That’s alright. No need to be shy 
I am unable to start any decent fire even when equipped with a full box of matches and canister of petrol. I light wood heater and smoker with this.
2 Likes
I had 2 supers similar to that of @Detto above , so over the last few days I harvested 8 frames for about 20kg of honey.
2 Likes
I recommend being careful with using the narrow-mouthed jar. I harvested honey into the exact same jar/bottle and it was a nightmare to get out 
1 Like
Nice day to clear some of the frames.
This is the shaded hive.
Check out the different coloured honey from frames 1&2.
Next time I’ll do each frame in a different pail.
6 Likes
Looks good! 
I pulled jarrah before marri flow began. Glad I got it separated. I made jarrah mead last year. Surprisingly good result. This year I am planning to make a reasonably large batch to have a chance to age it 
2 Likes
I drained a couple of frames before the Marri flow but too early as it was 22% wc so it’s in the fridge waiting for a good mead recipe.
Usually I’ll do a JAOM or four but don’t have the oranges on the trees yet. I’ve still got a demijohn to bottle from last year too. 
I finished up with 11kg from 4 Fframes today and hopefully we’ll have some more warm days to harvest the last 10 frames on the hives.
1 Like
Interesting. I encountered the same thing this year. I did not check capping as I was sure the time was right. Result - one hive - 21%, another - 19%. I mixed both batches to have 20% to store till it gets into the fermenter.
This is my last take. A very simple one. I was a bit sceptical about Mangrove Jack’s, but I had no chance to control the temperature to keep it within a tighter corridor. Was quite happy with the result though
| Water, l | 15 | |
|---|---|---|
| Honey, kg | 6.8 | +1.2, +0.5 |
| Cloves | 4 | |
| Vanilla bean | 1 | |
| Large lemons (zest and juice with pulp) | 2 | |
| Cinamon, stick | 1 | |
| DAP, tsp | 1/2 | |
| Wine nutrients, tsp | 1/4 | |
| Mangrove Jack’s, M05 |
4 Likes
Has anyone had issues with frames not fully draining?
I’ve got Marri honey in the frames and the frames aren’t properly opening, leaving 1/3 to 1/2 the honey in the frame. To get the frame segments to open properly I’m having to take the frame out and open a frame while holding it. Essentially this causes the frame to twist as the segments move. It opens and then it seems to drain the undrained section. Regardless, it shouldn’t be like this.
If you encounter this issue how are you overcoming it?
I had attempted multiple open-close-open while the frame was in the Super but that still didn’t seem to get the stuck segments to budge.
1 Like
Hiya Snowy, good to hear from you.
At what temperature are you extracting? I wouldn’t know if I’ve had this issue but am still averaging 2.5kg per frame so some may be remaining but not 1/2-1/3. On some frames the keys need to be left in for a short while as the segments pop back to the closed position. This could be due to burr comb between frames as I don’t remove the frames for inspection pre harvest. I always use 2 keys when opening also.
2 Likes
I have a clients set of Flow frames in my honey room, that wouldn’t drain, or open & close properly. They are 5yo & I’m waiting for wax moths the clean them up. After 6 weeks, I’m starting to see some activity.
Last year I discovered inadvertently that wax moths do a beautiful job of bringing Flow frames almost back to new again. These frames came out of a former customer’s hive that got slimed out by hive beetles…
2 Likes
This is interesting and something we can help you with.
I’d like to ask similar questions as the others:
- is the frame being kept warm from a relatively active/strong hive which keeps the wax warm and able to move when turned by the key?
- using 2 Flow keys at time and turning them in a butterfly motion outwards, incrementally, helps with opening any stuck cells
- what might be happening is an accumulation of stuck/older wax/propolis at the base of the frame/blades and when you’ve reset the frame from previous harvest/s, the blades weren’t pushed back in place properly by the key and thus, this build up in the base has accumulated by the bees depositing wax/propolis as the blades aren’t completely set.
I recommend:
- considering if the frame is warm enough for harvesting (this is why harvesting on the hive is always important)
- use 2 Flow keys to harvest and see how you go, if you have them (they’re available for sale on the site if not)
- if the problem persists, warm up the frame by placing it in a black plastic bag or tub in the sun for a couple of hours on a warm day (the black protects the plastic for UV) to warm up the frame, whilst keeping it in the open position. Then open and close the frame to dislodge any stubborn wax/propolis build up and afterwards hold the frame in the reset position with the Flow key (or 2 if you have them).
There’s nothing wrong with the Flow Frame or plastic, I’ve just found that for those that don’t reset the Flow Frame correctly after harvesting, this build-up can happen but it’s easily fixed.
A good tip for all: always hold the frame in the reset position with the Flow key for a good minute or 2 to correctly reset the blades.
I’d love to know how you go.
3 Likes
Hi all, I carried out my last on hive harvest this weekend, the temperature, at 25°C, made the harvest drag out, overnight in fact so will be looking at removing the supers on some this weekend and doing a long overdue maintenance in the brood box.
I’d like to warm the remaining honey Fframes in the honey warmer and then harvesting then placing back on the hive above the inner cover for the bees to clean up. Would this work now it’s cooling down?
From the 4 hives I probably extracted 60kg with maybe another 15-20 remaining in the supers so all in all a good year for my static hives.
I’ve also found a buyer for all my excess honey at a fair price.
3 Likes
Don’t see why not.
I have the same exercise ahead of me. The wood burner is going to play a part of the honey warmer
Good job! I wouldn’t be able to find an excess in 60kg 
2 Likes
Yeah not a commercial quantity but I’m not commercial.
I wouldn’t use more than a kilo per month a any more is excess, with the exception of a few mead brews of course.
2 Likes
Hi @skeggley , I’m due to do the same. It will be my first time removing the super for winter. Stan Taylor says he used to leave a hive mat on the brood frame and put the super on top and the bees will clean them up. So your idea of putting it over the inner cover should work on the same principal too.
1 Like
Hi everyone, A bit off topic but I am after the opinion from the locals in regards to wax moth. I had an interesting discussion with a local bee keeper about replacing my full flow hive with a hybrid. This will help with fame manipulation to help prevent swarming. He advised against it because he said that the hybrids have an issue with wax moth. This was the first time that I heard about this so I though I would reach out and see if anyone has similar experience. I am located in Perth.
Thanks in advance
1 Like
Hybrids do not have an issue with wax moth.
2 Likes
Provided the colony is healthy and populous without excessive space wax moth isn’t a problem in any hive.
I have both full and hybrid Fframe supers and haven’t had moth problems when the supers are added when the colony is ready for it.
I have however, had wax moth problems with weak colonies and stored equipment. 
6 Likes
Thanks Skeggley, I totally agree and I was surprised with his comments. Also do you run a single hybrid or two on your brood box?
1 Like
I had 1 full Flow and 4 hybrids all for 8 frame boxes. I am now in the process of modifying all but one to full Flow supers as I don’t use the comb honey and finished up crushing and straining more than I liked.
I have stacked 2 hybrids and also stacked a full Flow and a hybrid, all successfully.
Hybrids have benefits like comb honey and the ability to remove honey frames to feed other colony’s, make up frames for splits and to give a crowded box more to do.
Snowy and I have successfully used hybrids for a few years now and although Snowy is having a few Flow frame issues the hybrid set up themselves has worked just fine.
Unlike most here in Perth I use 1 Full depth and 1 WSP box as my 8 frame winter brood boxes. If I was using 10 frame boxes I wouldn’t use 2 brood boxes due to inspection ease. I prefer the 8 frame box weight.
1 Like