Reptile heating mats

[simonforeman]

I have added the below to a thread in the honey section but had no replies....

Does anybody use a reptile mat to stand buckets on to melt OSR honey? Do they work?-
I have seen ones that heat upto 35 degrees. I have around 10kg in each of 2 buckets wondering if they would melt or not, I intend to melt and add seed to make soft set.

If they do work and you use them what process do you use?

 

[Murox]

Cant help with reptile heat mats but there are a whole range of silicone based heating mats available. The one I know about are for heating the oil pan on a motor vehicle , made with self adhesive on one side - they work really well. See no reason why another type/application should not be fine. Only query would be the weight of bucket pressing down directly onto it.

 

[drex]

35 degrees is not enough to dissolve osr crystals. I use 45-50 degrees. All crystals must be totally dissolved if intending to seed. An old fridge, fan and tubular heater with an STC stat are what I use.

 

[MerryBee]

I agree with Drex ....BUT

You do not necessarily need to seed OSR honey to make soft set. I have never done it, as the honey is already quite smooth enough. Just try some before you start.. If the texture is OK all you need to do is gently warm the bucketful to around 32-33 degrees until it is flowing, use a creamer for a few minutes, then put in jars. Nothing more complicated than that.
You only need to seed with a smooth honey if your bucketful is unacceptably coarse. Then you will need to liquify it completely at around 50 degrees before cooling, adding the seed and creaming.

 

[Cuckmere couple]

my food dehydrator method for reducing water content (20.5 - 19) has also had the impact of converting OSR to soft

 

[simonforeman]

I agree with Drex ....BUT

You do not necessarily need to seed OSR honey to make soft set. I have never done it, as the honey is already quite smooth enough. Just try some before you start.. If the texture is OK all you need to do is gently warm the bucketful to around 32-33 degrees until it is flowing, use a creamer for a few minutes, then put in jars. Nothing more complicated than that.
You only need to seed with a smooth honey if your bucketful is unacceptably coarse. Then you will need to liquify it completely at around 50 degrees before cooling, adding the seed and creaming.

Thanks Merry....When you say use a creamer is it a hand creamer like you can get from beekeeping suppliers and just stir for a period of time?

How long to stir for please? And what does the stirring do to stop it setting rock hard again?

 

[linoleum bonypart]

I'm not sure you can get a mat to consistently heat a bucket... You can make a fridge heater for less than £50

 

[linoleum bonypart]

Thanks Merry....When you say use a creamer is it a hand creamer like you can get from beekeeping suppliers and just stir for a period of time?

How long to stir for please? And what does the stirring do to stop it setting rock hard again?

Stainless paint stirrer... Not long it soon does the job... Be sure not to introduce air bubbles

 

[MerryBee]

I just use the hand creamer purchased from Thornes. At £25 its ludicrously expensive for what it is but it certainly does the job. I probably use it for about 5 minutes on a bucket.
As others have said try not to incorporate air into the honey.
Why does it not set rock hard again.? I honestly dont know why it works but it does.

 

[MerryBee]

I worried that the paint stirrers are not food safe, Some are definitely not although stainless steel would be fine.

 

[drex]

I use a stainless spaghetti ladle, the ladle bit of which is beaten flat and the handle shaped to fit the chuck of a cordless drill. Cost about £2.

 

[Swift Nick]

I have added the below to a thread in the honey section but had no replies....

Does anybody use a reptile mat to stand buckets on to melt OSR honey? Do they work?-
I have seen ones that heat upto 35 degrees. I have around 10kg in each of 2 buckets wondering if they would melt or not, I intend to melt and add seed to make soft set.

If they do work and you use them what process do you use?

I am currently making a queen cell incubator, I purchased a 25w reptile mat, The performance was really poor, it raised the temperature of a sealed box by 1 degree in 1 hour. A 60w bulb raised the temp by 10 degrees in 20 mins, about 30x as effective. I appreciate you cant use a bulb without an insulated enclosure, but a reptile mat just won’t work.
Fortunately I purchased on Amazon, so I sent it back.
You really need an enclosure, old fridge or Kingspan lined box, with a thermostat.
Maybe you can make a honey warmer that can be used as a queen cell incubator too.

 

[simonforeman]

I've found very good plans to make an insulated ply warming cabinet. I have all the play and insulation to do this just the tube heater and thermostat required..

Can somebody add a link of the ones suitable on Amazon please.

 

[linoleum bonypart]

Just use an old fridge... More insulsted

Underfloor Heating Manual Thermostat. Simple to use! Suitable for almost all electric underfloor heating systems. 16Amp https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004J0CBHC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_t5B8CbYM1W35Q
Hylite 1ft Eco Tube Heater (45W) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00ID7UF7A/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_R6B8Cb219DBQC

 

[simonforeman]

So I have recieved a stc1000 and a 80w 2' tube heater.... I'm going to make play box this week. Do I need to add a fan as I was not going to?

Also I presume the tube go's in bottom of box and wooden frame to stand buckets on, but hos much space do you give between the tube and bottom of the buckets please?

 

[drex]

A fan will distribute the heat more evenly. I have one in my modified fridge. I have my heat source on the side. Putting a bucket directly over it would create a hot spot on bottom of bucket.

 

[simonforeman]

A fan will distribute the heat more evenly. I have one in my modified fridge. I have my heat source on the side. Putting a bucket directly over it would create a hot spot on bottom of bucket.

What kind of fan do you use drex please?

Will my 80watt tube be too much even if I mount to the side and give a good space all round?

 

[drex]

I use a 240v bought from Maplin . It is about 5 inch diameter. A lot on here use 12v computer fans, but I wanted to stick to one voltage format
No need to worry about the power of your heater, provided the stat is good with decent air circulation

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

What kind of fan do you use drex please?

Will my 80watt tube be too much even if I mount to the side and give a good space all round?

Mount it on the bottom, six to eight inches below the bucket - heat rises