Solar wax melter

[Chip Euliss]

Ted, I'll take and post a pic or two for you tomorrow.  It's a great thing that you've got an engineer on your side.  When I clean queen excluders, I point it east in the morning while I do other work.  At noon, I can harvest clean excluders, then I load it up again and point it west.  Having it track the sun will make your melter the Cadillac of them all

[tedh]

Right on Chip!  I'm blessed with very good and talented siblings.  I'd attack Hades with a bucket of ice water for them as they would for me.  Thanks in advance!  Ted

[apisbees]

You must use caution to long in the sun could result in to high of temperature and burning and darkening the wax. May need some soler powered ventilation fans to keep it from getting to hot.

[tedh]

Noted.  Thanks Apis!

[LazyBkpr]

I can attest to the fact the one he has works well.. I handed him a few crumbly blocks of once sifted wax, and he brought me back blocks of clean pretty wax!!!   GO TED!

[Chip Euliss]

Ted, Here's a pic of the bottom of one of my melters.  I have a bad back so I elevate everything to a "working height" for me.  The galvanized pipe is just that; I made a frame with it that is screwed into a pallet so it's easy to move with the forklift.  The angular piece came with the melter so it isn't attached to the galvanized pipe and gravity holds it in place.  Nothing magic about the size of galvanized pipe; I just got a size with an inside diameter the angular piece would fit in.  The angular piece is about 6 inches long and maybe 3/8 of an inch in diameter.  Mine also has a tray that collects the wax and it's beneath the tray that would hold the wax to be melted.  It has double panes and it gets very hot in there.  Never had an issue with darkened wax but having the collection tray lower than the melting tray may keep the tray a little cooler?  The wax in the tray generally solidifies after dripping from above.  I can't say that I've ever seen the wax in the collection tray liquid other than a little on top on a really hot day.

Good luck and keep us posted!

[LazyBkpr]

Wheres the BEEF??  I mean, PICTURE?   

[Chip Euliss]

Thanks Lazy--maybe I should change my screen name to tired and forgetful

Here tis:

[tedh]

Sweet!  Thanks Chip!  How stable is it in the wind?  I would guess with the pallet as a counterbalance it should be fairly stable but feel I should ask and not just assume.  Thanks again Chip!  I'll shoot the pic off to Brother.  Ted

[LazyBkpr]

I like it... my first thought was about wind as well, but I think Chip has mentioned that they have wind there as well?

[Chip Euliss]

Plenty windy but it would take a hurricane to blow it over.  The galvanized pipe goes down to a tee and each has a 12 inch pipe screwed in and each of those are clamped to the pallet (water pipe clamps and screwed into the pallet).

[LazyBkpr]

By the way Ted..  LIKE the new picture!!!!  Tell the missus I said hi!

[tedh]

Thanks Lazy!  I will!

[Lburou]

Hey Ted, when you get a final version of your melter, will you post plans?  please!

[tedh]

I'll do my best Lburou!