Jan. 28, 1904. 



THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



61 



this way, that if there was some heat to carry that on out 

 we could get so much more wax. That is a tlieory. Now I 

 will try to show that this theory is a good theory. 



I found that I could get — of course the amount of wax 

 varies greatly that could be gotten from the comb. We had 

 8 or lo barrels of old comb that had been accumulating 

 around there for a year or so. With that old comb I found 

 that with the hot water method I could get about i8 ounces 

 of pure wax out of five pounds of the old comb. Using the 

 same old comb and pressing without heat, that is, having 

 heated the old comb in some other place, I found that I 

 could get only about lo to 12 ounces. That would seem to 

 show that there was something lacking in that method. Well, 

 I thought then that perhaps I didn't do it right some way or 

 other, so I had some satriplcs sent in from men who used 

 that tiiethod of pressing out the old comb, having heated it 

 some place else with a little water, perhaps. A man sent in 

 a sample, and said that it was from cappings, and he defied 

 me to find any wax in it. By the hot-water method I found 

 that it contained 25 per cent of pure wax. It astonished me. 

 I didn't expect to find anywhere near that much. I don't 

 suppose that there would be that much, ordinarily, but I 

 think that that experiment proves that not anywhere near all 

 the wax is obtained by that method of pressing, without any 

 heat at the time of pressing. 



Now I will describe the hot-water method that I used. 

 I had an ordinary oil-barrel, I think. I cut it off so that 

 it made a tub about one foot high, and then nailed ribs down 

 through that about ^ of an inch square. I made a frame of 

 oak, 2x4, to surround that tub — one piece underneath, one 

 piece on top. and two side-sticks, and to connect those we 

 got heavy cleats. Then I had an ordinary carpenter's bench- 

 vice. I was careful to take only such material as could be 

 obtained at any hardware store in any town. This screw was 

 three or four threads to the inch. I took the nut and placed, 

 it on the under side of the cross-stick, and there I had my 

 wax-press. 



The method I used was slow. I wrapped up about five 

 pounds of the old comb in burlap: made a nice package of it 

 that would just sit down in the bottom of the tub. Then I 

 took a pail of boiling water and poured over it, and let it 

 stand for perhaps a minute, and then applied the screw. 1 

 guess I left out the plunger under the screw. It was a hard 

 wood piece sawed to fit the tub. After applying the screw on 

 this amount of wax the wax immediately flowed on top. I 

 could tell right away that I was getting a lot of wax. 1 

 turned the screw down with all my might, and then raised 

 it, and with a stick pawed over the contents, and then applied 

 the screw and found more wax. and the third time I found a 

 little more wax. but the fourth time I didn't get enough to 

 say so, so I applied the pressure about three times, and in this 

 manner I obtained an average of 18 ounces : once I think it 

 was as high as 24: again, down to 15, but it averaged about 

 18 ounces out of five pounds. 



There was quite a little discussion at the time as to 

 which would be better, a large 12-foot lever or this screw, 

 and I tried both of them. It is a mathematical fact that there 

 is more mechanical advantage with the pressure that can be 

 exercised with one arm on the pressure of a screw than a 

 man's weight on the foot of a lever. It is not only a 

 mechanical fact, but a fact that I proved by experiment, but 

 I don't know whether the pressure is what I want. I don't 

 believe we want a lot of pressure. It was the press- 

 ing, and giving reasonable heat while pressing, and then 

 raising uo and pressin? again, under the continued hot-water 

 heat, and so I found that I could get just as good results 

 with the lever as I could with the screw, but I had to employ 

 a man to help me — a good heavy man to sit on that lever 

 while I was at the other end, whereas with the screw I just 

 used one arm. And then with the lever I had to have a good, 

 strong post at the end, for the end of the lever, as a fulcnmi. 

 There is a tremendous pressure on the floor. Of course the 

 screw and the strain is all on the frame. So I found that al- 

 though I could get as much wax with the lever it was a lot 

 more trouble. It took about the same length of time, and 

 I had to have somebody to help me, and then continually dur- 

 ing the work the lever would slip off and bother me. I don't 

 believe a lever is as good as a screw. It is too much trouble. 

 Then there is this question : How are you going to get 

 that wax off of the top of that hot water? You can't dip it 

 off: stand there and dip it off a spoonful at a time, it would 

 take you forever. Just simply pour it out into another pail 

 somewhere, and let it stand in it for half an hour, and voii 

 can take the cake of wax right off. It takes four or five 



pailfuls to keep going. It seems like a very mussy method, 

 but it gets the wax. There are a good many who argue that 

 they would rather get a little less wax and do the work 

 quicker, but am I not right in saying that when a bee-keeper 

 is rendering wax it is at a time when his time is not very 

 valuable, and he can afford to take a little more time in order 

 to get all that wax? I am sure that if any of you will try 

 the two methods side by side, giving them a fair trial, you 

 will be surprised at the amount of wax that can be gotten 

 from the pressing with continued heat. 



Now I would like to hear from some of the rest of you 

 who can talk on subjects they have been working at for 40 

 years. 



Mr. Wilcox — Mr. Root, would you melt that in another 

 vessel and pour it into the wax-press and press it. or set the 

 press on the stove and heat the water there? Which would 

 be the better? 



Mr. Root — It was a wooden tub. I should use the steam, 

 and let the steam come right up in. I neglected to say that 

 in my experiments with both steam and hot water it was the 

 same — you get just as much wax one way as the other. The 

 hot water took a little longer, but steam is so much nicer to 

 work with, the wax is in nicer shape, and you don't have to 

 pour it out and cool it, so that I prefer the steam, although 

 steam could not very well be employed in a home-made wax- 

 press. 



Mr. Meredith — What about the amount of wax that we 

 obtain from a solar extractor as compared to 18 ounces you 

 got from five pounds? 



Mr. Root — I really cannot answer that question, as to 

 how much can be obtained from a given amount of wax in 

 the solar, as to the hot-water method. I don't know. Of 

 course we had two or three solar extractors running all the 

 time, but I wasn't home long enough to work that out, but 

 some time I intend to put five younds of wax in the solar and 

 give it a good trial, and see just how much wax we obtain; 

 but I know I obtained lots of wax from the refuse of the 

 solar, but of that I didn't keep any data, and I wouldn't even 

 assume to state the amount. 



Dr. Miller — In using the lever as compared with the 

 screw, the lever exerts a continuous pressure and the screw 

 vou screw down and it stands right there, and it doesn't fol- 

 low on down. Don't you think there is an advantage in that 

 continuous pressure on the lever? 



Mr. Root — I cannot see that. As I applied the screw I 

 kept my hand turning right around, and just as soon as I 

 got it down I turned it up and pawed up the contents. Tlie 

 screw was continuous pressure because I kent it going all the 

 time. The lever went down a good deal quicker, but I could 

 not see any advantage or difference whether it went down 

 quickly or slowly. 



Dr. Miller — In actual practice you wouldn't expect some 

 one to be there all the time. 



Mr. Root — I was at it to keep it turned down all the 

 time until I put it up and pawed it over. 



Dr. Miller— You can't work for me! [Laughter.] 

 Mr. Moore — Would it be a good idea to work a solar 

 extractor and the steam wax-press together, in order to work 

 over the material that comes from the solar? 



Mr. Root — I think that would be a very good plan. "The 

 wax that comes from the solar is such a good quality — nice, 

 clear and clean. 



Mr. Moore — Would you think it more economical to do 

 the entire work with the steam-nrcss? 



Mr. Root— That's a pretty big question. The solar wax- 

 extractor is handy to have around to throw wax into. 



Mr. Wilcox— With the solar wax-extractor you save 

 nearly every ounce of honey. 

 Mr. Root— That's true. 



Mr. Wilcox— I would use the solar, anyway. 

 Mr. Root — I think it is economical to use the solar in 

 connection with the others, but I wouldn't depend on that 

 entirely, because I don't think that it gets more than half 

 the wax out. 



Mr. Moore — Do vou consider the German wax-press cm- 

 bodies all the best urinciples that are known to-day as carried 

 out bv vour exneriments? _ _ _ 



Mr. Root— You put me in a rather embarrassing position. 

 Mr. Moore— You are simply an expert. Tell us what 

 you think. 



Mr. Root— I got just as good results with the steam- 

 press and the hot-water press. T couldn't find any advantage 

 in the actual result one over the other, but the hot water 

 took a great deal more time than the other and was mussy. 



