Basic Honey House Equipment List?

[Hannah-Davida]

I have an opportuinty to open up a wee honey business.  I'm in business plan mode trying to put together a basic list of equpment needed.  Currently the Big Plan is to ultimately have 170-200 hives.
Extracting in my 'mud room" (which is just an oversized unused unheated room in my house that happens to have running water an immediate access to outside,) works fine for a colony or two (using all of an extractor, 2 buckets and a strainer...this is sooo gonna be a change...) but I'm overwhelmed trying to figure out which equipment I should start with to run a very basic outfit. Any suggestions on where to look? Catalogs are fine and well but again, overwhelming. Web-sites seem to be focused just on the hive, or selling me stuff from THEIR apiary. Some direction would be most welcome.
Thank-you!

[Cindi]

Hannah-Davida, so nice to see you posting again, you spent some time here some time ago, I remember that.  Last posting, the end of July.  Remember me?  I am not that far south from you.

You will receive lots of good comments from our forum members that are in the honey business for sure.  I am hoping that they will take the time to try to assist you to get set up in your mind.  Good.  How did things go for you last season anyways?  Good luck with your new venture with the bees, sounds pretty cool to me.  Beautiful day, great day, Cindi

[beesarewe]

Having 170-200 colonies ,figure on having some help(when you need it)honey is very heavy and difficult to handle all the pro's use eight frame deep equipment one size(easier to handle load&unload and they dont usually fill the outside frames in ten frame equip.anyways) should have a place high enouph to back a truck up to. ohio state univerity had a commerical van rigged up with extractor,water and would extract on site,and return equip. to colonies. hope some of these basic ideas will be helpful

[rdy-b]

here is some basic stuff ;) look at the combo from Maxant- the twenty from dadant is almost to small - the cappings tank is pricey but it is one of the best things you will buy- make shure your sump is jacketed to warm the honey-the inch and one half -is all you will need for a pump -settling tank must be big enough for a days run    https://www.dadant.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=35_72&products_id=368                        https://www.dadant.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=35_70&products_id=465                                          https://www.dadant.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=406                                                               http://www.mannlakeltd.com/catalog/page13.html                                                                                          https://www.dadant.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=35_73&products_id=439                                          http://www.maxantindustries.com/uncapping.html           8-) RDY-B
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[Hopeful]

Hannah (also my daughter's name)

My plans are not too different from yours. I started with 13 hives. I a planning to add 15 or 20 this spring, more if it pans out okay, but so far so good given the many mistakes I have made. I am building a 15x16 honey house along with a 15x14 storage and "bee waiting room" in my 30x50 shop. Here is a list of items that I either have or am planning to get soon ( so far it looks like Mann Lake has the best prices):

1-20 frame extractor
2-15 gal. sump
3- 20x45 uncapping tank.
4- 1.5 hp pump
5- a couple of 15 gal. bottling tanks from Walter Kelley
6- SS double basin sink with drain boards.
7- 2'X6' SS table
8-Lots of PVC pipe
9- I am currently trying to develop an inexpensive honey filter that will strain my honey to no finer than 500 microns to retain plenty of pollen and other goodies. Currently using a woman's nylon stocking (new ;) ). This works for me, but is a messy and slow process.
10- A small "hot room" , about 4'x8', built into the storage room to melt crystallized honey in the bucket. I will use infra red bulbs to heat the room to about 100-105 degrees.
11- Adobe Photohop to design labels.

The reason I feel  I can use the smaller stuff is becaue I do not intend on extracting andprocessing all of my honey in one day. My first harvest last fall was 400 pounds and was extracted and bucketed in 4 hours using a complete system that my mentor paid over 20 grand for. Not necessary for a small timer like me.

[Cindi]

Hopeful, your asprirations are wonderful, I wish you well, looks like you have things very well planned out, yea!!!  Good for you.  Have the best and most wonderful day.  Cindi

[Hannah-Davida]

Thanks to all who responded. It's pretty much as I gathered...mostly expensive. 20 hives does seem small, but I'm a person with disabilities and I think that's all I can handle, for now. :) Well, back to the business plan! Wish me luck!

[Brian D. Bray]

Thanks to all who responded. It's pretty much as I gathered...mostly expensive. 20 hives does seem small, but I'm a person with disabilities and I think that's all I can handle, for now. :) Well, back to the business plan! Wish me luck!

You aren't the only one on this forum with disabilities.  Whatever the limitatiions it is necessary to keep plugging away.  Enjoy your beekeeping, I sometimes have to do mine from a wheelchair.

[PerryBee]

Hopeful,   I read that you are looking to go to a 20 frame extractor, how many hives do you eventually plan on running? I am sort of in the same boat, 10 hives and looking to grow. I will sell my 2 framer and was looking at the Maxant 10/20 as a step up. I only run medium supers for honey so I can't switch brood frames with ones I harvest.( Less chance of extracting something that may have been treated). I can extract 20 medium frames with this extractor and I see it is advertised as for the keeper with 10+ hives but what if you grow to say 50? Would a 30 frame extractor be a better way to go?