Queen excluders are vital pieces of beekeeping equipment and do exactly as their name implies. They exclude the queen from parts of the hive as and when the beekeeper requires. This is because the queen is slightly larger than a normal worker bee and cannot pass through the slots.

They are used almost exclusively to keep the queen in the brood body. By doing this, the beekeeper restricts the queen to egg laying in this one box, leaving the supers full of only honey. It is normally only used during the active beekeeping season and should be removed during the autumn and winter months.

The National excluder should be fitted with the wires running across the frames.
The wire herzog type is probably the best type of excluder available and is made from coated steel rods (2mm diameter) accurately spaced at 4.3mm. They all have a wooden support frame, which provides a bee space on one side, and flush on the other.

In a National, WBC or Commercial hive, the excluder is fitted with the bee-space on the underside ensuring the bees have free access over the top of the frames through the single bee-space created. The wooden corners of all wire excluders are half-lapped, glued and stapled. The wire grids are screwed in place with to ensure a firm hold. By using this type of excluder you will minimise wear and tear to bees wings and bodies. They are generally stronger than the slotted type of excluder and should provide years of service.