# Efficiency of a bee yard question



## happybees (Oct 30, 2007)

I am trying to understand the efficiency of a beeyard. I put only brand new supers (6in 5/8) with brand new foundations in one yard. And, let say I got one super with fully drawn comb, full of honey in average per hive. My question is: if I had only drawn comb instead of new, how much honey would I have averaged per hive? Just a guess from your experience. Some people say that bees will consume from 5lb to 12lb to build a frame. IN new supers I put 10 frames. 
It does not make sens to me. I had hives that built and filled up with honey almost 4 supers. 5lbs x 40 frames = 200 lbs +35lbs average of honey x 4 supers we have the total of over the world record.


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## John Davis (Apr 29, 2014)

The 5 to 12 pounds of honey number is to produce a pound of wax not a frame.


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## zhiv9 (Aug 3, 2012)

8lbs of honey to 1lb of wax is the number most commonly used, though there isn't great supporting research. The bees are very efficient with wax. ~6 medium frames can be drawn out with a lb of wax.


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## DmacShack (May 22, 2013)

I think its less of a honey consumption than a timing issue. If you put drawn wax on a hive, the bees can immediately begin to fill cells with nectar rather than backfill the broodnest while the cells are being constructed.


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## zhiv9 (Aug 3, 2012)

I also recall reading that empty drawn comb actually stimulates foraging behaviour. I definitely speeds up drying the honey down. Lots of factors here.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

The main difference between drawn comb and foundation isn't the production of wax, but the time it takes to draw the comb. If the bees have somewhere to store the nectar they will store a lot more nectar than if they have to spend a good portion of the flow drawing comb first and then storing it.


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## LSPender (Nov 16, 2004)

When we extract honey from 6 5/8 boxes we average 20 lbs honey , may want to check the use of 35 lbs. It only counts when its in the barrel. Total number of boxes extracted divided by number of pounds of honey.


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## zhiv9 (Aug 3, 2012)

LSPender said:


> When we extract honey from 6 5/8 boxes we average 20 lbs honey , may want to check the use of 35 lbs. It only counts when its in the barrel. Total number of boxes extracted divided by number of pounds of honey.


That is exactly how I calculated it. I just reviewed the last 150 boxes and it came to 33lbs per box, but there was pull of part boxes in there. We use 9 frame per box. 20lbs is way too low. It's always 30+ lbs for full boxes. You must be pulling a lot of part boxes?


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## jim lyon (Feb 19, 2006)

I've found 30 lbs. is a pretty good average to use. On a good year perhaps a few pounds more, on a poorer year a few pounds less (this year is running about 28). I have weighed individual "trophy" boxes and found them to net around 40. Of course on the final "cleanup" round all bets are off, sometimes we super too optimistically and take off pretty empty boxes sometimes we were too pessimistic and find boxes that are plugged up. Supering and trying to balance realism vs. optimism is always a bit of a guessing game but when in doubt I heed my dad's advice......."they ain't gonna fill em up in the building"


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## Vance G (Jan 6, 2011)

The bees on a heavy flow produce the wax as much as a by product than for building. Put drawn comb on and the bees often layer white wax on the top bars. Just treasure your drawn comb and make every opportunity to acquire more count because the bees definitely fill it rapidly. I pulled my supers day before yesterday and treated for mites yesterday. There was that unmistakable smell of a high test alfalfa flow and I know that if I could have put wet extracted boxes back on that hive at that moment instead of apivar in a week they would be full. The way it is they are just hanging on the hive by the pound with no place to be. E=happybees;1319804]I am trying to understand the efficiency of a beeyard. I put only brand new supers (6in 5/8) with brand new foundations in one yard. And, let say I got one super with fully drawn comb, full of honey in average per hive. My question is: if I had only drawn comb instead of new, how much honey would I have averaged per hive? Just a guess from your experience. Some people say that bees will consume from 5lb to 12lb to build a frame. IN new supers I put 10 frames. 
It does not make sens to me. I had hives that built and filled up with honey almost 4 supers. 5lbs x 40 frames = 200 lbs +35lbs average of honey x 4 supers we have the total of over the world record.[/QUOTE]


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