Frame storage - brilliant idea ...

[Little John]

So although in the video she speaks about ash from wood or straw, it's possible that ash could have come from burning wood products with paint, varnish or tanalising. Or even coal, plastics, who knows what.

Her ash ? Maybe, maybe not - but if a person knows beforehand that they're going to be using ash for 'beekeeping purposes' - it would clearly be wise to select material to burn, as uncontaminated as possible ...
LJ

 

[madasafish]

Best source of organic ash is a crematorium...

Coat on, gone..

 

[user 6228]

Tell me about it ...

I live about 100 yards from an A52 lay-by - and a Glaswegian lorry driver knocked on my door one day, asking for directions. I found it very embarrassing as I had to keep asking him to repeat himself. He could just as well have been speaking Greek. Luckily he brought his mate in tow, who wasn't quite so broad in the accent department. Interestingly, neither of them were particularly phased by my lack of understanding - so I guess they were well used to this reaction when delivering goods 'darn sarf' ...
LJ

Glaswegian? its easy to understand

after total immersion for about 3 years in rougher part of Glasgow (i.e. not Milngavie, Bearsden or Newton Mearns)

and if you lived north of the Mersey all your life

Glaswegians- lovely people, just they sound as though they are picking a fight when they offer to buy you a pint, the latter being the very much more likely.


Derek - 3.5 years in East Kilbride, Uddingston, Cambuslang

 

[Millet]

Best source of organic ash is a crematorium...

Coat on, gone..

 

[Bee Bumble]

Best source of organic ash is a crematorium...

Gives your honey some body.

 

[wessexmario]

If the smoke from your smoker isn't ash... what is it?

 

[Michael Palmer]

Zero chance that i would coat my combs in ash. Zero.

 

[wightbees]

If the smoke from your smoker isn't ash... what is it?

Carbon

 

[wightbees]

Never new this>>> Like soap, ash is also a disinfecting agent (alkaline).[1] The World Health Organization recommended ash or sand as alternative to soap when soap is not available
From Wikipedia

 

[ShinySideUp]

Won't keeping frames in a plastic bag then keeping them somewhere indoors do? I've had beeswax sticks in my drawer for about 15 years and they are untouched.

 

[Anduril]

If the tests done on my honey can detect small amounts of algae from a pond the bees collect water from, I will not be using ash to keep wax moth at bay. What is it they say about toast these days? Burnt toast is carcinogenic. May be a different story in a few years time.

 

[Anduril]

Won't keeping frames in a plastic bag then keeping them somewhere indoors do? I've had beeswax sticks in my drawer for about 15 years and they are untouched.

Beeswax sticks are totally different, wax moth will not touch it. They go for frames with the remnants of cocoons.

 

[Little John]

There are alternatives, of course - thus far I've been freezing brood combs (I don't use supers) and then storing them indoors in an unheated room under dust covers. So far so good, but I see that technique as always being a gamble.

There's BT of course - which can last the life of the comb, I'm told - but the stuff is expensive, and I don't know of anyone who uses this method.

As an alternative to ash, one could try chalk (calcium carbonate) powder, or lime (calcium hydroxide) from a builder's merchant. You'd require eye and respiratory protection of course, as with wood-ash.

But for now - I'm definitely going to give wood-ash a try - as it's free and has been shown to work in the Ukraine, so it's not as if it's some theoretical "Hey, there's no reason why this shouldn't work" idea that someone's dreamt-up after a night on the beer.

So, I personally think it's a technique worth trying.
LJ

 

[amigadave]

I have used acetic acid as per some NBU advice on fumigating comb:

http://www.nationalbeeunit.com/downloadDocument.cfm?id=194

Works well so far, although I would probably use the freezer if there was a bit of space that wasn't already filled with food!

 

[Fritillary]

I don't get the wood ash idea at all.
How is it not going to be a major irritant to the bees? Who presumably will be forced to remove the residue - by ingesting it - when they want to use the supers. And any that is not removed is a honey contaminant?

 

[Karsal]

I don't get the wood ash idea at all.
How is it not going to be a major irritant to the bees? Who presumably will be forced to remove the residue - by ingesting it - when they want to use the supers. And any that is not removed is a honey contaminant?

Lye is a powerful base (alkali) that can be created using rain water and wood ashes. Lye created from wood ash is potassium hydroxide.

Basically it's caustic.

 

[Ukrainian beekeeper]

Hello. Finally I registered in this forum. I am the author of this video. I read your comments. I want to say that we use this method about 4 years. We sell 2-3 tons of honey every year to Europe. Our honey passes all Analyzes. We did not have any problems with the analyzes. No particles of ash were found in honey. In our area there are a lot of beekeepers and If the results of the analysis of honey will be bad, then we will not sell it anywhere. Therefore, we do not use antibiotics and try to make our honey as environmentally friendly as possible. Otherwise we will not have where to sell.
We use ash from straw and wood, wood without painting))) ash wood from trees. We do not use coal ash, plastick ash And we do not advise it to you. It is not environmentally friendly. Frames with ash do not eat mice.
Someone wrote that water with ash is bad, we have not observed a negative impact on bees during using this method.I remind, we use this method about 4 years.

 

[Brigsy]

Hello. Thanks for joining and posting.

 

[Ukrainian beekeeper]

Here's a truly brilliant idea for storing frames - from the Ukraine ...
(and she has the most delightful voice, too)

LJ

Thanks for the compliment about the voice, I thought that I have a child voice

 

[Bee Bumble]

Welcome, I look forward to your posts.