Last year I helped my mother in law make a cabinet which she uses for
warming honey and for melting wax (she is a very keen wax exhibitor).
 
We used -
 
1 old freezer
1 bulb socket
1 bulb 60w
1 small lighting dimmer switch
1 battery powered LED thermometer with probe
Foil
 
Apart from the freezer the other components cost about £20.  The only
disadvantage that we found with the cabinet was that it lost heat
very quickly when the lid was opened which is probably OK for warming
honey,  but for smallish amounts of wax this was a problem.  My father in
law solved this problem by replacing the lid of the freezer (chest
type) with a piece of timber in which he placed a lens of the sort
fitted to doors to enable someone inside a house to view somebody on
the other side.  This enabled my mother in law to see whether her wax
had melted without lifting the lid of the freezer.
 
A cardboard slip could be added to the dimmer to give some idea of
the temperature at different settings.
 
Seasonal Greetings
 
Joe Hemmens
 
 
> I have read several plans for honey melters for 5-10 gallons of
> crystallized honey using an insulated box and light bulbs governed
> by a thermostat. Since all of my honey crystallizes I really want to
> build such a device..My problem is where does one find an
> inexpensive thermostat that can be rigged to a light bulb.. I have a
> beer making thermostat for regulating cold refrigerators but that
> only goes to 80F (22C) , an old furnace thermostat than still falls
> short of the 130F ( 60C) needed. Any suggestions would be
> appreciated
>
> Dan Veilleux
> Columbus, Ohio
> Janet Montgomery
> 104 Fallis Road
> Columbus, Ohio  43214-3724
> Home:   (614) 784-8334
> FAX:    (614) 268-3107
> E-mail:  [log in to unmask]
>