Rewiring old frames or nailing up a batch of kits starts with good bee frame wire, because whatever you string through the end bars stays inside the comb for years. Ours is 0.5mm annealed 304 stainless steel sold by the 500g, and it sits here with brass frame eyelets sold in packs of 100.
Why stainless 304? Honey is acidic and corrodes tinned and galvanised wire, while cheaper 202-grade stainless holds up little better than plain steel. As the wire breaks down, corrosion products can find their way into your honey, so 304 grade beehive frame wire is the safer choice for frames you plan to extract for seasons to come. Eyelets do a quieter job: pressed into the small holes in timber end bars, they stop the tensioned wire gouging the wood, which is what leaves frame wire slack.
For strand count, follow our assembled timber frames: six wires across full depth, four in WSP, three in Manley and two in Ideal. With the bee frame wire tight, fit a sheet of beeswax foundation and set the wire into it using a wax foundation embedder. Rather skip the wiring altogether? Our assembled timber bee frames come ready-wired in 304 stainless.
Brass Eyelets are used in the small holes in wood frame end bars to prevent reinforcing wire from gouging the wood, resulting in slack frame wire.
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Frame Wire – annealed 0.5mm 304 Stainless-Steel.
- Remember, honey is acidic and corrodes tinned and galvanised steel frame wire.
- Grade 202 SS is not much better than plain steel so its short lived and subject to corrosion.
- Corrosion products will contaminate your honey.
- Play safe - use 304SS wire