Honey Extraction Weekend
Post date: Aug 26, 2020 3:25:51 PM
The Big Sky Beekeepers honey extractor will be available for use by club members between 8am and 5pm on the weekend of September 19 and 20. Club members who have paid dues for 2020 are invited to extract their honey. We will have the extractor set up at the home of Jay Mitman, 6500 Sun Valley Road, Florence, MT. You may schedule a time slot online at this link:
Type your name in the vacant time slots you would like to reserve. If you encounter difficulty scheduling online, you may schedule via email at bigskybeekeepers@gmail.com
Hand crank and electric motor powered extractors will be set up for you to use. Up to 9 medium frames can be extracted simultaneously in the hand crank extractor, up to 8 frames in the electric extractor. If you have extracted honey before and have 9 frames or fewer to extract, one hour is probably sufficient. If you are extracting for the first time or have 10 to 27 frames, you should schedule 2 consecutive hours. If you have more than 27 frames, you may require more than 2 hours. A heated uncapping knife will be available. Bring enough buckets to contain your extracted honey and a container for your cappings. Please bring your honey frames in a closed container such as a plastic bin so that we don’t drip honey all over and attract a lot of bees. Bring one or more assistants. This is a laborious task and it really helps to divide up the work. If you have time, come early and stay late to assist those extracting before and after you. Remember that honey extraction goes much more quickly if the frames to be extracted are warm, so it is best to keep them in a warm place for at least several hours prior to extraction.
Please review the instructions prior to using the extractor: