Extracting - anyone use fume boards?

[Sutty]

I'm about to extract for the 1st time in many years. I restarted beekeeping 2yrs ago & built numbers last year rather than a honey crop. (Now I have too many colonies!)
I've always used clearer boards in the past. Just wondering if anyone has much experience with fume boards using repellents such as bee-quick or benzaldehyde?

 

[blackcloud]

A trio of rhombus escapes bought in the sales and a box tray made of old kitchen units is cheap and virtually chemical free.
Works just fine
I'd rather not take any risks with the honey as it's your reputation for next year that's at stake.

 

[Jimmy]

I'm about to extract for the 1st time in many years. I restarted beekeeping 2yrs ago & built numbers last year rather than a honey crop. (Now I have too many colonies!)
I've always used clearer boards in the past. Just wondering if anyone has much experience with fume boards using repellents such as bee-quick or benzaldehyde?

I have used them in the past.
I used a black painted metal lid/eke that had a cloth lining, from Thornes I think.
On sunny days it worked well, cloudy days were a bit slower.
I mainly use clearer boards now or a leaf blower if I don't want to have a return trip to the apiary
One of the reasons I no longer use it is that I found the bee-quick gave me a headache. I could not detect any residue in the honey.

 

[Sutty]

I have used them in the past.
I used a black painted metal lid/eke that had a cloth lining, from Thornes I think.
On sunny days it worked well, cloudy days were a bit slower.
I mainly use clearer boards now or a leaf blower if I don't want to have a return trip to the apiary
One of the reasons I no longer use it is that I found the bee-quick gave me a headache. I could not detect any residue in the honey.

Thanks. I wasn't planning on trying it this year, but curious for the future.
Sounds like it needs the heat from the black metal of the lid to work well.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

I'm about to extract for the 1st time in many years. I restarted beekeeping 2yrs ago & built numbers last year rather than a honey crop. (Now I have too many colonies!)
I've always used clearer boards in the past. Just wondering if anyone has much experience with fume boards using repellents such as bee-quick or benzaldehyde?

I've never used them but a few years ago Lester (RIP) from Beverley bka told me he used them and they would clear a super in minutes. Currently I use a rhombus clearer board or if I'm in a hurry a bee brush. I go to the hive with a populated empty super, remove an empty frame. Take a full frame from the hive, shake off most of the bees back into the hive, brush off any bees still clinging on and drop the frame into the empty super. Cover the empty super with a cloth or piece of plywood. Take another empty frame and repeat

 

[enrico]

My mate who had loads of hives uses home made bee quick. The recipe was on this forum some time ago. He swears by it. Pours it on a tea towel, they vacate immediately and he removes the super. Not something I can be bothered with. A rhombus board works ok for my few hives.

 

[PeaBee]

I use the Bee Quick when clearing heather supers as don't want to make two trips. I have used them in conjunction with rhombus boards, by the time I have got to the last hive the first one is clear and i can start loading boxes. I do need to make sure the Q is below the rhombus board though as don't use excluders after july.

 

[Sutty]

My mate who had loads of hives uses home made bee quick. The recipe was on this forum some time ago. He swears by it. Pours it on a tea towel, they vacate immediately and he removes the super. Not something I can be bothered with. A rhombus board works ok for my few hives.

Any chance of a link to the recipe for possible future use?

 

[enrico]

Any chance of a link to the recipe for possible future use?

Trying to find it but if all else fails I will get it from my mate..... Bear with me

 

[enrico]

Any chance of a link to the recipe for possible future use?

Can't find the link at the moment but the ingredients are
80% organic extraction ethanol ( don't breath it in!!) 10% tea tree oil, 10% benzaldehyde ( synthetic bitter almond oil ).

 

[Sutty]

Can't find the link at the moment but the ingredients are
80% organic extraction ethanol ( don't breath it in!!) 10% tea tree oil, 10% benzaldehyde ( synthetic bitter almond oil ).

Thanks very much!
Not quite sure what "organic extraction ethanol" is! - vodka or very high % ethanol?

 

[JamezF]

Is this the original reference?

Bee-quick

James

 

[Sutty]

No idea why my search didn't find that!

 

[JamezF]

No idea why my search didn't find that!

The search is a bit of a black art, I find. Sometimes I get what I want really easily; other times I just can't find it at all.

James

 

[enrico]

Is this the original reference?

Bee-quick

James

Well done mate, I read Michael Palmer's post but somehow missed the one above it! Thanks

 

[linoleum bonypart]

I too don’t use anything but shake n brush

 

[Hay]

I'm about to extract for the 1st time in many years. I restarted beekeeping 2yrs ago & built numbers last year rather than a honey crop. (Now I have too many colonies!)
I've always used clearer boards in the past. Just wondering if anyone has much experience with fume boards using repellents such as bee-quick or benzaldehyde?

I used beequick last year. I staples a piece of sacking to the underside of a shallow hive roof and sprayed it on there. Placed the roof over the super and waited. It didn’t take more than a few minutes before the bees had moved down in the hive and I could take the honey. No stress for bees or bee keeper! My bees are pussycats but maybe that’s because I don’t brush them or mess them about.
the honey was not affected at all. Highly recommend.