Beeswax melt and clean / filter
- Instructions: Filter and clarify beeswax
- Mince beeswax
- Heat beeswax in a water bath
- Clean beeswax
- Cure beeswax
- Remove the plating layer
- Filter again
- Brighten beeswax
- Instructional Video
Beeswax can be bought ready and gold-yellow, but is very expensive in this neatly processed form. If you would like to make beeswax candles yourself or use beeswax for homemade cosmetics, then we have just the right instructions for you. Beeswax is characterized by its long burning time and color and as a natural product is definitely something for nature lovers and self-makers.
When processing and cleaning beeswax, a few points must be noted. With our instructions, you have the necessary tools to clean as a beginner beeswax.
Natural and unprocessed beeswax can be obtained from the beekeeper. The less this has worked on the wax, the cheaper it will be. Wax cleaning is a complex process and takes a lot of time and patience - but the result can be seen.
Instructions: Filter and clarify beeswax
The gray and brown color of the wax is caused by suspended particles and dirt. These are remnants of doll skins, faeces of larvae and pollen. By repeatedly filtering off the wax, these substances are dissolved and settle down in the mold during curing. This layer can then be easily removed.
If you made candles out of unfiltered beeswax, you would not be happy with them. Gray-brown candles really do not like any and added that the suspended matter does not burn. Accordingly, such candles would go out again and again.
But now we show you step by step how to clarify your own beeswax.
You need:
- Beeswax from the beekeeper
- pot
- empty tin can
- heat resistant container
- gloves
- woman's stocking
- rubber band
- wooden sticks
Before you read on, you should know, this is the processing of a smaller amount of beeswax for home use. Of course you can use this method to purify several quantities of wax - you only have to have enough large vessels and pots.
Mince beeswax
At the beginning, the beeswax must be crushed. With a knife, spatula or a screwdriver, small wax clumps can be separated from the ingot. Be very careful. The wax is quite compact as a bar, but still soft - so there is a risk that you can quickly slip off with the knife.
Heat beeswax in a water bath
If the wax is divided into small pieces, it is heated. You should also be very careful. Wax can boil over or even burn - this should be avoided when heating. So make sure you have a covered work surface so that annoying wax stains can not even occur. If something has gone wrong for you, we have the necessary tips for wax removal here: //www.zhonyingli.com/kerzenwachs-entfernen/
The simple and safe option is heating in a water bath. Put a metal container in the pot with water. You should not use the very best saucepan for melting wax. We use an old can as a crucible. This conducts the heat and can be thrown away later.
The wax lumps are now placed in the can and slowly melted in a water bath. Gradually they shrink and you can add more wax. Now let the beeswax melt until everything is completely liquefied. The color of the liquid wax varies naturally, but in principle it should be dark brown and have a yellowish tinge.
Clean beeswax
Now filter the wax. Put an old women's stocking or a piece of old tights over the heat-resistant container. This can be a plastic bucket or a small plastic can. Secure the stocking securely with a rubber band.
Then boil a small amount of water in the kettle and tilt this hot water about 1 to 2 cm wide in the container.
Afterwards the hot wax - of course with gloves - is tipped into the container. Pour slowly and take your time, because the wax is still hot for a very long time due to the heated can. The women's stocking works as a sieve and filters out all suspended solids. The hot water in the container prevents the wax from curing directly on the floor. The soil should slowly cool, that all remaining suspended matter in the wax can slowly settle down.
Cure beeswax
Now carefully remove the stocking. Then place the container on a flat surface and cover it with a lid or aluminum foil. When curing, the wax should now no longer be moved, that the dirt can slowly settle down. If you moved the wax back and forth for a while, the dirt would spread again.
Remove the plating layer
After 12 to 24 hours the wax has hardened. Now you can clearly see how the suspended solids have settled on the ground.
Now take the wax out of the mold. The previously poured-in water can flow out to the side and be poured away. Turn over the billet and you can clearly see the dirt layer, also known as Zankschicht. With a spatula or a knife, this dirt is now removed.
Filter again
The beeswax now has a distinctly clean color, but is still not completely pure. Accordingly, the cleaning process should be repeated again and again until the cured wax has the desired clarity. Depending on the degree of soiling, this may be necessary 3 to 4 times.
Brighten beeswax
You definitely want light or honey yellow candles "> Example
- 5 kg beeswax
- 1 L of water
- 2 g of citric acid
Slowly heat the beeswax and dissolved acid to 85 ° C. Stir the mixture over an extended period of time so that water and wax come into close contact. With a wooden stick, the color and brightness of the wax can then be checked several times. For this dip the stick briefly in the hot wax and then let it cool down. The dried wax on the bar tells you the future color.
Even if cleaning beeswax is a complex process, the result will convince you. If you have done everything right, the beeswax is now ready for further processing. Pour candles or create your own cosmetic products such as ointments or healing packs. Or you use the cleaned wax for leather care or wood protection.
You see, beeswax is demanding, but still a natural product that you can make a lot out of.
