Bee blower Makita®

01 · FOR 150 HIVES

Power is not the issue; do the time arithmetic

Blowing the bees off a super takes ten or fifteen seconds. With 150 hives and one super each, that is about thirty minutes of actual blowing across the whole day — in short bursts, not continuously.

The 52.1 m/s of this model clears a frame without insisting, so power is not the problem on any operation of that size. What decides it is how much battery you carry.

02 · HOW LONG THE BATTERY LASTS

It depends on the amp-hours and on the trigger

The battery is not included and it is what sets the runtime. At full throttle an 18 V blower empties a battery in a matter of minutes; at half power, which is how you clear bees, it goes much further.

The sensible way to plan it is two batteries and the charger in the vehicle: while one works, the other charges. That covers the thirty minutes of blowing in a 150-hive day without drama. The variable-speed trigger helps more than you would think: blowing at 60 % uses considerably less and clears just as well.

03 · HOW TO BLOW

Along the combs, and in front of the entrance

Stand the super on edge, resting on the hive or a stand, and blow along the gaps between combs so the bees come out the other side. They are going to land on the ground, so do it in front of the entrance: they walk back in on their own.

There is no need to labour any one spot: two quick passes per gap will do. And if the super has open, uncapped honey, the blast will splash it — set those frames aside by hand.

04 · AGAINST THE BRUSH AND THE ESCAPE

Fast, but noisy

Against a bee brush, the blower wins on speed and above all on not dragging or crushing bees, which is what riles them. Against a bee escape, it wins on being immediate: no coming back the next day.

In exchange it makes noise and stirs the colony up, so it is not the tool for an urban apiary or for working after dark. It carries XPT protection against dust and rain and is handled one-handed, though half an hour with your arm up does tell.

05 · BEFORE YOU BUY

The battery is separate and it is what governs: reckon on two if you are doing a long day.