In this instructional video, Laurence Edwards of Black Mountain Honey demonstrates a fast, low‑cost method for producing 200 L of 2:1 sugar syrup for bee feeding using a plaster‑mixing paddle drill and a dirty‑water submersible pump. He outlines the exact ingredient ratio (90 L of very hot tap water to 200 kg of plain white granulated sugar), the equipment he prefers (Urbauer ERB728 mixer from Screwfix, Einhell submersible pump from Toolstation), and the step‑by‑step mixing process, including how to keep the paddle drill running, how to avoid granulation, and two simple dissolution tests (visual stick test and taste test). After the syrup is fully dissolved, he shows how to decant it quickly into 25‑L drums using the pump, how to clean the pump and mixer, and storage tips (tight‑sealing drums, optional thymol to prevent mould). He also discusses feeding timing, the importance of careful handling to avoid robbing, and compares the cost of homemade syrup to commercial invert syrup, noting the latter’s advantages for end‑of‑season feeding. The video concludes with a quick cleanup routine and a reminder to subscribe.
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Hi, I'm Laurence Edwards from Black Mountain Honey. Welcome to another episode of No Nonsense Beekeeping. Today I'm going to show you how to make 200 litres of sugar syrup using a paddle drill and a submersible pump. So I've used this method for a few years now. I'm working on a bigger method with an IBC, but I'm having a few teething issues with that, so I'm sticking with this method for this year because the bees need feeding and I need a way to turn the sugar into syrup. So the method that I use is I've got a hose linked up to my hot water tap, so we don't boil any of the syrup and we don't heat any of the sugar, but we use hot water from the tap. So I've got that running through. I use 90 litres of hot water from the tap, get it as hot as you possibly can, to 200 kilograms of sugar, and that gives you a 2:1 mix of syrup. So then while the, the barrel is filling up, I'll place a couple of bits of wood on there. And then I'll take just a standard plaster mixing paddle drill, and that just rests on top like that. The paddle drill's got numerous settings on it, so you can kind of turn it up, turn it down. I use it on its full highest setting And I put a screw in there like that to stop it twisting round. So I find this on its own, 90 litres of hot water, 200 kilograms of sugar, and a paddle drill will mix it completely and dissolve the sugar. If you add any more sugar into it than that, then you will get kind of granulation at the bottom, and that's not what you want. You want to make sure that everything's fully dissolved and then the bees can take it down. Obviously, this method will work on any kind of ratio of sugar to water. This time of year, and most of the time of year to be honest, we feed 2:1. So that's what it looks like on the inside. The water's just filling up nicely. That's what the drill looks like once it gets going. I have a tap on the bottom there that I don't use anymore because it's just far too slow decanting the syrup out of the tap into the containers, so I use my submersible pump for that. Um, it's a little bit messy, but it doesn't actually work too bad. So then once you've got your oil drum up to the 90-litre mark that we've pre-marked so we know exactly how much is in there, 90 litres of hot water, you can start adding your sugar. But first you need to turn on the paddle drill. So as the syrup gets thick, this might happen. Don't worry about that, just take the wood out, start to get that paddle mixed around, and you need to break it up. The key is getting all of that sugar in while the water's still warm, and then it can dissolve. So this is the sugar that we use, just plain white granulated sugar, 25 kilos. We're paying £12.50 for a 25-kilogram sack at the moment, so about 50p per kilo. You don't want anything other than just— What's the brand? You don't want anything other than just plain white granulated sugar. So the mixer that we use is from Screwfix. It's an Urbauer ERB728 mixer. They're about £79.99. I'll stick up a link so you can see the one. This has served me really, really well over kind of a couple of years now. They're designed for long periods of mixing up plaster and stuff like that, so they're designed pretty much for this purpose. The submersible pump that we use is an Einhell, so this is from Toolstation, and this takes solids up to 20mm. So make sure you don't get a clean water pump, you want a dirty water submersible pump. That just drops into the bottom and then we pump it out into the containers. So at this point, you can let this run for half an hour or so. Just keep it going. You want to make sure that all of that syrup is completely clear. If you dip your finger in it and taste it, there shouldn't be any grit at all. It should be completely dissolved. Otherwise, it will settle out into your containers. So just run it for 15 to 20 minutes. Maybe take a breather kind of every 2 or 3 minutes just to let the engine rest. But you just want to make sure it's fully dissolved. So there's 2 tests to do to make sure that it's all thoroughly dissolved. You want to get a stick and check at the bottom to see that there's no kind of big layer of sugar, which there isn't. And then you want to do a dip test and just taste it, and there shouldn't be any kind of granulation. It should be completely smooth. If it passes those 2 tests, you've got it right. But also, if you use those ratios, so 90 litres of really, really hot water, preferably that's just been boiled, 200 kilograms of sugar, then you shouldn't have any issues with this at all. At that point, you take your submersible pump and just drop that in. Now I've got this connected to like a hose lock connector, so I can turn it both ways like that. Make sure you've got the flow going the correct way and make sure that's on really, really tight. This pump is, is incredibly powerful. It clears this within about a minute, so you need to make sure that everything's nice and tight. I find when I'm doing this, I always get leaks, so I need to kind of clean everything up at the end to stop any wasps and rubbing and everything, but it's a quick way of doing it. So make sure that's tight. I use big 25-liter drums. That's what I find is much easier to kind of decant the syrup into and then feed directly from that. They're heavy, but it makes it a lot easier for me. So the pump is on now and you can see nothing coming out. Turn the valve on and it absolutely fires out. So get all of your containers ready and close to each other, and then you can just fill them up. So after that, we have a really, really good clear-up. We pump some clear fresh water through the pump. Otherwise you'll do kind of long-lasting damage. It flies through it, and I mean, these pumps will last a really, really long time. They're designed to pump up to 20mm kind of pebbles and bits like that, so bits of granulated sugar, really, really no problem at all. A little bit messy. The, the reason is, is that the bottom of this drum has actually got a hole in it, so because where I used to do it with the tap, um, the seal's gone on the tap. So I've got a couple of these with lids on that are perfectly sealed, and then you can just put your syrup in it and keep it for when it's ready. Maybe add a bit of thymol or something to stop it going mouldy as well. But it's as simple as that. It's a really quick, easy process. I mean, that's 200 litres of syrup there. I've done it in about 15 minutes, and then I can go out, I'll go and feed my colonies with it, and then I come back and I can make up some more. It's really quick, it's really easy, and above all, it's a lot cheaper than buying the invert syrup. So we do use the invert syrup as well though, for the last feed of the season. We find the invert syrup really, really good because it doesn't go mouldy and the bees can store it without sealing it or kind of making it any thicker than it is. It's a really, really good one for the end of season feed. So we take our submergible pump, put that into the water, Rinse it all off. Give our paddle a clean as well. So I'll pump this pump back in and you see the rate in which the water comes out of that hose there. Absolutely fires out. And that's the bucket empty. So I deliberately do that bit so I get water everywhere. It's just kind of my routine just to absolutely drench and hose everything down now because there is remnants of sugar syrup and you will attract bees. So I give it a real, real good soaking everywhere, wash down any kind of leftover sugar syrup, and then the job's finished. So that's it, I've hosed everything down, everything's clean. That's what the syrup looked like at the end. As you can see, it's not granulated, it's not filtering down to the bottom, but when you come back in 24 hours, there should be nothing at the bottom at all. Use that ratio, use the hot water, and you won't get any kind of sediment coming out of that sugar. So I use this feed, um, kind of end of July, early August, to stimulate the bees to kind of go and create more brood. It doesn't matter whether you use 1:1 syrup or 2:1 syrup at that time of year, they'll take down 2:1 and they'll create brood, and they'll also use it to store it as well. So it's a good kind of multi-purpose, multi-functional syrup to use. Just make sure obviously when you're feeding your bees you're not splashing it around, you're not spilling it. You can really, really easily create a lot of bad habits and robbing at this time of the year if you're a bit slapdash with your syrup. So make sure everything's nicely cleaned up here, You don't want any bees congregating at your home, and make sure when you give it to the hives you're not spilling it everywhere, you're not creating an issue with robbing. So that's it for today's video. I hope you've enjoyed it. Please hit the subscribe button, please hit the bell so you're notified of every video, and I'll see you next time.
