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Glove recommendations

7K views 22 replies 19 participants last post by  Kingfisher Apiaries 
#1 ·
I am looking for recomendations on gloves, I have to wear gloves as I have bad reactions to stings, unfortunately right now I have 7 stings on my hands and all but one came with gloves on. I have to wash my gloves as they get pretty dirty doing cut-outs and general use. I think they are holding up and would like to know what type of glove would hold up to use and still protect from stings.
 
#2 ·
#3 ·
Re: Glove recomendations

I always get the fewest stings in my hands when I am bare-handed and very careful where and how I place my fingers. If I am careful not to put any part of my hand or fingers directly on a bee, I rarely get stung on any part of my hands. The bees that are interested in attacking me are after various parts of my face, not my hands or any other part of my body. I only get stung on my hands and fingers when I am careless and crush or pinch a bee directly with my fingers or hand.
 
#23 ·
Re: Glove recomendations

I always get the fewest stings in my hands when I am bare-handed and very careful where and how I place my fingers. If I am careful not to put any part of my hand or fingers directly on a bee, I rarely get stung on any part of my hands. The bees that are interested in attacking me are after various parts of my face, not my hands or any other part of my body. I only get stung on my hands and fingers when I am careless and crush or pinch a bee directly with my fingers or hand.
Ditto that, Goat skin for nasty hives and hive removals.

Kingfisher
 
#4 ·
Re: Glove recomendations

You might also try disposable, nitrile gloves. They are "stick resistant" for needles and such in medical applications. They fit closely so you still have excellent dexterity. I would not say they are 100% sting proof but it takes a very determined bee to get a sting through them. If one does, it is not usually a bad sting and the stinger comes out very easily just by pulling the glove away from the skin.

Do a search on nitrile gloves and you will find a thread that includes a source and an item number.
 
#10 ·
Re: Glove recomendations

You might also try disposable, nitrile gloves. They are "stick resistant" for needles and such in medical applications.
I can guarantee that no nitrile glove in any medical setting has ever been labled "stick resistant". Rembember they are not dealing with a harmless bee sting, they are dealing with dirty needles and things like AIDS and HEP B.
 
#13 ·
Re: Glove recomendations

I can guarantee that no nitrile glove in any medical setting has ever been labled "stick resistant". Rembember they are not dealing with a harmless bee sting, they are dealing with dirty needles and things like AIDS and HEP B.
I don't understand why some people feel the need to be so combative in forums like this. This can be a great place to share information and opinions. I placed the words "stick resistant" in quotes because I was not sure of the language but there are indeed, medical supply sources that indicate nitrile gloves offer "superior resistance to punctures". Here is one of several that can be found with an internet search.

http://www.themedsupplyguide.com/nitrile-gloves/

Here is a link to a thread from this site about nitrile gloves. The thread also includes a link to a You-Tube video of the poster poking the gloves with a needle and a knife indicating a certain degree of "stick resistance" IN MY OPINION.

http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?t=218155
 
#5 ·
Re: Glove recomendations

Use the Meyer or as they are listed above the goatskin ones. They are tough enough for commercial work, last the whole season, and will keep the stings off. If they get dirty just wash in hot water. They will be a bit stiff after drying but wear them for about 5 minutes driving or some other task and they soften right up.
 
#6 ·
Re: Glove recomendations

I just goatskin gloves that extend way up to my elbows. I've never been stung through them, and they allow a fair amount of dexterity when I'm working the hives.

I've also used nitrile (twice), and have been stung through them (once).
 
#7 ·
Re: Glove recomendations

I vote with Joseph Clemens, use acre, and you bare hands, You will learn to use the smoke to clear the top bars, then pick a frame without squishing a bee. You cannot be too sensitive to stings, you are alive after 7 stings. Your body will adapt to the stings with time.

Roland Diehnelt
Linden Apiary, Est. 1852
 
#9 ·
Re: Glove recomendations

The only time I've been stung on the hand was when I stupidly wore my dark stretch construction gloves (bear paws). Because my hives are right next to my ponds, I have mosquitos to deal with so I always spray with repellant (not that I know that helps with the bees, tho).

Another thing I do is puff my hands pretty good with my smoker. Like Joseph said, I just work slow and methodically & even during frame-by-frame exams, they don't even crawl on my hands.

If you have localized swelling, redness and itching for some number of days - that's a normal reaction. I always bring a single-edge razor blade with me so if I am stung, I try to scrape the stinger free without mashing the poison sac.

Whatever works - right?
 
#11 ·
If you can take seven (even seven clothing stings) without anaphylaxis, then we're talking pain/discomfort rather than serious threat. Which is a REAL good thing if you're doing cutouts!

So, if you react "enthusiastically" to stings non-anaphylactically but still need to work bees, you're a great candidate for desensitization therapy from an allergist. Or, if it's at all tolerable, get stung MORE until your body develops more tolerance.

I'm in the high-risk group of folks who get (typically) fewer than 20 stings a year. I go gloveless (and often sleeveless) to give the girls a chance to offer "feedback" about my technique :), and because I think it's less hard on the bees. So far my sting reactions are minimal-normal, couple hours of swelling. But as an atopic who also has asthma, I keep the option of desensitization in my back pocket in case the price of this "hobby" goes south one of these days.
 
#14 ·
I go barehanded when I'm doing mild stuff and if I really have to get into the hive I use the kitchen type gloves because they are thinner and I can feel the beesI baby powder my hand before I put them into gloves. I haven't been stung thru the gloves yet but I move pretty slow. If the gloves get stung I make sure and throw them in the washer to get the stinger pheromone out.
 
#15 ·
I like the kimberly clark "safeskin" purple nitrile gloves. I can get them for about $12 for a box of 100 from Walmart.com. Shipping is another dollar. They last me up to three trips to the bee yard if you wash them before you take them off. Or if you aren't cheap like me, throw them away after one use.

I haven't been stung through the purple ones yet. I have used the cheaper, thinner blue ones. You get a better feel for the bees in the thin, cheap ones. Even in the thin ones, the stings are really minor.

For size reference, my hand is 7 1/2 inches around the knuckles and a "medium" works for me.

I don't know if I can post a link but here's trying:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10715980&findingMethod=rr&
 
#16 ·
just FYI from a retired Medic of 20 years those purple gloves or blue ones are not puncture proof period. any one saying they are sting proof and telling a new beek they are, is not good. and when some one is asking for a tough glove it seams to me more people on this fourm are anti-Glove or think less of a beekeeper if they wear gloves.
 
#17 ·
Carl F, Yep, I see where the web site uses the term, so you are right. For clarification purposes no one in the medical feild would ever consider nitrile gloves to be "stick resistance" as stated a needle stick in a medical setting is a life and death situation. Now, can we all just g`g` get along.
 
#19 ·
I am new and bought a pair of the vented goat skin gloves from dadant. they are clumsy and i almost dropped a frame of bees my first time out. last time using them, saving for the days when the girls are mad and my current choice would not work out as planned.

so i decided that going to down size, i use nitrile gloves, mainly to keep the gunk off my hands. but they make me feel better, what ever there "resistance" they are rubber not steel. but i can tell you from using them in construction; painting, dry wall mud, clean up. they are pretty tough and way stronger then plain latex gloves. is kevlar "100% puncher resistant"? no, a bullet made of certain materials and a high enough velocity would go through, but, they are still called "bullet proof vests".

on a side note, last time in the yard i slit the tip of the nitrile glove on something, think it was the hive tool, but i saw the slit and knew it was there. i considered changing the glove out, but it was hot and my hands were drenched, shall we say "prune hands". new glove would have been a bear to get on and i decided to troop trough.
i was holding a frame of bees looking for the queen when i felt something strung on my finger. i thought at first i was stung, but then i looked and one of the girls was drinking my sweat through the hole. i could feel her little tongue against my left index finger, that grossed me out and i almost dropped the frame. i shooed her away, then kicked my self in the butt for not taking a picture because the camera was in my pocket.
 
#20 ·
I've been using Nitrile gloves this past year, when I use gloves. They can be hot to wear, but your hands are clean after using them. When they are too hot to wear the bees are working so well that gloves aren't necassary.

Never liked canvas gloves.
Rubber coated gloves w/ arm gauntlets were always too ungainly(?).
Used to wear leather gloves w/ cloth arm bands separate.
 
#21 ·
Thank you everyone for all you suggestions and glove recomendations. I also like to be gloveless when working the hives in fact until this year I never wore gloves except for cut-outs. I have a mixed sting reaction (and am allergic to bendryl, etc), say if I get stung in the head, I look like Rocky Balboa beat me and maybe cant see for a day ot two, if I get stung in my hand, I can wear a ring or a watch and my arm may swell to the elbow or sometimes my entire arm. Starting with a early spring inspection on one of my colonies my bees went wild and started stinging my hands, I had to run for cover and grab my gloves, since then I have been a bit gun shy if you will. This last Thursday I was requeen 4 of my colonies and was doing so gloves less, all was well until I entered the oldest of my colonies and went into the lower brood box, they immediately stung my hands several times, I put on gloves and the continued to sting through the gloves. I did 3 cutout this weekend and recieved 2 stings in my hand doing the cutouts and 7 more tyring to requeen a colony.
 
#22 ·
I collected honey last month and wore the Mr. Clean blue nitrile gloves under my gardening gloves. By the eighth frame, the girls were stinging through my gloves so I ran in and put a second pair of nitrile under my gardening gloves (now three layers) and they stung right through those too. I need something better but just for those high-stress times.

My sting reactions are worst on my hands too since I swell from my fingers all the way up my arm to the elbow and sometimes to my shoulder. I need to look into the medical-quality options or something else that will more reliably work. While considered "normal", the consequences are really annoying: I am unable to use my hand, there's insane itching especially on the second night, I can't put my hand in warm water without real pain, etc. The best thing is carrying ice around in a ziplock, I've found.
 
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