GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



at home. I also wanted one that the bee- 

 supply firms would sell at a figure more 

 reasonable than, say, Mr. Beuhne's machine 

 sells at ; lastly, one which had not the bug- 

 bear of a large number of small tubes to 

 run up cost and trouble. 



THE NEW MELTER.* 



My melter is 24 inches long (could be 

 any length). Fig. 1 is a cross-section view 

 of the end of the melter. The inside end of 

 the melter should be cut out with the snips 

 ready for the ends of the tubes to be sol- 

 dered in. Let the ends project inside, say 

 1/4 inch, and use the "trough" so formed to 

 run your solder down. After you have the 

 ends of ti;bes soldered into both of the 

 inside walls, one at each end, the outside 

 wall, which makes the water-jacket, is sim- 

 ply flanged around in a i^iece of scantling 

 with a mallet, and the whole job is ready 

 for the water-filling funnel piece to be sol- 

 dered on over a hole cut at the lower part 

 of one end. Keep this filled fairly low, so 

 that you can see the water in it and use it 

 as a gauge to see when refilling is needed. 



After studying this melter you will ob- 

 serve that the spaces at the bottoms of 

 tubes are available for the full width of the 

 5/16-inch when old combs are being melt- 

 ed, but that the crinkled wire is used when 

 clean honey and wax are going thru. The 

 recess in the " honey-shed " is to allow the 

 wire-cloth screen to fit in, which prevents 

 any slumgum passing it should the wire 

 edge of the screen get slightly bent from 

 abuse when shaking slumgum into the wax- 

 boiler. The operator may use two screens 

 alternately, or scrape the one down as oc- 

 casion demands. 



All the weight of wax and honey is used 

 to press on the wedge-shaped surfaces. 

 That there may be no outside walls to tlu'ow 

 away heat compared with the surface of the 

 tubes, the two end walls and the two sides 

 are wood-jacketed so that all the heat is 

 kept in the melter. The tubes have an ag- 

 gregate heating surface, apart from the 

 honey-shed, of 1584 square inches, or 11 

 square feet — a surface not nearly attained 

 as actual wax-contact surface by any other 



* Perhaps the readers will get a better idea of 

 this melter if we explain briefly that Mr. Miller uses 

 three large wedge-shaped tubes, of the dimensions 

 given in the cross-section drawing, which, with the 

 corresponding sloping sides of the melter, make four 

 spaces thru which the cappings and lioney pass, 

 which gradually decrease in width until the final 

 opening is only 5/16 of an inch into the straining- 

 compartment beneath. All the tubes being heated by 

 steam, an unusual amount of melting surface is thus 

 provided. Above the tubes is a hopper-shaped com- 

 partment into which the cappings and honey fall 

 from the knife. The narrow spaces between the 

 tubes are filled in with kinked wire when desired, 

 to prevent unmelted wax from falling thru. — -Ed. 



melter ever designed. It will be found ad- 

 visable to solder the exit-tube into the in- 

 side wall so as to allow that part of the 

 honey-shed soldered into the same opening 

 to go over, not under, the exit-tube, for, if 

 soldered under the tube, it dams back any 

 small amount of slumgum which may slip 

 down while changing screens. 



The screen and clips to support it need 

 no describing. Any one can bend fence 

 wire to shape, and cover with wire cloth; 

 but keep the screen midway between the 

 top edge of the gutter and the bottom of 

 the front tube. This gives a clearance of 

 three good inches, both above and below. 



Either sheet copper (tinned) or heavy 

 galvanized iron will answer, altho the iron 

 pits inside badly after two seasons. Do not 

 forget to use the melter with the exit end 

 of the gutter two inches lower than the 

 other end, and place the filling formed at 

 the top end. Then if you always see water 

 in the funnel at the top end you can rest 

 assured that your melter is not running dry. 

 You will find you will not be troubled much 

 with refilling, as the steam has plenty to do 

 at melting, and very seldom gets a chance to 

 evaporate. 



Everything runs completely away. The 

 slumgum is held back by the screen, and 

 everything is on a fairly steep slope, and 

 all wax and honey are off the melter less 

 than 30 seconds after melting. I have run 

 honey thru this melter twice after recandy- 

 ing, and cannot see that it darkened one 

 particle. Of course, when old combs are 

 going thru, one must expect a darkening as 

 a result of hot honey absorbing stain from 

 cocoons, pollen, and general comb dirt; but 

 with fairly new comb no discoloration re- 

 sults; the honey runs away too rapidly. As 

 to cappings, three people will not keep it 

 going if the stove is kept going jDroperly 

 (unless they are regular comb-butchers). 

 The novelties I claim in this melter are, 

 rapidity of honey clearance from melter; 

 increase of melting surface; separation of 

 slumgum, thus preventing discoloration ; 

 and imiDossibility of overheating the con- 

 tents at any point. 



Kihi Kihi, New Zealand. 



Amount of Stores Needed 

 I have noticed the editor's reply to Mrs. 

 Allen, page 969. In this locality we need 

 ten combs about full. The hives, bees, 

 combs, honey, and all should weigh at least 

 65 or 75 pounds, November 1. If a colony 

 with this amount of stores has a good queen 

 it will be in splendid condition next spring. 

 Havana, Ala. J. S. Patton. 



