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Choosing your Extractor – Tangential vs Radial

The honey extractor’s mode of operation can either be radial or tangential. This refers to the manner in which the honey frames are arranged in the drum and spun in order to remove the honey from the frames.

Within the honey extractor is a drum where the frames are placed and then the spinning begins. The frames that have been uncapped are placed on the drum for the honey to flow out from the wax cells. Uncapping is usually done using a hot knife or a hot air gun. Once uncapped, it becomes easy to remove the honey from the frames. The honey hits the walls of the drum and is then directed to the bottom of the drum where it flows through the valve located on the edge of the honey extractor.

Any honey that has been extracted from the frames should be collected immediately. Otherwise when it stays for too long it affects the spinning process.

Tangential Honey Extractor

A tangential honey extractor refers to the extractor where the every frame is removed then flipped for a second round of spinning. Each side of the frame has to be spun once so as to remove the honey from both of the frame sides. This is means it takes plenty of effort to spin a bigger number of honey frames.

Advantages

• It is cheaper than the radial extractor.
• Since you spin every side individually, chances are high that nothing remains in the frames.
• Ideal for a small enterprise since it is cheaper.

Disadvantages

• This is taxing since the frames have to be removed and flipped every time.
• It may not suit a beekeeper with many frames to extract. Not the best for the commercial beekeeper.

Radial Honey Extractor

The radial honey extractor is the most popular among beekeepers. In this extractor, the honey frames are usually loaded once then both sides of the frames are spun at once. This is highly efficient when compared to the tangential since you do not have to keep removing and flipping honey frames. It will therefore be a great choice for commercial beekeepers since they have to spin plenty of honey frames.

Advantages

• Highly efficient.
• Spins more frames within a short time.
• Well suited for commercial beekeepers or those who have many beehives.
• No double work when extracting honey from frames.

Disadvantages

• It is more expensive when compared to tangential honey extractors.

The tangential and radial honey extractors may also be further categorized as either manual or electric powered. You therefore have to consider this. If you cannot handle hand cranking then it makes perfect sense to get an electric powered unit. A combination of radial and electric powered features makes the best choice for those with huge beekeeping operations. You can also buy such a combination if you started small and have plans of scaling up with time.