planing ahead. i have 11 hives now thinking about a extractor for next yr..

[adamant]

11 hives now could turn out to 22 next yr. i have the room.. and it seems like so far its not taking up to much of my time now. (got them in June) i cant harvest the honey i want to this year because i need to have them survive over winter but what i was thinking to do this year (correct me if i am wrong) was to take a frame or 2 out of each hive and do the crush and strain process.. but for next year i am going have to get you guys to suggest a extractor. they tell me to get the biggest one i can get . what would u do? i am defiantly increasing my hives next yr. i have a good source to sell it. i border a large farm so space not a problem..
1. recommend a crush and strain equipment and what ever equip. i will need ? don't want to break the bank but i want it to be function-able for what i want to do this year.

2. recommend a extractor for next season to handle min. of 22 hives and all the needed equipment?
thank you
ant

[Vance G]

Start looking now for an older used dadant or Maxant 20 to 30 frame extractor.   It will only take up a foot more floor space than one of the smaller frauds and shouldn't cost much more.  You can use a heated uncapping knife, I wish I had the antique steam one I owned 25 years ago!  yes the little rubber hoses were a pain but it didn't burn out like the electric ones tend to.   Take measurements of the frames you will be extracting and go tupperware (or other brand) shopping.  Get some rigid pvc pipe and make a rack to sit inside it and hold uncapped frames waiting to go to the extractor.  buy an $8 plastic gate and cut a hole for it to drain your rube goldberg.   Go to the big box builder stores and find some kind of basket that will sit in another tupperware with a gate to drain cappings.  Make good use of a plastic queen excluder by cutting pieces out of them to cross hatch and use of the bottom of your cappings drainer.   Make it all small as possible and still function except for the solar wax melter which should hold a couple unstacked frames.  Get a fifteen or twenty gallon settling tank.  You don't need to spring for one of the water jacketed ones!  They are for a beginner the stuff dreams are made of!  But you can get by without one.  Make a cabinet large enough for your settling tank.  2x4's and cardboard construction at a minimum.  Go to Petco and get a 49.95 thermostatically controlled power bar.  They are meant for heating snake cages.  Buy some 100 watt bulbs before the green nazi's have them all removed from the stores for heating elements.  Crank your snake heater up to 100 degrees and put your light/s in the cabinent after filling your tank with the honey fresh out of the extractor.  The spare parts and wax will rise to the top and you will tap off almost clean honey from the bottom after a day or so.  You can just run it thru one of the screens meant to sit on a 5 gallon bucket to get the dark flecks of cocoons still in the honey.  If you have one with a gate on the bottom, just bottle out of it after running it thru the screen.  This is a minimalist approach for 22 hives.  Store crop in five gallon buckets.  Reliquify in snake heater chamber.  Life is good.  Make meade, be happy all day and night.

[Michael Bush]

I would hold out for either a good price on a used on, or I'd buy a 9/18.  It takes half as much work to extract 18 frames in a 18 frame radial as it does to extract two frames in a two frame tangential.

[adamant]

Start looking now for an older used dadant or Maxant 20 to 30 frame extractor.   It will only take up a foot more floor space than one of the smaller frauds and shouldn't cost much more.  You can use a heated uncapping knife, I wish I had the antique steam one I owned 25 years ago!  yes the little rubber hoses were a pain but it didn't burn out like the electric ones tend to.   Take measurements of the frames you will be extracting and go tupperware (or other brand) shopping.  Get some rigid pvc pipe and make a rack to sit inside it and hold uncapped frames waiting to go to the extractor.  buy an $8 plastic gate and cut a hole for it to drain your rube goldberg.   Go to the big box builder stores and find some kind of basket that will sit in another tupperware with a gate to drain cappings.  Make good use of a plastic queen excluder by cutting pieces out of them to cross hatch and use of the bottom of your cappings drainer.   Make it all small as possible and still function except for the solar wax melter which should hold a couple unstacked frames.  Get a fifteen or twenty gallon settling tank.  You don't need to spring for one of the water jacketed ones!  They are for a beginner the stuff dreams are made of!  But you can get by without one.  Make a cabinet large enough for your settling tank.  2x4's and cardboard construction at a minimum.  Go to Petco and get a 49.95 thermostatically controlled power bar.  They are meant for heating snake cages.  Buy some 100 watt bulbs before the green nazi's have them all removed from the stores for heating elements.  Crank your snake heater up to 100 degrees and put your light/s in the cabinent after filling your tank with the honey fresh out of the extractor.  The spare parts and wax will rise to the top and you will tap off almost clean honey from the bottom after a day or so.  You can just run it thru one of the screens meant to sit on a 5 gallon bucket to get the dark flecks of cocoons still in the honey.  If you have one with a gate on the bottom, just bottle out of it after running it thru the screen.  This is a minimalist approach for 22 hives.  Store crop in five gallon buckets.  Reliquify in snake heater chamber.  Life is good.  Make meade, be happy all day and night.

i like you.. thanks for the info.. ant

[L Daxon]

Yeah, Vance.  You had some great ideas in there.  Thanks for taking the time to write all that up.

Linda D

[mikecva]

I have a Maxant 3100P and extract 6 mediums at a time while I decap the next 6 frames. I find this very efficient for my uses. I am very pleased with my Maxant extractor.

Planning to increase from 11 to 22 hives next year is a feet unto itself. If further expansion is contemplated, a larger extractor might be the way for you to go. But IMHO you can not go wrong with a Maxant.

Look and see if members in a local beekeepers club will let you come out and see theirs in action.   -Mike

[woodchopper]

We love ours: Maiden Flight of the Maxant 1400 Part 1   Well worth the extra expense over our old Mann-Lake 18 frame radial.