Wax Dipping Bee Equipment

This shows how we cook woodenware at 300 degrees fahrenheit for 10 minutes in a mixture of 20 microcrystalline wax and 80 paraffin wax.

Wax dipping bee equipment.

Wax dipping is an alternative to painting for wood preservation. This process cooks. Parrafin wax is one of the industrial wax that you can use to dip your boxes in. What is wax dipping.

It is the placement of various beehive components or parts in hot molten wax. It would have been nice if it were taller but it works ok and i didn t have the time or money to get a better one made. Wax dipping beekeeping equipment. Hivefive apiary bee supply llc 149 trident point rd.

When to wax dip wax dipping can be done at any time of the year subject to the precautions listed below. However when apiarists dip their hive parts in molten hot wax it is usually for periods of up to 15 minutes the molten wax consists of 80 90 paraffin 99. I haven t switched to using beeswax because it is so low temp and will get sticky. Wax dipping is also an effective way of disinfecting wooden parts and can be used to salvage equipment exposed to foulbrood as spores are eradicated by the extreme heat involved.

This process is quick does not require space for drying and should last much longer than paint or stain. Coating the wood in wax is beneficial for the bees and the hive itself. Even better it can sterilize equipment including killing afb spores and is a recommended method for dealing with disease risk. The term dip means a brief immersion into a liquid.

The wax is super expensive but having it full means i can do 6 deep boxes at a time compared to 4 which really makes a difference when you are doing a lot of equipment. Fully refined with 0 8 oil content. I was expanding my beekeeping and bought a lot of new equipment so i decided to try dipping in wax and gum rosin to preserve the equipment. Wax dipped beehives and beekeeping equipment.

The initial set up for wax dipping is both complex and costly. The only alternative methods of sterilization are gamma irradiation and complete destruction by fire. Melt temperature range from 60c 62c. Dipping is often conducted during the winter months when the active beekeeping season has finished and apiarists have time to attend to maintenance of hive material and other equipment.

Here is a fact sheet from the new zealand.