Hivemakers Thymol recipe (see sticky post)

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I made up the thymol mix as per recipe and then diluted it by 5 to be able to dose smaller quantities of syrup.
 
5 gallons is 4.6 litres
so 10 kg of Tesco's finest and 5liters of water lovingly drained off of the moors and expensively sold by South West Water ( THE MOST EXPENSIVE TAP WATER IN THE UK !) plus 5ml of Hivemakers magic exilire of instant varroa death ... should do it !
 
I started using the Dave Cushman recipe years ago (have not checked if it is the same as Hivemaker's) and mix in my syrup before bottling in 2L water bottles.

In slowly increase the dosage in the syrup until my queens just go off lay, then cut back, but always add some in (min. 1ml thymolated mixture to 1L syrup) as it ensures the sugar syrup never goes off. I used no other treatment whatsoever last autumn on two of my hives as a test, with no adverse effects.

Any syrup leftover then gets topped up to the rim and the bottles get put in a dark spot in the shed.
I have kept full bottles of 1:1 and 2:1 syrup with Thymol added for over 6 months, (except for the bottle which fell over, rolled under the lowest shelf of a stack of shelves, and stayed there for 15 months, but was still fine) without any adverse effects, and the strength of the mixture seems to have also been unaffected.

The only other thing I have tried is using RO (reverse osmosis) water as it it is far purer than ordinary water, but the bees don't seem bothered either way. I use RO because I grow corals, and if I was to put tapwater in my tank it would kill them all fairly quickly due to the cocktail of chemicals in it (remember this is the stuff we drink). On the other hand, RO water is so pure it lacks any of the minerals or salts so vital for any life sustenance.

I can only assume this is why my bees started taking water from the wildlife pond I intentionally dug next to the apiary a couple of years ago, where the water is now a nice peaty shade of brown. A bucket of fresh tap water filled with straw (to avoid drowning) is not half as popular. (Maybe I could just dose the pond with Thymol and cut out the middle man - j/k.)
 
Surely when you add the 10kg of sugar to the 5L of water you will end up with more than 5L of product? (in fact, just over 10L of product). This would therefore need 10ml of HM Thymol added to it according to his recipe?
 
"I use the emulsified thymol pre mix in my syrup and would not be without it. Bees don't seem to mind it and my bees last year also came through the winter."
Can I buy this ready just to add to feed as I am not very confident about mixingit it myself - well also to lazy to do so. I just want something to add to feed straight away without having to mess about.
 
can anybody tell me how long the premix solution keeps for ,or is it just a one season mix.
And how to use the green oasis I have heard about.
I apollagise if basic questions but this is my first year and first winter preps.
I have joined local bka, but I have found that a quicker response would be from forum members even if quite varied lol.

ZZ

not worthy
 
can anybody tell me how long the premix solution keeps for ,or is it just a one season mix.

I have some left from last year, the crystals re-formed in the bottom of the oil, but a couple of hours in the warmer sorted that. I guess if the lid has been on and it's been kept in a coolish place it will be fine. I've used mine and the varroa are dropping well.

And how to use the green oasis I have heard about.
Don't know quite what you mean here.....but I'll answer anyway;). Buy a block of green oasis from the florist....usually about £1. Don't get the grey as it doesn't absorb. Cut a slice off the end, maybe a quarter inch thick, cut that in half so you have two quarter inch thick pieces. 1 piece per treatment. I then put the piece into a small plastic bag and syringe 20 ml over it, this year it seems to need time in the warmer to soak in, I guess the outside temperature is cooler than last. Take the piece to your hive and cut it into two pieces and put on top of the brood frames a little way apart. Close up the hive. Make sure your floor tray is in and the entrance reduced. Check the tray often to see how many are dropping. Clean the tray after each check.

I apollagise if basic questions but this is my first year and first winter preps.
I have joined local bka, but I have found that a quicker response would be from forum members even if quite varied lol.

Variety is the spice of life and the mixed responce often shows that options are available.


Frisbee
 
Can I buy this ready just to add to feed as I am not very confident about mixingit it myself - well also to lazy to do so. I just want something to add to feed straight away without having to mess about.

You can't buy this mix, but it's pretty simple. Thymol readily dissolves in meths, which is easily available from hardware stores in 500ml bottles. You only need to add the thymol to the meths and it has dissolved. You do need a seperate bottle though, but a clean squash bottle will do. The emulsified mix is a bit like the cream on top of the cake. I have never made it, because my syrup quantities are not great. A 10 litre container will shake easily enough. A 100 litre container is a different matter.

Frisbee
 
I have ingredients and am now about to go make up a batch of HMs premix emulsified solution.
Is this what you put onto oasis or is that another recipe?

ZZ

:troll:
 
Ahh I didn`t know if they were the same .
What mix is for oasis? please

ZZ
 
Ahh I didn`t know if they were the same .
What mix is for oasis? please

ZZ

8gms thymol dissolved in 12 gms vegetable oil. This is for 1 dose. Of course you don't have to mix it up individually......so you could mix 80gms thymol in 120gms of oil. I then use a 20ml syringe to put onto the oasis. Warm the oil in a sealed container to dissolve.

The recipe and it's accompanying thread is a sticky. Easy to find.

Frisbee
 
Thanks Frisbee for being so helpfull.
Beats being sarcy as i said before was looking for the link and being new too.
Thanks again frisbee and good beekeeping.

ZZ

not worthy
 
Thanks Frisbee for being so helpfull.
Beats being sarcy as i said before was looking for the link and being new too.
Thanks again frisbee and good beekeeping.

ZZ

not worthy

I hope I wasn't sarcy. I've just been and looked for the thread to point it out for you as the follow-on comments are often useful, but the one in the sticky is the emulsified mix and not the varroa treatment one. That must be elsewhere. Difficult to search for if you don't know what you are looking for.

Frisbee
 
Thank you HM have made thymol premix solution and will hopefully put on tommorrow.
Thanks for link have saved it for easy ref on computer,
Not completely computer literate but getting along.
Thanks again to frisbee and yourself.

ZZ

not worthy
 
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