# Fischer's Bee-Quick and NO Veil



## David Stewart (Jan 22, 2005)

As with all good inventions, the proponent has usually done significant research developing the design and application....Keep good notes and publish YOUR trial results here. Who knows, you may go down in history as the person who perfected the science of naked beekeeping as proposed in another forum.

David


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## Jim Fischer (Jan 5, 2001)

> If Fischer's Bee-Quick does not have a bad odor 
> like other brands, and yet somehow repells bees... 
> Can I use a little behind each ear and leave off 
> my veil? Maybe put some on each sock and not tie 
> my pant-legs?

There are a number of beekeepers who have reported
that they spray their bee jacket or suit with
Bee-Quick to keep the bees off. We can't comment
on such uses, as to endorse the practice, or
suggest that anyone do it would be to open up a
can of liability worms that would make our
insurance agent turn purple.

DO NOT apply Bee-Quick to bare skin. If you do,
it may cause a slight burn, and is certain to
at least be irritating. The stuff works by
vaporizing very quickly, which is "oxidizing".

"Oxidizing" means that it will react with the
oxygen and moisture in your skin just as it
reacts with the oxygen in the air.

Yes, a bright person could figure out all sorts
of interesting uses for Bee-Quick in many different
aspects of beekeeping, from swarm removal to
robbing control. BUT WE AREN'T GOING TO TALK
ABOUT ANY OF IT. 

We insist that the sole purpose for Bee-Quick is
in honey harvesting. Whatever else one decides
to try with it is done at the sole risk of the
person trying it, with full knowledge that they
are clearly not using the product per directions.

In short, we ain't taking any liability or
responsibility for worst-case scenarios, like
some idiot homeowner trying to remove his own AHB
swarm without any beekeeping experience at all.


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## BubbaBob (Jan 18, 2005)

OK Jim, but answer ONE itty bitty question ... hypothetical, of course.

I don't wish to know the ingredients (I could send a sample to a lab and for a couple hundred bucks find that out), but is there anything in it that would harm skin other than what you described above?

I use a blower, and like it, but after reading your rants <g> about blowers I'm considering trying your concoction...

BubbaBob


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## dbolt (Jun 15, 2005)

I placed an order for some today. Am going to see if I like it or not. Will post the results after harvest in middle of August.


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## Flewster (Nov 3, 2003)

I love the stuff


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## Dave W (Aug 3, 2002)

Thanx Jim,


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## mark williams (Jan 19, 2003)

>DO NOT APPLY Bee Quick to bare skin>
You got that right,  I didn't have a veil with me one day & was moving some hives,they started sting me on the back of my neck,So What did ol'dummy do?Poured a hand full & splashed it on my neck,I'll bet I won't do that again.>>>>Mark


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## Jim Fischer (Jan 5, 2001)

> I don't wish to know the ingredients (I could 
> send a sample to a lab and for a couple hundred 
> bucks find that out),

They would have a very difficult and expensive
time. We have deliberately made the formulation
more obscure than would otherwise be necessary,
just to discourage attempts at "reverse
engineering". Some of the mission-critical
ingredients are very obscure.

> but is there anything in it that would harm 
> skin other than what you described above?

Nope, not a thing. When used in very small
quantities, I have found that it makes an
excellent bitters for Manhattans, Old Fashioneds,
and Whiskey Sours. Yes, you can drink tiny
amounts of the stuff when it is diluted in a
drink. It is all 100% food grade.

I have a standing challenge to the makers
of the various butyric anhydride "bee repellents"
where I would mix a drink including 1/4 ounce of
Bee-Quick and consume it before a gathering of 
beekeepers while they do the same with their
product. So far, no one has answered the challenge,
as they would need immediate medical attention.

But heck - I'd do it just for the fun of it in
front of any group that asked. I would never
turn down a free drink.









> So What did ol'dummy do? Poured a hand full & 
> splashed it on my neck,I'll bet I won't do that 
> again.

Did it act like a sunburn, or was it worse?
Sorry about that, we kinda thought that the
strong odor would be a clue.


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## Flewster (Nov 3, 2003)

Jim,

Just used some more of it tonight and once again it cleared the supers PERFECTLY with very few stragglers......would have been none but did it later in the day and the fume board did not have the sunshine needed but none the less it worked great..........I WILL USE NOTHING ELSE..........of all the bee repellents out there FISHERS BEE QUICK is by far the very best out there........(and you can use that as a testimonal if you want to)


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## Jim Fischer (Jan 5, 2001)

Danke!


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## djuniorfan8 (Jun 15, 2004)

Hey Jim, I love the stuff!! Just my 2 cents.
- Tim


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## mark williams (Jan 19, 2003)

Jim:I'd say it was worse than a sunburn,But I put it on the area that had just been stung,so I think that made it even worse.
Flewster:I put it on an ol' towel & then use my smoker (no smoke)to blow through the towel & super.that way it does not matter about the sun.>>>>Mark


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## Flewster (Nov 3, 2003)

That is a good Idea Mark, I wonder if I took a towel and put it on top then took a hair dryer(have to have a converter for the truck of course) and used it to blow gently through the towel with "Fisher's Bee Quick" on it............hmmmmmmm........got me thinking


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## Jim Fischer (Jan 5, 2001)

> used it to blow gently through the towel

Well, this is one possible use for those
leaf blowers








but if you have a slight breeze (or anything 
up to a force 8 gale) you could use a 
wind-powered breeze board which you can build:
http://www.bee-quick.com/breeze.html
or buy from Brushy Mountain:
http://www.beeequipment.com/products.asp?pcode=748


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## Drifter (May 1, 2004)

Introduced my mentor to Bee Quick last fall . He says he would switch if he was going to stay in the business . He sold his bees to me along with all his equipment .

I tried his other nasty smelling stuff and will never go that direction . Bee Quick works much better and is tolerable if you happen to get some on you .

Drifter


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## scottr (Apr 21, 2004)

Works great! I have been using it for several years without any problems. I would use nothing else.

Scott


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

I'm amazed anyone can use the Butyric acid formulas without wrethcing.


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## ikeepbees (Mar 8, 2003)

Jim,

I found an old bottle of Bee Quick in my tool box that is about half full. I am guessing that it has been in there for at least 2 years.

I'd like to try it again (can't remember why I stopped using it now). If I like it I'll keep using it - question is should I just toss this bottle or would you expect it to still work?


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## Jim Fischer (Jan 5, 2001)

> should I just toss this bottle or would you 
> expect it to still work?

If you look at the label, it says either
_"Full Refund If Not Satisfied"_ (on older bottles)
or _"Your Money's Worth, Or Your Money Back"_
(on newer bottles).

We've got the long-term shelf life thing
licked. One of the first bottles we bottled
back in 1998 is still testing just fine, even
though we "abuse" them with overly hot and
overly cold cycles by keeping them on a shelf
in an unheated barn.

If you had the flat cap screwed on tight, it
should be just fine. After two years, you
may notice that the liquid is "yellowish"
rather than crystal clear, but it should still
have a "sharp" smell when you take a whiff.

Regardless, the label says what it says,
and I meant what I said. Every bottle
should work to the last drop, no excuses,
no quibbling, no arguments, no whining.

You see, I'm just as much a hard-nose on
myself as I am on discussions in the marching,
chowder and debate society here on the
megainterwebnet.

Are a few things maybe starting to make a little
more sense now?

And by the way, when did I ever say that you
were disguised, let alone that any such
disguise was "clever"?


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## Sourwood (Mar 20, 2005)

I've heard enough, I'm going to buy a bottle.


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## honeyman46408 (Feb 14, 2003)

And it makes the cab of my pickup smell nice


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## ikeepbees (Mar 8, 2003)

Ok Jim,

I'm going to take that bottle with me next time I pull supers and give it a try. Thanks for the info.

I'm not sure what things weren't making sense before.

You didn't say I was disguised, nor did you say it was clever. I did.


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## Beemaninsa (Jun 9, 2004)

Personally, I think beequick is the best thing to come along since quality plastic foundation. It clears supers well for me, smells good, appears to be faily safe and is reasonably priced.
Several commercial beekeepers in my area prefer beego as they think it clears the supers better and faster. Frankly, I don't see it.


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## Branman (Aug 20, 2003)

I love beequick

I heard someone say that beego still works okay even if it's not super hot or sunny, but I tried beequick when it was cool and overcast and it took quite a while.


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## Bee Rancher (Sep 11, 2004)

Jim please explain the proper use of your product. I used it on 12 hives here in TX on June 28th and still had supers full of bees. It was at 100 degrees, F and I thought just a little would do on some news paper. I saw no retreating of my bees. in fact I tried it dirctly near a specific bee and He fanned at it but only retreated less than an inch. Please tell me I am doing it wrong...

Thanx for help,
Hank


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## Jim Fischer (Jan 5, 2001)

> I thought just a little would do on some news 
> paper

Sorry to be so slow in answering, it was the
4th of July weekend, so I did not even look at a
computer screen.

It sounds like you did not get an instruction
sheet with your bottle. If you don't have an
instruction sheet, e-mail your e-mail address to
[email protected], and you will be sent a
copy of the instructions.

If the instructions were not sent, sorry.
We do everything we can, including putting a
reminder sticker on the inside flap of every case
to tell the dealers that every customer should
get a bottle, a pump-top, and an instruction sheet. 

The problem with newspaper or paper towels is
that while they absorb the liquid, they just
don't provide a good surface for the evaporation
of the liquid. (Try it with water some time,
newspaper will stay wet longer than cloth if
both are left sitting when soaked with equal
amounts of water.)

The other problem is that unlike a fume board,
newspaper is going to emit fumes from both
sides of the newspaper, rather than only on
the "hive side". Fume boards have a metal
backing behind the cloth, which trap all
the fumes on the "hive side", and insure that
the cloth gets warm due to direct contact
with the metal.

See http://bee-quick.com/use.html for other
handy hints.

There is also rumored to be a fume board out
there with a black PLASTIC top rather than metal.
I've yet to find out who makes them and who sells
them, but we have done no testing at all to verify
that they work as well as the metal-topped type.
(Anyone seen one of these?)


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## Brent Bean (Jun 30, 2005)

Mann Lake sells them, the plastic is black and about 1/4 inch thick I dont think it impedes proper evaporation.


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## HarryVanderpool (Apr 11, 2005)

I really appreciate the product.
It works very well for us.
We buy it by the gallon.
Why don't many bee supply stores sell gallons?


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## Jim Fischer (Jan 5, 2001)

> Mann Lake sells them, the plastic is black and 
> about 1/4 inch thick I dont think it impedes 
> proper evaporation.

Thanks. Forgive me for being a nit-picker, but
we test things around here. Extensively. I want
to test it before someone calls for tech support
about it. We end up supporting the woodenware,
(or, in this case, plasticware) all provided with
no instructions at all, even though we only make
the wetware. Maybe Mann Lake will show up at
HAS and have one on hand to sell me. I can't
imagine plastic getting as hot as the traditional
metal-topped fume boards, so perhaps they have
designed it to "lock in" customers to their
"Honey Robber" butyric anhydride product, which 
does not really vaporize as much as regurgitate
all over your honey.









> Why don't many bee supply stores sell gallons?

Dunno... Maybe the problem is that we pack
4 gallon jugs to a case, and that can be an
expensive proposition for the smaller dealers,
who have a mostly hobbyist customer base.

We also sell 5-gallon pails, but thats a serious
amount of Bee-Quick. I sure don't want to try
to work that many hives.


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## Michael Bush (Aug 2, 2002)

>butyric anhydride product, which 
does not really vaporize as much as regurgitate
all over your honey. 

I knew that smell was familar.


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## Deano (Sep 4, 2004)

I used it this year. half of my hives are in a shaded area. it did not work as well as the hives in direct sunlight. but when it works they boil out of the hives top and bottom. one thing though. it seems like it makes them drunk


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## Jim Fischer (Jan 5, 2001)

If bees are coming out the entrance, use LESS!

Try preheating the fume board(s) a bit by leaving
it (or them) in the sun for a while if you want
faster action in shade. I like the metal painted
black, but I also like dual downdraft Webber carbs
on MGs.

If the bees are acting "drunk", this might be
another clue that you might have used too much.

Its nearly impossible to do this sort of
"tech support" from far, and after the fact,
so that's about the best I can offer.


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## ainsof (Dec 27, 2005)

I was about to ask about the use of fume boards, but after this thread, I'm sold. BeeQuick sounds like an amazing product. Thanks Jim


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## Ross (Apr 30, 2003)

Another trick is to put some on the platform where you stack the supers as you pull them. The fumes rising keep the robbers out and help evacuate the stragglers. I use a wheel barrow and lay newspaper in the bottom with a little on it.


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## ainsof (Dec 27, 2005)

VERY good idea Ross! Thanks for the input!

I've also been concerned about accidentally squishing bees when replacing supers on a hive.

Does anyone think it might be a good idea to dab a little on to ...say... wrist straps or cuffs on one's bee jacket to help avoid this?


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## Jim Fischer (Jan 5, 2001)

> dab a little on to ...say... wrist straps or cuffs

Many beekeepers swear by this, but this is yet
another use of the product that we can't really
comment upon officially, as it would be promoting
the product as a "bug repellent" like "Off" or
"Cutter's", and would violate the spirit of the
regulations imposed by the FDA on such products.

I would not suggest applying directly to skin,
as it is a volatile substance that could cause
a minor skin irritation.

If you want to avoid squishing bees when putting
supers back on, hit the top bars with a few
heavy puffs of smoke, and most bees will go
down between the frames, allowing you to make
a quick "wipe" with a bee brush to clear off
the bees atop the mating surfaces of the lower
super. Then you simply need to be quick in
putting the removed super back on.


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## Propolis30 (Aug 25, 2005)

I have 3 words for you..........Beequick


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