Solid rape honey

[Neils]

No argument from me on that point.

[Mellifera Crofter]

Two years later and I'm still struggling with oil seed rape honey. I realise I need to get tubs with taps on them and follow Rosie's heating advice (sorry - I haven't done that yet!). In the meantime I did put the tubs in the heating cabinet but perhaps not for long enough - I don't know. I get some honey strained through, and then it just sits there again in the strainer and won't budge.

So now I'm wondering what size strainers or filters are you using for oil seed rape honey? I'm using the stainless steel double filter from Thornes. The honey goes through the top one, but not the bottom one, and the top one can't be used on its own. I don't really want to put the tubs back in the heater (or not until I get one with a tap). Any suggestions?

Kitta

[fatshark]

Kitta
You need to melt it more … the bottom filter is getting clogged with crystallised honey. I make sure mine is warmed right through and is clearish, not too cloudy, before you filter it. This might take 24+ hours at 45-50oC, mixing periodically to ensure it gets heated through evenly.

i use the Thornes filter you describe. Usually I spin it out of warmed supers - I just stack them on my warming cabinet set at about 40oC for a day to two, then filter it as it runs from the extractor. This year there was a lot of hawthorn in with it and it was easier to work with.

[gavin]

Got some hawthorn honey here too, with only a little rape in it I think. Also from other hives a decent rape crop which is only now turning white and solid. I think that it remained fairly warm at the end of the OSR flow so I had no problem with honey setting in the comb.

[Mellifera Crofter]

Thanks Fatshark. I probably removed the tubs too early from the cabinet warmer and set the temperature too low as well (over cautious). I'll definitely follow the stirring advice as well.

I managed to extract my combs ok, Gavin (apart from a few that collapsed because they had foundation without wire) and immediately started filtering - but still, the bottom filter soon got clogged.

I still have some OSR honey frames to remove from some hives next to the (now green) OSR field. I think I'll follow your example with those, Fatshark, and put the frames in the cabinet before extracting.

Thanks,
Kitta

[fatshark]

If it's already crystallised in the frame you'll need to melt it out Kitta. Your OSR will be behind ours but your temperatures will be lower so it may well have set. I usually try and extract before the frame is completely capped … just as long as I can't shake nectar out.

Lots of people here use an Apimelter … I was talking to some friends this evening who tell me one of the local commercial guys charges a fiver per honey extracted. You get back the weight of honey and wax. But where's the fun in that. What would you do with all that time saved from not having to clean up?

[Mellifera Crofter]

I managed to extract the first batch of frames ok, Fatshark - the problems started with the filtering. I still have to find out about the next lot. I might remove them today.

If I manage to extract the frames easily enough, I now wonder whether I should bother with immediate filtering as I'm not ready to bottle them. Perhaps I should just extract the honey and then store it in tubs unfiltered, let the honey set hard, and only then heat and filter?

Or, if I heat, filter, and churn the honey now and store it in tubs, will the honey then set as soft set (as opposed to the rock hard stuff) so that I can jar it later without reheating? (Sorry if I'm talking gibberish.)
Kitta

[Mellifera Crofter]

If it's already crystallised in the frame you'll need to melt it out Kitta. ...

I've only just got round to melting out the crystallised frames. I cut the combs out of the frames and put them in a tub with a tap so that I can draw off the liquid honey as Rosie had suggested. It was still a struggle and I had to keep clearing the bottom filter that got clogged up really quickly. I don't know whether it was getting clogged with honey crystals or bits of wax.

My question now is, is it safe to give the honey/wax that remained behind in the filters to the bees? It's been in the warming cabinet at about 40 degrees Celsius. Or should I just put the lot in the low oven and then use the honey for mead or something? (I've never made mead.)

Kitta