# Price for paraffin dipped hive bodies



## J-Bees (Jul 12, 2008)

*$0000.00 *

as it would cost me to much shipping both ways to send them to you I am sure:

JB:}


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## magnet-man (Jul 10, 2004)

I forgot to add this is only for local beekeepers. It doesn't pay to ship.


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## shawnwri (Jul 31, 2006)

If I was local...

$1 - $1.5 for supers and bodies. I like screened bottoms so they would have to be dipped and then rescreeened. I use metal covered telescoping covers. If I switched to migratory covers, probably $1.


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## NasalSponge (Jul 22, 2008)

I would be VERY interested in this....I have no idea what the cost would be but I would LOVE to get some done, in fact, I was just going to talk to my welder to see what he would charge to build me a SS dipping tank....I personally LOVE the way woodenware looks dipped!! If you come up with some prices PM me.


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## tarheit (Mar 26, 2003)

"I like screened bottoms so they would have to be dipped and then rescreeened"

You probably wouldn't need to rescreen at all. After they are dipped and cool down, just take a torch and melt the wax from the screen.

-Tim


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## KQ6AR (May 13, 2008)

I'd like to find someone in my area that did it.
I'd definitely go $1.50 for hive bodies. It would be a good service if you have the time to do it.


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## tarheit (Mar 26, 2003)

$1 a super would be too low , and $1.5 would be a bargain still I think. According to http://www.beekeeping.co.nz/convert.htm it would take .3675 lbs of paraffin for a deep which works out to 72 cents for the paraffin alone based on mann lake's price, not including shipping. Plus it can be time consuming, 6-12 minutes per tip depending on temperature. http://bushfarms.com/beesdipping.htm

-Tim


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## jeff123fish (Jul 3, 2007)

I would pay between 3 and 4 dollars per Item. of course if I wanted 100 or so done maybe a dicount could be aranged? I don't live near you but thats what it would be worth to me


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## magnet-man (Jul 10, 2004)

jeff123fish gave the type of answer that I am looking for. What is it worth to you. I personally would pay $5 a hive body to make it last 20 years. That works out to be 25 cents a year. If you were doing 100 than a discount would be inorder.


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## Dan Williamson (Apr 6, 2004)

tarheit said:


> "I like screened bottoms so they would have to be dipped and then rescreeened"
> 
> You probably wouldn't need to rescreen at all. After they are dipped and cool down, just take a torch and melt the wax from the screen.
> 
> -Tim


You don't even need to do that.... When they come out hot you just bang the SBB on the side of the tank and the excess gets knocked off. (make it so the excess falls back into the tank or you will be wasting the pararosin)

As for price.... in my own situation it wouldn't be worth dipping for someone else. My resources would be better spent adding value elsewhere to the operation. You have to figure in the expense of propane or whatever heating method you use... the labor involved (time) and the paraffin/rosin. For me to make it worth my time, and materials would cost more than anyone would care to pay. They'd paint instead.

$5/ box??? I'd probably do it for that... however I'd have a minimum requirement for the number of boxes. For me that number would be around 100 boxes minimum and $5 would be the discount. My tank is big and can take 3-4 hrs or so just to get to temp.

I just don't think you will find very many people willing to pay $5/box to have it dipped. That can add 50% or more to the cost of the equipment and you know how cheap most of us are! 

Just my 2 cents.


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## magnet-man (Jul 10, 2004)

Time for me is the big issue. I have free access to wast oil and have a burner to burn it with.


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## Jeffzhear (Dec 2, 2006)

Interesting thread.

For me, I have declined doing any paraffin/rosin dipping for anyone else. It's not worth it to me, by the time I pay for supplies including paraffin, natural gas for my tank heater and rosin, shipping (approx. 50 bucks per hundred pounds of rosin), and I run up to Dadant with my vehicle to pick up the paraffin, and then I throw in my time into the equation. No one would pay my price and that's even after I hire a monkey with a wooden leg to do the dipping! And the grief the animal rights activists would give me; NO WAY!

With that said, it is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay worth it for me to dip vs paint! The initial outlay is a bit much but my time savings on my equipment by not having to paint...What a god-send.


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## J-Bees (Jul 12, 2008)

Jeffzhear said:


> Interesting thread.
> 
> 
> (approx. 50 bucks per hundred pounds of rosin),
> .


So where do you get your rosin??? 

Also why not use Bee's wax??

JB:}


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## Jeffzhear (Dec 2, 2006)

I purchase the rosin from Mann Lake. It comes in 50 lb. containers. I haven't been able to find a bk supplier here in the east that carries it. 

You can use bees wax and I would bet it's better for the honeybees. I started using paraffin because it was available at the quantity I needed and was lower cost. I have been thinking of switching to beeswax and probably will after the last 100 pounds of inventoried paraffin is gone.

I use a 55 gal drum to dip my equipment and 100 pounds of rosin was enough to get me started. I know in the future I will have a custom tank made, that allows me to dip more equipment at one time. 



J-Bees said:


> So where do you get your rosin???
> 
> Also why not use Bee's wax??
> 
> JB:}


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## magnet-man (Jul 10, 2004)

Jeffzhear said:


> I purchase the rosin from Mann Lake. It comes in 50 lb. containers. I haven't been able to find a bk supplier here in the east that carries it.


Jeff there is one right next door to you in New Jersy.


http://www.pdmchemicals.com/warehouse_ locations.htm


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## Jeffzhear (Dec 2, 2006)

magnet-man said:


> Jeff there is one right next door to you in New Jersy.
> 
> 
> http://www.pdmchemicals.com/warehouse_ locations.htm


Wow, tyvm, I will inquire next time. I am glad to have supported Mann Lake too....and if I can save significantly...then I have to.

Magnet-man, tyvm


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## BULLSEYE BILL (Oct 2, 2002)

Jeffzhear said:


> Interesting thread.
> 
> (approx. 50 bucks per hundred pounds of rosin), .


Jeff, if you paid .50 per pound you got a super deal! The last time I ordered it from them a couple of years ago, it was $1.75 and the current price is $1.95. If you order 500 pounds they give you a .24 per pound discount. I have ordered from Pacific Coast but they have raised their price to about the same as Mann Lake. What I would like to find is a cheaper source of paraffin, the days of $1. per pound at Hobby Lobby is over. 

Perhaps we could start a thread in Consumer Reports as to where the best deals are for both rosin and paraffin?


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## Jeffzhear (Dec 2, 2006)

BULLSEYE BILL said:


> Jeff, if you paid .50 per pound you got a super deal! The last time I ordered it from them a couple of years ago, it was $1.75 and the current price is $1.95. If you order 500 pounds they give you a .24 per pound discount. I have ordered from Pacific Coast but they have raised their price to about the same as Mann Lake. What I would like to find is a cheaper source of paraffin, the days of $1. per pound at Hobby Lobby is over.
> 
> Perhaps we could start a thread in Consumer Reports as to where the best deals are for both rosin and paraffin?


Bullseye, sorry, it was the shipping price of .50 cents a pound. I don't recall the price of the rosin, but it was the going rate that Mann Lake sells it for. I don't order enough in quantity to get a price break. The $1.95 per pound seems to be about what I paid, without looking for the receipt.


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## Julian Lewis (Jan 15, 2008)

I would have to agree with Dan Williamson and Jeffzhear.
The price you would have to charge to make it worth your while would be unattractive to most beeks. A couple of beekeeper friends and I built one a year ago. Cost was about $1000 total in the end, but worth every penny of it. That was using a welder for some of it and one of us doing some of the welding. I had also thought about offering a service dipping boxes for people, but having spent a few days actually dipping them, that was enough. The fumes are not very pleasant to work with. Beeswax would definitely be more pleasant. Even if you are running a small number of hives, I still think it is a good investment. For me, the thought that I never have to paint another piece of bee equipment is very nice and I really think it saves a lot of time in the long term. Our dipper uses an electric element to heat the wax, which I really like. Reduces the risk of fires greatly I feel.


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## justgojumpit (Apr 9, 2004)

Thinking about the time and cost of painting (the alternative), I would say about $2.00 per hive body is appropriate.

justgojumpit


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## NeilV (Nov 18, 2006)

I missed this post first time around, but I'm local and I'd be interested. If you are are serious about it, pm me and we can talk details on price. 

Neil


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