Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
One way to remove cappings is to use a warm knife to slice them off. The beeswax cap-
pings fall into the cappings tank. The tank has a platform in the center that holds the
wax above and lets much of the honey drain below where it can be removed without
wax. The wax is then washed in water and then melted to be used for many purposes.
Be Safe
To melt the wax there's one golden rule. Every beekeeper knows this rule, and many
don't follow it: NEVER melt beeswax over an open flame. Period. If the temperature of
the melting beeswax rises past its melting point and boils over the sides of the heating
container, that liquid wax, when it makes contact with the flame, becomes a torch, burn-
ing uncontrollably. All the wax will soon catch fire, and that burning wax will soon
spread over your work surface, setting fire to anything flammable it comes in contact
with. Also, wax vapors from overheated wax can explode if exposed to an open flame.
(Boom! One less beekeeper.)
Beeswax can be melted safely over a double boiler. For the amount of wax you will
generate with a few colonies you won't need a huge rendering facility. (
Rendering
is the
term that encompasses all aspects of transforming beeswax from the hive into a clean
block of wax.)
Find a Safe Place
If you can, melt wax in the driveway or another outside space where a few wax spills
won't matter, and where the heat can dissipate. The smell of melting wax will attract
your bees, so keep that in mind.
If you can't set up outside, choose a spot in the garage or the basement. Never,
ever do this in the kitchen. Spilled wax on the floor, stove, sink and sink drain, shoes,
counter, or places you never imagined will give you grief for weeks.
If there's no place to do this safely, drain the honey, wash the wax in a pail of water,
drain it, bundle in a plastic bag, and put it in the freezer. Wait until a safe place is avail-
able or have somebody with experience do this for you, rather than do it dangerously.
