Cleaning used hives

[flatford39]

I have acquired some used hives & frames and want to know how to clean them organiccaly. I have no history on this equipment so I want to sterilze in case there was disease. The all show signs of wax & some had very old comb.

Thanks,

Tom

[Bill W.]

The most common practice seems to be scrape and scorch.  I would probably just discard the old comb and call it good.

Some states have facilities for irradiating used equipment, so you might check into that if you are very concerned.

[bmacior]

Whereas most hives are not painted on the inside, would boiling them in wax and rosin kill any spores?  (MB recommends 250 dgrees for 6-8 minutes for sealing new boxes).  Would the boiling cause the paint to peel?

Barb

[Michael Bush]

>Whereas most hives are not painted on the inside, would boiling them in wax and rosin kill any spores?

Yes.  It is the recommended treatment in Australia and New Zealand.

>Would the boiling cause the paint to peel?

Not usually, unless it's already coming loose.  I boiled many old painted boxes with no noticeable peeling other than what was already taking place.