# Heat gun uncapping



## BMAC (Jun 23, 2009)

Have not tried it. Not sure pros or cons. I have discussed this with my friend to some extent. My only concern would be carmelizing the honey right on the surface and getting melted wax flung inside my extractor. 

Again I have never tried it and maybe those are not concerns. Just my thoughts.


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## genie (Jun 25, 2011)

i've never use a hot knife simply because i don't have one. is it really necessary to use a heated knife?


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## Cedar Hill (Jan 27, 2009)

The heat gun works well. It's fast. The wax melts and congeles so quickly around the very edges of the each cell that you needn't worry about wax being flung around. The heat does not remain very long near the honey so it doesn't seem to taint the honey at all, in contrast with a heated uncapping knife. I used to use a vibrating fish fileting knife to uncap, it worked quite well. Presently have Kelley's vibrating knife which is not heated when used (but it can be) and I wouldn't do without it. OMTCW


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## Vance G (Jan 6, 2011)

I still want to build one of these! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2tBl...eature=related Don't know why that won't work search russian uncapping knife on this forum.


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## Katharina (May 2, 2011)

I had to roll some candles and the wax sheets had bloomed and the sheets were brittle. They were no longer sticking either. So I has debating the heat gun or the hair dryer. I'm glad I did the hair dryer first, because at full heat it did melt the wax. Anyway it was nice to see the bloom disappear and the wax turning into the original state. I was able to roll them and they did not break up any longer. They point is you may be able to use a hair dryer instead. I would worry about the honey scorching with the heat gun.


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## RayMarler (Jun 18, 2008)

A good bread knife would be faster.


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## alfredd (Jul 24, 2011)

Heat gun works for me. It is faster than a bread knife, and not a messy. I also use a hot wire to level off the comb after I spin out the honey. There is not enough heat/time with a heat gun to even warm the honey let alone caramelize it.


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## snl (Nov 20, 2009)

I really like the heat gun.......no cappings to mess with, honey extracts clean & does not harm the honey or the comb.............of course, I've only +- 20 hives.............


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## dnichols (May 28, 2012)

Just watched a video on this. Looks sweet but who knows. If you are rendering beeswax this would pretty much put an end to that.


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## KQ6AR (May 13, 2008)

One of our members demonstrated it at our last meeting. I couldn't believe how fast & clean it was. 
He said to be careful not to turn the heat to high, I think he used the low setting on his $8 harbor freight gun.


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

Has the heat any effect on plastic frames?


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## KQ6AR (May 13, 2008)

He moved the heat gun across the frame so quickly, I doubt the plastic even got warm. Uncapped 1/2 a frame in about 3 seconds.


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## crofter (May 5, 2011)

Most of my honey frames are newly drawn and all were tightly spaced so lots of low spots the capping knife misses. Scratching capping sure puts lots of wax slush in the honey. Got to give that a try some time in the next couple of weeks!


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## dfortune (Aug 10, 2012)

The heat gun only works with dry cappings. Wet cappings just lay flat over the honey rather than sticking to the sides of the cell. If all or most o your honey is dry it works well, faster than a scratcher but slower than a knife. Frames dont drip and virtually zero cappings in your honey, very clean. Bees also accept the frames and clean them up nice. That should pretty much sum up any questions.


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## Bear Creek Steve (Feb 18, 2009)

For what it is worth: 

First 2012 harvest yesterday with my wife running the H.F. heat gun and me running the extracter. She followed it with a bit of capping scratching which did add wax sludge to the honey strainer. She definitely liked the heat gun over an electric knife and the operation was much faster. If we are so lucky to get a second harvest the capping scratching will be reduced or eliminated altogether. 

So far my 2012 harvest is 60% below my 2011 harvest. **** drought!

Steve


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## rmcpb (Aug 15, 2012)

Now that is worth a try!


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## Russ (Sep 9, 2001)

What is the Wattage on the Heat Gun that you use for Uncapping?


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## Bear Creek Steve (Feb 18, 2009)

Russ,

1,500 Watt, Harbor Freight Item, 96289, cost $8.00 on sale. Also bought a set of "heat spreader clip on tips" but they were not helpful.

Regards,
bear Creek Steve


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## dnichols (May 28, 2012)

Glad I dug this thread back up. Good times good times.


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## Bear Creek Steve (Feb 18, 2009)

Dnichols: If wax is a major objective, yes you will get less. The cappings in the sludge plus burr comb, once rendered in a solar wax melter, filtered through a paper towl, are sufficent for me to add an additional coat of bees wax on plastic frames/foundation with a sponge type paint roller from a double boiler arrangement.

Crofter: I use a mix of wooden frames with wax foundation, plastic foundation (with an additional coat of my own beeswax), and Pierco all plastic frames also coated with my own bees wax. I have not had a problem with the heat gun being too hot for any of the pastic. However, keep in mind that it is a matter of technique, which one must learn, sometimes the hard way.

All frames from the extraction the other day are now back on the hives for bee cleanup. Above the bulk of the hive I have: the inner cover, a completely empty medium super, a medium super full of 10 recently extracted frames, and then the outer cover. The theory is, that if left in that sequence for 7-10 days the bees will clean up and move downward into the main hive all of the residual honey from the recently extracted frames. The repair of any damage to the cells is an additional step which I will take at a leter time.

Regards,
Bear Creek Steve


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## Russ (Sep 9, 2001)

Thanks Bear Creek Steve, I will check into that gun.


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## Agis Apiaries (Jul 22, 2014)

Just tried this and wow did it work great! After two medium supers being processed, the uncapping tub had three 1/4 inch drops of wax in it and absolutely nothing else. It took 15 to 20 seconds per frame to uncap. The wax in the double strainer after two supers would fit in a teaspoon. No damage to frames and it didn't cause the honey any problems either. We are hooked!


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## snl (Nov 20, 2009)

BlackForestBees said:


> We are hooked!


Wait till you've old frames and foundation.......you may not be so hooked....


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## Agis Apiaries (Jul 22, 2014)

SNL, what has your experience been with this? I found the heat never even made it to the foundation. Curious what problems you have had with it.


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## snl (Nov 20, 2009)

On the older comb, the wax hardens back quickly to seal the comb AND the cappings are not so easily melted. Again, works on the new comb just fine....


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## gman1001 (Sep 24, 2013)

My experience was not good. I found the melted cappings quickly ran down the frame and recapped other cells. A real mess. Love the concept but when you think about it the melted wax has to go somewhere right!? 

I wish it did work better because it looks so fast and a lot neater than working with a capping tank.


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## Jackam (Jun 3, 2013)

I went from crush and strain to an extractor and a heat knife.
I HATED the heat knife.
I tried the heat gun method and I do not foresee going back to the knife!
The frames that I did were new, but I imagine that even with old comb, the CAPPINGS will be new wax.
I'll know better next year!


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## snl (Nov 20, 2009)

Jackam said:


> I'll know better next year!


Yes you will


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