Solar wax melter

[Dusty Rhodes]

Keep meaning to ask:

What is solar wax?

D

 

[SixFooter]

Sixfooter.
We get loads of sunny days in Merseyside. Just look at that healthy orange glow that the young ladies round here all sport!

 

[SixFooter]

I'm thinking it doesn't take much sunshine to heat up through glass/polycarbonate.
Think how hot it gets in a greenhouse or polytunnel - or even a car, in the sun

Well hot enough to melt say chocolate. Not wax though. Presumably a wax melter gets even hotter than that!

 

[MuswellMetro]

Keep meaning to ask:

What is solar wax?

D

a box to melt the wax off your old frames using the power of the sun (solar) only

 

[Luminos]

Keep meaning to ask:

What is solar wax?

D

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

I can only assume it's something akin to the fluff that gathers outside one's solar plexus.

D

 

[MuswellMetro]

I can only assume it's something akin to the fluff that gathers outside one's solar plexus.

D

Wouldn't that be a different kind of Wax...Brazilian wax for instance

 

[Elaine]

I've been meaning to build a wax melter for ages, but as it was so hot yesterday - I just went for a "proof of concept" just using stuff lying around at home. I used a stainless steel sink as the 'box' which has the advantage of a refective inner wall, a piece of open mesh floor over a pyrex dish, and put the wax in old tights. I then created a double glazing panel on the top with two sheets of greenhouse glass separated by a piece of rope around the edges to keep them apart and to seal it, and then sat it at an angle on a couple of pieces of kingspan, and packed kingspan round the sides - and stuck the thermomenter probe through the overflow hole in the sink to see what temperature I was getting.

Very quickly got up to 70 degrees, and after an hour a nice pool of wax in the dish!

I now need to make one I can put frames in.......

 

[SixFooter]

I now need to make one I can put frames in.......

ANd QXs

 

[youngyoungs]

Greatbigchicken.

Any chance of asking your OH for a plan and measurements for the melter? I'd love to brush up my wood working skills.

 

[milkermel]

this set up looks great, would love some plans please!

 

[Greatbigchicken]

this set up looks great, would love some plans please!

Sorry, we didn't draw up any plans, it was made of off cust of 12mm ply and 2"x1" to brace it. The tray is a roasting tray from Ikea with a section cut out and mesh screwed over. The lid is some off cust of toung and groove and a section from our old greenhouse. I have now filled all the empty space with kingspan and it does get VERY hot in the sun (not that we've seen much lately). The angle is about 30-35o.

If I were to make another I'd make it bigger, I can't quite fit frames in so I have to remove the wax and put it in some old tights, this does filter the wax and keeps it much cleaner though.

The problem I found was buying the metal sections was too expensive which is why I used the tray, I've also seen one made with an old stanless steel sink so I think you'd be best to find the metal sections then make the box to fit.

I've not tried, but I'd imagine glass would be more efficient than the plastic, but I'm clumsey and the plastic is lighter and less breakable.

Hope this helps.

We've also made a warming cabinet, I'll post some photos of that when I've doug it out from under all the car parts hubby has burried it under.

 

[Russel]

Found these quite handy for SE inserts, 15" roller tray, £3.20 from toolstation but other suppliers may stock them?

 

[BeeJayBee]

That's a neat idea Russel. Do you line the tray with foil?

Our solar melter is just a large polystyrene box lined with a black bin bag, with some thin foil baking trays bent into shape to make a funnel that drips the wax into a plastic container. The whole thing is covered with a piece of acrylic. It works, but isn't pretty.

 

[busybee53]

Beejoyful can you post a picture ? I am out of funds and would be happy with anything that works that I can persuade OH to make for me.

 

[Russel]

That's a neat idea Russel. Do you line the tray with foil?

Our solar melter is just a large polystyrene box lined with a black bin bag, with some thin foil baking trays bent into shape to make a funnel that drips the wax into a plastic container. The whole thing is covered with a piece of acrylic. It works, but isn't pretty.

I don't but always open to improvements.
Some fine mesh, a few holes in the right place for the molten wax to drip into a tray works a treat.

If you have a local double glazing installer near by, ask if they have an old d/g plastic sash ( the opening bit, usually 600 x 1000mm ) and make box to suit; cheap as chips.

Russ

 

[BeeJayBee]

Beejoyful can you post a picture ? I am out of funds and would be happy with anything that works that I can persuade OH to make for me.

I'm sorry, but I haven't got any pictures. There's a video on Linda's Bees that might help you, on the right side of this page. http://beekeeperlinda.blogspot.co.uk/2011/06/first-date-with-solar-wax-melter.html

Ours is a large polystyrene 'fish box' that I begged from a local restaurant. No lid. I put it into a bin bag, and then made the bin bag sort of fit the inside. Try it and you'll know what I mean. The black is fairly important because it absorbs heat rather than reflecting it.

The foil trays were 99p and have been squashed together to make a sort of funnel. The acrylic is the flat, very thin stuff, we use for cloches and is held in place with half a brick. It's bigger than the box, so doesn't look smart, or neat and tidy.

The whole thing is propped on half a brick, so melted wax can 'flow' downwards into a plastic tub with a little rainwater in it - or it would if we had enough old wax. I tested it with some from drone comb, and got about a tablespoonful. I used a J-cloth as a filter, which was a bit of a mistake because it absorbed more wax than it let through.

I'll upgrade the lid if I can find a local double glazing company with cast-offs.

 

[Greatbigchicken]

I used a J-cloth as a filter, which was a bit of a mistake because it absorbed more wax than it let through.

Using a pair of tights filters the wax really well, lots of good clean wax comes through and leave the dross inside. I then tie two knots, snipped between the two, and hey presto, one fire lighter and you can start filling the leg up again. I recon I could get about 8 good melts from one pair.

 

[ratcatcher]

Beejoyful can you post a picture ? I am out of funds and would be happy with anything that works that I can persuade OH to make for me.

where abouts in essex are you? Ive got a polystyrene fish box and lid if you want it, cut out the centre of lid and add perspex and bob's ya uncle

 

[steve1958]

I too used the polystyrene fish box idea.
Works a treat when the sun is shining.

I am on the look out for a small Double Glazed window now.