MRH wrote:
> The orchard owner where I have my bees has a small cement mixer--15-20
> gallons.  He will let me use it to mix sugar syrup to feed the bees.
> Anything I should be concerned about from the cement crud in it?  Anything I
> should do besides rinse it out?
>   

I wouldn't think there'd be any problem from contamination, about the 
worst thing cement is likely to do is maybe add some calcium to the 
water, and possibly make the pH slightly more alkaline.  That said, it 
seems to me that a cement mixer is really designed for liquids a lot 
thicker than sugar syrup.  I would think that it is likely to splash a 
lot, and may spill quite a bit when you dump it.  It could make quite a 
mess, I know that I spill a non-trivial amount of cement when I use my 
cement mixer, no matter how careful I am. 

Any particular reason for not just using 5-gallon pails and stirring 
with a stick?

-- 
Tim Eisele
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