Beekeeping within Australia faces many challenges. Bees are particularly susceptible to insecticides and other chemicals used commonly in agriculture. So finding the right beehive timber treatment that is safe for your bees is critical. As well as not finding traces of it in your honey.
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With the cost of timber, it is recommended to treat. As the life expectancy of the timber can double. Preserving/treating your timber helps prevent fungal decay. But many of these preservatives are harmful to bees, or can leech active ingredients into the honey. For instance, CCA is a highly effective timber preservative, but contains active ingredients designed to kill borer and termites. These same actives are lethal to bees. In addition, these activities can potentially leach into honey. This poses an issue for food safety.
So how does a beekeeper construct a hive out of relatively cheap hoop/radiata pine, treat the pine so it lasts, and do so safely that it does not harm the bees or honey?
The simple answer is that you register the timber preservative. The APVMA then takes the data you have supplied and proves whether it is safe or not it is safe for you to use. As well as making sure it is safe for the environment and works as stated. The APVMA then approves the product including the label. We have done this for you in this instance. The product is then to be used only as stated on the label. This is a legal requirement for the registrant AND the end user.
Treatment method:
Soak
-Dilute 1L of product in 2L of solvent
-Fully immerse(weighted down with spaces) in preservative solution for minimum of 8 hours.
-Air dry for minimum of 14 days until solvent has evaporated.
Soak and Wrap
-Dilute 1L of Product in 1.2L of solvent
-Soak as above (Soak Method) for 1 hour, then while wet, wrap tightly in plastic for a minimum of 3 days.
-Air dry for a minimum of 10 days until solvent has evaporated.
CRITICAL: Do not use timber as hives until it is painted with oil based paints.
PERMIT FOR USE:
The Australian Honey Bee Industry Council hold a permit for use with the APVMA, for timber preservatives conatining 2% Copper Naphthenate as their only active ingredient.
So what does this mean?
This permit does state that you can use single active 2% Copper Naphthenate product as a beehive timber treatment. The timber preservative meets the criteria, so they are suitable for the use of timber treatment.
