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Updated 2016
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ALL_Hand_Crank_Extractor_Instructions.docx
Betterbee
Beekeepers Serving Beekeepers
Manual Hand Crank Honey Extractor Instructions
Congratulations on your purchase! Please read through these instructions prior to using your extractor. Keep
the instructions in a safe place for future reference.
Section 1: Prepare Extractor for Use
1. Assemble the extractor, if required, by following the included instructions.
2. Rinse the honey extractor thoroughly with hot water and a small amount of dish detergent.
To avoid flooding the bearings, open the honey gate prior to washing to allow wash water to drain.
On models where the lower bearings are not covered by the extractor basket, cover the bearings with
plastic wrap before washing to prevent water from entering the bearings.
3. Place extractor in desired location for extracting.
Extractors with legs: if needed, place shims under feet to obtain desired height. Keep in mind the
height of the container you plan to pour honey into when choosing the height. If needed, the extractor
feet can be bolted to the floor or a wooden base to improve stability of the extractor.
Extractors without legs: place extractor on wooden crate or box to obtain the desired height. Keep in
mind the height of the container you plan to pour honey into when choosing the height.
Section 2: Honey Extraction
1. Open the honey gate before extraction and place bucket under valve.
Do not extract with the honey gate
closed, as rising honey can damage the bearings and interfere with the rotation of the basket.
2. Load uncapped frames into the extractor. Evenly distribute the frames around the extractor basket to ensure
a balanced load.
For quickest extraction, extract in a warm room (80-90+ degrees) with warm honey
supers.
Radial Extractors: Place top bar of frames towards the outside and the bottom bars towards the inside.
Tangential Extractors: Place frames with one side of the comb against the basket, with top bars pointed
away from the center of the extractor.
Tangential Extractor with radial adapter: Place adapters (2) in the bottom of the basket with the edges of
the metal facing downwards. Arrange the frames in the extractor with the top bars facing the outside of
the extractor. Up to three medium or shallow frames can be extracted per quadrant of the extractor.
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