Clean Polynuc hive

[oliver90owner]

Finman.

Agreed the OP was about removing wax and propolis, but you must agree that when that is done one might just as well sterilise the boxes - as all the hard work has already been done.

I am with you on this one. KISS principle at work. Hot caustic does the job so easily and efficiently. Saponification works. Washing soda needs much more input (apart from the fairly simple precautions with using caustic soda).

List,

Do you clean your oven with washing soda? Thought not.

RAB

 

[Finman]

Finman.

Agreed the OP was about removing wax and propolis, but you must agree that when that is done one might just as well sterilise the boxes
RAB

Lye, what I talk about, sterilize at same time. Lye destroyes lipids of microbes.
No second treatments are needed.

 

[Into the lions den]

Backing up Finman and Rab on this..............5% caustic soda solution.............the propolis just dissolves away in no time. We run a big dipping tank at approx 80C. 2 minutes immersion strips frames bare of wax and propolis and as a bonus its all sterile too. THOROUGH rinse in hot water, and a couple of minutes later all is dry and ready to use.

For poly gear the same will work very well BUT the caustic strips off the paint just as fast as it does the propolis, so do a hand scrub of the at risk surfaces......let it stand for a few minutes, then a second scrub, followed by washing off, and all will be fine. Just dip the lot if repainting is not too much of a PITA to you.

 

[oliver90owner]

Finman.

I agree with all you are saying, but they are likely going to be using washing soda, so the pH will be much less than caustic soda, so they would need that extra second treatment with bleach, especially if there were spores present.

I am considering using KOH next time I buy - much more expensive than NaOH, but after boiling it up I will dilute the whole lot and use it as fertiliser....

 

[Finman]

quess what? I can read. I was 7 y when I learned in chool.

Here in the package it stands with mouse size letters CORROSIVE .

NaOH 98,5%
NETTO 25KG

MADE IN POLAND

Anwil tel .........

 

[jackbee]

quess what? I can read. I was 7 y when I learned in chool.

you should go back and complain they didn't teach you to spell

 

[nonstandard]

Just to add a little grist to the mill I attended a Fera bee husbandry day a couple if weeks ago and the advice for a cleaning solution was washing soda 1 cup/1 pint water with a small dash of good quality household bleach i.e. not the weaker budget bleaches. Use the solution for cleaning hive tools gloves etc. as well as for cleaning poly nuc's, poly hives and beehaus'.

 

[Finman]

.

I can only read English but not much write.

I do not mind spell my writings.
If you have permission to write carbage to read I have permission to make writing errors. Is that fair?

 

[nonstandard]

Astabada if you are still unsure a quick phone call to your RBI or Fera will get you the latest unbiased advice regarding cleaning/sterilising. In my opinion most bee inspectors are approachable, friendly and can share a wealth of experience and knowledge with you.

 

[Finman]

.
I think that British inspectors are out of date many times.
They may say what ever. They are humans, and often old farts.

When we started to talk here about poly cleaning 2-3 years ago, only method was burn them in problem waste incinerator.

After 24 years using, I have destroyed not a single poly box. They all are in use.

I bought last years 30 used polyboxes. Their age was 15-20 y. I paid 7 euros per box. They have been in commercial usage.

*****

But like I have said, we have either recommendations what to do with boxes.
Chemical treatment is unknown to our beekeepers. Mostly professional beeks keep their secrets.


.

 

[oliver90owner]

will get you the latest unbiased advice

If you think you will get an unbiased reply from a RBI, you are mistaken, and it will only be their latest, not necessarily the most 'up to date' - there being a subtle difference.

They have to toe the FERA line, whatever their real inclinations might be. They, FERA, will 'play safe' using the least potentially harmful cleaning agents, however hard it might make the job.

There is quite regularly a difference between what FERA recommend and what the commercial boys use.

We, nor they, know the ability of the OP, or their facilities.

Jackbee appears not to have any input to this thread so unless he has anything to add, which might be really useful, then he should refrain from posting, I feel. Butting in where he is not posting anything relevant to the thread is simply not needed.

RAB

 

[astabada]

Just to add a little grist to the mill I attended a Fera bee husbandry day a couple if weeks ago and the advice for a cleaning solution was washing soda 1 cup/1 pint water with a small dash of good quality household bleach i.e. not the weaker budget bleaches. Use the solution for cleaning hive tools gloves etc. as well as for cleaning poly nuc's, poly hives and beehaus'.

Thanks everyone for your advices! I think I'm gonna start with hot water to remove the propolis and then probably move to washing soda to clean it properly. To be honest, I bought this polynuc hive just because I wanted to try it out. I'm gonna stick with standard wood ones, maybe they're a bit heavier and old style but what can I say, they're charming!

 

[user 6228]

Thanks everyone for your advices! I think I'm gonna start with hot water to remove the propolis and then probably move to washing soda to clean it properly. To be honest, I bought this polynuc hive just because I wanted to try it out. I'm gonna stick with standard wood ones, maybe they're a bit heavier and old style but what can I say, they're charming!

Your choice but also consider the thermal inefficiency in wooden hives that means the bees use more energy to keep the brood warm etc which means more flights which means the pot of honey on your table has taken the lives of more individual bees to produce it.

 

[jackbee]

Jackbee appears not to have any input to this thread so unless he has anything to add, which might be really useful, then he should refrain from posting, I feel. Butting in where he is not posting anything relevant to the thread is simply not neededRAB

I must have missed the vote where you were elected supreme leader. You have no right to tell me when and where to post so butt out yourself.

I must admit you can give very useful advice but the majority of your posts are so acerbic and vitriolic and downright spiky that it outweghs your usefulness a lot of the time.

I am pretty new to this forum but not forums in general and find this forum one of the most unwelcoming to newbies I have ever come across. A bit of remembering when people started wouldn't go amiss with lots of posters on here (not just RAB, wouldn't want to particularly single you out). A sense of humour can be useful too!

I'll stick around though

(not perfect so 1st edit retracted!)

 

[thorn]

Jackbee, your original post was insulting to someone to whom English is clearly not a first language. The only excuse is that you're new to the forum and hadn't realised that Finnman was indeed a Finn.

We all of us suffer from time to time with the iPad's irritating guesses as to what we wish to say, or from fat finger syndrome and a failure to proof read, and occasionally the errors can be amusing (such as yesterday's comment about "singing" a hive). But gratuitous insults are not acceptable.

Finnman and RAB are two of the most helpful contributors to this forum, although the latter can be a bit direct in his comments. Value them rather than attack them.

 

[Finman]

There is quite regularly a difference between what FERA recommend and what the commercial boys use.

RAB

I have noticed that commercials have a good network inside country and to "overseas". They do not much talk about their tricks but they have them.
When you get the tricks with hard work, why to deliver the knowledge to competitors. That is why commercials do not write much on forums.

I have noticed too that when advisors visit on commercil farms, they can not go and sing to next guy what he saw there. It will the last visit to the business secrets.

Then I have noticed that Defra makes too perfect advices to the beeks. 30 sides about varroa, but they are afraid to recommend best tricks because the collective truth is so difficult, so difficult.

Our advices about varroa have 2 pages and they has worked almost 10 years. Not much to add. Our researcher was one among varroa group. . England had a place in the group but he did not participated to meetings and in research.

Our main adisor has 1000 hives and he is very talented guy. That was not in varroa group.


( I made a short visit in New Zealand forum. They said that oversea knowledge do not work there. Then the Admin claimed that oxalic acid is against the law in NZ. Then Oxalic was found to be in allowed stuffs.
That was the foolest forum I have ever met. It was the top of national thinking.
.

.

 

[parkranger]

Jackbee, your original post was insulting to someone to whom English is clearly not a first language. The only excuse is that you're new to the forum and hadn't realised that Finnman was indeed a Finn.

We all of us suffer from time to time with the iPad's irritating guesses as to what we wish to say, or from fat finger syndrome and a failure to proof read, and occasionally the errors can be amusing (such as yesterday's comment about "singing" a hive). But gratuitous insults are not acceptable.

Finnman and RAB are two of the most helpful contributors to this forum, although the latter can be a bit direct in his comments. Value them rather than attack them.

Criticism of a poster's spelling should not occur whether non-British or not. We are all of differing levels of education and literacy but commonly, we are beekeepers striving to improve. As a newbie myself, I put great value on the help and advice of my peers on this forum and in the main the responses are both helpful and polite but true to say some of the most experienced members delight in a put down such as "go and think about it" before imparting the advice sought. Please consider that in the main, new and inexperienced beekeepers have already thought about it before asking the question and in many cases are just looking for reinforcement of their decisions before carrying them out. After all we are guardians of our bees and keen to achieve the best husbandry possible within our individual means.
We must all have been "newbies" at some time. Please try and remember and give freely of good advice without the need to score points.

Thanks

 

[jackbee]

Jackbee, your original post was insulting to someone to whom English is clearly not a first language. The only excuse is that you're new to the forum and hadn't realised that Finnman was indeed a Finn.

We all of us suffer from time to time with the iPad's irritating guesses as to what we wish to say, or from fat finger syndrome and a failure to proof read, and occasionally the errors can be amusing (such as yesterday's comment about "singing" a hive). But gratuitous insults are not acceptable.

Finnman and RAB are two of the most helpful contributors to this forum, although the latter can be a bit direct in his comments. Value them rather than attack them.

I'm not daft

it was not insulting and I resent that implication; it was a humorous (ok attempt at) in the context of his reference to learning to read, obv some people didn't take it that way.

i have recognised that usefulness and value but tempered with a proviso, I don't feel I have attcaked anyone merely given an opinion

This really is my last post on this matter, if people wish to discuss any further (I hope not, it's really not worth it) then either start a new thread or PM me, happy to have a conversation.

 

[newportbuzz]

how do you go about immersing a poly box ????????

lot of rocks and a big pot?
bin bag?

 

[oliver90owner]

how do you go about immersing a poly box

Personally, thus far, I have not needed to more than scrub out my boxes to clean them, but at present I can simply dismantle them, so immersing the separate parts.

One looks at all the pros and cons before buying, I suppose. Well, I did.

The weight of the box is a good indicator, to calculate the weight needed to submerge it. All presuming one has a large enough vessel to accommodate it in the first place. Doing a little over half at a time is likely good enough

That is another reason why all the timber boxes I have assembled are screwed, and not glued.