EXTRACTING 
337 
removed so that the wax will have a chance 
to harden, and the next morning it may be 
lifted out, the honey drained off, the un¬ 
der side of the cake scraped to get rid of 
the refuse, and the wax will be ready for 
market. 
STRAINING HONEY. 
A convenient arrangement for straining 
honey is to have a large piece of heavy 
wire screen attached to the top of the 
straining tank. This should be pressed 
down in the middle so that it is four or 
five inches lower than the top of the tank. 
The wet cheese cloth may be laid on this 
screen without the necessity of tying 
around the top of the tank. When one 
cloth is clogged so that the honey strains 
too slowly it may be drawn over to one 
side and left to drain while another cloth 
is placed in position without delay. 
S. T. Pettit of Aylmer, Ont., Can., de¬ 
vised a very convenient can strainer having 
a large surface of cloth supported by a 
coarse wire-screen basket as shown, page 
331 . 
The author has used such a strainer, but 
finds it more convenient to have, instead 
of the opening in the center of the bottom 
of the strainer, a gate soldered to one side 
near the bottom. If the strainer is used 
for filling cans the stream of honey may be 
Alexander honey-strainer. 
shut off by means of the gate when the 
can is full. Fresh cloths can be substi¬ 
tuted for those that are clogged at any 
time. _ 
To do away with cloth strainers E. W. 
Alexander used an ordinary ten-quart 
milk-pail, cutting out the sides and bot¬ 
toms. These were united by upright tin 
braces, as shown in the illustiations. 
The open spaces were tilled in with a 
fine mesh of brass wire cloth securely sol¬ 
dered in place. The honey is poured thru 
such a straining pail into the tank. It is 
necessary to have two or more pails so 
that one may be in use while the other is 
being cleaned. 
THE GRAVITY METHOD OP STRAINING AND 
CLARIFYING HONEY. 
Of late the gravity principle of strain¬ 
ing has received much attention on the 
part of honey-producers on account of its 
simplicity and freedom from vexatious de¬ 
lays necessitated by changing • filled-up 
cloths and washing straining surfaces. 
Briefly, the plan consists in the use of a 
relatively tall tank sufficiently large for 
holding a day’s extracting and containing 
nothing by way of equipment except a 
suitable gate at the bottom and a float 
to break the current of the honey when it 
is poured in at the top, thus preventing an 
active circulation of the new honey with 
the rest of the honey in the can. The plan 
is to draw no honey from the bottom until 
the tank is nearly full.. If the honey is 
not allowed to circulate carrying particles 
of cappings and bits of comb down to the 
bottom, the honey when drawn off at the 
gate is found to be very clear. The last of 
the honey can not be drawn off in this 
wajq for it will contain too much of the 
cappings. The last few inches, therefore, 
should be dipped out and strained or 
poured into the uncapping tank or box. 
In extremely hot weather when the hon¬ 
ey is comparatively thin, the gravity sys¬ 
tem alone leaves little to be desired; but, 
in cool weather, or 'whenever the honey is 
quite thick, it is found that, in order to be 
clarified sufficiently, the tank must stand 
for several days. This makes necessary a 
somewhat elaborate outfit of expensive 
cans in order that the work may not be 
hindered. For a small outfit one tank 
alone would be sufficient. 
The only additional equipment necessary 
beyond a regular storage tank is an addi¬ 
tional can without a bottom, a little higher 
than the regular tank preferably, and 
smaller in diameter, altho no exact ratio 
between the two diameters is necessary. 
Over the lower end of the smaller can 
cheese cloth is stretched and tied firmly. 
