# Queen Cell Protector



## muskratcreekhoney (Mar 30, 2010)

After the queen cells are sealed you take the cell off of the cell bar, install the cell protector, then the cell protector must be put into a special frame for holding a bunch of cells. You will notice that the cell protectors have an open bottom, this open bottom is sealed off when you put it into the special plastic frame (storage bar). This set-up would be used when the cells are in the finisher colony to keep a stray virgin from killing all the cells. It happens more than you would think!

If you have your queen cells in an incubator you wouldn't need them unless you were unsure of when emergence would occur.


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## frazzledfozzle (May 26, 2010)

I've never heard of a cell protector like muskrats.

when I think cell protector I'm thinking about individual protectors an individual queen cell into when introducing into a hive where you haven't found the queen, it stops the old queen from killing the new queen in the cell.
It allows the virgin queen to hatch and then usually the 2 queens battle it our to see who stays.

You can use all sorts of things as cell protectors we use either small lengths of irrigation hose or tinfoil but lots of people will use commercial protectors which are fine if you are only doing a few cells but get expensive if doing hundreds.

having said that, In my opinion it's better to find the old queen and then introduce the queencell bare.


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