Cleaning gloves?

EOHenry · August 31, 2007, 12:38:49 AM

Has anyone discovered an easy way to clean leather gloves that have an accumulation of wax and propolis on them? Or a way NOT to clean them so they are not ruined. Mine are getting pretty stiff and dirty.

Thanks!

Henry

JP · August 31, 2007, 04:47:09 AM

Henry, I don't know if you can really wash leather or canvas gloves but you can bathe them with oils like mink or even vegetable oil, then work the oil into the gloves. This will make them pliable again. After you apply a generous amount of oil you can also take napkins or rags and wipe them down which will remove some of the funk build up you have accumulated on the gloves.

Also, most beekeepers stop using leather or canvas after a while because the gloves get like yours did. After you get used to working with bees you will find its easier to work your bees without gloves. If you must wear gloves, may I suggest playtex living gloves or ones I use from Home Depot. They are blue. Lighter blue from wrist up, a darker blue on the palms, with a texture on the palms. Bees don't sting through the H.D. ones and they give you dexterity to work the bees.

Michael Bush · August 31, 2007, 06:18:09 PM

>Has anyone discovered an easy way to clean leather gloves that have an accumulation of wax and propolis on them?

I soak them in FGMO (mineral oil laxative). This dissolves the propolis and wax and softens the leather. Unlike vegatable oil, it will stay soft.

Then, as mentioned above, I wring them out and wipe them off.

tillie · August 31, 2007, 11:14:38 PM

I read somewhere to wash them while they are still on your hands with soap and water and then rub olive oil into them as you might hand lotion. I've been doing that - not every time I wear them but about every other time and mine are soft and fine. However, mine are about 2 inches too long on each finger and that drives me crazy, but I'm not ready to give up gloves. When I've tried latex, my hands sweat so much that it creates a shower when I pull them off!

Linda T in the N Ga Mountains

Michael Bush · September 01, 2007, 09:32:24 AM

>When I've tried latex, my hands sweat so much that it creates a shower when I pull them off!

That's my problem with latex as well. I can't stand my hands that sweaty and if you use the dishwashing kind, the gloves get disgusting if you don't wash them after every use and dry them inside out.

Cindi · September 01, 2007, 12:07:38 PM

Ah, come on guys!!!! Don't wear gloves (you can do it!!!!). I have only worn my gloves a couple of times, in my two and a half years of keeping bees and they have only a little propolis on them. That is because when I first kept bees I wore gloves a couple of times, and then put them aside. Think about this one. Most times, unless of course you have those really cranky and defensive-type girls, the bees would be more prone to set out to sting you if you squish or harm one. If you don't wear gloves, you can feel even if you come close to a bee. If you wear gloves, surely you are going to squish or hurt a bee, then you have the whole hive in alarm mode (eeks) and that is not a good thing.

I know this sounds tough-minded, but honestly, get up the gumption and go gloveless. That is unless you know that you need this protection for one reason or another (like sensitivity to bee venom), or really and truly are worried about a bee sting. The chances with a hive that is "reasonably" calm of getting stung without gloves is less than if you wear clumbsy gloves and hurt one :). Just give it a try one day, you will know within a few minutes if this is for you or not :evil:

Get used to gloveless hands, and forget the horrible sweaty latex. I can only wear latex at any time for about 2 minutes without them being so full of water I can't stand it!!!! :-D Have a wonderful day, best of this beautiful life. Cindi

JP · September 01, 2007, 03:10:28 PM

I only wear gloves when dealing with angry bees, and then its the ones I described from H.D. I must be abnormal in that my hands don't sweat much.

Kev · September 01, 2007, 04:34:35 PM

I just ran mine through the wash with my other bee clothes. Didn't seem to harm them, but it might shorten their lifespan.

kev

EOHenry · September 01, 2007, 11:38:03 PM

Thanx for the responses and suggestions. I have tried going w/o gloves a few times and always seem to get stung. I will try agan and also try the cleaning suggestions. As for putting them in the wash , my wife is still mad at me for throwing some clothes in wash with propolis stuck on them and them having pieces come off in wash and stick to sides of washer which then came off in the next load and stuck to one of her white shirts. She watches my clothes very carefully after I work the bees. I do have to thank her tho for repairing my gloves when the seams came apart and she sewed them back to gether agan.

Sweet dreams!

Henry

annette · September 01, 2007, 11:51:33 PM

Henry,

Your wife sounds like a keeper.

I hand wash my leather gloves with dishwashing liquid and I scrub the death out of them. Then I let them dry in the shade. I periodically rub glove oil into them to keep them soft.

I really do not squish any bees with my gloves on. I am very careful not to squish them. The only time I squish bees is when I have to place a heavy super back on the hive and cannot control the placement of the super right away.

But I have noticed that the gloves are losing the softness they used to have. Perhaps I will try what Michael Bush does.

Annette

Kathyp · September 02, 2007, 11:26:39 AM

i have only washed mine once. i have some saddle and leather cleaner that has oils and beeswax in it. i used that on the leather part after they were dry. seemed to work well.

Michael Bush · September 02, 2007, 10:44:27 PM

>If you wear gloves, surely you are going to squish or hurt a bee, then you have the whole hive in alarm mode (eeks) and that is not a good thing.

After working outside doing carpentry in -10 F weather for years, I can do amazing things wearing leather gloves including catching and marking a queen, and not squishing bees.

I do not find them a problem at all.

Brian D. Bray · September 03, 2007, 01:17:02 AM

I took my daughter into the hives with me the other day--I needed some lifting power. I gave her my suit and gloves then dressed her up in my spare veil. She told me she couldn't believe I was going into my bees without gloves or having my ankles or wrists sealed up. I told her when I was a teenager I used to go into my hives in nothing but a bathing suit.

Aren't you afraid of getting stung she asked. Nope, feel like not getting stung at least once diminishes the experience. At that point I got stung once. I told her if I'd taken time to powder my hands with baby powder or crush a spear of mint on my hands I would't have gotten stung even then.

She loved the experience--I will now be mentoring my daughter in the fine art/science of beekeeping. Passing the torch on to the next generation. Maybe she will teach it to her twin boys or help me do it.

Cindi · September 03, 2007, 03:18:19 AM

Hmm....maybe my gloves are too thick, that is why I feel them clumbsy. In this warmer weather of summer, when I work around the apiary, I wear only the veil. No gloves, no long sleeved shirt, but absolutely and never changing, my ol' blue jeans. I wear my runners, socks, Levi's, a tank top, nothing else. Bare arms and bare shoulders. My face and neck are protected, those are the most important parts to me. Even today, when pulling out long grass around the colonies and then mowing around these colonies with my lawnmower, narry a sting from a bee (other than when I happened to get a bee grabbed in the grass I was grabbing). So, this is how I have been working the apiary during the summer months, now wintertime is a different story :roll:. Enjoy this beautiful world that we are all livin'. Cindi

Jerrymac · September 03, 2007, 05:01:39 AM

I wish you folks would come down here and mess with my bees. That way I will know if it is them or me but I will not touch a hive unless fully protected. My girls just don't like to be messed with.

Kev · September 03, 2007, 09:04:33 AM

Quote from: Jerrymac on September 03, 2007, 05:01:39 AM
I wish you folks would come down here and mess with my bees. That way I will know if it is them or me but I will not touch a hive unless fully protected. My girls just don't like to be messed with.

They could stop by here on the way. I tried working mine with only a veil earlier this year and promptly got hit twice on the back of my hand. Swelled up something fierce. It's strange how stings in some places swell more than in others.

kev

JP · September 03, 2007, 11:31:55 AM

Lately, most all of the hives I have removed have been very docile, but this season I have fooled with about 5-6 hives that were miserably mean feral Europeans. These mean bees seem to already have their minds made up that they don't want to be messed with. They are unique in that their personalities are wicked through and through. You would swear they weren't honeybees at all but hornets or yellowjackets in disguise. Seems like smoke doesn't do much to calm them. Now these are removals I'm speaking of. The only thing that makes things bearable when working these type are vacuming the numbers way down. At some point its like the remaining bees realize they don't have the numbers to back them up and they concede. Still have to work them w/ protective gear though. And I've come to realize that it doesn't matter if the hive has been there a long time or a couple of months. Its about disposition. Nice bees are such a pleasure to work with, care for, and observe. Jerrymac, I'm sorry your bees aren't cooperative.

Jerrymac · September 03, 2007, 12:59:56 PM

I know I live in the AHB region but these bees don't attack in the really vicious manner of Africanized as spelled out by the media. I can go out around the hives and get buzzed and warned away but when I even crack the hive they get very active. Some got so mad the other day one of them found a worn area in the leather of the glove and got me on the palm of the hand.

OH yeah. Cleaning gloves. I am going to have to try some of these methods for softening them up. AND another thing. I got some gloves that turn my hands yellow every time I wear them. My wife's gloves came from the same place but there is no yellowing done by them. What's up with that?

Michael Bush · September 03, 2007, 01:34:14 PM

I can feel if a bee is climbing on the glove or fanning or under my finger...

I buy the thin doeskin or buckskin or goatskin gloves. they are thinner than the leather work gloves. I just tuck them under the elastic on the jacket sleeves. If I want to take them off, it's pretty simple as they are regular gloves.

Scadsobees · September 03, 2007, 10:21:28 PM

I only clean them once a year, but when I do...
I soak them at least overnight in mineral spirits, then wash them out good in a pail of hot soapy water and then let them dry for a while. The spirits soften up the propolis and break it down, and the soapy water gets it out.

I tried scrubbing them really good one time and just scrubbed holes in them. So I am on my way to beekeeping without gloves! Most of my fingertips are poking out now.

Rick