WAX-FOUNDATION MAKING FOR THE APIARY.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume XIII, Issue 2, 21 August 1916, Page 114

WAX-FOUNDATION MAKING FOR THE APIARY.

F. A. JACOBSEN,

Apiary Instructor;

One of the live matters now confronting the beekeeper is the art of making wax foundation. The increased cost of this material from the suppliers . has made it expedient for many beekeepers to attempt making their own.. Failing this, all pure wax .should be saved and sent to a reliable foundation-maker to model at a small cost. This latter method’ is the best for the small beekeeper. Just how many.colonies are required to enable a foundation-making plant to be worked successfully and profitably I would not care to say, but would rather leave the answer to individual discretion. However, those who are making, or who contemplate making, wax foundation may,, find some useful hints in the following description of the process. , ■...

PRELIMINARY REFINING OF THE WAX.

It is most essential that, all beeswax, preparatory to any manipulations for foundation-making, should be refined and thoroughly cleaned. Wax cakes are usually of all grades and colours. The difference in colour is due largely to the amount of impurities the wax contains. There is- no method so satisfactory as treatment with acid to bring it to its pure state and colour. Some claim that by this treatment the wax is made brittle. I can only reply that this has been contrary to my experience.

■ A highly successful method is as follows : First have in ' readiness a number of kerosene-tins with the tops cut off, or, better still, buckets. Have a , sufficient quantity of boiling water handy to pour a depth, of several inches of it into each receptacle,' Melt the wax in a large milk-can or other tank, together with a quantity of water, which is boiled after the cakes of wax have been added. Dip the melted wax into the kerosene-tins or buckets containing the boiling water, and add to each about one teaspoonful of commercial sulphuric acid. Stir for a minute or so,' and then cover up with sacks to keep warm as long as possible. Slow cooling allows the foreign impurities to settle and prevents cracking. After twentyfour..hours lift out ' the cakes and scrape' the impurities' from, the bottom. '.A"; ■ .

If a good' supply of steam is handy a still better method is as follows : . Fill a wooden tank or barrel a quarter full of water, and add cakes of wax until nearly full. The water is then boiled until all the wax is melted, ■ after which the ■ sulphuric acid is poured in and the boiling continued until all is thoroughly mixed. The heat is then removed by drawing the steam-pipe out of the barrel or tank, and the impurities are allowed to settle. Cool slowly, and afterwards scrape impurities from bottom of cake. (For. other points on the subject see note on “Treatment of wax,” by E. A. Ea*rp, in the May issue of the Journal, page 402.) ;;

THE PLAIN ROLLING-MILL.

; The quantity of sulphuric acid to be used varies. If the wax is , dark enough to make brood-foundation, from 4 to 6 gills of acid is used for each . 500 lb. of ' wax ; but if the wax is already of light colour and good "quality, so. small an amount as 2 to 3 gills will suffice for the same quantity 'of wax. Readers may be reminded that 5 fluid ounces make 1 gill, and 4 gills equal 1 pint.

FOUNDATION-MAKING. —DIPPING-APPARATUS.

The apparatus required for dipping —the first operation in foun-dation-making —consists of dipping-boards, melting-tank, dipping-tank, and cooling-water tank. The melting-tank is for the purpose of

melting the refined wax and keeping it liquid. The dipping-tank is the one in which the boards are inserted, and should be 5 in. by 12 in. at the top, and 2 ft. 9 in. long. This tank is usually tapered slightly to the bottom. It should be placed in a large tank of water, which, in order to get the best results, is to be kept at a temperature of 165° to 170° F. The cooling-water tank is for plunging the board after dipping.

At least two dipping-boards are necessary, and one more is an advantage. They should be made out of heart totara or heart white-pine. Only a few boards in each log are suitable for the purpose ; these warp neither one way nor the other, and the grain is not liable to fray up and adhere to the wax sheets when they are being peeled off. The size of the boards should be B|in. to pin. wide, about 2 ft. 6 in. long, and about | in. thick. Plane them smooth and finish with sandpaper. Before using they should be soaked in brine water for several hours, which serves the double purpose of preventing the wax sticking to the-boards and preventing the grain rising in them, with consequent . roughening. To make the brine use a teacupful of salt to two or three buckets of, watei

THE DIPPING PROCESS.

When. all is in readiness dip the boards smartly into the dippingtank, which is filled with wax, to about 2 in. from your fingers at the end, and withdraw smartly. Before dipping again, wait until there are no drips of wax from the board, then repeat as before. For medium brood - foundation dip about a dozen times, and then plunge the board, with wax adhering, into the cooling-water tank, in order to prevent the sheet adhering too firmly to the board. Run a knife round the edge to remove the wax there, and - after soaking a minute the wax sheets will peel off. The sheets should be stacked horizontally in a pile. For thin foundation dip only a few times. The best results are obtained when the wax is at a temperature of from 165° to 170° F. If it is too cold there is a thin film on the wax from which you are dipping. Cool wax leaves the surface of the sheets with ripples, and they will be wavy and irregular in' thickness. If the wax is too hot they will crack and peel off. It is most important, as will be found by experience, to do the dipping with the wax at the right temperature. Properly made sheets are indispensable for the ensuing work. If the] sheets do not peel off the boards readily it is evident the latter have become roughened, and they should be again sandpapered when dry.

The old hand knows the various points that have to be considered, such as the adjustment of the mill, the temperature

of the wax, and the quickness of the plunge of the dipping-board. It may be advantageous at times to reverse the dipping-board and handle the other end, and the water in the cooling-tank must be kept cool by drawing off the warm and adding cold water. ' More failures in foundation-making may be attributed to faulty dipping of the sheets than to any other, cause.

ROLLING THE SHEETS.

The illustration on page 115 shows, the plain rollers clearly. The photograph of the workshop interior will also give some idea of how. to prepare for rolling. Beyond the mill, the . handle of which is being

turned, is placed the cooling-tank, which is now used as a heating-vat for the sheets. The top of this tank is level with the base of the rolling-mill for convenience. The size of the tank should, be about 12 in. deep, 15 in. wide, and 8 ft. long. • The water in this tank in which the sheets are placed is to be kept at a temperature of between 115 0 and 120° F. Keep the room heated round about Bo°, as' it has been found by experience that this temperature is best. Although rather hot for comfort, the successful making of the foundation should be the first consideration.

Having mounted and screwed the mill to the bench, , some sort of lubricant for the rollers is necessary before proceeding further.

Various mixtures have been advocated, such as a weak solution of lye obtained from an ordinary ash-leach, a solution of slippery-elm bark, ordinary starch paste, or a solution of salt and water. After testing several of these mixtures, however, I certainly favour soap and water. Put a cake of ordinary soap into half a bucket of boiling water, and when melted allow it to cool to under ioo° before use. The tray below the rollers, as illustrated, is for holding this solution. The rollers, both top and bottom, should be quite wet with this fluid before use. The sheets as they leave the dipping-boards are usually ragged and ' thickened ’at ' the ends. Instead of trimming each sheet singly, take a pile of them and trim evenly and squarely with a large knife. Put this pile into the

heating-tank and you are now ready for rolling. For this work two persons are necessary—indeed, two carry out the work better all through. It may be found advantageous to stir a little salt into the water.

Dip the end of the sheet in the soap and water, place it between the rollers, and give the handle a half-turn, then lift up the rear wooden roller; the assistant next detaches the end of the sheet from the top roller with a blunt comb or other soft article, and after securing a hold' on the sheet with the grippers pulls it from the machine as the handle is turned. It will roll out to a length of about 7 ft. Before putting through each subsequent sheet moisten the top roller with the hand dipped in the soap and water. .

EMBOSSING THE SHEETS.

After the operation of putting the sheets, through the plain rollers, the latter machine is dismounted and the embossing-mill put in its place. The 7 ft. sheets are placed in the heating - tank as before, but pure water is now used, the temperature of which should be between 90° and 100° F. I have found that the sheets work best at this heat. Proceed as with the plain rollers.

CUTTING THE SHEETS.

The quickest method of trimming the long sheets of embossed foundation will probably go 7I ft. to the pound weight in medium brood and about 9 ft. in light brood— to prepare a smooth board the exact size required for the finished sheet of foundation for placing in ■ the frame. Lay seven or eight long sheets on top of each other, and after placing the board in position cut all round it with a sharp knife, doing as many sheets at once as you can conveniently manage., They cut very much better immediately after leaving the embossing-mill, because the wax is then warm.

CLEANING ROLLERS.

I have known enthusiastic but inexperienced beekeepers endeavour to roll a dry sheet through the mill. They will never attempt it a second time. ■ The wax will cling to both rollers, and the only way to get them to work again is by scalding, or turning a jet of steam on all surfaces for several minutes. The surfaces of both rollers are very soft, and on no account should they be scratched with anything hard.. Keep the wax-room free of all small hard materials. A tack embedded in the sheets will ruin the mill, and nothing is so easy as for this to happen.

ADJUSTING ROLLING-MILLS.

When the mill leaves the factory it is evenly adjusted and ready for use. A leaflet giving instructions for the adjustment of the machine is supplied with each. On no account alter the adjustment of the mill without first reading the leaflet and fully comprehending it. When once the rollers get out of alignment it is the most difficult thing for the novice mechanic to right them; indeed, I have known good mechanics advise the purchase of a new machine because they could not adjust the old' one' properly. When a machine is first in use, if it does not come up to expectations and rolls the sheets with a bow to one side, one may be sure that there is some fault with the dipping. Finally, it is only by patience and experience that the art of foundation-making is satisfactorily mastered.