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Homemade oxalic acid vaporizer

298K views 120 replies 45 participants last post by  Beeboy01 
#1 ·
Have any of you folks made your own? What did you do? Will you share pictures or ideas?
 
#63 ·
I got a little excited when I saw the 12 volt car/travel coffee cup heater with 3/4" copper pipe cap. But after I got the parts I realized it's too big for my hives. My entrances are 3/8". Same for the bee space below the frames. The heater coils are 3/4" tall and the copper cap is 15/16" tall.
 
#64 ·
An easy to make pan/heat transfer unit for the glow plug, can be made out of a 3/4 inch copper pipe cap and 3/8 copper tubing. The tubing is flattened starting at one end until you have enough to start wrapping it around the pipe cap. keep flattening
and wrapping until it goes 3/4 of the way around. Do not get ahead of yourself and flatten to much. Using a socket the same size as the cap to form against helps. You should end up with a press fit for the cap with round tubing sticking out. cut the remainder off with just enough off left to insert the glow plug you need to tap the copper ever so slightly to get a tighter fit for the plug. after this has been used a while the copper gets soft then you can tighten it more with pliers. The 3/4 inch cap can be cut down to height with a tubing cutter. Cost new, 2 dollars or less and works very well, and seems to match the times in the posts as far as vaporizing. The only problem may be height, mine finished out at about 5/8 inch which works for me on most of mine, but i just tilt the others back to slide it in. it helps to keep the frame bottoms scraped too.
 
#69 · (Edited)
This is a pretty good idea. Can you offer any ideas as to creating a handle? By wrapping the 3/8" tubing around the cap, the holder for the glow plug is created. A hole could be drilled into the cap and a bolt or screw inserted. The threads would run parallel to the 3/8" glow plug holder beside it. A nut threaded down against the outside of the cap would keep it tight and secure. The threads could be screwed/threaded into the end of a shaft to create an long handle.
 
#66 ·
I notice that the molten oxalic acid is overflowing slightly: The volume of the tray is marginal. Some of the proposed models are even smaller in tray volume. Some people who are treating for more hive space than a double deep would do well to consider enlarging the tray. Making it deeper rather than a larger footprint creates the problem of difficulty inserting in a standard entrance and more prone to scorching frame bottoms and wax dripping into pan.
 
#68 ·
It looks to me like there is far more OA in that tray than you would ever use in a hive. most likely for video purposes. Second that is an example of the OA crystallizing on any surface it contacts yet it was reheated and did eventually vaporize. I suspect that is due largely to the wind blowing it around. which would not be the case in a hive. Still the OA was vaporized. This issue is a matter of method not one of results. The OA can vaporize off the bees wings if that is what gets it vaporized. seems this design not only vaporizes the OA it also addresses the additional issues of cool surfaces where it is not wanted to remain. Seems a bit overkill in some regards.
 
#74 ·
I used 14 gauge solid on time. it got so hot it left burn marks on the side of my hive. 12 gauge stranded does not have the same problem. you can also get 12 gauge or larger wire for hot applications. The sort of wire used in ovens etc. I would suggest 10 gauge or larger.
14 gauge for up to 15 amps
12 gauge for up to 20 amps
10 gauge for up to 30 amps.
I (amps) = V (volts) divided by R (resistance) you know volts are 12 if you use a 12 volt battery. R can be measures with an ohm meter. I Think you will find the amps are huge on these things. amps produce heat.
 
#76 · (Edited)
Well, I've only had bees for a couple of weeks so far but I figure I better get myself prepared for battle with mites sooner or later. So I built myself a OA vaporizer.

The glow plug is a Bosch F002 650 003. I have *no* idea what it fits or why it was in my junk box but it appeared just like magic when I was looking for other useful hardware for the vaporizer. It's rather longer than I would have liked, but I figured I'd already witnessed a miracle finding this one in my junk pile so I didn't complain.

The handle is from a busted bbq tool and all the aluminum bits were just laying around looking for something to do.
I put the glow plug in the center with a OA tray cut on each side of it. It holds 3 grams easily enough and it starts to bubble and smoke at about 90 seconds and takes about 4 minutes to fully cook off a 3 gram load.

It's fully functional now but I will add some timer electronics to shut it off after a fixed amount of time and probably will add a low battery indicator also.







 
#80 ·
Yeah, the element needs to be in good contact not just the threaded part.
I drilled the hole for the element only very slightly larger than the element itself and put some thermal transfer grease down in the hole before I shoved the element in and clamped it in with two 8-32 set screws.

Here's the bottom view with the set screws. Ignore the one in the upper corner. Unimplemented feature...

 
#86 · (Edited)
I thought about that; but only a very small percentage condenses on the screen. My main concern is the effect of the acid on the screen over time; it may well deteriorate the screen. If so, I will probably do away with the screen entirely and just use a removable slide in bottom. I haven't found the screen bottom necessary for ventilation, nor very beneficial to mite or small hive beetle in my area. I leave the slide-in board in all year round.
 
#87 ·
I have a question for those of you who use a homemade acid vaporizer. Do many bees die from coming in contact with the vaporizer? Also, have you ever had a queen come in contact with it? Are you just taking the risk that the queen is not close by when you slide it in? Any danger of catching the hive on fire with all the heat?
 
#88 ·
You may get a very small handful of curious bees get killed. I have not lost a queen let or many bees for that matter. If you run screed bottom boards you can put the vaporizer below the screen if you enter it from the back of the hive. I have mine rigged to enter the back of the hive with the slid out Board slid in. And the vapourizer under the screen. For my solid bottom bottom board hives I go in from the front. No real problem at all.
 
#89 ·
I smoke hard into the bottom entrance, quickly rake out the ladder comb under center two or three frames and push in the vaporizer. The queen bee would likely be the first one to run up the frames if she were in the bottom. You will kill a few bees but not as many as you would squish when stacking off and on to do an inspection
 
#90 ·
I use SBB, I know I can't use the white plastic cardboard to seal off the vapors, because it will most likely burn. My slot is very narrow - I have a piece of 1/4 plywood, but I can't get it in the slot. I looked at the hardware store and they have sheets of silver stuff in the stove pipe aisle. I'm guessing it's made of the same stuff as stove pipe??? It's very thin and would fit. My question is do you think I could use it to close off the bottom while I vaporize? Or will that sheet heat up and over heat my hive. Sorry this is not clear as to what this sheet of metal at Menard's is made of.
 
#92 ·
Make a pair of tapered shims by cutting a piece of 3/4 x 3/4 wood 20" long, diagonally from end to end. Lift and separate the front of your hive from its bottom board and slip one of the resulting wedges under each side. Your front entrance is now about 5/8" higher opening. The first vaporizor I made a bit on the tall side needed this trick to fit in.

Similar pieces can also be used to instantly create additional entrances anywhere between boxes or under a top cover. I have a bunch of them precut. They will also create an instant hive bottom on any flat surface.
 
#93 ·
Remember, if your BB opening is to small for the vap, you can always vap from the top down! Just make a two inch or so shim the size of the hive body, cut a slot in it for the vap, place the vap with OA on the top bars (you may want to place a small piece of wood or sheeting under it) cover with the top cover and vaporize. You can use the plastic or ??? to cover the screen bottom board if you have one. Quick and simple .....
 
#94 ·
You can also use a hive tool to raise the box off the SBB while you slide the vaporizer into the hive. It will then rest on the screen, and won't burn the plastic.
A long term approach might be to build up your SBBs so you can slide the vaporizer into the bottom entrance.
 
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