I know this video is older but I wanted to add. It is very important to keep the mask and cartridges dry. They can grow mold in they and give you a lung infection. And in the colder weather when you guys will be using your masks condensation will be a problem. New ones every year will help for sure.
In Australia July 2024 beekeeping authorities have not approved the use of oxalic vaporisation. My first thought was why as it’s been successfully used overseas for a long time. After watching your informative video on the importance of safety PPE I have more understanding why OA has not been approved atm.
Bob this was a great video!! I am a fellow beekeeper and have been in the chemical industry for 20 years. This was top notch information on respirator use, care and storage. If I may add just a couple things for viewers: 1. Washing with mild soapy water and air drying is spot on. I must stress DO NOT use cleaning/disinfecting solvents such as isopropyl alcohol. These solvents will attack and degrade the sealing surface materials. There are disinfecting wipes and such for respirators, but wash and dry is just fine. Also, remove cartridges before washing the respirator....yes this has escaped people in past years. 2. Perfect explanation on "clean" areas to hang up for air drying. NOTE: These organic cartridges will absorb impurities from the open air they are exposed to. After air drying store the respirator and cartridges, at least the cartridges, in a gallon ziplock bag. This will ensure the life span of the cartridges for use. Again, VERY GOOD VIDEO.
Bob I have to say, not only its very responsible of you to educate people out there the importance of lung protection from the OA vapors, but educational as well for the novice viewers, as you can see from some of the comments. Safety glasses is a must, considering that those cups pop quite often, that little 1/4" is a flaw on that provap 110 as it cools to fast and the OA crystalize back into a rocky state within the end of the pipe; I even did the Ian Stepler version where I wrapped the cup with that muffler wrap, it does help quite a lot as the temp don't drop too much below the 200C but still I have to cary a little drill bit to drill out that "pain in the rear end" rocky crystals. Best wishes my friend, keep up the good work. Dan
Terrific info & the timing was spot-on. 3 days ago I ordered what I thought was the right 3M respirator & your video not only told me my mistake, but enabled me to cancel & reorder the correct one without any hassle. Thank you so much!
Hey Bob great video and good guys. It’s great you take it serious and respect your folks enough to keep them safe. I have told employees over the years that I would rather fire them than to have them hurt or have to tell their loved ones something happened due to a safety violation. Thanks for sharing and hope you all stay safe!
I am glad to see a boss care about his employees as much as you do back when I worked I treated the men at work with me the same way I would not ask them to do anything that I would not do and I would look out for them before I would look out for myself
TOTALLY AGREE MY DAD AND I FARM AND RUN A CONCRETE BUSINESS AND DAD ALWAYS SAID NEVER ASK SOME ONE TO DO SOMETHING THAT YOU WOULD NOT DO OR HAVE NOT DONE IT. TREAT OTHERS BETTER THAN YOURSELF. NOT MUCH OF THIS ANY MORE. BOB HAS TO BE ONE OF THE MUST CARING AND HONEST PEOPLE ON YOU TUBE PERIOD I BELIEVE THIS FIRMLY!!!!
Excellent point about eye protection Bob. Acid vapors can irritate eyes. You guys did a good job. Not to seem like a know it all, but have been in safety and health for 16 years.
Remember oxalic acid goes from a vapor back to a solid, what you inhale turns to solid in your lungs and it stays there eating away at your lung tissue. This is not repairable unless you get a transplant. Do not trust wind direction, it forever changes. Also when I didn't wear goggles with proper fit, I burned the sclera which healed in time but you are spot on with your precautions. Well done Bob.
We use the 60923 aswell, full face mask. We can just about get one round of 1500 treatments before we need to change cartridges. Soon as we can start tasting it, we replace it .
One thing that I did not hear mention in the video is that the cartridges need to be stored in a sealed bag when not in use. I was taught that the usage time was calculated any time the cartridge is exposed to air and not only when someone is breathing through it. This may have been an extra precaution used by my employer at the time. However a sealable bag would be an inexpensive extra precaution to insure good functionality. Also, as mentioned by others, a clean shave around the seal area is necessary to insure a proper seal. Some whiskers are fine but the area of the seal needs to be shaven. BTW, I only discovered your channel today because a friend sent a link to one of your videos. I am now a subscriber because I find your videos to be very informative and pleasant to watch
I think you may be right about sealing them in a bag. I learned the hard way after not storing the cartridges in a sealed bag between uses. I had around 10 hives and hit the hives a few times in October/November. I wore them maybe 4-5 hours and they stopped working. BTW- Bob, thanks for the video.
I believe that everyone has said it all, yes it's another great informative video and well needed. Keep up your great work, your messages are needed in a world of beekeeping with so little proven experience, it's nice that you take the time and help so many. Many of us appreciate your time. Myself I did an oxalic acid treatment on nucs yesterday and will be again tomorrow on another yard to finish up treatments for the year.
Very very helpful. One of the things I’m thankful for Bob Binnie RU-vid videos!! I hope all of y’all and your families have a safe and wonderful thanksgiving!!
Great video Bob and Jessie, very thorough! I've been holding off on my OA vaporization this year too. I treated a weak hive though. Sorry that I'm not going to be able to get up there to hear you and Kamon speak.
Thank you One add about glasses, my pro vap tip cooled and plugged the tube. The cap blew off and liquid oxalic with it. Only happened once out of hundreds of times and just hit my clothes thankfully, but makes covering eyes important. Good luck and have a great holiday
Great video / information Bob. I'm sure I don'[t have to tell you, but make sure whoever watches this video knows to use the OA that is 99.7% pure. I have never had a problem using it. I have had a couple of occasions helping a friend out who was using OA that was 97% pure where the cup would blow off the vaporizer and spew acid and vapor right at you. Thank God we had the respirator on and eye protection. Another great reason for the eye protection you mentioned. Just recommendations from my experiences.
Excellent advice. Unfortunately most beekeepers wear no protection and they are headed for serious lung disease. It is unfortunate that we have to risk our health to save our bees. As a survivor of cancer I have chosen to protect my health and not he bees. Keep up the good work.
I have a cheepy version but will switch to this next season. Thanks again for all your relevant info. I've been using oxalic for years and breathed lots of it over the years so this helps. peace :)
Perfect info at just the right time. I have the same mask. I was concerned about treating more than once, you answered that. My plan was 4-7 days later depending on weather Incase of any late brood hatch.
Thank you Bob. I asked around and asked around and nobody could tell me the correct cartridges for oa. Obviously I didn’t ask the right people. Lol. Happy thanksgiving
Good video with important information. I worked with a company that uses masks a lot and they are really important for your safety. For your eyes googles may be better protection than the safety glasses.
This is an excellent video. I am using the same mask and cartridges and i know i took me a lot of time to decihper what those color codes on cartrdiges mean and which are suitable for oxalic acid.
It might be timely to add this: I started with a wand and had a mentor tell me early on....be careful with that 'thing' you'll set a hive on fire with it. He said, if you shove against some burr comb and it gets on fire....all you can do is watch it burn. Hmm. So, I bought a John-O's vaporizer. Lovely device and so much faster....and safer for you and the bees.
OSHA requires that employees be clean shaven to use respirators and that they have annual fit tests performed for the exact type of respirator that they will be using. This test can be either qualitative or quantitative.
With the industry I worked in, you could not have a beard if your job required a respirator. It is impossible to get the required air seal. I hope what you have works well with oxalic acid, despite the probable leaks.
Here in HI, I was stacking on supers the past week. Going broodless ain't happening. Any comment on vaporizing mineral oil? I understand this can be done quite frequently and very quickly. Comments Bob?
i looked online,the 6003 yellow filter cartridge is acid approved the pink glued on pre filter is not serviceable, the pink top half is a p100,particulate filter,....my setup has yellow 6003 ,w n95 prefilter(which the particulate pre-filter is replaceable)...most likely the yellow/pink combo60923, or 60921,will be best
Hi Bob I’ve been using oxalis acid and thymol dissolved in alcohol delivered through a vaporiser, wondered if you had come across this method and your thoughts if you had. Really enjoying your videos, a wealth of information. Thanks Clive UK
Great video and information I was used filter 6001 lack of knowledge. Thank you Bob. I also got your message and as a future speaker but let me know when you are available or if you are able to conduct on via zoom. Rogelio
Cartridges should be kept in a plastic ziplock bags in-between uses and the person wearing the respirator should not have facial hair or it will not seal.
it is some nasty stuff for sure.. as an education in the Army in the '70s they used to March us into a gas room and then have you remove your gas mask and exit the building.. yep you got an introduction in real life of what the gas is like without a mask.. after you coughed your brains out for a half a day, you could learn to make sure your mask fit properly and was kept clean and in full working order..great teaching and learning video!! Follow the Rules everyone! We only have "1" set of lungs per life time protect them!! Unless you want to drag a oxygen tank everywhere you go for the rest of your life...
Hi Bob, anything new from the ongoing research that you can report about determining a (new) standard amount of Oxalic Acid per brood box times how often that will provide a better more effective mite control than what we have been told/ doing. Thank you, Ron in WA.
@@bobbinnie9872 I watched your recent video, and will be doing a tx soon. I am going to try 1 tsp of OA per box.....as you did. Do you think that is ok?
Hello Bob can you tell me if the machine that is used to put the oxalis acid in the hive are any different. I think one of them is called the cup style that goes in the entrance of the hive an the other one is used at the back of the hive where you drill a hole . Being on S.S . Is the cup stile just as good. I am starting over with Bee’s from years ago . I am starting out with two hives so there is no reason to go fast in treatment right now but I do not need to spend the money on the cheaper one till I can get the better one . I would like to down the road maybe have around 10 - 15 hives . Can you give me your thoughts on these machines. I really enjoyed all of your video’s I am trying to go thru and look at all of them . Thanks from Gene
Hi Kathy. The less expensive tool that slides in the entrance works just as well as the more expensive types. The main differences are that it is slower and needs a 12 battery to charge it instead of household current. With only 10 or 15 colonies it would be just fine and would be my choice if I had access to a 12 volt battery and was on a budget.
Good Afternoon Bob, We have always treated all our hives with Apivar Strips in August & September including this year. After weighing out the cost of these strips & having some doubts if they are actually working we decided to switch over to Oxalic Acid Vapor Treatments in the future. In the next few days if we get a day above 50 degrees do you think it would hurt to give the bees 1 more treatment before the cold really hits? The last type of treatment any of them had were the Apivar Strips in August. Thanks
I have never seen any down side to oxalic vapors, no matter how often it's done. We give two treatments while they are brood-less in winter. We try and treat between 42f and 50f so the bees are not tightly clustered but are not flying.
@@bobbinnie9872 Do you leave any honey supers on going into winter. If a honey super was left on a hive going into winter is there a way to clean those supers after a oxalic acid treatment was performed ? After the bees hopefully make it through winter I will pull those back off before the spring flow begins. Thank you once again Bob for helping all beekeepers.
@@HereWeGoSteelers We don't leave any extracting supers on going into winter but the bees will clean up a super that was on during an oxalic vapor treatment. Thanks.
I have a question Bob, if you get the time. I recently got a new hive, actually I have a top bar hive, but it is made from wood and I was wondering if people recommend staining/sealing the outside for weather protection. If so are there specific types of stains and sealers people use? Thank you!
Hi Mark. You may get this reply twice. It didn't seem to through the first time. I have used the dribble several times in the past with success. However, there is one big difference on my opinion. I don't see any issues with repeated vapor treatment but if using dribble repeatedly, in close succession, the bee population declines noticeably.
Question does Oxalic have any effect on small hive bettle , this could go under chapter 14 "Treatments".What i cannot understand is if its bad for your lungs and possibly your eyes , a bee breathes in air , surely it must affect the bee in some way, be interested to know ,we dont have the Varroa mite as yet ,but down the track , may be , so we will have to use this treatment ,i think i would give up bee keeping if the mite ever gets here.
Hello Bob. I’m trying to buy a half face mask for OAV off Amazon but don’t want to spend over $30. As long as it covers Organic Acids should I be safe?
Hi Brad. I would recommend watching a recent video I did with Greg Rogers. "Mite Treatments, Oxalic Acid Safety, Winter Feeding and more with Commercial Beekeeper Greg Rogers". ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-X-xo5o3VCyg.html. We believe the old half masks we were using aren't good enough.
I used the dribble method several times in years past and had success with it. However, there is one big difference in my view. With vapors there doesn't seem to be a problem with repeated use but with dribble you see a shrinking of the bee population if used repeatedly in close succession.
One gram per brood box. I have one deep and one medium for my hives . I use 2 grams. Worker brood cells are sealed for 11 days, drones are in sealed cells for 14 days. If you think you have drone brood still present, I would wait until they are empty or treat 7 days apart.
I use the pro vape 110 and have had the tube that goes in the hive get plugged. This made the Cristal cap blow off, burning my forehead. Glad I was wearing glasses and respirator. What can be done to prevent this.
We clean the tubes out with 1/16 inch braided cable. It looks like bicycle brake cable and we get it at Home Depot. We put a four inc piece in an electric drill and use it in reverse. This keeps the cable from unraveling. Works great.
I hit mine today here in ky. They weren't flying until the vapor went in...they came out on the landing board for awhile but went back in. I think it got up around 50-52 today. It was cool, not cold. I use a 3M respirator, don't know the model but I've had good luck with it. Trust me....you don't want a whiff of this stuff! With my respirator, I can't even smell it.
I've just went online to check the price of this mask. Am I reading it correctly at 369 dollars? The filters are 50 dollars. So, over 400 dollars for the mask? Am I reading this right? Plus they're out of stock.
@@bobbinnie9872 Amazon can't find that page. I'll look again. I can't find my respirator. It was my fathers and worked fine with the oxalic acid. It was for his antique car stuff.
Here is some data from 3m multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/40744O/3m-respirator-cartridge-and-filter-selection-poster.pdf multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/639110O/3m-respirator-selection-guide.pdf
Oddly enough the instructions that came with the cartridges didn't mention how to store them between uses. It was suggested by one of the video comments that they should be kept in a zip lock baggy. We don't store them long term because we replace them after each seasonal use.
Jason Gentry • 1 hour ago Bob this was a great video!! I am a fellow beekeeper and have been in the chemical industry for 20 years. This was top notch information on respirator use, care and storage. If I may add just a couple things for viewers: 1. Washing with mild soapy water and air drying is spot on. I must stress DO NOT use cleaning/disinfecting solvents such as isopropyl alcohol. These solvents will attack and degrade the sealing surface materials. There are disinfecting wipes and such for respirators, but wash and dry is just fine. Also, remove cartridges before washing the respirator....yes this has escaped people in past years. 2. Perfect explanation on "clean" areas to hang up for air drying. NOTE: These organic cartridges will absorb impurities from the open air they are exposed to. After air drying store the respirator and cartridges, at least the cartridges, in a gallon ziplock bag. This will ensure the life span of the cartridges for use.
3M says: Filter Material Glass Fiber Paper ... so there should be just a storage and no chemical reaction (like carbon monoxide filters). Filters will 'gas out' a while after usage. Don't close the storage bag total. Oxalic acid is not a poison in small amounts. It's already in the body. pieplant, parsley, spinach (up to 1g per 100g) have it. The danger is mainly the acid-fog in the lungs (pulmonary edema).
i have the yellow color cartridge ,for acid,not the pink color,i will recheck my numbers.. ,i would add if you have cuts on your hands ,the stuff burns,i also recomnend good boots,ive experimented, w a gas vap torch and the acid may dribble as you walk leaving acid on your boots, you definitely dont want it in your eyes ,you will get shifting breezes ,it will be on your clothes, and you should keep water handy to clean your face,i suggest a shower,and wash your clothes, especially for your lung health,please take OA serious. it does leave a residue on you.when your exposed to vapor
Great video and information on use on vaporizer and product....in saying that it was obvious the employee that was present for the demonstration has had problems in the past when using safety equipment...the fact that you single him out and put your employee in a video as an example was extremely unprofessional....i was a senior supervisor for 30 yr over 6 fire stations and would have never used this type of discipline toward my people....this is a poor business model and is degrading to the work force as a whole.
