Jill,
I clean my beeswax into blocks of approx. 3 kg. very economically. I use
the finished product for candles but there is a cottage industry cosmetic
manufacturer using beeswax of the same quality on the Island. I do not know
if there are regulations regarding the purity but this is what I do:
I use dead refrigerators and run a power cord through the drainage hole in
the bottom and attach a light bulb. 100 watt is the strongest wattage I
use. In a bar fridge I use 60 watt size.
The shelves are extremely useful for holding a bucket of wax above the light
source. It usually takes 24 - 36 hours to melt.
Cappings wax is melted and any honey removed for cooking purposes.
The block of honey and slum gum is then left in the sun to warm and the bulk
of the slum gum removed with a a paint stripper blade. The wax is then
placed in a galvanised iron bucket (no water) and melted in the
refrigerator. When the wax is melted I warm a Chux cloth and metal colander
in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. I pour the wax through the Chux
in the colander into a clean plastic container.
This produces very clean wax of a primrose colour. For cosmetics
manufacture this is poured into baking trays to produce thin sheets which
can be broken up into pieces to be weighed and grated into the other
ingredients.
To bleach the wax further you may like to place small pieces (smaller the
better) in rain water and leave under glass in sunlight. It may take several
weeks to show an appreciable effect but there is no energy input required.
I do not know if the temperature range in Tasmania is high enough to enable
you to do this - I find my solar wax melter is effective when the day
temperature reaches 20 degrees Celsius.
The recipe for the cosmetic cream manufactured on Kangaroo Island is printed
in the Kangaroo Island Honey Cook Book. Email me direct if you would like this.
Betty McAdam
HOG BAY APIARY
Penneshaw, Kangaroo Island
j.h. & e. mcadam<[log in to unmask]http://kigateway.eastend.com.au/hogbay/hogbay1.htm
