Replacing honey gate on tank

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dtompsett
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Replacing honey gate on tank

Unread post by dtompsett »

So I snapped the plastic honey gate off my stainless holding tank this weekend. Fortunately I'd only put a pail of honey into it, noticed a leak at the threaded connection, and poured the honey out before trying to remove the valve.

What are people using for honey gates? I like ball valves because they don't leak... but if the honey sits for any period of time the honey in the "ball" solidifies...

There are a bunch of options for plastic and stainless "honey gate" type valves... Most of the plastic ones look similar, and have the same price points, and probably leak as the plastic creeps over time. (All of the old spare plastic ones I had wouldn't hold an inch of water sitting in the valve even after cleaning o-rings.)

Opinions? This is a filtering/bulk storage tank, not a bottling tank...
Allen Dick
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Re: Replacing honey gate on tank

Unread post by Allen Dick »

What are people using for honey gates? I like ball valves because they don't leak... but if the honey sits for any period of time the honey in the "ball" solidifies...
Ball valves are nice for many purposes. The old cast honey/syrup gates were excellent, too.

Any valve, including syrup gates will stick closed after sitting a while. The solution is to use a heat lamp or heat tape overnight to soften the honey in the gate so it works again.

Some ball valves disassemble, too, or a rod can be pushed in to deal with the honey plug if can be turned to the 'open' position.
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dtompsett
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Re: Replacing honey gate on tank

Unread post by dtompsett »

I agree the ball can be poked out. Usually if the ball has solidified so has the whole outlet neck. ;)

Ordered a stainless ball valve and a short M/M nipple. Problem solved.
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Charlie
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Re: Replacing honey gate on tank

Unread post by Charlie »

This may be a silly question... But why would you not wash all your components when you're done using them.

I don't believe honey gets that sticky in two or three months of the extracting season and if you wash things it should be good for the next season.

There may be more to this question than what meets the eye, just asking because I do not know.
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dtompsett
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Re: Replacing honey gate on tank

Unread post by dtompsett »

Charlie wrote:This may be a silly question... But why would you not wash all your components when you're done using them.
I do wash between uses... but this is a large holding tank... sometimes honey sits in it for quite a while before I get around to bottling it. My heated water-jacket tank has a ball valve on it and sometimes honey will crystalize in the ball/pipe even if the tank is warm and other honey is liquid.
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Re: Replacing honey gate on tank

Unread post by Allen Dick »

It's a common problem. Maybe insulating the valve with a blanket or small EPS box so that the tank heat keeps it warm might help.
Allen Dick, RR#1 Swalwell, Alberta, Canada T0M 1Y0
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