A solar wax melter is equipment that is designed to produce wax by reheating and then straining old and damaged honeycombs. This process takes place under the influence of solar energy, which helps to achieve results at minimal cost. At the same time, making a solar wax melter with your own hands has certain features.
Principle of operation
This type of wax grinder is considered quite convenient. Unlike other similar designs, it does not require the use of electricity. The structure of the structure includes the following elements:
- wooden box;
- glass frame;
- a tray in the form of a baking sheet for raw materials;
- container for melted wax.
The lid heats up under the influence of sunlight. As a result, the temperature of the structure’s contents also increases. Wax honeycombs melt at a temperature of +62-68 degrees. The case can withstand heating up to +90 degrees. Under the influence of heat, the wax acquires a liquid consistency and flows into a special container.
The wax melter should be used in hot and sunny weather. This is usually done in June and July. Fresh honeycombs, which are not filled with anything, are melted without any residue and fill the tray. Old dark honeycombs with remnants of pollen and cocoons leave behind waste that is difficult to clean up. Therefore, you need to put a wire grill under them. You can easily remove from it everything that remains after the firebox.
Pros and cons of solar wax refiner
The solar wax melter is considered a fairly popular device because it has a simple and reliable design. Before purchasing or manufacturing a product, it is important to familiarize yourself with its pros and cons.
The main advantages of the design include the following:
- reliability;
- high productivity;
- no need for constant monitoring;
- ease of use.
At the same time, the wax melter also has some disadvantages:
- weather dependence;
- the need for systematic purification of wastewater from wax and waste residues;
- risk of incomplete wax melting;
- the need to use several devices for large apiaries.
If the sun heats the structure very strongly, the device can produce up to 4 kilograms of wax per day. This is enough to serve an apiary, which includes 50 bee colonies.
Tools and materials
To make your own wax melter, you will need the following:
- tongue and groove boards 12 centimeters wide;
- plywood;
- wooden slats;
- 2 corners;
- nails;
- screws;
- a baking tray for loading wax raw materials;
- tray for collecting melted wax;
- saw;
- hammer;
- ruler.
To prevent the nails from splitting the board, it is recommended to dull them a little. To do this, you can hit the sharp part with a hammer 2 times.
Drawings and dimensions
Before constructing a wax furnace, it is recommended to prepare its drawing. It should be done taking into account the size of the metal baking sheet and the tray for melted wax. First, you need to purchase or manufacture fittings for the device, and then select the dimensions of the wooden structure.
How to do it yourself?
To make a wax melter at home, it is recommended to do the following:
- Make a box from boards measuring 45x52 centimeters. Moreover, their thickness should be 12 centimeters. To increase the angle of incidence of the sun, it is worth adding another board 12 centimeters wide to one edge measuring 52 centimeters. It will act as a support for the wax burning device.
- Nail wood strips to the ends of the boards.
- Nail the plywood bottom to the bottom. It should be slightly shorter than the bottom.
- To close the remaining gap, nail a board. The wax tray will be located in this place. It needs to be strengthened.
- In an almost finished structure, install a tray on the board.
- Install and nail 2 slats under the baking sheet at the bottom of the homemade structure.
- To give the horizontal structure of the tray stability, a thin strip should be nailed under it in the corner of the bottom.
- To prevent the tray from moving out of place, 2 corners need to be secured with screws on the sides of the body at the level of its edges.
- After installing the baking tray, cover the top of the structure with glass.To prevent it from moving out, you need to nail a stop bar underneath.
Usage
To maximize the use of solar energy, the body of the structure can be tilted. To do this, you need to provide planks of different widths for the front and back walls. The angle of inclination can be arbitrary.
To use the design effectively, it is important to follow simple recommendations. It is worth considering the following:
- The wax furnace grate can periodically become clogged with melted honeycombs and debris. It needs to be cleaned in a timely manner. This is best done with a wire brush. To speed up this process, it is recommended to first cool the grate in the refrigerator. A hair dryer will also help simplify cleaning procedures.
- It is recommended to use only dry wax as raw material. Otherwise, the evaporation of moisture will cause condensation to appear on the glass. As a result, the sun's rays will pass through less efficiently.
- Raw materials should be laid out in one layer. It is not recommended to install 2 frames on top of each other, since the bottom one will not be heated very well.
- The frames should first be cleaned of drone brood. The larvae release moisture, which causes the glass to fog up. As a result of reduced transparency, the sun's rays do not penetrate the device as well. This reduces its effectiveness.
- After use, the structure must not be left to dry overnight. The fact is that the smell can attract ants.
- To collect melted wax, you should use silicone molds. This will make it easier to separate the frozen layer.
The solar wax melter is a very convenient device that has many advantages. At the same time, you can easily do it yourself.In order for wax melting to be effective, it is important to strictly adhere to the basic recommendations of experts.
