pink rubber gloves from now on.

[biglongdarren]

Up untill today i have always used them heavy long elbow length gloves while doing inspections,lifting and holding frames was always awkward and last week i dropped the frame with the queen on it but luckily she was fine.
i had always heard people talking about throwing the big leather gloves away and using rubber ones but never thought anything of it untill today when i used the rubber ones for the first time,
what a difference they are and a delight to use.
slowly but surely am learning a little.
Darren

 

[johncorne]

Wearing the marrigolds didn't stop me dropping a full brood frame and putting my size 11 wellies through it a few years back Chickens loved it though!

Jc

 

[Dishmop]

I was getting to worried there until you mentined about dropping a frame, so I suppose you are talking about hive inspections????

 

[Luminos]

Personally, i don't have a problem with leather

 

[susbees]

Nitrilephile me...slinky orange long cuff ones. Nice tight wrist joint.

 

[Tim1606]

It's disposable nitrile gloves for me.

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

The ones I have are blue, but I quite fancy pink ones.

They'd match my eyes.

D

 

[The Cumbrian]

Excuse my ignorance but the discussion over what type of gloves to wear has always puzzled me.

Personally I doubt that Marigolds and for that matter disposable nitrile gloves give much protection from stings. If my supposition is correct what is to be gained by wearing them? Why wear thin gloves which give little or no protection rather than bare hands?

 

[susbees]

Bare hands once sticky stay sticky (honey, propolis). My SBI mate says that very few stings get through two pairs of nitriles and I guess he should know. He's not far off IMO though one usually does.

Fact is that tightish nitriles reduce bee squishing and clumsy handling a lot. I do photography bare handed near the hives which makes the experience propolis free (because I had the nitriles on in the first place, likewise with marking queens).

Leather attracts stings...little feel and once stung the smell lingers.

 

[VEG]

Thinner gloves give you more feel so you squash less bees. I rarely get stung on the hands if I do it doesnt bother me. I do however have a pair of leather gloves for the rare occasion of an evil colony to look through.

 

[Black Comb]

Excuse my ignorance but the discussion over what type of gloves to wear has always puzzled me.

Personally I doubt that Marigolds and for that matter disposable nitrile gloves give much protection from stings. If my supposition is correct what is to be gained by wearing them? Why wear thin gloves which give little or no protection rather than bare hands?

Been discussed on here lots. Thick gloves usually mean you squash bees and alarm pheromone is released meaning more stings. Medical Latex or nitrile gloves mean you can feel the bees under your fingers and you do not squash them. Marigolds are a good halfway house to start. If the ends start to come down over your wrists use masking tape or postie discarded elastic bands to keep the bees out.

 

[simonf]

I started with the leather and have moved on to rubber, next stop nitrile/ latex, leather was never very comfortable

 

[The Cumbrian]

Thanks for such rapid replies. I could see and understand that the "feel" was better. What I couldn't see/didn't expect was that the thin gloves gave much protection and so couldn't see why the people who extolled their virtues didn't just use bare hands.

I can see the propolis/honey point and hadn't thought of double nitrile gloves I have never heard anybody suggest that before.

 

[Arfermo]

I had proper beekeeping leather gauntlets when I started but the bees were able to sting through them VERY EASILY INDEED. So I ditched them in favour of Sainsbury's washing up type gloves that I have used for years for pickling, bottling andwine making. Not a single sting through them I can assure you, though I do put a strip of duck tape around the top to stop the little beggars getting down inside and stinging the wrist in quantity. As for lack of feel - utter tosh. Who on earth is into petting them I ask.

As a matter of interest, a really ancient beek friend with 75 years experience(I am 77 so guess how old he is) buys leather gauntlets 3 pairs at a time and soaks them in olive oil as is stops staining and cleaning is easier. Most of the time though he works with bare hands anyway.

 

[Black Comb]

As well as the honey/propolis reason these thin gloves also allow washing of (gloved) hands between colonies ( in your wash bucket which contains a strong washing soda solution). As well as minimising disease transfer it removes the queen pheromone from the previous hive, an odour which can upset the newly opened colony.
Also a good idea to wash your hive tool between colonies.
I moved from Marigolds to nitrile last year and received fewer stings as a result.
Of course nitrile are discarded after each inspection, which can be a bit costly with several colonies.
Cheapest supplier I have found so far for nitrile is McCormick Tools.

 

[Tim1606]

As well as the honey/propolis reason these thin gloves also allow washing of (gloved) hands between colonies ( in your wash bucket which contains a strong washing soda solution). As well as minimising disease transfer it removes the queen pheromone from the previous hive, an odour which can upset the newly opened colony.
Also a good idea to wash your hive tool between colonies.

As above except a spare hive tool is in the bucket and I just get a clean one out between colonies and let the other one soak.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Tom Bick]

As well as the honey/propolis reason these thin gloves also allow washing of (gloved) hands between colonies ( in your wash bucket which contains a strong washing soda solution). As well as minimising disease transfer it removes the queen pheromone from the previous hive, an odour which can upset the newly opened colony.
Also a good idea to wash your hive tool between colonies.
I moved from Marigolds to nitrile last year and received fewer stings as a result.
Of course nitrile are discarded after each inspection, which can be a bit costly with several colonies.
Cheapest supplier I have found so far for nitrile is McCormick Tools.

Especially on the washing soda its a good habit to get into.

 

[The Cumbrian]

As well as the honey/propolis reason these thin gloves also allow washing of (gloved) hands between colonies ( in your wash bucket which contains a strong washing soda solution). As well as minimising disease transfer it removes the queen pheromone from the previous hive, an odour which can upset the newly opened colony.
Also a good idea to wash your hive tool between colonies.
I moved from Marigolds to nitrile last year and received fewer stings as a result.
Of course nitrile are discarded after each inspection, which can be a bit costly with several colonies.
Cheapest supplier I have found so far for nitrile is McCormick Tools.

I fully understand the hygiene points it was particularly the protection issue I was wondering about. There is so much talk about anaphylactic shock and being sensitised to stings the more you get. I am still at a loss to understand why a bee that can pierce leather can't (or doesn't) pierce marigolds or nitrile more easily.

 

[ruffle]

Bees evolved to pierce skin (aka leather) not rubber?

 

[Black Comb]

I fully understand the hygiene points it was particularly the protection issue I was wondering about. There is so much talk about anaphylactic shock and being sensitised to stings the more you get. I am still at a loss to understand why a bee that can pierce leather can't (or doesn't) pierce marigolds or nitrile more easily.

It does, it's just that you get fewer pierces. Also, in my experience, scraping the sting out quickly is the thing that makes most difference to my re-action. You get used to them on the hands.