336 



Beekeeping 



and is drained off. In the hot water press (Fig. 140), the 

 whole process takes place under hot water, the liberated 

 wax rising to the top where it is removed. A method in 

 common use is to melt up the combs in a boiler and dip off 

 the melted mass into a burlap bag which is then subjected 

 to pressure, no additional heat being supplied. Small presses 

 of these types may be purchased from dealers in supplies 

 but if there is much wax to be rendered, larger machines of 



the hot water type 

 should be made to 

 which more pressure 

 may be applied. In 

 any type of press it is 

 desirable to press the 

 bag of comb thor- 

 oughly and then loosen 

 it to allow the combs 

 to be filled with water 

 before pressing again. 

 This may be repeated 

 several times until no 

 more wax is liberated. 

 It is advised that 

 soft water be used 

 in rendering combs. 

 The residue after the removal of the wax is commonly 

 known among beekeepers as "slumgum" and since bee- 

 keepers seem to have a vocabulary of their own and since 

 there is no other name for this substance we must perforce 

 accept it. In most cases, slumgum contains a considerable 

 amount of beeswax, some samples supposed to be practi- 

 cally free being found on analysis to contain forty per cent 

 beeswax. Cocoons entirely free from beeswax are brown- 

 ish-gray and cannot be pressed into a hard cake. If then 

 the slumgum after removal from the press forms a black 

 hard mass, the beekeeper may rest assured that it still con- 

 tains wax. This may be shown quickly by putting some in 



Fig. 140. — Hot water (Hershiser) wax press. 



