrally above the brood
>> nest) but it sounds very time-consuming to me.
>>
>> Perhaps the drains could be left open at all times later in the season to
>> simplify this process - I don't know if this would work. I would have
>> concerns about the bees filling the comb with "not-yet-quite-honey" (high
>> moisture content) that would ferment and spoil. Only experimentation could
>> prove out this technique.
>>
>> I'd like to see the results of a careful study before I go investing in
>> the needed equipment. I already have all the equipment I need for my
>> current harvest method. By the way, I would still open up and inspect my
>> hives regularly so I know what's going on inside, as would the bee
>> inspector (once or twice per season for the inspector). The "Flow" frames
>> would not change the number of times my (reasonably well but not
>> over-managed) hives are opened and/or manipulated.
>>
>> To reiterate what I said earlier, these look neat for the hobbiest
>> beekeeper who is the primary consumer of his/her own honey. I, however,
>> don't fit into that category ;)
>>
>> HTH
>>
>> Pete Chrisbacher
>> Wilmington DE
>>
>> On Sun, Mar 1, 2015 at 10:30 AM, Ginda Fisher <list@ginda.us> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>> On Mar 1, 2015, at 7:43 AM, Peter Chrisbacher wrote:
>>> ...
>>>>
>>>> That said, I don't plan to buy one any time soon as they don't really
>>> make
>>>> sense for a beekeeper running 30 hives ;)
>>>
>>> Is that just because they cost more, or for some other reason?
>>>
>>> This thread is the first I've heard of this, and it sounds like a really
>>> intriguing idea to me. I do wonder how well the fancy moving frames hold up
>>> long-term, though.
>>>
>>> Ginda Fisher
>>>
>>> expecting yet more snow.
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>>
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