Beeswax

By Asst Editor Liz C, on November 24th, 2010

Natural beeswax

Beeswax is a product of the bee hive which is secreted by worker bees 12-18 days old, from wax glands beneath segments six to nine of the abdomen. Bees use it for building new comb and capping off ripened honey. Humans use it in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, candles, polish, waterproofing and to make foundation comb for beehives. As a general guide, for each 60 kg of honey extracted from the hive about 1 kg of beeswax is produced. The composition of beeswax is complex, but contains hydrocarbons, straight-chain monohydric alcohols, acids, hydroxy acids, oils and other substances. Its specific gravity is less than one, so it floats on water. It melts at 63° C to 65° C and solidifies at 60° C to 63° C, depending on purity.

Wax separators

Four main types of extractors are used to separate wax from honey and hive debris:

solar extractor
wax press
cappings reducer or melter
hot box melter.

Solar extractor

Solar extractors are insulated containers painted with a dark colour on the inside and covered with a single or double sheet of glass. The wax is placed on gauze or an excluder above a draining tray, and the molten wax flows into a mould. These melters are cheap to operate, but their efficiency is low. Residues are usually further processed in the wax press, while the wax from the mould is often melted again in the cappings melter.

Wax press

The wax press consists of a strong cylinder with a plunger attached to a coarse screw. Heating can be supplied by steam or an electric element. A wax press is most commonly used to extract wax from old combs. The residue from solar wax melters and the combs which have been cut from old frames are tied up in old, clean hessian bags. The press is partly filled with water and the contents soaked for a couple of hours before the heat is applied. After boiling gently until heat penetrates the material, the press is screwed down and most of the remaining wax floats to the surface. When the water level is raised, the wax flows out into a mould. Wax extracted by this process is usually quite dark.

Cappings melter

Cappings melters are commonly built of stainless steel and have an electric heating element in the base. The element is completely covered with water and the wax cappings added. Gently boiling the water will melt all of the wax, which is held for a few hours slightly above the melting point (70° C) to allow contaminants to settle out. By adding water into the bottom of the melter, the liquid wax rises until it flows out through a 1-3 mm gauze strainer into moulds. Moulds should have tapered sides to allow the wax to be easily removed. The first and last block usually contain some dirt so they are either scraped or retained and placed in the next batch for melting again.

Hot-box melter

The hot-box melter consists of a stainless-steel tank fitted with a honey gate at the base. The whole tank, except the outlet gate, is fitted into an insulated box. The box is heated with ‘pyrotenax’ cable or a fan heater with an accurate thermostat. It is advisable to fit two thermostats to reduce the risk of fire if one thermostat fails. Cappings containing honey from a cappings-spinner are placed in the tank. As the honey and wax melt, the honey runs out the honey gate. Because the honey is low in the tank, it should not be damaged from excessive heat. When the honey has been removed, hot water is added to the tank to raise the level of the wax. After settling, the wax can be ladled out. If the tank is fitted with a water inlet and a spout, clean wax can be poured into blocks ready for sale.

Moulds

Moulds commonly used include bread tins, ice-cream containers, cake tins (bar type) and cutdown honey tins. However, Capilano Honey Ltd encourages beekeepers to use a standard wax mould. Advantages in marketing and handling should result from the sale of good-quality wax in standard-sized blocks. Their preferred mould is a plastic number 4 crate - IH089 (made by Nally Ltd). This mould holds about 8 kg of wax. Contact your beekeeping equipment suppliers for more information.

Beeswax blocks

Producing clean wax

Use rainwater if possible avoid excessive heating, such as vigorous boiling, direct steam for long periods in solar wax melters during summer use stainless steel, tin plated, aluminium or plastic containers avoid iron, brass, copper or zinc vessels as they tend to discolour the wax collect the first portion in one mould when pouring the wax until all the small particles of contamination have stopped. Good, clear wax follows until near the end, when more dirt and water appear. It is advisable to collect the first and last wax and return it to the next load avoid severe cracking by pouring the wax into moulds at a temperature just above the setting point (63° C). Slow cooling helps prevent cracking so the moulds should be covered after filling. Avoid putting wax for export in hessian bags as it will not be accepted. However, new synthetic bags (similar to fertiliser bags) are ideal

Showing wax at agricultural shows

When preparing wax for show, start with clean wax of the prescribed colour, for example yellow or white. Pour the wax into a clean mould and place it carefully into hot water, cover, and allow to cool slowly without vibration. The resulting block should have a smooth shiny surface and be quite attractive.

Caution

Never heat beeswax over naked flames; it is a serious fire hazard.

Disease warning

To avoid transmission of disease, make every effort to prevent robbing. Honey from cappings could also contain disease organisms and as boiling or steaming will not kill spores of American brood disease. It is essential to prevent bees from having access to cappings, honey or old combs. If you send your old combs, cappings, or slum gum to be refined, ensure bees cannot access them. Do not dispose of old combs, cappings or slum gum at your local rubbish dump, unless you arrange to have the material buried immediately. If you do not plan to extract the wax, burning is a good method of destroying old combs, wax and dried slum gum.

Further information

Business Information Centre

Patricia Swift (Gatton Research Station) 07 5466 2216

Hamish Lamb (Maroochy Research Station) 07 5444 9613

Peter Warhurst (Warwick) 07 4661 6623