BBKA Forum

Bad luck Adam, that is a gutter.

Unless you keep your bees in the garden and can constantly watch them, if wasps do become a problem it can all be over before you know it. I suppose it’s just part of beekeeping. If it was easy, everyone would do it.

I removed my English feeders full of the last of the wax cappings this afternoon and shook out any remaining bees. Had left them on longer than intended but interestingly the bees had cleaned them off but not bothered to rework the wax into sculptures as they sometimes do if you leave on too long earlier in the autumn. One to remember maybe - but of course the next year I only put on late it will be freezing cold, they will be clustered and they will totally ignore them...

Another nice fermenting bin of wax to melt down, a process I find particularly satisfying. Although I am less good at finding an end use for the wax apart from for foundation swaps.

I sold 3 kg to someone who wanted the wax to make candles for Christmas presents - might be a way of getting rid of some?
On eBay local wax goes for about £9/kg.
(Thornes will pay £3.50 per kg against goods sold or £2.25 as a straight purchase).

To me wax is hard earned once filtered twice and formed into nice little 1kg blocks..after all the faff on getting it to that stage i would rather throw it in the bin than take such a feeble price for it..
My plan this year with what wax i have accumulated is to have a go at making super foundation..I have everything i need to try it but no time to do it..when i hopfully succed i will fire some pictures and my methods on here..

I sell 1oz blocks at £1.50 each (Just under £53/kg). I reckon that's a fair price
Still end up with more wax than can be sold... That is where the problem lies.

NigelP wrote: ↑

09 Nov 2020, 18:53

I sell 1oz blocks at £1.50 each (Just under £53/kg).

Seems like a plan!

Spike wrote: ↑

09 Nov 2020, 20:53

NigelP wrote: ↑

09 Nov 2020, 18:53

I sell 1oz blocks at £1.50 each (Just under £53/kg).

Seems like a plan!

I sell Mine at £2 per ounce block

That's a good price Chris.
Alas I can never sell ALL my beeswax at that price. Much goes into foundation exchanges.

On a Beekeeping note checked 2 late walk away nucs at an out apiary both have literally walked away with no bees or stores present in either. Damn.......I need nucs for this coming spring

The wax Conversion rate is a lot better deal than the Straight Swap. Depending on your foundation type against retail cost of the foundation it values the wax from £6 to £9/lb, which is about double the straight swap value.

Do you reckon they absconded, queen failure or got robbed out Nigel? Or a combination? Such a let down.

Just checked at lunchtime a nuc I had put fondant block in a bag over the feedhole a week ago. About 0.5kg gone already. They had a kg straight over the top bars beforehand and that went in a week. They put on weight on the ivy too so fingers crossed..

Suspect queens failed to mate (it was late), then dwindling bee numbers followed by robbery for resources.
Matters not what order....they are all no more.

NigelP wrote: ↑

11 Nov 2020, 13:30

That's a good price Chris.
Alas I can never sell ALL my beeswax at that price. Much goes into foundation exchanges.

same here, I find maisemores are better priced than thornes, but its getting down to see em.