Honey Extraction
Honey Extraction Tips / Tricks / Services and information.
Collecting honey is perhaps the most popular part of beekeeping. It’s the fruits of the bees’ and your labor. In fact, many people become beekeepers solely because they want to harvest honey.
Whether you want to keep your honey or sell it to others, honey harvesting needs specialized tools. Let’s take a look at some of the most debated tools: honey extractors.
What to Look for When Buying a Honey Extractor
A honey extractor is used to extract honey from combs without breaking or damaging them. It’s a cool gadget which works effectively, thanks to centrifugal force. Essentially, it’s a cylinder that holds your frame basket, pulling honey off it as it spins.
They’re also the most costly pieces of beekeeping equipment you can buy. Unlike our other tools, these machines are quite big. They’re usually made from metal (most commonly stainless steel), and require good design and proper mechanics to work well.
Given the complexity of the design, you should expect a price tag to match. This means choosing a honey extractor wisely is very important. Here are some things to think about before you rush out to buy one.
Are Honey Extractors Necessary?
Unless you’re producing honey for commercial reasons, the answer is probably no. Although they can add to your beekeeping, they’re not useful to all beekeepers. I hate to say it, but they’re especially unhelpful for beginner beekeepers.
Your first hive isn’t likely to produce enough honey for you to enjoy, and even if it does, it’s not a good idea to take that honey. It’s better to strengthen your hive for a while. Bees rely on their honey to survive the winter, they feed it to their young, too. If you want a thriving colony, the best thing you can do is leave the honey to the bees until they establish a strong base.
If you want to sell your supply or you’re taking excessive amounts of honey from a large hive, an extractor will save you time. Even then, wait until you actually need one before you invest. Otherwise, you’ll have a shiny new dust collector until you can put it to use.
Honey Extractors Are Not for Everyone
I understand the appeal of extractors. They’ll make even hobby beekeeping feel professional. Honey extractors have value when they’re needed, but if they’re not, they could be more trouble than they’re worth.
Honey extractors are a significant expense, as I mentioned. They are considered machinery, so the price is justified. But if you can’t afford one, don’t feel pressured into getting one.
Some beekeeper associations will rent out extractors, so there may be no need to buy one at all. Contact a local beekeeper, beekeeping association, or club. They might be able to help you, and you won’t have to commit to an extractor of your own.
Extractors only have one purpose; to serve beekeepers who need them as they’re intended to be used. They’re not worth investing in just for the sake of it.
Smaller hives, or fewer frames, aren’t suited to extractors. You’ll lose more honey than you gather. They’re also big, so if you don’t have ample space to store your extractor, it might become a burden.
They Are for Extracted Honey
The superiority of unmixed honey is a matter of opinion. We’ve even heard that some beekeepers would rather set fire to their hives than produce extracted honey.
The key argument here is that all extracted honey tastes exactly the same and can be bought at any grocery store you walk into. Since extractors pull honey from multiple frames at once, the flavor of each individual frame is lost.
Information Source: https://beehivehero.com/best-honey-extractor/
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