Spinning Out Honey

The Farmer started processing honey today. We don't use a lot (or any) fancy equipment. We've looked at it, but by the time we think we've made a decision about what we want, it's time to process so we just tell ourselves, we'll look at it again next year. And then next year comes and repeat.  :) The equipment can also be quite expensive.

So we have a system. And it works. We have a garbage can (we store honey supplies in here so the only thing it gets used for is honey). Inside (you'll see in a picture down below) is a frame that holds two honey frames and has a nut for attaching the drill.

This is a frame pulled from the beehive.

The Farmer uncapping the frames by scrapping with a dinner fork.

This will all be run through a strainer to get every last drop of sweetness. The honeycomb in the corner is gone because Con and Farmer have a sweet tooth for it.

The Farmer spinning out the frames. We (and by we I hope you all know that I mean the Farmer because I have no mechanical or construction abilities) need to add a frame across the top. There's no way I'm strong enough to hold onto this while it's spinning. The Farmer wanted me to try but only because he wanted to laugh at me while I flailed helplessly around the barrel.

The inside of the barrel. Let the barrel sit overnight so the honey all runs to the bottom.

A frame that has been spun out. We set these outside behind the shop and the bees will have these picked clean in a couple of days.

A collander, cheesecloth, and a stive (I think that's right...it's the fancy collander for smashing juice out of fruit) to strain the honey.

Cute baby entirely optional but it's always nice to have someone sing with you while you work.

Lisa