6 Best Honey Storage Tanks For Beekeeping Hobbyists That Keep Honey Pure
Protect your harvest’s purity. We review the 6 best storage tanks for hobbyists, comparing food-grade materials and honey gates for easy, clean bottling.
You’ve just pulled the last frame from your extractor, and the sweet smell of success fills the air. A five-gallon bucket is brimming with golden, liquid honey. Now comes the crucial step: moving that precious harvest from a messy bucket into clean, beautiful jars without losing a drop or compromising its raw purity. This is where a dedicated honey storage tank becomes one of the most important tools in your honey house. It’s the bridge between a successful extraction and a pantry full of pure, delicious honey.
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Choosing the Right Tank for Pure, Raw Honey
The move from a simple bucket to a real honey tank is a major step up for any hobbyist. It’s about creating a clean, efficient workflow. A proper tank with a honey gate lets you bottle directly, eliminating messy ladles and funnels that introduce air bubbles and potential contaminants.
The most important decision is material. Stainless steel is the undisputed champion for honey purity. It’s non-reactive, meaning it won’t impart any metallic taste to your honey, no matter how long it’s stored. It’s also incredibly smooth and easy to clean, leaving no place for bacteria to hide. Food-grade plastic is a common alternative; it’s lighter and more affordable, but it can scratch over time. Those tiny scratches can harbor old honey or bacteria, making perfect sanitation a challenge.
Beyond material, consider the features that make life easier. A honey gate is a non-negotiable valve at the bottom for controlled, dripless bottling. Look for a well-fitting lid to keep out dust and curious insects. Finally, think about size. It’s tempting to buy for the harvest you have now, but it’s smarter to buy for the harvest you’ll have in two years. Outgrowing a tank mid-season is a frustrating and sticky problem you want to avoid.
VIVO BEE-V105A: Top Stainless Steel Starter Tank
For the beekeeper ready to graduate from plastic pails, the VIVO tank is often the perfect first step into the world of stainless steel. It delivers the purity and cleanability of steel at a price point that doesn’t feel like a massive leap. This tank hits a sweet spot, offering professional features for a hobbyist’s budget.
The VIVO BEE-V105A typically holds around 5 gallons (or 60 lbs) of honey, a great capacity for anyone with two to five hives. It’s constructed from polished stainless steel, which not only looks professional but makes cleanup fast. It includes essential features like a tight-fitting lid, sturdy side handles for carrying, and, most importantly, a pre-installed honey gate for easy bottling.
This isn’t a forever tank for a rapidly growing apiary, but it’s a fantastic workhorse for the serious hobbyist. The steel may be a lighter gauge and the honey gate less refined than on premium models, but the value is undeniable. It provides a massive upgrade in hygiene and convenience over any plastic alternative, ensuring your honey stays as pure as it was in the comb.
Mann Lake 5-Gallon Tank: A Beekeeper’s Classic
You can’t talk about beekeeping equipment without mentioning Mann Lake. Their 5-gallon plastic tank is a classic for a reason: it’s affordable, durable, and gets the job done reliably. For many beekeepers, this is the first dedicated piece of bottling equipment they ever own.
Made from heavy-duty, food-grade plastic, this tank is lightweight and nearly indestructible. It won’t dent like steel can, and its simple design makes it easy to handle, even when full. It comes standard with a high-quality plastic honey gate that provides a clean cutoff, preventing the frustrating drips that waste honey and attract ants.
While stainless steel is the ideal for long-term purity, don’t discount the practicality of this tank. It’s perfect for the beekeeper on a budget or someone who values portability and ease of use. Just be diligent about cleaning with soft cloths to avoid scratching the interior. For a small-scale operation, the Mann Lake tank is a trusted tool that simplifies extraction day immensely.
Dadant 10-Gallon Tank for Growing Apiaries
There comes a point where a 5-gallon tank just doesn’t cut it anymore. When your hive count starts climbing and you’re processing multiple supers at once, constantly stopping to empty a small tank becomes a major bottleneck. The Dadant 10-gallon stainless steel tank is built for the hobbyist who is scaling up.
This tank is an investment in efficiency. Holding roughly 120 pounds of honey, it has the capacity to handle a full day of extracting from several strong hives. Dadant is another legacy name in beekeeping, and their equipment is known for its robust, no-nonsense construction. Expect solid welds, heavy-duty handles, and a reliable honey gate that can withstand years of use.
Moving to a 10-gallon tank fundamentally changes your workflow for the better. You can uncap and extract more frames before needing to deal with the honey, keeping your momentum going. It’s a significant purchase, but it’s one you make when you know beekeeping is a long-term passion. This tank provides the room to grow your apiary without outgrowing your equipment.
Maxant 60 lb Bottler: Premium USA-Made Quality
When you’re ready for a piece of equipment that will last a lifetime, you look at Maxant. This isn’t just a tank; it’s a bottling system engineered for precision and durability. Made in the USA, Maxant equipment represents the "buy it once, cry once" philosophy, delivering uncompromising quality for the discerning beekeeper.
What sets a Maxant bottler apart are the details. The stainless steel is a heavy gauge, the seams are flawlessly welded and polished smooth, and the entire unit feels incredibly solid. Their honey gates are often precision-machined metal valves, offering buttery-smooth operation and a perfect, drip-free seal every time. Many models also feature a conical bottom, which helps channel every last drop of honey toward the gate.
This is the tank for the hobbyist who views beekeeping as a craft and demands the best tools. The superior construction not only ensures purity but also makes cleaning remarkably easy, with no crevices for honey to hide. It’s a significant investment, but it pays dividends in saved time, frustration, and the peace of mind that comes from using truly top-tier equipment.
Lyson 20L Settling Tank for Ultra-Clear Honey
For beekeepers who sell their honey or simply take pride in a flawless final product, a settling tank is a game-changer. The Lyson 20L (approximately 5-gallon) settling tank is specifically designed to clarify honey naturally, without the need for fine-mesh filters that can strip out valuable pollen.
The key to its design is a conical bottom and a honey gate mounted slightly above the lowest point. After extraction, you pour your honey into the tank and let it sit for 24-48 hours. During this time, gravity does the work: fine wax particles, debris, and air bubbles slowly rise to the top, forming a layer of foam. The pure, clear honey settles below.
When you’re ready to bottle, you drain the pristine honey from the gate, stopping before you reach the sediment at the very bottom. The result is exceptionally clear honey with beautiful shelf appeal. This extra step requires patience, but for those aiming for a premium, artisanal product, the Lyson settling tank is an invaluable tool for achieving professional-grade clarity.
The Pail with Honey Gate: A Simple Budget Option
Let’s be practical. If you have one hive and you’re just starting, a $150 stainless steel tank can feel like a huge expense. The most basic and affordable option is a food-grade 5-gallon pail fitted with a simple plastic honey gate. You can often buy them pre-assembled or easily drill a hole and install one yourself.
This setup is the definition of functional. It holds honey and allows you to bottle it without making a huge mess. For your first harvest or two, it’s a perfectly acceptable solution that gets you through the process and into jars. It is the entry point, not the destination.
The tradeoffs are significant. Plastic is prone to scratching, which can create a sanitation issue over time. It can also hold onto flavors and odors if not cleaned perfectly. Use this method to learn the ropes and confirm your commitment to beekeeping. Once you know this hobby is for you, make upgrading to a stainless steel tank your next priority.
Cleaning and Maintaining Your Honey Storage Tank
Your work isn’t finished when the last jar is filled. Proper cleaning of your honey tank is non-negotiable for protecting the quality of future harvests. Honey is hygroscopic, meaning it draws in moisture, and any residue left in a tank can ferment and spoil your next batch.
Start by getting as much honey out as you can with a soft silicone spatula. This "honey scraping" can be saved for personal use. Next, rinse the tank thoroughly with hot water—not boiling, as that can damage plastic gates and make wax harder to remove. This initial rinse will dissolve most of the remaining honey.
Follow up with a mild, unscented dish soap and a soft cloth or sponge. Never use abrasive pads or steel wool, as they will permanently scratch both plastic and stainless steel surfaces. Rinse multiple times to ensure no soap residue remains. Finally, allow the tank to air dry completely, preferably upside down with the honey gate open, before storing it in a clean, dust-free location. A clean tank is the foundation of pure honey.
Ultimately, your honey tank is a guardian of quality. It’s the last vessel your honey touches before it reaches the jar, and its job is to preserve the pure, raw character you and your bees worked so hard to create. Whether you start with a simple pail or invest in a premium bottler, choosing the right tank for your scale makes bottling a clean, simple, and deeply satisfying end to the beekeeping season.
