I think since the frames have to be removed anyway to make sure they’re capped, they should be harvested in the kitchen, on a drip tray.
This guy has the right idea lol:
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I think the fact that incrementally opening the frames, leaving a period of time between increments, allows the honey to not back up in the trough, which is the 2nd point on Dawns list. If the honey can’t flow out the tube as fast as its flowing into the trough of course it will over flow and leak out. Basic fluid dynamics.
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That’s the right idea Ed. I’m sure that person finds the traditional frames easier to handle & manipulate in & out of the hives. There will be no propolis on the traditional frames. I found that the flow frames had sticky propolis all around them.
I wanted to use my spinner to extract the honey, but found that they were slightly too big for my spinner. I’m pleased that I extracted the honey with the key so that I could see the problems for myself.
I agree that 2 keys, as mentioned earlier, would be the way to go, however folks who own one flow hive are only issued with one key.
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But they can buy another from Flow for the princely sum of $15. 
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alongside the other steps mentioned- another strategy to minimise this issue is to only harvest one or two flow frames at a time. This way if there are leaks the affect on the colony is reduced. the bees can move out of the affected area and they can lick up the honey without being overwhelmed. I tend to harvest two frames at a time- and I do it over an entire afternoon, only cracking about 1/5th at a time. I use a beeproof set up of a bucket with holes in the lid and longer tubes connected to the flow tubes so that I can leave the set up as the honey slowly flows out and not worry about bees becoming interested in what is happening.
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Hi Jack. The penny is dropping for me in relation to the flooding issue.
One of my earliest questions about the flow hive was “what do the bees do with the wax cap after harvest”. It’s becoming apparent that they reuse it to thicken the existing wax. That would probably account for the reason why people are experiencing early flooding which comes good with time. That was confirmed with @Andrew’s post. Now after a couple of seasons, he believes that there is too much wax & may have to think about de-waxing the frames.
It’s all starting to make sense now.
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I’d imagine he could open the flow frames while they rest in the extractor and then spin them.
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That would be a good idea, however after the honey has been spun out, I’d probably prefer to replace them with traditional frames back into the hive.
There is the issue of honey fermenting in the channel. How many people put their nose near the outlet before cracking the frame? I wonder. We found 3 out of the 6 had fermented honey in them. There are times when there will be a time gap between harvests, giving the honey in the channel time to ferment.
Totally agree small increments only ,takes about an hour to get 95% of the honey out then walk away for half an hour while the remainder trickles clear. Check the corflute as you go for any excessive amounts of honey.
I leave the bottom caps quite loose or clean build up off them to allow the last little bit out of the bottom channel to get to the bees. @Faroe Yes as mention by many in this thread these basic steps will prevent a lot of leakage issues and should be covered more in the manual or videos and also I think you should offer the perfect cleaning brush for sale for inserting in the channels to clean them. I found a pretty good one but had to modify slightly to get all the way to the end.
I think the wires long term are an issue and trying to tighten them is problematic no matter how careful you are. I have broken a couple of strands and then the wires stretch and remains loose. They will always stretch depending on how long they have been under tension.
I think a new design is needed for that long term, perhaps a metal strip top and bottom that is split in the middle but overlaps each half then screw them apart creating more tension. The thread could be housed within a plastic surround to stop propolis.I am sure things will evolve as the flow hive ages😀
Yes Jeff after reading about this we now thoroughly drain the remnants in the channel and preclean the channel prior to harvesting. We still insert a tube that is cut down to stop the water going into the hive.
We have only had trouble cracking the flow frames in August but none previously to that or since then. Had to use two keys in August and it got easier as we got into the frame further. Temperature related?
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Let me be the first to like your comment & photo. It looks as if that brush is specifically designed for that job.
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i’m using a bottle cleaning brush just like that- just as you are- immediately prior to harvest. And you are correct Jeff- I could smell that that honey was fermented. I got the brush from a Greek wholesale food place for around $4. I never put in a cut down tube like you have but will do that from now on- good idea. I also have a very fine metal mesh to filter the honey as it goes into the bucket.
recently I harvested a full flow super outside of the hive and it leaked perhaps 300 ml total over 6 frames. I got over 15KG of honey so it was a relatively small proportion but enough to cause issues for the bees if it was on the hive. I would never harvest all the frames at once- unless I absolutely had to for some reason.
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Hi Jack, I knew I was correct in my case. I have a sensitive nose when it comes to bad odors. Wilma will confirm that. I’m the first to detect any bad odors in the fridge.
You probably meant to say that you also experienced fermented honey in the channel.
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Hi Comanche,
I am really sorry to hear you have experienced a honey leak within your hive, upon harvesting.
I would really like to work with you to troubleshoot and see if we can find a solution to this issue.
If you could please email some photos and details of the methods you have tried and what you have experienced to info@honeyflow.com so that I can assist you further, that would be really helpful.
Excess leaking on harvesting affects only a very minor percentage of customers and often can be remedied with some troubleshooting methods.
This issue has been a little difficult to diagnose as it is not something that we have experienced or been able to replicate in any of our research, however, based on working with feedback from a few customers, we have found some methods which may help to address this issue.
If you do find yourself in the unlikely event of a significant honey leakage, the first step is to remove the coreflute slider from the bottom baseboard. This will prevent honey pooling in the bottom of the brood box and ensure that your brood are safe. The safety of your bees is always the most important thing. It is also a good idea to place a tray under the hive to catch the honey which can then be removed to prevent attracting robbing from other colonies. This will also give you an accurate indication of the quantity of honey that is leaking.
It is not uncommon to have some minor honey dribbles leaking within the hive whilst harvesting (1-2 tablespoons is within the normal parameters) however if you do experience something more significant than this, please take precautions.
Please let me know if you have any further questions – I look forward to hearing from you soon to assist you further with this issue.
Sarah
Flow® Team Leader - Customer Support
You can use a torque wrench on your hive tool, or a fancy stress meter, to weigh your hive. Honey weighs more than water.
I’m getting this even before the first harvest. Trying to figure out how to keep the ants out and let the bees suck the nectar back out.
one trick is to periodically turn the little caps around in the hole. This keeps the little hole clear so the bees can access the honey there. Another is not to worry too much- if all you see is a very small amount of honey in that channel- just use a brush as pictured above to clean it the day before a harvest.
If I saw a few mm of honey at the bottom of one or two frames- I wouldn’t worry at all.
as for ants: they can become an issue- but oftentimes are not. Like wax moths and other pests they just eek out a living at the periphery of a hive. They become a problem if they start to attack the hive en-masse. If that happens you need to think about some kind of any barriers on the hive legs to keep them away.
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I have had tremendous luck repelling ants by piling up ground cinnamon around the legs. With rains and sprinklers I usually have to reapply every couple weeks but the results have been great. AND, no poisons around my bees.