Disclaimer:

This blog explains how I keep bees. It works for me, it might not work for you. Use my methods at your own risk. Always wear protective clothing and use a smoker when working bees.

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Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Dealing with granulated honey

Now is the time that many beekeepers are looking at pails and bottles of granulated honey. The frustrating part about dealing with honey that is rock hard. The trick is to warm it up without wrecking the honey. Too much heat can scorch honey and make in unpalatable. Or, heat it and it will darken.
There are some solutions. Like bottles in a water bath in a crock pot on the low setting. A microwave will wreck clear plastic containers. Low Density opaque  plastic can take the microwave just fine.
Here are some other ideas:
 A bucket heater strap. They work ok. The bucket gets hot and you need to stir it.
 A honey bottler: These are the best. They cost from $1300 and up. Temperature is regulated with a water immersion heater easy to control and has a no drip fill valve. I own two of these and they work better than anything else on the market today.
 I like this idea for on the cheap. This gentleman took and old refrigerator and put a 100 watt light bulb on the bottom. Ran it through a thermostat. Sets the thermostat for 100 degrees for bottles and 110 degrees for pails. The pail would go on a shelf in the mid level. A pail would need to be stirred after a while.
This should be wired by a licensed electrician.Wiring yourself can be dangerous and you could burn your house down.