BeeKeeping Tools

Bee Keeping Equipment You Must Have
Whether you want to start bee keeping as a hobby or as a business, you must have the proper
bee keeping equipment. Bee keeping is a fun hobby that can also provide you with an
additional source of income. You can collect the honey for your own use or sell it. You can make
candles from beeswax.
Of course, you will need a hive for your bees to live in. The beehive is a wooden frame box that
contains multiple parts. The outer cover must be weather resistant in order to protect your
bees. Your hive should also have an inner cover to act as insulation. The inside of your hive will
have important pieces of honey bee equipment called honey supers. The bees use these
removable frames for storing honey. When you are ready to harvest honey, you simply slip out
the frames. The beehive will have a lower compartment that contains honey supers also but
these are for the bees to use to raise their young and store honey to be used as food. A hive
stand is required in order to keep the bottom of the hive dry and to provide insulation.
A valuable piece of bee keeping equipment is the smoker. A smoker is a small pot that you fill
with grass or burlap and set it on fire to create smoke. The smoke billows out a directional
nozzle that you aim towards the beehive. The smoke does not hurt the bees; it simply makes
them calm so you can remove the honey supers without being stung. find more info
BeeKeeping

Most beekeepers add a veil and gloves to their list of necessary bee keeping equipment. These
protect your head, arms and hands from being stung. Some experienced beekeepers prefer to
work without the heavy gloves since it is easier to use the hive tool to pry open the hive
without them. Full protection is recommended for beginners. The gloves should be made of
leather or plastic so a bee stinger cannot penetrate them. Beekeeper suits are available also;
these offer protection to the entire body.
You will need honey bee equipment that processes the honey after you remove the honey
supers from the hive. You can purchase extracting equipment which separates the honey from
the comb. You can also choose the easy and less expensive method of buying honey supers
designed for making comb honey. With these, all you have to do is cut the honeycomb from the
frame.
Other bee keeping equipment to consider includes food, feeders and medication. You should
provide supplemental food to your hive to keep them healthy when nearby nectar is not
available. Providing a water source helps keep your bees away from your neighbor's swimming
pool.
Finding bee keeping equipment is not difficult. You can contact your county extension agent for
advice on setting up your bee colony as well as advice on where to buy your supplies. You can
also buy everything you need online if you cannot find it locally.
Using the proper bee keeping equipment will help your bees stay healthy and protect you from
stings. Healthy bees means more delicious honey that you can harvest from your hive.