What to coat feeder with?

[thesurveyor]

I have just this weekend built three miller feeders. I read to use polyurethane sealant on the plywood bottom and the sides. Mr first question is will polyurethane hurt the bees. Second, question is will regular oil based paint be enough waterproofing for the plywood bottom of the feeder. I am open to suggestions and hope to get these things in place before the weekend.

Thanks
thesurveyors

[clintonbemrose]

I finely sealed my miller feeders (5) with liquid fiberglass reson by Bondo to stop all leaking last year and it doesn't affect the bees. No mater what you use fill the feeders with water and check for leaks for several days. The reson was put on with an old paint brush.
Clint

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Clinton Bemrose

[thesurveyor]

Sounds like a plan. I will give it a try tonight.

Thanks
Thesurveyors

[Russ]

You could use melted bees wax. Dale

[dragonfly]

My bee supplier uses bees wax to coat all the seams- appears to work very well. I used it to coat the bottom and sides of an entrance feeder I made that would accomodate a gallon jar.

[Michael Bush]

I've heard of parafin. I've never built one. I was afraid the bees would try to build on the beeswax. I guess it depends on how you build the feeder if they can get to much of the wax.

[thesurveyor]

Well I put the fiberglass resin in the feeder, let it setup. Man let me tell you it sealed that feeder. No leaks and it was simple, took very little time to setup and let me tell you it sealed it tight.

Thanks, I don't think I would have ever thought of that.

Thesurveyor

[clintonbemrose]

always glad to help if I can.
Clint

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Clinton Bemrose

[dragonfly]

Surveyor- did you wait very long to use the feeder after you coated it with fiberglass? I built one yesterday and coated it, and the fiberglass does work great for sealing, but I noticed that today, it still has some odor fumes. Is there a certain period of time I will need to wait before using it?

[clintonbemrose]

I started using mine after one day to cure. The smell got weaker and was non-existant after 4 days of use. It smelled like the hives
Clint

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Clinton Bemrose

[fat/beeman]

hello surveyer
useing beewax will work on it.
depends what kinda of feeder you use I use hive top type with screen also use latex caulk to seal up with works fine.
with the hive top type theres a screen in it so your bees don't fly out when you feed them also you can let the lid ajar for more air to get in during flow
good luck==========Don

[thesurveyor]

I waited two days. Let them air out on the back deck. The smell was almost gone and when I put them on the hive, the smell was gone completely in a couple of days. The bees are going thru a gallon to a gallon and a half per day. They have put up almost a whole medium super in two weeks.

Hope this helps.

thesurveyor

[dragonfly]

Thanks for the responses. I'm finally going in the next day or two to pick up the old untended hive I asked about in another post, and bring it home. Those bees are so short on honey stores that they need heavy feeding, especially with the move. I did test the feeder for leaks, and the fiberglass worked great. The smell is now very weak, so I think it'll be okay to go ahead and use it.