Hey David! Love your videos! Best bee videos on UA-cam. Do you guys ship to CT? I am having a heck of a time finding natural bees from foundation less small cell comb. Hoping you could be of help. Have you sent bees up north how do they handle it?
This has been VERY helpful! I'm getting my first nuc tomorrow and I'm very nervous, but this has really helped me out. I had trouble finding basic directions on the smoker and here it is!
Thanks so much for this video! I'm a new beekeeper and wasn't able to take in person classes before I started because COVID-19 got them all cancelled. I've been having trouble keeping my smoker lit but this video helped a lot. Thank you!
I’m a new beekeeper as of yesterday. I really like your videos. 7/10/2020. I learn so much from them as you speak my language. I just don’t see how you do not wearing a bee suit. Anyway, thank you!
Tip: use egg cartons as kindling. It smolders better than wave cardboard. And about the lint: only use it if it's pure cotton/wool. If it has synthetic fabric in it, you're poisoning the bees (as well as any uncapped honey).
Appreciate the videos. I'm a new bee keeper. I often get it started on the porch to my wife's dislike. Lol. Then when I get to the beeyard I drop in some road apples or whatever else I find. Still learning, keep the videos coming.
David, you are a hero! I love watching your bees videos! I find your farm/land very beautiful and so are your bees! I am all across the world in the UK and I live in an industrial area, doing clinical research; nothing nature related. However, nature is my passion and seeing your videos makes me happy 😊.. thanks for sharing your work with the world.
Something I keep in my bee box is a butane torch. They are cheep, not only are they nice for lighting a smoker, but it's nice for charing boxes and melting propolis.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. Dryer lint. Ah heck. I almost fell off the chair when you showed that. I thought I was the only one who was onto that stuff. Now my wife's not laughing at me anymore. 👍👍
I'm glad I done this right 😂 my husband was in the hive and didn't have time to watch a video on how to use smoker.....we make a very entertaining team to watch I'm sure.....maybe I should make a new channel for my bees lol y'all would get a kick out of us
David, I'm no pro, (Been doing this as a hobby for 2 years) but I found using egg crates works great, I cut them in to single units (1 egg basicly) then flip one cup up and pinch another in to the cup then smash down about one egg crate for every 2 minutes of smoke I want, once I have my stack I rip a hole in the bottom and light the the hole and the smashed one, once i see a little flame I lower it in the smoker close the lid and give one solid puff to blow out the fire - Then it smokes and good for as long as I want, the only downside I saw is the ash at the end can come out but its never hot and so far has not done any harm to my bees.
Hi David, Thanks for taking the time to make your great vids. I’m getting a real lot out of them. I’m just starting out, picking up my first empty box’s and frames hopefully this week. I’m loving the info you give on topics such as swarm behaviour, mating queens, making nucs etc. Explained really well. Really appreciate it, Cheers, Nigel
Dryer lint could have a lot of plastic in it. It depends on what you are drying. I'd only use pure cotton lint - which may be hard to make because almost everything has some synthetic material mixed into the fabric.
@@christinamoss2104 It works! Some people want to use things that work!! Sometimes its not possible to be absolutley organic with everything these days. Its only being used as a starter so I doubt much residue will be left after its starts!
Great Video! Thanks for showing several ways to light up the smoker and keep it running. I attended a bee intro course here in TX and they preferred a combo of rolled up cardboard with pellets. First time I have seen lint but it makes sense and it looks like it burns fast. Thanks for sharing . Once again great video!
Perhaps you should have mentioned that they want cool smoke, not pump up the smoker so that flames are shooting out the nozzle. You don’t want to hit your bees with hot smoke.
Good point! A simple clue is to watch the response from the first bees when you smoke the entrance. If more bees come flying out than run inside, chances are your smoke is too hot.
The key to not having flames coming out the end is to PACK the smoker after you have a good fire bed in the bottom. The tigher you have fuel on the top, the better - the smoke has to filter through the top layer and will stay cool no matter how hard you pump on the baffles.
Real good video - but what about using natural fiber Gunny/burlap sacks? You have to be careful not to get synthetic ones these days. Large coffee shops have these in my city in Omaha NE. Unroasted coffee beans come in them. And, how to you put out the pine straw burning in your smoker if you are done checking your bees before it is done burning?
Pine bedding makes a good smoke. It is $2.50 at Walmart for a small package. It is all natural with no added chemicals It is easy to light because it is very dry. It is good for someone that has only a few hives since it burns good and fast because it is dry. If you want to slow the burning down, just add a bit of water to make it more moist. I put it in the my smoker and make a small cavity toward the side. I fold one sheet of paper towel in halve and then roll it up. I light the paper towel and stick it lit into the cavity and start pumping air. Bingo, I am ready to go and to close the cover of the smoker. Takes only a few seconds.
Vielen Dank für deinen Tipp mit den Kiefernadeln. Da wäre ich nie drauf gekommen. Werde es auf jeden Fall ausprobieren. Schönen Gruß aus Köln ( Germany)
Hey David, when will you start putting out sugar water again? I noticed this past weekend my bees made it through the last cold week and they were eating the dry sugar I put on the intercover. So I know they want food. I live in south Tennessee, so their weather is probably the same as your's. This my first winter with bees and I am trying to everything I can to help them survive. Thanks for your help!
I live about an hour south of BYB, so pretty similar weather, I too am a first year beek. What I have found in researching is the issue is not the air temp it is the temp of the fluid...Sugar + water changes the freezing point of the water, pure water and pure sugar (glucose+fuctose) will freeze at or about 22F or -5.5C. At 2:1 it will freeze at 12.5F or -11C.. Which also means it takes more energy to heat it back up, so even though the air temp is 60+ the temp of your sugar mix can remain too cold for the bees to take without risking lowering their core temp and killing them or at a minimum making them immobile....What I have seen with my girls is they stopped taking it about 3 weeks ago is mass quantities. What I do now is wait for the weather to get near 60 and then I make them a small single batch, that way the water/sugar jar etc, is house temp, and they will take that gallon down in
I have a quick question I have bees all over my pear and fig trees when I try to pick some i have run because I'm allergic. So will this smoker help me with the bees
Can you do a review of different kinds of smokers? The one I bought last year it was really cheap, and I regret it. I wish someone would told me to spend more money on a higher quality smoker. But being a my first year in beekeeping, I didn't know any better. I really didn't know what I was buying.
Thanks for the video David. I still haven't gotten my bees but I do have my smoker so I can practice before I get them. Oh hey! It just occurred to me I may be passing you on my way home from Alabama to SC tomorrow. Do you have any nucs available? I have 2 coming from a company in SC but I'm anxious lol.
Ha David good video, question for u I have some hives I need to move at what temp is it safe to do so with out harming the bees it is still in the 30s here some 40s during the days thanks I am going to move them during the day time going to just close them up the night before so they can not get out thanks
Hmmmmmmm, last smoker i lit had ribeyes and prok ribs on it with some conecuh sausage, baked taters, baked beans, corn on the snob, and pickin'o fresh greens 'n such fer a salad. The local bees seemed quite calm, maybe even a little hungry....................
It confuses their sense of smell so that they don't communicate by pheromones to attack. It doesn't hurt the bees as long as you don't burn their wings.
Easiest way I light my smoker with is straw. I use to use newspaper but easier with dry straw and a zippo lighter beautiful clean smoke. Bees less aggressive
Here's an easy way to light a smoker. Fill it with whatever you like to use as fuel and then take a blow torch and heat the side of the smoker. let it get red hot for a little while. This may seem barbaric but it won't damage your smoker.
Most important thing of all! COOL SMOKE! if u start smoking your bees and there are flames in the smoker or coming out the spout, or if the smoke is hot YOU WILL BURN YOUR BEES. This video is good but leaves out that crucial information. COOL SMOKE IS CRITICAL
I am a master smoker user! I light it, it goes out. i light it, it goes out, i light it, it goes out, i light it... it stays smoking forever! Only now i want it to go out because i finished...
Very bad suggestion to use dryer with the variety of plastics in our clothing now. Burning plastic will put off fumes toxic to them. You'll be stressing you colony out. Also he uses the term "Burns hot" you don't want that, it will sing their wings. You want as of cool smoke as possible.
That is NOT flint and steel. That is a magnesium ALLOY bar with a ferrocerium rod glued to one side. Ferros throw 5,500°F sparks. F&S throws 600°F sparks. Bit of a difference. Pure magnesium works well. Magnesium alloy sucks. Some magnesium alloys won't work at all. A few brief points on F&S aka Flint (the rock) and (high carbon) Steel aka Percussion Fire Ignition: The "Flint" can be any of dozens of types of high quartz content rocks, pyrites or carbide steel. (Agates, chalcedonies, cherts, dolmites, flints, granites, jaspers, onyxes, sandstones, etc) The "Steel" can be steels from 1055-1096, A2, L6, O1, O2, W1 or W2. Also pyrites, some titaniums and some bamboos. The "Charcloth" can be any of dozens of plants and fungi that have been charred, and even a couple dozen that work without being charred. Also char mixes, which are mostly uncharred materials mixed with a little bit of charred materials. There are many ways to make char beyond putting a metal tin in a fire. Indeed, many ways without a tin at all. Anyhow, back to the bees! lol
I use a 360-degree camera. Then in production, before I upload I can have the viewer's eyes on whatever when ever I need them to be. almost as if someone is following me around with a camera.
Hey David! Love your videos! Best bee videos on UA-cam. Do you guys ship to CT? I am having a heck of a time finding natural bees from foundation less small cell comb. Hoping you could be of help. Have you sent bees up north how do they handle it?
Do your bees draw small cell size comb now? I know some bees need to regress, but it appears you mainly use foundation less comb.
This has been VERY helpful! I'm getting my first nuc tomorrow and I'm very nervous, but this has really helped me out. I had trouble finding basic directions on the smoker and here it is!
Thanks so much for this video! I'm a new beekeeper and wasn't able to take in person classes before I started because COVID-19 got them all cancelled. I've been having trouble keeping my smoker lit but this video helped a lot. Thank you!
You are quite welcome.
I’m a new beekeeper as of yesterday. I really like your videos. 7/10/2020. I learn so much from them as you speak my language. I just don’t see how you do not wearing a bee suit. Anyway, thank you!
Love all your videos !! Live how you show it as it is without out edits! And retakes !! I watch them over and over!
Thanks Dave for Demo. I’m a new bee keeper and your video was really good everything is new so just trying to do everything right…… thanks Terry
Tip: use egg cartons as kindling. It smolders better than wave cardboard.
And about the lint: only use it if it's pure cotton/wool. If it has synthetic fabric in it, you're poisoning the bees (as well as any uncapped honey).
5:51
That was perfect timing for the ad… can’t tell if intentional. lol
Thanks for the information.
Appreciate the videos. I'm a new bee keeper. I often get it started on the porch to my wife's dislike. Lol. Then when I get to the beeyard I drop in some road apples or whatever else I find. Still learning, keep the videos coming.
David, you are a hero! I love watching your bees videos! I find your farm/land very beautiful and so are your bees! I am all across the world in the UK and I live in an industrial area, doing clinical research; nothing nature related. However, nature is my passion and seeing your videos makes me happy 😊.. thanks for sharing your work with the world.
Something I keep in my bee box is a butane torch. They are cheep, not only are they nice for lighting a smoker, but it's nice for charing boxes and melting propolis.
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. Dryer lint. Ah heck. I almost fell off the chair when you showed that. I thought I was the only one who was onto that stuff. Now my wife's not laughing at me anymore. 👍👍
I keep it to cuz i hike camp quite a bit. Also "harvest" some pine sap with my 10 years old. Works great !
I'm glad I done this right 😂 my husband was in the hive and didn't have time to watch a video on how to use smoker.....we make a very entertaining team to watch I'm sure.....maybe I should make a new channel for my bees lol y'all would get a kick out of us
Making you own channel is a great idea, it allows you to see your progress as you go.
David, I'm no pro, (Been doing this as a hobby for 2 years) but I found using egg crates works great, I cut them in to single units (1 egg basicly) then flip one cup up and pinch another in to the cup then smash down about one egg crate for every 2 minutes of smoke I want, once I have my stack I rip a hole in the bottom and light the the hole and the smashed one, once i see a little flame I lower it in the smoker close the lid and give one solid puff to blow out the fire - Then it smokes and good for as long as I want, the only downside I saw is the ash at the end can come out but its never hot and so far has not done any harm to my bees.
Just picked up my nucs, had to come to learn how to start my smoker. 🤣
Hi David,
Thanks for taking the time to make your great vids. I’m getting a real lot out of them. I’m just starting out, picking up my first empty box’s and frames hopefully this week. I’m loving the info you give on topics such as swarm behaviour, mating queens, making nucs etc. Explained really well. Really appreciate it,
Cheers, Nigel
Dryer lint could have a lot of plastic in it. It depends on what you are drying. I'd only use pure cotton lint - which may be hard to make because almost everything has some synthetic material mixed into the fabric.
Could always make shared cloths out of cotton.
I was going to say the same thing! Very bad suggestion to use dryer with the variety of plastics in our clothing now.
@@christinamoss2104 It works! Some people want to use things that work!! Sometimes its not possible to be absolutley organic with everything these days. Its only being used as a starter so I doubt much residue will be left after its starts!
Old school way is using a piece of blue jeans..
Loving the new beekeepers series and the comments help too.. looking forward to next one.. I’m new think I’m all set just waiting on bees in april..
I use wood shavings from my shop. Then pieces of wood then walnut shaving which also helps with treatment of mites as well.
I dont have walnut but have some pine and a planer...lol I just found a new use for the shaving...lol
Great Video! Thanks for showing several ways to light up the smoker and keep it running. I attended a bee intro course here in TX and they preferred a combo of rolled up cardboard with pellets. First time I have seen lint but it makes sense and it looks like it burns fast. Thanks for sharing . Once again great video!
Great demonstration. Seeing how fast dryer lint ignites makes me want to make sure my dryer vent is cleaned out so there’s no house fire. 😳
I appreciate this type of video very much live North of Houston and starting two nuc;s in April cant wait to get started
i like the pine straw best, i got plenty of it.
Thanks for sharing all your tips.
I use grass clippings in mine after i mow and let them air dry for a couple of days. Keeps smoke for a couple of hours after its lit.
Great instruction. Is there anything not to burn that would cause harm to the bees. Thanks
Love these beginner videos. Thank you very much.
Thanks for doing all these videos...especially ones like this!
I have a pine forest in my yard lol , I have tons of pine straw lol
Great video as usual, David!
So far so good. It's been super cold up here (-30) but I went around and tapped the side of the hives and they're still buzzing away in there.
How do you get the smoke smell out of your hair? wink wink
pole cat pee
Perhaps you should have mentioned that they want cool smoke, not pump up the smoker so that flames are shooting out the nozzle. You don’t want to hit your bees with hot smoke.
Good point! A simple clue is to watch the response from the first bees when you smoke the entrance. If more bees come flying out than run inside, chances are your smoke is too hot.
The key to not having flames coming out the end is to PACK the smoker after you have a good fire bed in the bottom. The tigher you have fuel on the top, the better - the smoke has to filter through the top layer and will stay cool no matter how hard you pump on the baffles.
great video. just ordered a package of bees today for may delivery
good vid! i don't have bees yet but like the smoker...
Good video. For new beekeepers, just use pine straw, nothing better if you have a convenient pine tree.
i use grass tree segments from the main truck when grass tree dies
Thanks for the video. My first lighting did not go well. I know what to do now.
Real good video - but what about using natural fiber Gunny/burlap sacks? You have to be careful not to get synthetic ones these days. Large coffee shops have these in my city in Omaha NE. Unroasted coffee beans come in them.
And, how to you put out the pine straw burning in your smoker if you are done checking your bees before it is done burning?
At the exact moment you dropped the camera a commercial came on of a cat knocking a can of cat food off a counter. LOL
Pine bedding makes a good smoke. It is $2.50 at Walmart for a small package. It is all natural with no added chemicals It is easy to light because it is very dry.
It is good for someone that has only a few hives since it burns good and fast because it is dry. If you want to slow the burning down, just add a bit of water to make it more moist.
I put it in the my smoker and make a small cavity toward the side. I fold one sheet of paper towel in halve and then roll it up. I light the paper towel and stick it lit into the cavity and start pumping air. Bingo, I am ready to go and to close the cover of the smoker.
Takes only a few seconds.
Vielen Dank für deinen Tipp mit den Kiefernadeln. Da wäre ich nie drauf gekommen.
Werde es auf jeden Fall ausprobieren.
Schönen Gruß aus Köln ( Germany)
Ich benuetze kiefer holz span.
Basically anything that burns. 🔥
I'm actually wanting to get into this . the you for making this video
Lol he abt said “I have a little flint an steel stire farter”
He need a good fero rod that little thing is..well bad...lol
Hey David, when will you start putting out sugar water again? I noticed this past weekend my bees made it through the last cold week and they were eating the dry sugar I put on the intercover. So I know they want food. I live in south Tennessee, so their weather is probably the same as your's. This my first winter with bees and I am trying to everything I can to help them survive. Thanks for your help!
I live about an hour south of BYB, so pretty similar weather, I too am a first year beek. What I have found in researching is the issue is not the air temp it is the temp of the fluid...Sugar + water changes the freezing point of the water, pure water and pure sugar (glucose+fuctose) will freeze at or about 22F or -5.5C. At 2:1 it will freeze at 12.5F or -11C.. Which also means it takes more energy to heat it back up, so even though the air temp is 60+ the temp of your sugar mix can remain too cold for the bees to take without risking lowering their core temp and killing them or at a minimum making them immobile....What I have seen with my girls is they stopped taking it about 3 weeks ago is mass quantities. What I do now is wait for the weather to get near 60 and then I make them a small single batch, that way the water/sugar jar etc, is house temp, and they will take that gallon down in
I save my paper towel and toilet paper rolls you seem to work awesome I starters
I was thinking of buying that. But does this also works on mosquitos? I want to save money so if i can do both i'd be happy.
Have you ever tried Pine shavings? You can get a big bag from Tractor Supply.
I have been using it all year this year. $2.50 at Walmart for a small bag and the bees do not get aggressive either when using it.
Hi David, I find most times that my smoker blows out hot smoke. How can you stop that besides using green grass or green leaves?
Wow thank you. I’m a new bed keeper and this video is so helpful. How can I order the smoke stick please
Thank you David.
Could I use cypress needles? I have a tree in my yard, but I cannot find anything to definitively say if I can or can’t use them.
I have a quick question I have bees all over my pear and fig trees when I try to pick some i have run because I'm allergic. So will this smoker help me with the bees
No, they will only return. The only way they will sting you is if you step on one bare footed, or trap one in between you and another object.
Can you do a review of different kinds of smokers? The one I bought last year it was really cheap, and I regret it. I wish someone would told me to spend more money on a higher quality smoker. But being a my first year in beekeeping, I didn't know any better. I really didn't know what I was buying.
awesome videos. Thank you for making them.
Pine needles ? Rosmarry what you guys use and why?
Have you lost any of your strong colonies so far this winter?
Thanks for the video David. I still haven't gotten my bees but I do have my smoker so I can practice before I get them.
Oh hey! It just occurred to me I may be passing you on my way home from Alabama to SC tomorrow. Do you have any nucs available? I have 2 coming from a company in SC but I'm anxious lol.
Thank you!!!
Ha David good video, question for u I have some hives I need to move at what temp is it safe to do so with out harming the bees it is still in the 30s here some 40s during the days thanks I am going to move them during the day time going to just close them up the night before so they can not get out thanks
Thank u I did not want to hurt my bees, u have a great day and thanks for responding so quick. keep the videos coming they are great.
Hmmmmmmm, last smoker i lit had ribeyes and prok ribs on it with some conecuh sausage, baked taters, baked beans, corn on the snob, and pickin'o fresh greens 'n such fer a salad. The local bees seemed quite calm, maybe even a little hungry....................
Mt.Union Honey Farms
it made me hungry too! Sounds yummy. 😋
What is smoking used for? Does it hurt or inhabit the Bess in any way?
It confuses their sense of smell so that they don't communicate by pheromones to attack. It doesn't hurt the bees as long as you don't burn their wings.
Easiest way I light my smoker with is straw. I use to use newspaper but easier with dry straw and a zippo lighter beautiful clean smoke. Bees less aggressive
how do you mow around your hives?
would oak leaves work!? because I do know this oak leaves sure stir up the (HOA) HOME OWNERS ASSOCIATION LOL hahahaha
That was great thank you very much
Thanks
I’m a noobie keeper. Thanks!
cool video
who else use coconut fiber ... its easy to light and stays long ....
I'm looking for a beekeeper group in Atlanta to teach me about beekeeping.
"I'm being serious"
*hilarious Indian accent ensues*
I drop a paper tail light it then put wood shaving then wood pellets
Here's an easy way to light a smoker. Fill it with whatever you like to use as fuel and then take a blow torch and heat the side of the smoker. let it get red hot for a little while. This may seem barbaric but it won't damage your smoker.
Thumbs up David
You link is missing . after www
Most important thing of all! COOL SMOKE! if u start smoking your bees and there are flames in the smoker or coming out the spout, or if the smoke is hot YOU WILL BURN YOUR BEES. This video is good but leaves out that crucial information. COOL SMOKE IS CRITICAL
Last time I smoked bees they gave me a buzz.
It makes my bees and if I use very much smoke. They only want a little.
Want some pine straw, come clean my gutters.
You missed a fuel source the dirt rooster has suggested taco bell wrappers.
Geeze you're a good looking rooster!
I prefer wood chips (small animal bedding)
I am a master smoker user! I light it, it goes out. i light it, it goes out, i light it, it goes out, i light it... it stays smoking forever! Only now i want it to go out because i finished...
Bel Rick lol
Ha! That's the way mine works too!
Great videos btw, I love them. First time beekeeper here, my bees come this spring (mid april) your videos help me prepare.
Hi has Any one used burlap, I have unlimited old coffee sacks
5:53 @##@ tripod :)
Rarely use my smoker anymore. The smoke just seemed to rile them up.
Cardboard burns yours eyes like crazy.
Can i use a smoker to hotbox my room? 😏
Very bad suggestion to use dryer with the variety of plastics in our clothing now. Burning plastic will put off fumes toxic to them. You'll be stressing you colony out. Also he uses the term "Burns hot" you don't want that, it will sing their wings. You want as of cool smoke as possible.
i am a beekeeper
That is NOT flint and steel.
That is a magnesium ALLOY bar with a ferrocerium rod glued to one side. Ferros throw 5,500°F sparks. F&S throws 600°F sparks. Bit of a difference.
Pure magnesium works well. Magnesium alloy sucks. Some magnesium alloys won't work at all.
A few brief points on F&S aka Flint (the rock) and (high carbon) Steel aka Percussion Fire Ignition:
The "Flint" can be any of dozens of types of high quartz content rocks, pyrites or carbide steel. (Agates, chalcedonies, cherts, dolmites, flints, granites, jaspers, onyxes, sandstones, etc)
The "Steel" can be steels from 1055-1096, A2, L6, O1, O2, W1 or W2. Also pyrites, some titaniums and some bamboos.
The "Charcloth" can be any of dozens of plants and fungi that have been charred, and even a couple dozen that work without being charred. Also char mixes, which are mostly uncharred materials mixed with a little bit of charred materials.
There are many ways to make char beyond putting a metal tin in a fire. Indeed, many ways without a tin at all.
Anyhow, back to the bees! lol
Have you tried punkwoods in your smoker? White rot punkwoods burn (smolder) better. Red rots produce more smoke.
I prefer styrofoam and old oil rags
I use a 360-degree camera. Then in production, before I upload I can have the viewer's eyes on whatever when ever I need them to be. almost as if someone is following me around with a camera.