# Using hardware cloth to attach comb



## Kirk (Jan 3, 2014)

Using hardware cloth to attach comb to top bars seems like a good method, but will not the galvanizing, or other metal, of the material react with the honey? Or, is the hardware cloth removed after the bees attach the comb, but before any honey is deposited? Is contamination an issue with this method?

My top bar hive is built and ready for bees and comb.


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## David LaFerney (Jan 14, 2009)

It doesn't cause any real problem that I have seen, but you can remove it once it is attached. I assume you are talking about this -


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## Jon Wolff (Apr 28, 2013)

Galvanized metal has a lot of zinc. I don't know what long term affects it might have on bees. Last year I was experimenting using galvanized hardware cloth in feeders to give the bees something to climb on. One colony absconded after the second feeding, leaving brood and stores, and I always wondered if it was due to the metal. Of course, it might not have been related at all, but I wasn't willing to take any chances. Have you looked into non-galvanized welded wire?


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## Kirk (Jan 3, 2014)

I suppose I could use stainless or plain steel, but given the low pH of honey, it seems like any of it could corrode. For that matter, I suppose a plastic hairclip could have something nasty in the plastic.


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## heaflaw (Feb 26, 2007)

How difficult would it be to remove the hardware cloth after the bee have attached comb to the top bar?


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## David LaFerney (Jan 14, 2009)

It's nearly impossible - you would have to be able to remove staples.


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