Methods of heating frames of honey to aid extraction.

[Yarra_Valley]

Hi there,

First off, I'm running all 8 frame deeps. Its cooling down a bit now, and I need a method of heating the honey supers I have not yet taken off so its possible to extract the honey from them. I think I have three or four supers to extract.

The idea I have is a spare deep with a sealed bottom and two light bulbs fitted in it. The honey supers are then stacked on top of it with a cover on. The idea is the light bulbs provide enough heat to gradually warm the honey without overheating it, if left for a few days. I can't remember where I got this idea from, but it must have been from a book or publication somewhere.

I'm wondering what systems you guys and girls have for heating boxes of frames without burning up lots of coal heating an entire room for days to get the frames up to temperature (which I couldn't do anyway as my mother would kill me).

Thanks for your help,
James.

[Understudy]

I don't heat mine. I just load them in the extractor and let them spin.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

[Kirk-o]

I know a lady who runs 900 hives she has a hot room she puts the Box's in for a day before she extracts.
kirko :-\

[buzzbee]

Look at this:
http://maarec.cas.psu.edu/pdfs/honeyHeaterPlans/hhplans.htm

[livetrappingbymatt]

find old refrigerator w/METAL liner. install elect heater in bottum,place sheet metal cover above heater 2" put heater on low \,put honey on shelves,check temp,too hi lower termostat. keep at 90-100 degree.
ps heater can be placed in metal box on outside of fridg and connected with stove pipe
hopwe this helps
bob

[Yarra_Valley]

Thanks for your replies everyone.

I don't heat mine. I just load them in the extractor and let them spin.

Sincerely,
Brendhan

Australian honey is notorious for having a low moisture content, and therefore a high viscosity. Sometimes they can be hard to extract even when heated. Its also getting colder. A neighbour tried to extract some a few weeks ago and got a little irritated  :-\.

I know a lady who runs 900 hives she has a hot room she puts the Box's in for a day before she extracts.
kirko :-\

I know a guy who has several thousand and does the same, but he still has trouble sometimes when the water content goes down to like 12%. I have six hives. hmmm, maybe I could build a very small hot room......

Look at this:
http://maarec.cas.psu.edu/pdfs/honeyHeaterPlans/hhplans.htm

Yeah that was helpful thanks. It got me thinking and I realised I have an old lizard enclosure which I turned into an terrarium. I has light bulbs in it for heating, which are controlled by a thermostat. I'm thinking if I clean it out I can use it. It will hold at least two 8 frame deeps. I could also line it with polystyrene to in insulate it more. If I wanted to get really carried away I could take the thermostat, and mount it into an old cupboard or purpose built container like the one in that link. I could then connect it to light bulbs, element, hotplate or whatever I want to use for heating. hotplate might be a bit of a fire risk actually.

So I'm thinking it just took a little encouragement ;).

James.

[Finsky]

.
I have made from insulation board a closet.  It has volume of 16 boxes. It has hollow bottom and I put common thermostat fan heater under boxes.  A blower circulates hot air. 35 C is good temperature. Closet must have extra space that air circulates. It takes heat 6 hours and boxes are ready to extract. Normally I heat over night.

If I take boxes directly from hives to be extracted, they need not much heating.
The warm wax affects too to the speed of uncapping with electrict knife.

Important is that it is easy to extract and it runs through sieves.

If you heat the extraction room, it is hard to work there.

There you may dry upp combs if honey is not capped. After 4 days heating (drying) it is difficult get honey away from combs.

[Yarra_Valley]

finsky - brilliant!  :-D

insulation board? can you clarify exactly what this product is please?

thanks heaps!

-J.

[Finsky]

.
I do not know what kind of product you use in your district.
It may be what ever cheap material what is easy to put together "big box".
Then I have clued one inch styrofoam (plastic) insulation to coper the box.

It should be so firm that you may install door pair there.

[Brian D. Bray]

A warm room (closet) to keep the un-extracted supers at between 80-85F is a good thing to have.  The extractor room can be at 72-75F.  Warm it up over night to extract the next day, if possible.  As finsky points out leaving it in the heating room too long will make the honey thicker and harder to extract. 

[tillie]

I don't heat mine at all, but it's very hot in Atlanta in July and August which is when I harvested last year.  I left the crush/strain honey, covered and  filtering into a plastic bucket for an afternoon on my hot sidewalk and it ran through the filter.  Very little honey was left in the wax in the filter.

Linda T in Atlanta

[mick]

Shining a 75 watt lamp at close range works.

[Finsky]

Shining a 75 watt lamp at close range works.

I have 2000 W blower.  Mick you have crush and strain system for one hive?

[heaflaw]

I once tried your original idea of an empty deep with a light bulb and supers stacked on top.  I must have used too high a wattage, because some of the comb melted in the bottom super and made a real mess.  Since wax is flamable, this could also be dangerous.

[Finsky]

I don't heat mine. I just load them in the extractor and let them spin.

Some honey comes nicely out without heating and some are hopeless if it is cold. Honey dew and hether need high temperature.
If weather is high and honey is sticky, heating makes it easier. But it depens, do you spin 20 or 200 frames.

But crush and strain........what a waist. 50% of you yield will be lost this way.
Is it better then make comb honey?

[mick]

Yes mate, I figure as long as I have one hive, crush and strain is the go. I hope to go to two this spring.

[TwT]

http://www.brushymountainbeefarm.com/products.asp?pcode=670