How to clean wax from impurities at home: 7 ways

Wax is a multicomponent organic compound. The product of the vital activity of bees is widely used in traditional medicine, cosmetology, and the pharmaceutical industry. Old honeycombs are used to extract wax, so after collection it needs to be cleaned. There are several ways to do this. Details on how to clean the wax will be useful not only to beekeepers.

How to clean wax from impurities at home

Wax is a yellowish, greenish or brown solid with a slight honey odor. The product is insoluble in water, partially soluble in cold alcohol, soluble in hot alcohol.Easily melts when heated, becomes plastic already at +34-35 °C, liquid - at +62 °C, boils at 100 °C.

It is the light fusibility of the compound that underlies its purification from impurities. When remelted, a purified product is obtained. Quality wax has the following parameters:

white color product (yellowness allowed);
no smell;
plasticity, no greasy marks on the fingers when kneading;
matte cut;
flat and smooth surface.

The substance should not have additional impurities: paraffin or esters. Fragility, greasy spots on the hands after interaction with the substance, foreign aroma warn of poor quality.

Dry and wet processing methods

Dry method is applicable only for pure product. This is rarely used for melting, leaving insects. The pieces are placed in a stainless steel pan and melted. After the transition of the substance to the liquid state, the heating is stopped. It is dried in an oven or wax melter.

Clean hot water is needed to clean the product with impurities. Beeswax is placed in a container and filled with water heated to +40 ° C. The container is covered with a lid and taken out into the street, leaving it in the sun. The water in the tank is stirred every 2-3 hours and changed once a day.

When the liquid in the container stops coloring, the product is taken out, placed in several (2-3) layers of gauze. Then, in a gauze bag, they are immersed in hot water, waiting for complete melting. The substance flows into the water, impurities remain on the fabric.In the oven (at +80 °C), excess moisture is removed from the compound.

Natural Cleansing

The method is to use solar heat. The solar wax melter consists of a metal container placed inside a grid with small cells, an inclined plate and a tray for collecting the purified product. Along the perimeter, foil is placed on the inner walls of the structure, the container is covered with glass, creating the effect of a greenhouse.

The wax container is placed in a sunny area. On fine days, the temperature inside the tank is maintained at + 50-55 ° C. This ensures that the wax melts slowly over time.

Use of reagents

Citric acid and activated carbon are used for chemical purification of the compound. When cleaning with citric acid, you will need 20 liters of water, 5-6 kilograms of raw materials, 15 ml of lemon juice or 15 g of citric acid diluted 1: 1 with water.

Wax is placed in boiling water, mixed, then acid is poured in without ceasing to stir, and the heat is turned off. The container is covered with a lid, wrapped for slow cooling. When it has completely cooled down, take out the cleaned product.

To clean with activated carbon, it is necessary to melt the substance, add a reagent to it (10% of the weight of the piece), mix and filter the product using a fine sieve or gauze.

Folk ways

Wax has long been used by people, so there are effective folk ways to clean it from impurities.

Filtering

Passing the melted substance through the filter system, they achieve its purification.First, the substance is heated and impurities are filtered out using a fine metal mesh. Then the heating is repeated and the wax is drained through 2-3 layers of gauze. The last step is filtering through capron.

Settling

When cleaning with this method, liquid wax is poured into water, the temperature of which is 18-20 degrees lower than the temperature of the product. The container is wrapped, allowing it to slowly, gradually cool down. Impurities settle on the bottom of the dishes or concentrate on the surface of the product. After complete cooling, the top contaminated layer is cut off with a sharp knife.

Whitening

Produced with 9% vinegar. Wax is heated in water, vinegar is added to the container and the heating is immediately stopped. To lighten, 40 milliliters of vinegar are used for each kilogram of product. The bleached wax is removed from the container after it has cooled completely.

Cleaning processes are simple but time-consuming, as a result you can get a quality product that is used in cosmetology, medicine and other industries.