Here is the mat in the pan - it doesn't quite go end to end in the pan, but that makes it easier to pick it up to transfer the honey and comb to the straining bucket.
Here it is with one frame's worth of crushed honey on it, ready to be transferred to the straining bucket.
Now, this is why I love the mat. It has flexibility so that it can curve around and guide the honey and comb into the strainers. It can be easily lifted out of the pan and moved, honey and all to the bucket. It has an easy surface for using a rubber spatula to get the remaining honey off of the mat and into the bucket.
Here's what a full bucket looks like. I actually split this super into two buckets since a couple of the frames had very light honey in them and I wanted to keep them apart from the much darker honey in the other frames.
In general the comb I am harvesting this year is much less full than the last three years. I think this demonstrates how much the bees lost in making and capping honey when we had weeks of constant rain during the honey flow.
Linda: What strainer do you have uunder the crushed wax and honey?
ReplyDeleteBrian
It's a stack of three - a 600 micron, a 400 micron and a 200 micron - they come in a set from Dadant with the bucket and the honey gate.
ReplyDeleteThis post is very interesting Linda. I've love to see more info on the rest of the process. (By the way, I've had a bit of trouble accessing your last couple posts - I don't know if anyone else experienced it too but thought I'd let you know).
ReplyDelete