plastic extractor

[margot]

Has anyone used a plastic two frame extractor that can be motorized using a portable elecric drill? I found one for sale for $75, and wonder if it's a good buy.

[Michael Bush]

http://www.dadant.com/catalog/produc...roducts_id=355

Anything like this? It's $120.50 brand new plus shipping.

[airbalancer]

Hello,
I bought a plastic 3 frame extractor last year on Ebay for around 80 bucks. I've used it for two seasons and so far it works great. This year I extracted 108 lbs of honey with it. The hand crank handle comes off and I just chucked a 1/2 inch drill onto it.
Mike

[margot]

Thanks for the replies. The extractor I'm looking at has two metal baskets- so it's not the Dadant model.

[Scot Mc Pherson]

For the amount of work you are going to get accomplished AND the amount of work you are going to have to with a 2 frame centrifugal extractor, I would strongly suggest you don't bother with an extractor yet. You are going to do a LOT of work to get LITTLE accomplished. Get 4 frame extractor at a bare minimum, and I wouldn't get an extractor until I have enough honey to use a 24 frame or 50 frame extractor.

[Michael Bush]

I never bought one until I could buy a 9/18 radial. I'm not sorry I waited. It's wonderful to uncap two whole supers and put them in the extractor, run it once and take them out. With the small cheap two frame ones you will uncap 2 frames (instead of 18) and you will put them in and out and in and out and in and out before you are done extracting because you can only extract about half of it from one side and turn it over and extract the other side and turn it over and extract the first half. If you have four or five supers this is a LOT of work. If you have 10 or 20 supers this is ridicules.

Until I bought the extractor, I just cut out the comb and squished it with my hands into balls and drained it in an uncapping tank. It works fine. I think it's faster than a 2 frame extractor.

[ChellesBees]

But if you squish all the comb, you don't have it to give back to the bees. I don't know about a two frame, I have a three frame, hand crank-tangental, and know that a radial would be better, but this one is paid for. A four frame radial is my ideal. I don't really want to spend on or store anything bigger.

[wishthecuttlefish]

The guy I just bought some eq from said that he never used an extractor. He just used thin surplus in his supers, and each season just let the bees build it up, then he would tear it down and put it all into some nylon panty hose and squish the honey out. According to him the panty hose (washed in the washer first!) acted as an excellent filter, better than cheese cloth. What bothers me is that this goes against the beekeepers mantra "drawn comb is a beekeepers most valuable asset". So, now I don't know what to do. I would think that the bees would waste a ton of energy having to rebuild all that honey comb each year and that it would significantly reduce the surplus honey they could store.

[Michael Bush]

Drawn comb is a wonderful asset for a beekeeper. And it is true it takes several pounds of honey to make a pound of wax.

But on the other hand it only takes a few ounces of wax to hold a pound of honey. The bees don't hoard wax. If it falls they don't worry about it. When they tear some comb out that is in their way, they don't worry about it. Put a pot of wax out and a pot of honey out and the bees will collect the honey and ignore the wax. Bees hoard sugar (nectar, honey, syrup or whatever). The bees don't seem to see wax as that valuable in itself.

[Steve-]

Hello All:

I agree with MB. A question to bee answered by each individual beekeeper is: what am I in this for? 1. Surplus honey, 2. Raise Queens, 3. Supply Nucs, 4. Watch the Bees, and so on and so forth - the list is endless.

For me I like the honey but I also enjoy the bees. My brood chamber is intact at the end of each season but I squeeze the surplus.

Happy Hiving,
Steve

[wishthecuttlefish]

One problem I see here, that maybe someone can clear up for me:

According to the literature, swarming can be caused by a variety of factors, one of which is not providing enough super space for storage of incoming nectar during a nectar flow. The recommendation is to put on 4 or 5 supers of drawn comb to accommodate the incoming nectar. However, only 1 super of foundation should be put on at a time.

Now, in a hive started from package, the first season shouldn't be a problem putting on one super at a time of foundation since the bee population is low. But if all goes well, by the next spring the hive should be strong and the population high. So, if each spring you are starting from foundation and putting just one super of this on at a time, won't promote swarming? And if you put on multiple supers of foundation, then don't the bees build it up unevenly? So, how is this resolved if each year you are starting from foundation again?

Thanks,
Wish

[abeille]

When using only foundation, you have to use only one super of it at the time. You then have to check it, and when 5-6 frames are drawned and filled, add another one, and so on.

I suggest you read the excellent article M George Imirie, masterbeekeeper wrote about it: www.mainebee.com/articles/found.php

Hugo

[Michael Bush]

>According to the literature, swarming can be caused by a variety of factors, one of which is not providing enough super space for storage of incoming nectar during a nectar flow. The recommendation is to put on 4 or 5 supers of drawn comb to accommodate the incoming nectar. However, only 1 super of foundation should be put on at a time.

>Now, in a hive started from package, the first season shouldn't be a problem putting on one super at a time of foundation since the bee population is low. But if all goes well, by the next spring the hive should be strong and the population high. So, if each spring you are starting from foundation and putting just one super of this on at a time, won't promote swarming? And if you put on multiple supers of foundation, then don't the bees build it up unevenly? So, how is this resolved if each year you are starting from foundation again?

I don't have so much problem with the bees building up unevenly as not getting to one of the supers and the foundation buckles. I usually put one box of foundation on at a time, but if the hive is really really strong I'll put on two or even three. As long as it doesn't get too hot and it doesn't take them too long to start working it it will be fine. Otherwise it will be crooked. It just takes a crystal ball and some finesse.

[BULLSEYE BILL]

>I don't have so much problem with the bees building up unevenly as not getting to one of the supers and the foundation buckles. I usually put one box of foundation on at a time, but if the hive is really really strong I'll put on two or even three. As long as it doesn't get too hot and it doesn't take them too long to start working it it will be fine. Otherwise it will be crooked. It just takes a crystal ball and some finesse.

So, what would you do if you were ONLY using Permacomb, that is in your storage supers too?

I have been adding them only as needed. Do you think that I would aleviate some swarming problems if I had installed more at a time?

Wondering in Wonderland

[Michael Bush]

>So, what would you do if you were ONLY using Permacomb, that is in your storage supers too?

I'd add the two or three or four at a time. It gives the nectar some area to evaporate.

>I have been adding them only as needed. Do you think that I would aleviate some swarming problems if I had installed more at a time?

Yes. And help them process more nectar.

>Wondering in Wonderland

And I thought you lived in Oz.

[BULLSEYE BILL]

>And I thought you lived in Oz.

You haven't been to the other end of the Yellow Brick Road have you?

Now what kind of mushroom did Alice have? I have heard it makes good medicine when used in the sweat lodge.

Sweltering in the sun - 105 today