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Introducing the Easy Vap Pro

39K views 74 replies 25 participants last post by  johno 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
Product Technology Electronic device Hand Machine

For the beekeepers who have their hives on pallets and can only treat from the hive entrance we now can offer the Easy Vap Pro. This is the same simple device which now has a much lower outlet pipe and has more than enough reach to go over the landing board. As the manufacturing of the copper bowl is more complex the Easy Vap Pro will sell at $160 plus the $15 for USPS priority mail shipping. Any enquiries can be made to Johno at john_olivier@msn.com that is john underscore olivier @ msn.com Note the 2 i's in olivier.
 
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#37 ·
Well, you can always build your own. ;) However, I've been following a few internet discussions where people tinker with these things, and it seems to take them forever to complete a unit. Maybe that's an option for you though, if you're a handy person. Or, maybe you could request someone to custom build one for you with a metal box?

Or, just buy the Provap 110, if you don't mind spending close to $500.

Personally, I don't mind the plastic box; this unit would save me $350, money which I'd rather spend on boxes and frames. I'm glad this is available at a much cheaper price, even if it looks cheaper. The proof is in the pudding, and from comments here and elsewhere it appears that the unit works well.

I've heard that even the Provap 110 is a "copy" of some Italian model. A couple of the old timers in my bee association use the Provap 110, and I was assisting one of them with his hives, and he showed me how to use the Provap. I was very impressed. But like my friend said "It's a great option if you have $500 to spend; it's not such a great option if you don't." Another friend suggested I'd look into the Easy Vap.

At $150, I think the Easy Vap costs about the same as some of the regular wand, "heated dish" units. I was considering one of those, but they take a long time to heat up, and some people consider them to be a real fire hazard.

Does anyone else want to chime in on the Easy Vap? Has it been around long enough that someone could comment on its durability?
 
#40 ·
Hey guys if the unit is too cheap for you guys hell I could use all sorts of fancy stuff and get the cost closer to $500! I wonder how many takers I would have then. That cheap plastic box is there precisely cause it is cheap and the one I have been using for the 3rd season now is probably the nicest looking part of the vaporizer,. Now if you want to drive your truck over the vaporizer maybe you should get a steel box and maybe even chrome plate the thing , that would really impress the mites. Night gardener you can find my email address in the For Sale section.
 
#47 ·
I don’t want to hijack John’s thread, but the ProVap and the Sublimox were introduced approximately the same time and developed independently. The Sublimox is mainly a 220v unit and sold primarily in Europe. The ProVap has both 110 and 220v versions.
 
#50 ·
I'm glad you pointed out what you think is incorrect information. I couldn't remember if someone told me that the ProVap was copied from the Sublimox or if I had read it on the internet. I now remember where I'd read it:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Beekeeping/comments/75l32r/diy_oxalic_acid_vaporizer/do7hxjf/

The problem is of course, that just because someone makes a statement on the internet, it doesn't make it true. That is true for my statement, the Reddit statement and your comment as well. As for the Sublimox and ProVap being introduced about the same time and developed independently, I still think there's a high probability that one was copied after the other; unless you can support that statement with more facts, I'm willing to bet one came out before the other. Maybe "copied" is too strong of a word, and I should say "modeled after" or "inspired by." And knowing that the Europeans have been ahead of the US as far as OA vaporization/sublimation goes, I feel there is a high probability that they beat us to the punch on this one. I'm just applying critical thinking skills here, and I'm still allowing for the possibility that you're correct.

By the way, you aren't hijacking the thread; but contributing valuable information. There is a not nearly as much information out there about these unit as I'd like to see, and adding relevant information to the discussion should only boost the thread. To clarify my point, I brought the subject of copying up because some people will of course say that the Easy Vap is just a copy, and that it looks "too cheap." If it's true that the ProVap in turn is modeled after another unit, then that's relevant, and also a bit ironic. ;)


I'm just glad I found out about Johno's Easy Vap, as my stronger hives have a high mite load and I'm tired of tinkering with other treatment methods, but spending $500 on this is not an option for me right now.
 
#51 ·
As a matter of interest the first time I saw this type of vaporizer being used it was the Sublimox way back , there were no others. At this time I was already trying to build band heater vaporizers but was struggling to find away to insert thr dose into a hot chamber. Once I saw the Sublimox I realised that it was the way to go, however machining plugs from PTFE would be expensive and was always searching for another way and when silicone plugs were mentioned along the way that became the answer to many problems. If one cares to go back into old postings on the DIY vaporizers and on the commercial site you will find that these postings pre date Larry and the Pro Vap, I thought that Larry had made a deal with the manufacturers of Sublimox to produce a 110 volt device to market in the USA, perhaps I was wrong.
 
#52 ·
Very interesting, Johno....so the European model was in fact the first one to the market. I suspected this all along and I'm not just saying that because I'm European! :cool: I've just recently gotten into beekeeping, but I've already learned that when it comes to mite treatment, the US is somewhat lagging behind the Europeans. I'm sure that has less to do with beekeeper knowledge than it does with government agencies and red tape. For example, I believe most European beekeepers consider OA treatments with honey supers in place a non-issue.
 
#53 ·
As previously stated the PV and Sub were developed about the same time. However the small company that made the PV had no marketing experience nor did they speak English. Thus the Sub was marketed first. It was only after later contact through an interpreter and subsequent advertising that the PV gained popularity.
 
#54 ·
A key deciding factor for me was the digital temperature display on the ProVap 110 which is very useful with respect to indicating to the operator that the ProVap has reached operating temperature for use and when it displays a temperature of about 240 or more, most times all of the OA has been cooked off which helps to keep the amount of OA building up in the cap minimized.
 
#64 · (Edited)
John, (or anyone who has done this)
I thinking about getting a 12v deep cycle battery and inverter for my easy vap. I have 15 hives. What AmpHour rating should I be looking at to be able to vap all hives in one session?
Or is there something other than amphour I should be looking at for this? I never really timed it, but I doubt if I'm spending more that 15 minutes with the device plugged in now.

..... and thanks for the great product. It works great.
 
#65 ·
I would guess that a 50 amphour deep cycle battery should do the job for you, I always tend to go a little bigger rather than smaller in my choice of power. Most guys use a 500 watt inverter with the vaporizer as well and they are available at Amazon for around $30 last time I looked. The vaporizer will draw about 23 to 25 amps from your battery through the inverter which theoretically would give you an hour out of the 50 AH battery as you do not want to take it below 50% of its capacity, however Puekerts law raises its head depending on the amount of current drawn from the battery. With a draw of 25 amps you would get less than an hour but 15 hives should be treated in around 20 minutes at most.
 
#67 ·
I would guess that a 50 amp hour deep cycle battery should do the job for you, I always tend to go a little bigger rather than smaller in my choice of power. Most guys use a 500 watt inverter with the vaporizer as well and they are available at Amazon for around $30 last time I looked. The vaporizer will draw about 23 to 25 amps from your battery through the inverter which theoretically would give you an hour out of the 50 AH battery as you do not want to take it below 50% of its capacity, however Puekerts law raises its head depending on the amount of current drawn from the battery. With a draw of 25 amps you would get less than an hour but 15 hives should be treated in around 20 minutes at most.
Awesome info, and thanks.

this is for anyone who might know about solar power math:

My other thought was to leave the battery down at the apiary and hook up a solar panel to keep it charged. Would a 100w solar panel be sufficient to keep the battery topped off for a 5 day cycle of VAP treatments? (treating 15 hives every 5 days, for 4 cycles). I live near Richmond, Va, and the Apiary gets full sun 80% of the day.

I found this on the web about charging a deep cycle battery: Generally a fully discharged 12 Volt 100ah battery needs 1200 watts of energy to be 100% recharged. So the calculation is 1200 / 300 = 4 hours of sunlight. 15% less efficiency, about 5 hour’s sunlight

So being completely ignorant of solar calculations, I'm reading this as I can expect that my battery can be re-filled, given decent weather, within a few days after usage? I'm I being too naive here?
 
#68 ·
Personally I think a 100 watt solar panel will be too big, maybe 50 watts will do the job. However no matter the size it will require a voltage regulator otherwise batteries generally get overcharged and damaged if the voltage is not regulated.
 
#71 ·
Beesohappy, the impossible takes a while and miracles take a little longer. However if you have bee space under your migratory lids you can make the 1/4" hole from the front edge of the lid going down at an angle so as to get into that bee space and treat from the top without having to bend much. I made some lids like that and used a long 1/4" bit to drill the hole from the inside and they work great.
 
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