Late extraction, moldy comb

**fliese** · 12-18-2011, 07:21 PM

I pulled my honey supers back in August and put them in the basement, in their boxes, just stacked, open on top. I pulled them out last night and found that 90% of the frames (of capped honey) had a dusting of what must be mold on them. It's not fuzzy looking, more like a calcification. Anyways, I'm wondering if it's safe to eat the honey. It tastes normal and looks normal, but the growth makes me wonder. Has anyone had this happen before? Is it just because it was in the basement or was it because I waited too long... or is it indicitive of a larger problem?

**Gibbus** · 12-21-2011, 12:12 PM

Basement probably wasn't the most optimal place for 4 month storage, but I would like to see a picture of the calcification - honey can crystalize in the comb, though not usually on the outside of cappings, that I have seen. Personally, I'd be hesitant (the touted antifungal and antibacterial properties of honey sometimes get a bit blown out of proportion)

**hilreal** · 12-21-2011, 01:42 PM

Basement is fairly high humidity unless you have a dehumidifier cranked up. I would be concerned that the honey might have picked up some moisture during that length of time. If I stored it in a basement again I would run a dehumidifier and keep a fan blowing across the boxes to provide some air movement.

**fliese** · 12-21-2011, 02:21 PM

It's only on the wax, not on the wood or in the honey- the honey looked fine coming out and was a normal consistancy. We do run a dehumidifier down there year round and even some of the frames that I had sealed in a cooler have the problem, so I don't think the humidity was the main issue. It's deffinately not crystalized honey. I didn't save the honey from the cappings, because that seemed to be pushing the limits, but I have bottled the honey from the comb and have eaten some with no adverse effects. I think I'll maybe use it myself (we didn't get much this year) and not sell any of it.

I have stored frames down there every year, although not for as long; maybe a month or two. Our hives had some moisture problems this past Spring and had a little mold. I wonder if it's somehow related. Do you think it's okay to use the frames next year or will I just face the same issue. I doubt I'll wait as long to extract, but I did't anticipate all of the delays we had this year either...

**Acebird** · 12-21-2011, 02:39 PM

Is your basement dry. Possibly some minerals that deposited on the outside of the wax as moisture was driven off from evaporation. Without the bees present to keep the comb clean it could be anything. If you didn't get that much I have to ask why you took it off early? Wouldn't that put your bees at risk?

BTW I put moldy frames from a dead out in a new hive and the bees cleaned it up and used it like it was new.

**Tom G. Laury** · 12-21-2011, 02:50 PM

Perfectly normal for wax to get a "bloom" on it, even in the driest storage place. It is not what we generally think of as mold. More like a slight discoloration. Your honey should be just fine.

**Ravenseye** · 12-21-2011, 04:27 PM

Tom just said what I was thinking. Is it just a white coating....like a beeswax candle gets after it sits for a while, or is it fuzzy gunk? The former is fine. Not sure how I'd deal with the latter.

**fliese** · 12-21-2011, 05:47 PM

Yeah, it's not fuzzy at all- it almost looks like a dust covering all of the wax- even bridge comb.

I pulled early because the bees were irreversably queenless and I didn't want to get a laying worker in the supers. We usually pull in late August-early September because the bees need time to get ready for the long winter- I'm in ND.

**Ravenseye** · 12-21-2011, 06:49 PM

Dust is a great description of bloom and that's nothing to worry about!

**mnflemish** · 05-26-2012, 04:17 PM

I pulled 3 lg bins of honey to extract last August 2011 and didn't get it extracted. It has mold looking film like Fliese explained. I had it stored in the dinning room by a patio door where cold from the glass might have made temp changes thru the winter. I was going to put it out on a hive when July hit to re soften and be sure if any crystals started the heat would unsugar them. What does anyone suggest I do with these frames. Uncap and feed outside or put in the hive? Will the bees clean off the mold film if put in the hive and not do any harm to the bees? I had no idea that would happen.
Carol