The equipment I use for applying OAV:  

Varrox wand (@$165 USD); This Swiss-made tool is the best I have found. The Varrox can be dunked in water to cool it down, making for the fastest cycling between hives.  This is a good source: https://oxavap.com/product/varrox-heavy-duty-oxalic-acid-vaporizer.   There is a newer and much pricier ($500+ USD) version of the Varrox, with perhaps some advantages (it has a self-contained battery and automatic cycle timers). I haven't used it. However I can vouch for the sturdiness of the original Varrox as I have done thousands of cycles with mine. 


3M half-face respirator with acid gas cartridges:  This is an Amazon link to what I use which has the correct cartridges included: https://www.amazon.com/Reusable-Respirator-Mask-60923-Filters  (The cartridges, part # 60923, are combos with acid gas & organic vapor protection. Big box hardware stores often sell the same mask, but without the right cartridge, just ones with  organic vapor cert.  You want the acid gas, even though you are "vaporizing". ) And BTW, this mask offers P100 protection, which is a serviceable replacement for N95 medical masks. Early on during Covid when we couldn't get & were advised not to seek out scarce medical masks, I wore my OAV respirator everywhere. At first people thought I was nuts, but by mid-spring people were asking where they could get one....!)  The price on Amazon is pretty good, as I have paid as much as $35-40. Betterbee also sells them.  I replace the cartridges every other year before I begin my intense fall and winter treatment series.

Battery: I use a lawn-mower sized battery from NAPA (a US-based auto parts chain). I buy a fairly hefty one with 430/350 cold cranking amps. A fresh/fully charged battery will do about 20 hives on a charge. I think it costs about $70 USD.  Of course you may also need a battery charger.

Ancillary other stuff: 

Timers, though you can use your phone or watch if you only run one cycle at a time. I have two Varrox's, and extra batteries, so I have a raft of separate  timers all ticking through the three-stages of treatment for concurrently treated hives. 

Measuring spoons: 1/4, tsp, half tsp. are essential, though I finally found a 3/4 tsp which is perfect for my three-box winter stacks.

Paper towels to block up the front entrance around the wand stem during treatment.

Blue painters' tape to seal up any leaky places on the fly.

Bucket with cold water for dunking the wand.

I had flat trays (like rimless cookie sheets) made to slip in on the floor to protect it from the wand's heat. The tray also helps stabilize the wand as I have screen bottom boards above my solid bottoms.

You will also need a smoker and a flashlight to shine in the entrance to verify that you won't be sticking the wand directly into the cluster. Use the the smoker to shift the bees upwards and generally loosen the cluster beforehand.

And, you need some OA.  I confess I use Savogran wood bleach. Not Kosher, I realize, but much cheaper. I have been using it for a decade, which savvy readers will recognize as being before the USDA got itself together.  The legally approved product is Api-Bioxal in the US.

> PB: I recall that you don't do OAV because of your beard, but as JF noted there are some somewhat beard-tolerant masks out there.  I debated whether to make that note in my first post, as I was definitely not criticizing your efforts to help your friends with their new hives.  I was more just commenting on the advisability of some kind of early OA treatment for packages these days.  I just don't see novice beekeepers buying a whole set of OAV gear before their bees have even capped the first cells. Even mixing and spritzing OA in sugar syrup through the package sides seems like a lot to ask of first-time beekeepers.

Nancy

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