Beeswax Crayons Fix Plastic Foundations???
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 มิ.ย. 2023
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If I run across a frame during inspections that needs wax, I'll grab some burr comb, wad it up, and rub it into the area that needs it. Seems to work.
I do this too! Crayons works better but I’ve don’t just what your saying and heat a bit with my torch, next inspection they have drawn it out
Every little trick helps making beekeeping easier.
Thanks Laurel and Kamon
There is always a better way.
I use this in the field while doing inspections. I use the small 1 or 2 oz molds. Leave it in the sun while inspecting and then touch up the frames that need it. Works great for me.
The follow up video to this, where we get to see the progress/results WILL bee awesome!......
That was the perfect shirt for a crayon video.
Great minds think alike!
Kamon, That stripe shirt marks you as a Steelers Fan. Welcome to the Family.
😮
I have used this method for several years, I use a block of wax from a small mold I have, it doesn't matter what shape it is...This works well, but not quite as well as coating them with melted wax and a foam roller. My bees have drawn several boxes of foundation out this year with this method because my wax pot was inaccessible and my kids rubbed the wax on instead of waiting for me to set it up. I do carry a small block of wax with me to the bee yard and use it exactly as you demonstrated. I am in South East Missouri.
Apply wax using any method shown. Then using the heat gun on low, hold the frame at eye level and give the underside a quick blast with heat gun as to use gravity and watch the wax migrate to the face of the cell wall. ;)
I've put over 500 new frames into service this year alone just rubbing wax. I use Mann Lake Rite Cell.i buy the single waxed and rub a heavy coat on everything being sure to get the corners and edges.
For doing larger spaces turn the crayon side ways and use the long edge to cover more area faster.
Glad to c someone showing this. This is the easy way to wax ur plastic. No mess like with the hot wax. TY
Hey Kamon, I do my foundation like that and it works great. It works good in the field for doing on the spot. Sometimes I just use wax I scrape off the tops of frames. Wad it in a ball and apply.
I call the process "buttering my bread".
Great video! Thanks for sharing
TIP: Use Leggos to make molds for making wax crayons. I like big blocks for whole sheets and a little 3/4" square one for touching up corners so they draw the entire foundation.
Love this idea!!
Great video Kamon!!! Common sense beekeeping hacks are desperately needed. This is a great one.
I keep a chunk of bees wax in my bee jackets just to touch up frames when I find them on a inspection an you it does work . Thanks
I've done this out in the bee yard with 'fixing' a section of a frame of badly drawn comb. Heck I've even balled up some burr comb and done it. But for prepping a lot of new foundation I still feel painting melted wax on with a roller or foam brush to be better (and faster).
Good stuff
This method shines when they have drawn only part of the frame. Warm up a wax crayon, hit the undrawn areas and they will draw the rest out if the flow is still going.
It's better to have something than nothing. Nice and portable.
Funny looking drone 🙂
This is how I do all my foundation now. I have done a couple hives with melted wax and paint brush. Sometimes I just ball a bunch of wax up, from the hive inspections, and rub it right onto the foundation, cocoons, honey, pollen, whatever is in the wax. If it's there, the bees will use it.
I'm more impressed with the fact that dewalt makes a cordless heat gun, I had no idea.
Haha right! I just discovered that last year!
Kamon, I think you should warm the beeswax stick and the plastic foundation as well. Leaving that black plastic foundation under the sun will get it warm very quickly.
Also you could put the plastic foundation in the oven at minimum temperature, my goes down to 135 F, before and after applying the wax.
Good luck.
My girls love it. Drew out the frames in a week. I use my own wax.
Thanks for sharing Kamon, I’ll try it sometime and see how it works out, good info Kamon 👍
My opinion is these are only beneficial for the corners that the bees quite didn’t draw out in a dearth or queenless etc. roller is better for coating a whole sheet, but if they have drawn %85 of a sheet of foundation and stopped, this can encourage them to finish it (with a flow or feed of course)
Done this quite a bit. In a pinch just used the burr comb out in the field. Just ball it up and set it in the sun while you work another frame or two. Works like a charm and bee’s actually will draw it out better.
I make square crayons about 3/4" around and put it in my bee jacket. It really works, but yes, on hot days or warm it up first. When you find a comb where they didn't draw the whole foundation, you just pull it out and hit the edges, and they do draw it out
I also use a brick. Take a stack of foundation out on the picnic table and grate it like cheese. Very quick and easy
OH Ohhhhhh the first thing I see a big yellow honey bee !! Oh I want a hive filled with bees your size 😂😂❤❤ instead of pounds of honey ?? I could have tons of honey….. sorry it’s 1:30 in the morning. I’ve had entirely too much coffee and built entirely too many honey frames, and that Bee T-shirt.?? ❤❤ laughing I couldn’t not say it !! one tired bee keeper to another… but on a serious level here I love your idea❤ I wonder how it would work leaving the foundation out in the hot sun an then try applying it ?? Because I have 20 100% white plastic, honey supers, and my bees refuse, absolutely refuse to build on it they have no problem, eating the wax coating off of it do use elsewhere… all my deep brood frames are plastic cell double dipped wax. They have no problem building on that. I have honey supers built out of the same plastic foundation double dipped, and they will build on that “ all are wood framing” but they flat out refuse to build on the white background…😮😮 but I need to buy some good pure bees wax an try that!! Thanks for a great idea coz it might help 👍
We use it. We keep a bar or 2 of beeswax in the truck in a container in our trucks. We find it works best when the wax is softened not a hard stick. Soften where one can easily push into the wax block. It glides over the foundation and bees will take to it way better than a hard stick. We have been doing this for many years. One also like you say has to have the bees and resources to draw the wax. Many beekeepers over look the basics as to why bees will draw wax in the first place. We find it a fast easy way to fix up frames and works for the majority of our colonies.
I use chunks about 3" wide and I cover it much faster.. no need to heat the foundation or use a heat gun. The bees use it cold just fine
Beeswax push ups ! I can't see using them to wax frames. But I can see them being handy when you have frames with bare spots that aren't drawn in the bee yard. Spot wax the areas they haven't drawn and put back in hive.
I would try applying it cold, then running the heat gun across it. See if that will melt it onto the comb better?
What a clever idea! And save some mullah using your own wax.
Great idea!!! Thanks for sharing!!
I heard a tip from Blake Shook. It may have been on the live chat with you. He said just running a hair dryer over old stored foundations will freshen them up. Maybe rub the wax on and then go over it with a hair dryer or heat gun.
One inch p v c pipe with a flat cap on the bottom, not around one. You can make it as long as you want. Then put in the freefor a couple of hours it will push right out
Good idea. I get some wonky comb and that might be handy. Thanks for the information. Thanks and take care.
I also wad up some burr comb and rub it on the areas that need it, been doing it for years and it works for me …. By the way like your bee shirt … lol
I will bump my hand torch on and off in the field to warm the crayon end. Then run on warmed. I have also laid the crayon against my smoker can. It warms the crayon and I touch up the spots they didn’t draw, drop back into production. It never leaves the apairy.
I use this method when doing inspections and it does work
I think done in the field, leaving it in a warm car will be easiest. On the dash or something. But in the bee house you can rub it on warm or even cold, then warm up the wax with your heat gun once applied.
Could lay the frames out in the hot sun , then use the crayon on them. Probably work better
be careful leaving frames in the hot sun; they can warp, ask me how I know.....
Hey skinny beer cans make good crayon molds. Of course you have to remove the beer first.
I wonder if rubbing it onto the foundation and then using the heat gun to melt the wax onto the foundation would be better? Might even everything out and give a good spread.
You have to be real careful and apply only minimal heat. Either a heat gun or a hair dryer will warp plastic foundation, then you’re off to the wonky comb wars.
@@paulchristu996 right. Just have to judge it right. The wax will melt well before the foundation warps.
Counselling service for beekeepers who drop molten wax and honey in the wife’s kitchen 🤣
I pour my wax into silicone molds that have lik1 12 "twinkie" shaped holes. been using them to rub my foundations for ages...
Great demo Kaymon, just à terrible shame about the T-shirt 🤣🤣😎🙌🐝🐝
Lol you are just jealous!
I wonder if it would work if I use the wax crayon in the morning and let the frame sit outside in the 90 degree sunshine. It would melt the wax then pick it up and distribute the wax throughout the frame.
Great video
Unrelated question. Should I harvest if it might rain? Thank you in advance for your help
I give all the new beekeepers a nice chunk of wax and use it during inspections for the foundations.
Love it... I've got a mini crockpot in my Amazon cart, just waiting on money 🤦.
An idea, leave the foundations in the sun, they are black and should heat up really fast, then you can use the stick to coat it and the foundation itself will melt the wax.
Alternately use some sort of hot plate or oven to heat up the foundation to ~50-60°C. In theory it should be more efficient and a lot faster.
I love the shirt! Great video!
It is a great shirt!
5:14 adorable
Is that a wax cappings press behind you on the floor?
just checked your shorts and didn't see an update. i'll likely make these myself regardless.
Hey Kamon. Thanks for the video. I see you have a hand press on the floor behind you to your left. What brand is it and do you like it? I am looking to get a press like that for some comb I need to crush and strain honey from to feed back to my bees. Thanks......
Hey Ken, this is a Lyson honey/wax press sold by BetterBee. It is made way better than the other ones I have seen online.
I am not sure how it would work for things besides honey/wax because I haven't tried it but it stands to reason it should still work!
Lol what a shirt though!
Kamon what model Is that juice press on the floor behind you. I have been looking for a good sturdy model to buy? Can you put it in a video,
I do the same but I put it in the direct sun for 5 minutes melts perfect.
I saw this done this past weekend. I’m planning on melting wax this coming weekend and brushing the wax on. The comments see to be very positive.
I"ve been wadding up random burr comb I find if I see dry frames in hives they don't really want to draw. Rub it on the same way. Seems to work.
If a foundation has been sitting around for a while I’ll hit it quickly with the heat gun to soften up the wax and the bees will draw it better…. could probably work here too to smooth out the “flakiness” you were experiencing…. but be careful you will warp the plastic foundation.
Wow your wife has a DeWalt hair dryer.
Wonder if the side by side comparison was done.
My bees are lazy , I've tried everything to make them draw comb. Seems the only way they will make comb is to stuff foundation into the brood area. Quite frustrating
I warm up the wax and then use the same technique to put it in the foundation and then use the heat gun on the foundation moving it back and forth wax goes into the foundation more evenly.
Ha Kamon good video I now have bees wax to render and do frames with. Question the bettle dine a max towels where do u get them from can u buy them from food lion. Mann lake just cost so much Thanks Have a blessed week
Thats the way I do all of mine, I turn it into bars then rub it on. Ive never had a issue.
Kamon, I just did a version of your method yesterday. I had old frames I scraped and stored. I needed them back in action for a split that is growing fast. I had a bit of wax leftover from coating foundations this spring so I put it out in the hot Texas sun for 15 minutes (102 F) to soften it up and rubbed it on the old foundation like waxing a surfboard. We’ll see if it speeds the girls up in drawing it out. I have a question for you though. I’m a second year beekeeper and I used the crockpot melted wax and foam roller method to wax foundations. I went a little heavy on the wax and coated the foundation. Does the thick layer of wax discourage the bees from drawing it out? I ask this because two of my hives are honeybound and they each have a medium super with heavy waxed foundations above the deep brood box. They aren’t drawing any new comb on any of the foundation in the super - just filling the brood area with nectar and filling up most of the spots for the queen to lay. Thanks for your videos - I’m a long time watcher and first time commenter.
Hey Ryan thanks for dropping the comment! Heavy wax makes the bees draw it faster in my opinion. But sometimes when bees get honey bound they get into a unbalanced state and it can be difficult for them to draw. This happens most when you go from deeps to mediums since you can't pull a bait deep frame into the medium foundations
@@kamonreynolds It’s good to know I didn’t impede them in any way. Just bees doin’ bee stuff. I’ve been rearranging frames and checker boarding some full honey frames in the super. We’re into a second mesquite flow right now so I guess the girls are more focused on storing resources than building infrastructure. Thanks again for all your videos. Keep them coming.
I have on occasion moved a deep up into the medium box and left the frame below it in the deep empty for 4-5 days. Yes they will build burr comb below the deep frame as bee space is violated but for a few days it’s not usually too bad then put it back as normal once they start drawing a frame in the medium. Just don’t forget it or you will have a mess.
Is there a follow up video on this?
Someone may have asked, but could you warm the plastic?
K&L, another fine video. I think I will try that out. I’ve always thought it would be nice to have a very small battery operated hot wax sprayer similar to an air brush to fix those foundations at the hive so the bees will draw them out. I will try the crayon out!
African Bees wax is the best if you can find it.
Keep in the a warm car until you need to use it. And, it'll help your car smell good. But may attract bees into your car. Lol
Nice shirt bee man!
When you are a beekeeper people give you gifts like this!
Where can I get the Ian Steppler commercial hair dryer?
That is a great question!
set wax out in sun an hour b4 u go waxing,,should bee a good spread
Put the wax less foundation in the sun for a few minutes. The wax should slide right on.
Would melting the wax and then “painting” it on work better?
Thx
Ds
Melting and painting it on is heaps faster
My advice would be to leave the back foundation in the sun. It will heat up faster and stay hit for longer. If you leave the wax outside and the foundation in the sun, now we are talking peanut butter jelly time 😂😂
Duh, Why didnt I think of this...😮
Use the heat gun on the foundation after you run it with the crayon.
If you have the heat gun with you why not use it on the wax/frame after applying wax with the crayon?
To avoid warping the frame.
Why don't you just use fishing line, in brood boxes? They seem to draw that faster.
Is that a Charlie Brown or Linus shirt you are wearing?
Damn, you sure look like a bee in that shirt.
Sorry Kamon but with your hair slicked to the side your looking like Alfalfa from The Little Rascals! 😂
😂 What a great show! One of my favorites!
I would heat up the frames instead and then run the beeswax over it
You look like a bumblebee with that black and yellow shirt! Lol!
Cool shirt, just like Trump's only his has black & white.
waxon.
Why just melt the wax and paint it on with a brush
Why SO FAST?? 😂😂🤪
Your wife uses a Dewalt hair dryer? Really?
She is tough!
Great video