Should change subject to crystallized honey, but then we loose the
thread so...

Up here on lat 60 we are used to this stuff. Seems we got more than our
fair share. When canola is grown regularly, both autumn and spring sown,
most yards have access to it some time during summer. The pollen is very
attractive to bees and they fly far to get it.
>
> If you get this highly thixotropic honey often, the
> best tool to use may be a bed-of-nails fixture such
> as those used for heather honey.
>
No Jim, that is a totally different story. Equally tricky to get out of
the comb, but don't mix up thixotropic with crystallized honey. You can
get the ling heather out, but no way you can melt crystals without
damaging the comb. At least in a commercial operation with some demand
for efficiency.

I can only see two options for Peter.
One is to cut out and melt the whole combs, but then there is the need
for a melter with a large bottom surface, thermostat heating etc.

The other is to put the boxes under the brood nest in spring and let the
bees do the job. Usually the way to go, bees use the honey for spring
build up and get a jump start --> better crop later --> and you get some
of it back.

Regarding the Cowan spinner: I got one of those too once upon the time.
Took me a season to realize it isn't the best thing for the job. When
using a wax spinner, one has to empty it regularly during the day to
avoid honey building up in the wax block that is created.

The way to go is to have a small sump under the uncapper that holds
around 50 liters of wax/honey. That is pumped to the spinner, and the
spinner is run until the sump under the uncapper is filled again with
wax/honey. Spinner is stopped, clean wax is scraped off the perforated
walls of the drum, and the cycle is repeated. This way the spun out wax
will hold very little honey, some of the crystals will even go with the
honey instead of building up in the wax. Scraping the wax out takes only
a minute or two, you loose less honey, and don't have all the work to
get that big hard cake of wax out of the spinner at the end of day. A
far better way of using a spinner, thinks me who tried both ways....

http://www.algonet.se/~beeman/biodling/exline-nf.htm there is a picture
of the home made spinner I used earlier.

For the smaller operator there is another way of separating honey and
wax. It works for extracting up to 1000 kg a day. A stainless sump with
bottom heating (heater+thermostat in water, double bottom) approx. 1000
x 500 mm bottom surface is used. Outlet in one of the short sides.
Bottom sloping towards the outlet with 50-100 mm.

Use under the uncapper, or uncap manually with knife into it. Temp is
kept below wax melting during the day, most honey is liquefied and run
out without getting warm for long time. End of day the temp is turned up
near water boil, wax and remaining honey is melted and run out during
the night. If there is cocoons or pollen in the wax, a perforated sheet
of stainless should stop it from entering the outlet pipe. Bend it in a
half circle in front of the outlet to get big enough surface to avoid
clogging.

A lot of people use this system here, it's simple, safe, and relatively
cheap to make.

--
Regards

P-O Gustafsson, Sweden
[log in to unmask]  http://www.algonet.se/~beeman/

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