# Separating wax from cappings methods?



## Ramon (Nov 6, 2003)

So I have a big pile of cappings, wax, bee bits and honey remains in a bucket and I am wondering what folks out there do to turn that giant mass into beautiful candles? Well, at least just get the wax first? Any suggestions, ideas? Easy and low tech is best ;-)
Thanks
Ramon


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## Elizabeth (Jun 4, 2002)

Ramon- there are several ways to go about it. The first thing I would do is to strain the cappings overnight, maybe longer, to get as much of the honey out of them as possible. The second thing that I would do is to let the bees rob whatever honey they can get out of the cappings. I like to use a hive top feeder for this- I spread a layer of cappings in it and let the bees clean them up, then repeat, until they have been through all the cappings. If you do not have a hive top feeder you can spread the cappings out on a board or in a shallow container _well away_ from your hive- NOT in your beeyard. I do not like this method because it can start the bees robbing, but some people do this. 

BTW- did you put your empty "wet" supers back on the hive after extracting? I always do and let the bees clean them out for a few days before storing the empty supers at the end of the seaason- of course, this time of year your bees will likely fill them again.

Once the cappings are "dry" I wash them with water to remove any honey that might be left. I used to have a solar wax melter that I would then run the cappings through, but it got knocked over during the hurricanes last year and broke- I haven't had time to build a new one yet. So, after our last extraction, I am using a Kelley wax melter to melt my cappings. You can fashion a small solar wax melter out of a sheet of glass and a paint roller pan- check around on the internet and you should be able to find some ideas. When I put my wax in the solar melter I stuff it in an old nylon stocking- for regular candle making this produces a nice clean wax- for show wax I might run it through 2-3 times.

During the winter I use an old crock pot to melt wax and then filter it through old cotton t-shirt material- but my technique is pretty primitive, lol.


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## alleyyooper (Apr 22, 2005)

You can get plans for a solor wax melter here:::http://www.beesource.com/plans/melter.htm

Paper towels as well as coffee filters work very well as wax filters/strainers.
 Al


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## Ramon (Nov 6, 2003)

Elizabeth and Alleyooper
Thanks for the advice, I will probably go with the paint roller and glass method since it's the lowest tech. Elizabeth, I did put back "wet" supers back out, in fact, I put everything I used that had any honey residue back out as I figure the bees can do a far better job of cleaning than I can and then I'll get the honey back in a few months anyway due to the bees unending generosity ;-)
Thanks so much for all the help, you guys are the best!
Ramon


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