Despadac® MAX Beekeeping Disinfectant

01 · WHAT IS IN IT

Three actives with different jobs

The formula combines glutaraldehyde at 8.5 %, didecyldimethylammonium chloride at 11.9 % and glycolic acid at 0.7 %. The first is the disinfectant backbone, the quaternary ammonium brings surfactant action — it wets and penetrates the soil — and the glycolic acid completes the formulation.

It is a concentrate: the litre goes a long way, because it is always worked diluted.

02 · HOW TO DILUTE IT

Dilution: the one on the label

It is applied by wiping, spraying or fogging, depending on the material. The exact doses, contact times and authorised uses are those on the label of the container, and the label is what governs.

03 · WHERE IT IS USED

Empty equipment, never with bees

Its place is empty hives, frames and handling equipment, along with tools and transport vehicles.

And the condition that admits no exception: it is applied with no bees present. Handle it with gloves, eye protection and respiratory protection: its label classifies it as “Danger” (causes severe skin burns and eye damage, may cause allergy or asthma symptoms if inhaled and an allergic skin reaction, is harmful if swallowed or inhaled, is corrosive to the respiratory tract and very toxic to aquatic life). Afterwards comes the safety interval, ventilation, and leaving the equipment dry and aired before it goes back to the apiary. A disinfectant of this kind does not tell a pathogen from a colony.

04 · WHAT IT IS NOT

Neither a treatment nor a magic preventive

It is not a veterinary medicine and replaces none: it treats neither varroa nor any disease of bees. What it does is sanitise the equipment around them, which is a different link in the chain.

And as with any biocide: use biocides safely. Always read the label and product information before use.

05 · BEFORE YOU BUY

A professional cleaning product, not one for a populated hive: