Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum
BEEKEEPING LEARNING CENTER => EQUIPMENT USAGE, EXPERIMENTATION, HIVE PLANS, CONSTRUCTION TIPS AND TOOLS => Topic started by: sarafina on April 24, 2008, 09:16:11 pm
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I haven't worn gloves the first 2 times I pulled frames to inspect, but it is early in the season. I really don't want to get stung on my hands but I can't grip the frames in gloves.
What do you guys do when pulling frames? Gloves or no gloves? If no gloves how often do your hands get stung?
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I don't if being a woman counts as "one of the guys" :-D :-D but I usually wear gloves - I get a large local reaction to stings and don't wish to invite them. But when I need to do something fine motor like take pictures or insert a queen cage (which I did for the first time the other day), I wear thin latex gloves like dental assistants wear.
Linda T in Atlanta
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Personally, if the bees are "gentle" I use latex hospital gloves. When I know I am going to piss them off, I wear my gloves, and have my DH there to pull the frames with the frame holder while I look...
I really do like barehanded, but they are bees, and they do sting... :-D
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I admit in my beginnings I wore gloves, pull over jacket and veil. Now we all know how hot that is in Florida and how long you would have to endure the heat while inspecting. I don't wear the gloves or the pull over suit now but I do wear a veil from time to time. If you want to wear gloves while inspecting frames, especialy the first frame to be pulled out of the box you might try a set of frame grips.
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i do because when i get stung i swell up so much. if it weren't for that, i'd probably not.
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I wear my leather gloves from Mann Lake. I really just have trouble getting out the first frame from the super. So I just purchased a frame grip from Brush Mt Catalog. This works really well and no squished bees. After that I am just careful that there aren't any bees under my gloves when moving around the super.
JP uses some sort of gloves from Home Depot. They are blue in color. I cannot find them at my home depot.
Take care
Annette
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I never where gloves! my arm use to get huge but now I just get a little red dot. I"ve all ways got stung more with gloves.
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No Gloves. Couple of reasons. Inspectors can't wear them because they are unsanitary. I handle things in my fingers better without them. I only wear them on cut outs with hives that get the sawzall.
Sincerely,
Brendhan
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If I'm dealing with mean bees, I wear them. My bees, underware, usually a veil, no gloves. It is important to protect the face and eyes, and this is where they usually like to sting you the most.
If you are careful in your movements and work your fingers, moving them in right next to the bees, without pinching them, they generally do not mind the intrusion. And bare handed you get of course the most dexterity.
...JP
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jp, can you post a picture of that?? :-D
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Gloves are tricky, if they really fit well, they are great - too large or small, you will not be able to handle frames, which alone can aggrivate the bees - causeing more problems then someone confident with no glaves on.
If you have weaker hands (I have some nurve damage I deal with) and find frame grabbers very handy, again a good pair that fits your hand without causing hand strain is ideal.
This issue (according to my pet peeve is SMOKER USE - I stand by my smoking methods and prep work:
1) during the last inspection, you should clean off (scrape) any excess wax from areas that contact frames to resting boards, etc. MAking the ease of pulling it lose much easier.
2) I smoke the entrance with 4 or 5 good puffs, wait 5 or so minutes and hit them again with 5 strong puffs. Then in 5 more minutes, I leave the lit smoker near the hive entrace and go to work in the hive, the girls are very relaxed at the point and ready for your interaction. Having parts that don't stick together, keeping burr-comb to a minimum, etc. will make every inspection easier and more comfortable to you and the bees.
I've ised nitrile gloves, they don't stretch like latex, not a hair - so right sizing them is so important. They also don't breathe, so you will get lots of sweat out of them, not the best thing around the hives, but if you can double up the gloves (hard if one pair fits good, that means two probably will not) but 2 pair would do a great job of sting proofing them.
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My Wife and oldest Son (the two here with the most experience) never wear gloves just hat and veil. :)
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jp, can you post a picture of that?? :-D
I wouldn't want to scare you! :-D
...JP
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>Gloves or no gloves?
Usually gloves.
> If no gloves how often do your hands get stung?
With or without, you occasionally get stung. If you're not aware of the bees under your gloves, you'll get stung more with gloves. If you are aware, you'll get stung less with gloves. Also remember to smoke the gloves now and then to cover any alarm odor.
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No gloves. Period. The only time that I will wear gloves is like when I am catching a swarm, not like that happens very often. But when I push the bees into the swarm catching box, I like to have my hands with my heavy leather gloves on.
I like to be able to feel when I am close to a bee. That is what it is like when gloveless. If I ever get stung, I immediately smoke the stung area, that masks the sting pheromone, but I rarely get a sting, I thank my lucky stars when I do though, I know that will help to keep my fingers from arthritis stuff, hee, hee. I am fortunate in that I don't swell even one little bit, maybe just a little bit of that burning sensation and then a little itching. I am heading off today to do masses of work in the apiary. Got my 10 Carniolan queens yesterday from Strachan Apiaries, making nucs and requeening -- so a big day at my house. Probably gonna be with the bees, all day long, oh those lucky gals!!! Beautiful and most wonderful day, Cindi
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No gloves - under normal conditions. By that, I mean, almost all the time I go gloveless (barehanded), it is so much quicker and easier to feel what I am doing. I read about what other beekeepers are doing, so I try things out, just to see what others are talking about. Whenever I've tried gloves, they've been more trouble than help. I find it important to feel the bees beneath my fingers in order to avoid squashing most of them. With gloves, even thin latex ones, I discover that by the time I feel the bees beneath my fingers it is usually too late for the poor bee. And I appreciate a little unscheduled apitherapy - helps keep the arthritis in check.
One recent change to my usual beekeeping garb has been to change from short-sleeved T-shirts to long-sleeved white ones. Now I've stopped getting stung in the arm pits - that's a relief.
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Used to wear gloves all the time and got tired of pulling them off when I needed dexterity. I do have them on hand though (no pun intended), just in case, as I do my smoker which is always lit and available. Still wear veil and pullover jacket. Will not do it otherwise. I get too cocky when I have no armour on and then I make a huge mistake, hack them off, they start in on me, so I put hive back together, and hobble as fast as my walker will take me (I can beat a snail but not a slug), or my wheelchair will roll me to the house.
I have noticed I am much more gentle without gloves.
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I wear regular leather driving gloves, not beekeepers gloves. I tuck these into the elastic on the sleeves of my beekeepers jacket. They are much easier to get on and off than a full beekeepers glove.
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I try to get them as skin tight as I can. Like M B says riding gloves if you can't get tight fitting bee gloves.
doak
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I am a newbie so I find wearing gloves helps me from reacting to the bees who land on my hands and forearms - I am not yet used to the sensation and kind of have an automatic reaction to it which I think causes a bigger chance of stings than wearing gloves does.
That said, if I did not have a pair that allowed me total dexterity I wouldn't wear them.
I use a gardening glove called Foxgloves - they are super fitting and washable. Stretchy enough to go over sleeves but fit well enough that you still feel what you are working with. I don' think they provide complete sting protection (certainly not like a Mann Lake or leather glove would) but they do provide some protection. You can get them smooth palmed or with grips - which are great - and you can get them in regular or elbow length. They come in lots of great colors but, unfortunately, not white.
I bought mine at least 7-8 years ago and use them heavily (mostly for gardening) and they are still going strong. The ones with grips tend to wear out faster than the ones without - don't know why but the index finger always gets a hole at the tip so I've been through two of those but am still on my first pair of smooths.
And, now that I'm done with my advert - no, I don't work for them!
Apparently I can't put in a link because of the spam o meter but if you type in the usual web address beginning plus foxglovesinc with a dot com after it you should be able to get their website.
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Depends on the mood of the bees ;). If I wear gloves I use regular old yellow dishwashing gloves. I get 2 for a buck at the dollar store.
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I like the idea of leather driving gloves. Need to pick up a pair and try them out.
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IMHO, a good set of guantlets are more important than gloves. There are 2 times bees will always sting--bees up the pant legs and bees up the sleeve.
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I vary by season. I don't wear gloves in the spring and summer, when the bees are nice and calm, but late fall, winter inspection, early spring, I definitely wear gloves. They just dislike the intrusion at those times, especially since smoking them is not ideal when they'll start tearing into stores at the hint of smoke. I wear them with swarms and when I did the cutout, too. When I get a bee vac, I won't wear gloves when doing swarms, but until then, I'd rather be protected.
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i started knocking down that swarm the other day without gloves. got nailed on the inside of my wrist and by the next day was swollen from hand to elbow. just can't take the chance and skip the gloves, but i agree with the good fitting work gloves. they are just a effective as bee gloves if you can seal the wrist.
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After reading this email string, I thought I'd try moving away from my thick leather gloves and either go without gloves completely or use something else. I stopped at the Grange and pickup a set of thin blue nitrile? gloves. They were very thin and didn't offer much protection, but I really wanted to handle the frames better. The thin gloves did a nice job. They didn't have to provide me any protection, ........ partially, because I was able to handle the frames much better. Next time I'm going to "sans" the gloves completely and just sing a few verses of "Macho, Macho, Man..." while I'm tending the hive. The drive to the hospital is only 5 minutes from my hive.
Looking at some the DVDs on bee keeping, plus all the photos in books and magazines, etc.; I see all of these mature and wisdom-filled gentlemen :-D :-D handling bees without gloves, veils, wearing shorts, sandals, open neck shirts/short sleeve shirts, no hats, etc. I can get a senior citizens discount at Denny's, so I should be able to do the same.
Seriously, I think I'll stop using gloves for a while and find out when I don't really need them. They make me clumsily and make working frames difficult. I suspect there will be times when their needed, I just need to work without them, if I can.
Regards,
Tucker!
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i have guantlets but stopped wearing them after a couple of inspections.. they where always in the way. have not got stung yet..
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I wear them, I'm a born coward, don't want to get stung, and trying hard to keep it that way. Its cool up here so suits, jackets are nice , keep you warm as well as protect. I do find myself wanting to rip the gloves off sometimes, its just kinda clumsy. I think a frame tool will take care of that issue. Maybe later this summer I'll try without gloves. Till then I'll just bawck! bawck! at that idea.
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I think a lot of beekeepers do videos with no veil etc. just to illustrate what they know, which is that bees are not angry and trying to sting you. But, wearing a veil is the prudent thing to do. Someday you will open a hive that is in a bad mood and get stung badly in the face. If you're lucky you won't get any in the eye.
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I think a lot of beekeepers do videos with no veil etc. just to illustrate what they know, which is that bees are not angry and trying to sting you. But, wearing a veil is the prudent thing to do. Someday you will open a hive that is in a bad mood and get stung badly in the face. If you're lucky you won't get any in the eye.
Not wearing a veil is the "macho" thing to do.
Running, screaming, perhaps even crying and yellin' for your Momma after they've stung you on your face, well, not very macho.
Veil good, stings to the face, bad, sometimes very, very bad.
...JP
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I think a lot of beekeepers do videos with no veil etc. just to illustrate what they know, which is that bees are not angry and trying to sting you. But, wearing a veil is the prudent thing to do. Someday you will open a hive that is in a bad mood and get stung badly in the face. If you're lucky you won't get any in the eye.
I am a new beek and I would never approach my hive without a veil. I have a bordman feeder and had to change the quart jar every day after I hived them. I would wear shorts and flip flops but had a veil on :-D I just snuck up behind the hive and swapped the jars out and left quickly and was never bothered, but I didn't want to take a chance with my face. I don't mind getting stung anywhere else.
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About the veil, yep agreed 100%. I wouldn't think of working in my apiary without a veil, nothing else though. I have a feeling of protection with a veil, I can work unhurried and unworried. Lovely and great day, Cindi
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I have been using rubber dish washing gloves but they are hot and make my hands sweat a lot.
This week, ACE hardware has Soft leather work gloves on sale for $8.99. They are very soft and flexible with a draw string at the wrist. They work great, easy to get on and off. They come in extra large size for my fat hands. They work so will that I went back and bought a spare pair.
Steve
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I've only done one inspection but did it without gloves. I had them with me in case the bees were hot but I want to use them as little as possible. I'm nervous without them but I won't learn without diving in.
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I change feeders without my gloves, but use them for everything else. I can handle getting stung on the arms or legs, but in the face or on the hands...no thanks. For some reason I'm really nervous about inspecting without my gloves. I don't always wear the suit, but gloves and veil always. Maybe I'll get brave during this flow and see what happens. But for some reason, I still tend to freak when they land on my hands...not sure why...guess just learned behavior.
While on the subject...of suits/gloves. How should I wash them. My gloves (double lined cotton) and my bee suit are really really dirty. I want to avoid the smell of detergents as they may not like the scent. Any advice on this?? What do you do?
Derrick
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We always use gloves and suit. Our bees are quite mean and we need to find quieter queens.
I always use to use the All detergent for Sensitive Skin. It works really well. the last few times I have washed them I have used a homemade detergent that my mom makes. It has a scent but the bees don't seem to mind.
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Derrick. I just wash my beesuit in the normal laundry soap stuff, all on its own, in cold water. I don't use warm water with it because of any propolis that may be on it, I think the warm water would put propolis on the washer drum. The suit never will come really clean I can see, but it is clean of anything that is not dirt that is worn right into the fabric. It is cleaner when it comes out than when it when in, I know that and the bees don't mind if there is any scent of any detergent, if there is any remaining. Just wash it any way that you like...beautiful and most wonderful day in this life. Cindi
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I hang dry everything. My family likes those dryer sheets way too much. The bees hate them. I stopped using the dryer after the second time I washed everything and the next inspection I was again covered in bees that were not very happy. It only takes a building falling on me before I get the point. Hang dry and no problems.
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I wouldn't think of working in my apiary without a veil, nothing else though.
A veil and nothing else? :shock:
Bob :-D
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I wouldn't think of working in my apiary without a veil, nothing else though.
A veil and nothing else? :shock:
Bob :-D
She does that to impress her husband!!! :-D
...JP
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No gloves, no veil when installing packages or nucs, veil most of the time for inspections or honey harvest.
Camp
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I wouldn't think of working in my apiary without a veil, nothing else though.
A veil and nothing else? :shock:
Bob :-D
She does that to impress her husband!!! :-D
Hee, hee, haw, haw, oops, guess I missed out some words here, the female gender on our forum would have known what I meant. Bad boys. Beautiful and most wonderful day, Cindi
...JP
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Full suit for hive manipulations, installs, and when I have to cut the grass in there. I am allergic, so I get a pass on the 'sissy' stuff. ;) Otherwise, I can sit and watch them with nothing other than my sunglasses on.
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Otherwise, I can sit and watch them with nothing other than my sunglasses on.
Daddys Girl, watch out, you're gonna get teased too by those boys!!! ;) :) :) :) Have the most beautiful and wonderful of these days, Cindi
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I wear my full suit and gloves and nothing else
Think about that one!!!!!
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Not good if the bees find a small tear and you have to get out of the suit quickly. :-D
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Ha! Ha!
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Annette, oh yep, yep, you are a hoot and a hollar, and yep, yep, you make me laugh!!! Have that great and wonderful day, still thinking about what you said, hee, hee. Cindi
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No gloves, no veil most of the time. Easy does it, slow and steady but have the veil handy if they start getting cranky. Yes, have been stung lots of times.
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I have never seen this talked about but I have thought that the bees don't mind our hands and fingers next to them because we are so warm. I often imagine my fingers are just other bees as I am working right amongst them, I could be dead wrong but I sometimes think the bees react to my fingers like they are in fact other bees.
Sometimes bees will fly down and just about light on my hands and then back away, I believe they sense the warmth.
I really believe they accept my fingers next to them as they were bees them selves.
And as long as you don't make any fast, abrupt motions, they seem fine with the intrusion.
Yes, you will get some stings, now and again, you will get a hot hive, that is out of control and just don't want to mind their manners, but most that I deal with, put up with the intrusion nicely.
My .02.
...JP
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JP, wow!!! Now that deserves some attention in the thinking department. I wonder if this may be true, it certainly seems a plausible thing. Now, do an experiment. Put a bucket of ice near the bees, plunge your hands into it and get them really really cold. Then work the bees. I wanna hear the results.....if you don't, I bet someone else will. Are you, like a "thinkin' man" or something, just like Brendan is the "travellin' man?" Beautiful and most wonderful day, happy days. Cindi
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JP, wow!!! Now that deserves some attention in the thinking department. I wonder if this may be true, it certainly seems a plausible thing. Now, do an experiment. Put a bucket of ice near the bees, plunge your hands into it and get them really really cold. Then work the bees. I wanna hear the results.....if you don't, I bet someone else will. Are you, like a "thinkin' man" or something, just like Brendan is the "travellin' man?" Beautiful and most wonderful day, happy days. Cindi
Cindi, I haven't really put this hypothesis to that much thought really, it just seems so in my dealings with bees, that I am able to remove a section of comb with my bare hands, over and again without most colonies becoming upset with my fingers right next to them while they are on the combs.
It just makes sense, why else would they allow my fingers right next to them and btw, they are often on my hands and fingers as if they were in fact other bees, just working away, oblivious and quite accepting of the intrusion.
My gut tells me its a temperature thing.
Now, since you brought up the idea of a test, let me know how it turns out, and by all means, do take lots of before and after pictures!! :-D :-D :-*
...JP
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http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5106409524033235587
It is about 50 minutes long, and is of the Lusbys working their hives.
http://video.google.co.uk/videoplay?docid=-5280305518683878361&hl=en-GB
PJ Chandler transferring a swarm to a TBH from a top bar skep.
http://mkat.iwf.de/mms/metafiles/02000018960220000000_lo.asx
A woman working commercial hives, sans gloves and veil.
I have my TBH set up so I can look inside without disturbing the bees. The only reason I have to open the hive right now is to pull the queen cage in a few days, and I'll probably contract the brood area as well.
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JP, my instinct tells me that the bees do not bother with you because of the energy they feel from you. If you are calm, peaceful and loving towards them, then they accept this intrusion. I know when I am feeling nervous around them, they are all over my gloves trying to sting me.
The warmth thing could be possible too.
Take Care
Annette
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JP, my instinct tells me that the bees do not bother with you because of the energy they feel from you. If you are calm, peaceful and loving towards them, then they accept this intrusion. I know when I am feeling nervous around them, they are all over my gloves trying to sting me.
The warmth thing could be possible too.
Take Care
Annette
Sorry Annette its the warmth thing. Just kidding, it could be both, next time in I'll ask! :-D
...JP
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Daddys Girl. Nice links, I will look at the almost one hour long video another time, it looks like a good watch.
Something I don't get here and maybe will be explained by one of the Moderators, is how did your reply to the post get a different topic name than what the original name was "do you wear gloves when you pull a frame to inspect", yours was entitled"a study in contrasts", a different topic title. Weird. Have that beautiful and most wonderful day, Cindi
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Cindi, when you reply to a post, you have the option to erase the subject and put in a different title.
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Brenda, yes, girl, I see what you mean, I find it a little strange, but that is OK, we are all learning, and I learn many new things each day, have the best of this wonderful and great day, Cindi