Rendering Beeswax... Worth The Hassle? Let's Find Out!

As you progress in beekeeping, you start to accumulate wax from a few different sources... Old frames, extraction cappings, burr comb, hive inspections... Is it really worth the hassle to save all that wax and render it at the end of the year? In this video I show you how much wax you will get from each of these types of wax. I also share my best pro tip for the wax rendering process!

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[migueldelmazo]

I don't know how YouTube algorithms work, but thanks for bringing me here.

I don't keep bees. I know nothing about beekeeping. I don't have a need for wax, but this was really interesting.

Have a great time doing what you do.

[JordyJRT]

Was really hoping to see the final massive block of wax, such a cliffhanger at the end!

[kirkhlavaty]

The dirty remains make good fire starters. I pour the dirt wax into toilet paper rolls filled with wood chips

[mekan]

The wax moths will have reduced the amount of wax you recovered from the frame wax too. Since they eat it, and then leave behind their waste.

[bobbyandcecilia]

Make the “junk” into fire starters! Pour into an egg carton and break them apart.

[alejoarangoeastman]

I use a Solar wax melter box I made, It depends on the weather how fast it renders the wax, but it only takes one step and the wax is clean, no need of scrapping the bottom.
The box has a stainless steel sheet and over that is a frame whit small chicken wire + paper towel that filters the junk. The papes do absorb some wax but I use it + the junk to start campfires so it is not lost.

Don't mind me, just a woodworker sneaking around, learning how to melt old wax and make a wood Thanks!

[cathymontgomery]

The waste water and gunk can be added to compost

[DeanoHexe]

Very good presentation, logical approach. As all your video’s this was very engaging. We will copy your technique tonight. Once again thanks from East Tennessee!

[donbearden]

Jim, your wax clippings is definitely so much cleaner than the old comb. I normally just use my rendered wax to recover my plastic foundations. Once I filter it a couple of times I use an old crock pot to melt it and a small paint roller and recover the foundations while still in the frames. Thanks for the video!

[HHRescues]

Fun video with fun music as a new beekeeper I appreciated watching all of this

[annkrupa]

I just learned this summer about the paint strainer used when melting wax down. Very smart idea. Helps a lot. I figured with my dirty wax that doesn't want to clean up well, I'd use it to rub onto new frames. Hope it works anyway. Good video.

[hyfy-trjy]

Jim, great way to show where your time and efforts are worth investing! I see so many Beeks just toss all the wax, regardless of source, into the same vat and strain/clean their wax so many times to get to the final clean yellow wax. What i see here is that cappings wax are the way to go and the other wax just isn't worth chasing unless you are at a commercial volume level. Well done!

[Krossfyre]

Love this! Been watching a lot of beeswax rendering videos recently and it's just really hard to find ones with a well shot and edited video. I've been waiting for you to come out with one!

[isedhooah]

Hey Jim. Take the frame scrapings (which a lot appeared to be brood comb), melt it down and role on the inside of your swarm trap(s). I also take a ball of propolis and rub that all around the entrance of the traps... works great for bait!

[MrMagooo]

Thank you for the great video! I just got done scrapping about 20 frames myself, and had a FULL paint bucket strainer I placed into my solar wax melter I just build. After several hours in the sun on a very hot day, I ended up with about 3 tablespoons of wax. I was frustrated and threw all of it in the trash bin. Then I wondered if I had made a mistake and started looking things up on youtube. You helped me confirm I made the right choice. I'll continue melting down my cappings, but won't ever bother with the old frame scrappings ad they don't render enough wax to make it worth my time.

[elariel]

I loved this video. I've been watching your videos and planning to get my first hives next year. I probably would have wasted all the time saving and scraping the rubbish wax so thank you for doing this experiment for us all!

[TangledMind]

Very nice video! My family and I make homemade candles at home and even with paraffin wax you definitely need to strain. Never thought about the paint filter trick! We'll definitely test that out sometime when we need to melt down old wax.

And I have to agree that remelts and plenty of filtering will aid you in cleaning everything up. Depending on how "natural" you want to go, there's a few additives you can add to help stabilize the wax if you're aiming to make candles. Vybar aids with binding the wax, so it doesn't form cracks as it's cooling. UV stabilizer is only really needed if you're planning on adding any dyes. If so, I recommend using a liquid dye rather than solid as it's easier to get the color you want. If not, all you need is the Vybar really unless you foresee having the candles in storage for a long length of time, or sitting in the sun a lot. Also, for beeswax, it's hard enough once cool that you can use molds rather than just jar candles. Do your research on wick diameters versus wax melting temperature, as too large a wick can burn too hotly, and flash burn the wax in a too small candle, posing a significant fire hazard. If you're looking for quantity, votive candles will yield the highest amount of candles per amount of wax without being too ridiculous. And there are some fun molds aimed towards beekeeping you might find interesting.
Uh...sorry for the super long comment. Figured I'd share what knowledge I have.

Again, great video, and thanks so much for sharing!

[SteadfastTrailFarm]

Wow! Thanks! I just picked up 16 pounds of beeswax blocks from a local beekeeper for my candles, lip balms and body butters. I knew it was liquid gold but watching the process is proof! That paint bag is genius! Thanks for the very informative and entertaining video!

[heatherjolly]

You are a gifted video maker. Informer of bee things. Thank you for the inspiration and information