Euphoria and disaster

[Nannysbees]

Inspection day today all four hives doing well still no capping on our four super hive but managed to take four capped frames off our split, which was a total surprise. The disaster was that our super frames didn't fit into the 3 frame extractor, looks like it's made for deeps!!!!!! As we spun, the frames were destroyed, think we bought the wrong extractor, what a plonker. However we harvested our first ever honey .Bees are so clever.

 

[Curly green finger's]

i think you may of overdone it with the elbow grease easily done with frames being blown out if you spin to Quickly, best to start slowly and after a few minutes you see honey dripping down the sides of the extractor you can speed up a little as the frames will be lighter with less honey In, I think your extractor takes both deeps and shallows.

I've found you don't really need to spin out frames to fast when you see honey splattering against the sides keep it at that speed.
I love the labels, I bet your well pleased, also with the honey absolutely brilliant!!!!!

Apologies I'm repeating myself.

 

[pargyle]

You have the right extractor ... you will find that it takes 6 super frames - 2 in each partition. You might have to make some loops with cable ties just to keep them upright.

The reason you have blown your comb out is down to technique. With a tangential extractor you need to start very slowly and don't turn it at full speed - it's more about time spinning than speed. When you have spun some honey out of one side of the frame you then need to turn the frames around and spin the other side. The frame in the picture looks like fairly recently drawn comb and you have to treat it very gently ... once it has been used a couple of times for honey it is more robust and you can spin it a bit faster.

So ... less speed, longer spin.

It's not a disaster you can put what's left of the frame and comb back in to the super and the bees will repair the damage - don't worry about foundation they will fix it. I've seen worse.

Well done for getting some honey but ... for the future ... you need to let it settle in a settling tank or bucket for a bit longer than you have ...the finer wax particles will float to the surface of the honey and you can put a piece of cling film on the top and just lift the wax off ... what you can see in some of your jars is that ring of scum/wax at the top shoulder of the jar and you won't get that if you allow it to settle.

But it will be the best honey you have ever tasted ... the first always is. Remember to keep a jar back so you can look back to it in future years ... it will last forever ...

 

[Curly green finger's]

Aye, some folk like the bits of wax they feel like they are getting part of the comb etc but I do agree with Philip you need to let it settle for 24hrs at least.
Parchment paper, silver foil also works as does cling film in collecting the wax etc of the top of the settled honey buckets.

 

[pargyle]

Aye, some folk like the bits of wax they feel like they are getting part of the comb etc but I do agree with Philip you need to let it settle for 24hrs at least.

I normally let it settle for longer than that ... and with a settling tank with a tap at the bottom you can hold the last bits back with any scum in it for your own consumption and just sell the crystal clear stuff ... it doesn't taste any difference but as I keep saying ... it's all about presentation. It needs to look good as the punters won't taste it until they have bought it ....

I like the labels as well ...

 

[Curly green finger's]

I normally let it settle for longer than that ... and with a settling tank with a tap at the bottom you can hold the last bits back with any scum in it for your own consumption and just sell the crystal clear stuff ... it doesn't taste any difference but as I keep saying ... it's all about presentation. It needs to look good as the punters won't taste it until they have bought it ....

I like the labels as well ...

24 hrs is OK though in that time all wax and detritus has flouted to the top.
Presentation is fine and I agree crystal clear looks better.
But as I said some folk like to have that extra bit. Crystal clear honey or not.
I know this because some of the locals have said so..... Rare characters... Maybe they just feel more connected to the bees if they have that extra bit.

 

[Nannysbees]

That is brilliant advise thank you, didn't know about leaving it to settle , this will be for friends and family, had loads of offers to buy but i prefer to supply the family until next year. What a wonderful feeling to think the bees at the bottom of my garden have produced this wonderful honey I'm so pleased. Hoping the other hive will give us some more bit if they don't I'm delighted with what we have

 

[Markthebuilder]

Looks like you have the same spinner as me and made the same mistake I did first time extracting….
I wrecked a few combs before I realised what I was doing wrong.
I digest
1) if you can get the frames in they fit..
2) don’t expect them to fit snug or just right so long as they don’t drop all the way down and through. Just ballence them on bottom wire and tillt to the side.
3) spin slower especially when the frame is full and Hevey …
4 ) only try to get some of the honey out to start.
you don’t have to go as fast or for as long as you think.
You can spin both ways … one way works a bit better than the other depending on whether the top of the frame is on your right or left when you look down on it
5) what looks like little streaks/splashes of honey on the side of the drum is a lot more than you think
6) When half of honey is out of side 1 turn frame around and spin half out of Side 2 Still going slow
7) once half of side 2 is out you can speed up and get the rest out of the honey out of side 2 before turning the frame around or over again and getting the remaining honey out of side 1 .
8) don’t expect to get all the honey out.
9) once you get a feel for full very full and heavy light frames / thick thin honey or after 20 or so frames you can miss out some steps but never spin too fast when frame is full on one side..

Happy spinning

 

[Markthebuilder]

Obvs everyone got there before me

 

[madasafish]

Scum on settled honey is easily removed by placing clingfilm on top, picking it up from the edges and place into a sieve to drain out the honey on the film into a separate container.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Aye, some folk like the bits of wax they feel like they are getting part of the comb etc but I do agree with Philip you need to let it settle for 24hrs at least.
Parchment paper, silver foil also works as does cling film in collecting the wax etc of the top of the settled honey buckets.

Foil? How does that work.
If some of your customers like scummy honey you should sell them “beekeeper’s honey at a premium.

 

[Curly green finger's]

Foil? How does that work.
If some of your customers like scummy honey you should sell them “beekeeper’s honey at a premium.

Well whatever
This is retailing at £8 £8.50...
I wouldnt have enough beekeepers honey.
Try the foil and get back to me.
Warm the honey 35 /40 c.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Im asking seriously. How do you use foil to remove scum from honey?
And the beekeeper's honey is not a joke either. I've seen all that lovely waxy scummy bubbly stuff you take off your buckets jarred up in 8 oz jars for a tenner

 

[Curly green finger's]

Im asking seriously. How do you use foil to remove scum from honey?
And the beekeeper's honey is not a joke either. I've seen all that lovely waxy scummy bubbly stuff you take off your buckets jarred up in 8 oz jars for a tenner

foil works in much the same way as cling film warming the honey first, it needs to be thin stuff though, what is beekeepers honey mainly wax particuls.
We had some honey and it had lots of this on top I didn't have any cling film so I used foil instead I lay the foil down on top of a 5 litre jug that was in a water bath and I put foil on top it pealed of much the same as cling film, probably not as good but it stuck to it

 

[Erichalfbee]

So you place foil on top of the honey and peel off?
Never tried it that's why I asked....I figured it would be difficult to get the foil over all the honey right to the sides of the bucket but I shall give it a go

 

[Curly green finger's]

So you place foil on top of the honey and peel off?
Never tried it that's why I asked....I figured it would be difficult to get the foil over all the honey right to the sides of the bucket but I shall give it a go

As you know with cling film you have to peal it of slowly... I think it would work with lots of things thin brown paper even.
I can remember you putting a photo on here of beekeepers honey which was sold at a show.
I have a 20 lb bucket of the damn stuf what could I do with it cook with it make honey cake?
My better half likes the crust of honey buckets saying its the best part of the honey.
None of that this season as I think osr has lots more of it on top.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

As you know with cling film you have to peal it of slowly

No you don't, spread it over the honey, take hold of/pinch the centre of the clingfilm and quickly lift, popping a shallow dish under the suspended clingfilm to catch the drips/film and remove.
Foil backed baking parchment is stiff and rather inflexible and awkward to get into the corners, as is just plain foil to an extent.. You might as well put a piece of cardboard over the scum

 

[Curly green finger's]

No you don't, spread it over the honey, take hold of/pinch the centre of the clingfilm and quickly lift, popping a shallow dish under the suspended clingfilm to catch the drips/film and remove.
Foil backed baking parchment is stiff and rather inflexible and awkward to get into the corners, as is just plain foil to an extent.. You might as well put a piece of cardboard over the scum

How ever we do it with film or thin foil it works if you peel of from the side or from the middle.

 

[Nannysbees]

Well whatever View attachment 27442
This is retailing at £8 £8.50...
I wouldnt have enough beekeepers honey.
Try the foil and get back to me.
Warm the honey 35 /40 c.

That honey looks amazing, the depth of colour is lovely. Not planning to sell any, I don't think we'll have enough to supply the family and friends until next year but it's been fun having so many offers

 

[Nannysbees]

Looks like you have the same spinner as me and made the same mistake I did first time extracting….
I wrecked a few combs before I realised what I was doing wrong.
I digest
1) if you can get the frames in they fit..
2) don’t expect them to fit snug or just right so long as they don’t drop all the way down and through. Just ballence them on bottom wire and tillt to the side.
3) spin slower especially when the frame is full and Hevey …
4 ) only try to get some of the honey out to start.
you don’t have to go as fast or for as long as you think.
You can spin both ways … one way works a bit better than the other depending on whether the top of the frame is on your right or left when you look down on it
5) what looks like little streaks/splashes of honey on the side of the drum is a lot more than you think
6) When half of honey is out of side 1 turn frame around and spin half out of Side 2 Still going slow
7) once half of side 2 is out you can speed up and get the rest out of the honey out of side 2 before turning the frame around or over again and getting the remaining honey out of side 1 .
8) don’t expect to get all the honey out.
9) once you get a feel for full very full and heavy light frames / thick thin honey or after 20 or so frames you can miss out some steps but never spin too fast when frame is full on one side..

Happy spinning

Thank you so much for that in depth explanation, we will definitely take your advice,so is this spinner typically for deeps or langstroths and not national supers?