Table for printing frames: types of devices for cutting, how to make a machine with your own hands

Pulling honey from hives is a complex and time-consuming process. The quality of a valuable, medicinal product depends on the correctness of the actions of the beekeeper. To facilitate the procedure for extracting nectar from hives, beekeepers use various devices and designs. A table for printing honeycomb frames allows you to speed up the process of pumping honey and as a result get a high-quality, clean product.

What do you need?

During the flowering period of honey plants, bees collect nectar and pollen. Further, insects process them with a special secret and place them in cells of honeycombs. To get honey, insects seal the cells with a delicacy with zabrus, consisting of wax, propolis and nectar.

As a result of this procedure, honey does not flow out of the cells, and chemical processes take place in hermetically sealed honeycombs, as a result of which the delicacy ripens to the desired condition.

To extract the finished product of beekeeping from combs, the frames have to be printed. To do this, beekeepers have to cut off a thick layer of sticky and viscous cast.

In small apiaries, beekeepers use special knives or forks to print frames. But for a large amount of work, such tools are not suitable, so you have to equip the apiary with special designs. To facilitate the task of pumping honey, professional beekeepers use a special cutting table, which they purchase ready-made or make their own from improvised materials.

The main task of the design is to keep the bee frames in the process of unpacking them and collect the honey and wax extracted from them in separate compartments.

Important! Before starting work, the bee frames are heated to a temperature not higher than +36 degrees. In this case, the cast begins to melt, which makes it easier to open cells with honey.

Varieties of tables

Mankind has been extracting honey for many millennia. During this period of time, people have invented various devices for printing frames with honey.

Modern beekeepers prefer special cutting tables and machines that are purchased in stores or made on their own.

Cutting tables are of the following type:

• honeycomb frames mounted over wax collection container;
• table with a grid that separates nectar from wax, equipped with a special container and a tap for collecting honey;
• bee frame printing machines.

Machines fully or partially automate the work of printing honeycombs, divided into single-sided and double-sided.

Important! The dimensions and equipment of the tables depend on the needs of the beekeeper, they can vary in length, width, the volume of the basket for collecting wax and the size of the honey container.

Pros and cons

Before purchasing or making a cutting table for printing frames, it is necessary to identify all the pros and cons of this design:

• stationary placement in a specific place that does not require additional reinforcement and fixation;
• maximum convenience for the beekeeper;
• there is always room for additional tools and materials needed for the job;
• if the cutting table is not efficient enough, you can always install an automatic or semi-automatic machine on the structure.

Important! When making a homemade table, the beekeeper takes into account only his needs and convenience for work.

Drawings and dimensions

The dimensions of the design for printing honeycombs are calculated individually, based on the specific needs of the beekeeper.

The table consists of the following elements:

• metal or wood base, shaped like an ordinary table;
• at the bottom of the table a volumetric container for collecting honey with a drain hole and an inclined bottom is fixed. Most often, a large tank from washing machines or a stainless steel kitchen sink is used as a reservoir;
• a crane is installed in the drain recess, which will be responsible for the timely discharge of nectar;
• a mesh with small cells is attached to the top of the tank to collect wax;
• as frame holders above the tank, a special removable stand made of rails is installed.

Important! The honeycomb printing design is made only from natural, environmentally friendly elements.

Tools and materials

For self-production of the structure you will need:

• wooden or metal parts to create a table frame;
• suitable tank with drain hole;
• standard tool kit including saw, pliers, screwdriver, hammer and nails.

Also have extra wooden slats and fine mesh on hand.

How to make a table for printing honeycomb frames with your own hands

When making a table for printing honeycomb frames, the beekeeper should rely on their own preferences and conveniences, which will increase productivity.

Sequence of construction:

• marking is applied to metal or wooden blanks for the frame base;
• using a tool to make a structure in the form of a table;
• then install a container for collecting honey with a drain hole and a tap;
• at the top of the container, a container for wax waste and a net for separating honey from zabrus are fixed;
• a mount for a bee frame is installed above the tank, which can be made from ordinary wooden slats.

This design speeds up the process of printing honeycomb frames and ensures the fastest production of high-quality and useful product.

Advice! After expanding the apiary and acquiring an automated machine, the cutting table is not thrown away, but used as a stand for new equipment.

Application

In beekeeping, a cutting table is used to manually print frames with bee nectar.

To do this, the honeycomb is placed on the fixing frame and carefully opened it alternately from each side with a hot or cold knife. Also, a special plug is used for work.

During the unsealing process, the wax falls into a designated container or onto a mesh fixed in a honey collection tank. This procedure is done for each side of the bee frame.

After the work is completed, clean, tasty and fragrant honey is drained with a tap into prepared containers and sent for further processing or storage.

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