Smokers and Smoke Use

A bee smoker (smoker, smoke pot, smoke puffer) is a beekeeping tool that produces cool smoke from slow-burning plant fuel inside it and puffs this smoke into the hive with bellows. Used correctly, smoke calms bees and makes inspections easier; too much of it stresses the colony and taints the honey. A lit smoker is also a fire source that needs care in the apiary.

How does smoke calm bees?

The effect of smoke rests on two mechanisms, both well known in the beekeeping literature:

• It masks the alarm pheromone: Disturbed guard bees release a banana-scented substance, mainly isopentyl acetate, that acts as an alarm pheromone. Smoke dulls the bees' sense of smell; the alarm signal cannot spread through the colony and the defensive response does not escalate.
• It triggers honey-gorging behaviour: Smoke awakens a response in bees that evolved against the danger of fire: some of the bees head for the cells and take on honey. A bee with a stomach full of honey finds it harder to use its sting and behaves more calmly.

These effects are short-lived. The aim of smoke is not to "sedate" the colony but to give the beekeeper a calm working window of a few minutes.

How is a bee smoker made, and what types are there?

A modern smoker consists of three parts: the cylindrical body where the fuel burns (fire chamber), the conical lid that releases the smoke through a narrow nozzle, and the bellows that pump air into the bottom of the body. A grate at the bottom of the body lets air in under the fuel.

• Body material: Stainless steel is the most durable and easiest to clean; galvanised and copper bodies are also used.
• Heat guard: A wire cage around the body stops hands, suit and gloves touching the very hot metal. It is especially recommended for beginners.
• Size: A smoker with a large body takes more fuel and burns for longer; it suits apiaries with many hives. A small smoker is light but needs refuelling after a few hives.
• Bellows material: Leather, faux leather or fabric bellows crack and get holes over time; punctured bellows give weak smoke. The spring and hinge should be sturdy.

In traditional beekeeping, smoke pots made of fired clay or tin, blown by mouth or by hand, were used. Electric blowers are also seen in some large operations; the basic principle is the same.

What is used as smoker fuel?

There is one criterion for good fuel: cool, dense, white smoke with a clean smell. Fuel should be dry, but inclined to smoulder rather than burst into flame.

• Suitable fuels: Dry pine needles, dry grass and straw, dried punky (rotten) wood or wood shavings, untreated hessian (jute) sacking, dry leaves, cotton cloth scraps and some dried plants.
• What not to use: Painted, varnished or treated wood; synthetic fabric, plastic, nylon; oil, petrol and fire-lighting gel; chemically treated cardboard. Their smoke is harmful to bees and can leave odours or residues in the honey.

Collecting fuel in a dry box during the season is a good habit; damp fuel is hard to light and gives acrid smoke.

How do you light a smoker and keep it going?

1. Lighting: Put a handful of easily lit material (dry grass, a piece of paper) at the bottom of the chamber and light it. Pump the bellows a few times to get it burning well.
2. Adding layers: Once the flame grows, add the main fuel little by little, pumping with each addition. Pack the chamber firmly to the top; a loosely packed smoker goes out quickly or produces flames.
3. Closing the lid: Close the lid and pump a few times. White, dense smoke should come out of the nozzle. If flames or sparks come out, put a tuft of green grass on top.
4. Checking coolness: Puff the smoke onto the back of your hand; if it feels hot, the fuel is flaming or the bellows are being pumped too fast.
5. Keeping it going: Between inspections, pump the smoker a few times now and then; stand it upright and do not lay it on its side.

Some beekeepers light it with a small gas torch; this is quick but requires the same care regarding fire risk.

How is smoke used during a hive inspection?

1. Entrance: As you approach the hive, give one or two light puffs at the entrance and wait for about half a minute.
2. Lid: Lift the lid slightly, give one puff through the gap, then open it.
3. Top bars: If bees are spilling over the top bars or coming at you, let a little smoke drift over from above. Do not blow smoke hard onto the bees; direct it from the side.
4. Repeat when needed: As the inspection goes on, the bees become active again; a single puff is enough.

• Use it sparingly: Too much smoke stresses the colony, prolongs the inspection, makes finding the queen harder and makes some colonies even more restless.
• Reduce it during harvest: If open honey and capped frames are exposed to smoke, a smoky taint can pass into the honey. Keep smoke to a minimum when removing honey supers.
• Brood and queen: Do not give dense, hot smoke over open brood; do not direct smoke at the cage of a newly introduced queen.

Smoker safety: how do you prevent fires in the apiary?

A lit smoker is a significant fire source in the apiary; especially in summer, in apiaries with dry grass, a small spark can turn into a large fire.

• Do not put it on the ground: Do not set a lit smoker down on dry grass; put it on a hive lid, a stone or in a metal bucket.
• Controlling sparks: If sparks come out of the nozzle, stop using it for a while and stuff green grass on top of the fuel.
• Putting it out: When you have finished, block the nozzle with a tuft of grass or a cork; a smoker that cannot get air goes out quickly. If you are emptying the fuel, tip it into a metal container or onto bare soil and cover it with water or earth.
• Transport: Do not put a hot smoker in a vehicle; carry it in a box with a metal lid.
• Fire seasons: During periods of high wildfire risk and in restricted areas, follow local rules; if necessary, postpone working with smoke.

Smoker maintenance and cleaning

• Soot and tar: Sticky soot building up inside the lid and in the nozzle narrows the smoke outlet. Scrape it out with the hive tool from time to time.
• Grate: If the holes in the grate at the bottom of the chamber get clogged, the smoker goes out; empty the ash after every use.
• Bellows: Punctured or cracked bellows material can be replaced; check the tension of the spring.
• Hygiene: The smoker also goes from hive to hive; clean its outer surface in an apiary where disease is suspected.

Is it possible to work without smoke?

With calm colonies, in suitable weather and for short jobs, some experienced beekeepers work without lighting a smoker; some also use a light water spray. However, in the event of an unexpected defensive reaction, smoke is still the most reliable tool. Keeping a lit smoker with you does not mean you have to use it.