The Bush Mechanic - DIY beeswax foundation mould

In modern beekeeping a sheet of beeswax is used as the starter for encouraging the bees to build their honeycomb in the places the beekeeper wishes them to build it. The foundation consists of a sheet of wax with the natural honeycomb patterns of the bees on its surface.

To make a sheet of foundation two options exist - milling sheets of wax through a roller mill with specially patterned rollers which then mill the sheets by squeezing through the two rollers and leaving a honeycomb shape on their surface. This is a high tech operation and requires a skilled operator and careful maintenance of the milling machine.

The second option is to mould wax. If a simple negative template of a beeswax sheet is available, pouring hot wax into it and closing the mould to allow it to cool will create a wax sheet that is slightly thicker and more brittle than a milled sheet but just as functional.

Mixing the silicone rubber with the catalyst. Spend time here as any unmixed patches will remain sticky and ruin your mould.

Spreading the silicone rubber into the template. Be sure to remove all bubbles.

The completely poured mould. Wait 24 hours and remove mould.

The mould removed from the template.

Both a mill and a mould are inherently quite expensive devices, so once again, in the interests of the development of beekeeping in Africa and the world, www.scienceinafrica.co.za brings you some handy bushmechanic tips on how to make your own foundation mould for about R250 (US$45).

600ml of Wacker Elastosil M4514 RTV-2 catalyst hardened silicone rubber.
Elastocil T21 Catalyst (40grams)
A sheet of good foundation, or better still a sheet of plastic foundation.
A roll of sticky tape.
A spatula.

Place the sheet of foundation on a flat surface. Stick sticky tape around the edges of it to create a dam.

Mix the silicone very thoroughly with the spatula - mix for at lease 10 minutes, in all possible directions - any unmixed reagents will create small sticky patches on the mould which will waste countless hours of your time later when you make foundation, so be over cautious with stirring here.

Pour the silicone into the mould, spreading it into the foundation with the spatula so as to displace any air bubbles from the template foundation sheet.

Leave for 24 hours and pull the mould off the template. Do the whole thing again to make the other half.

Using your mould:

Make a hinged piece of metal and place the two sheets on this - don't bother trying to stick the mould to the metal - catalyst hardened silicone sticks to just about nothing.

Keep some beeswax melted at 80C in a hot pot cooker. The advantage of the hot pot cooker is that it cannot heat hotter than 80C, so there is little danger of boiling your wax or burning yourself and your house down. Keep a fire extinguisher handy just in case - never pour water on burning wax as it explodes and kills you/removes your skin painfully.

Dip the whole mould, including metal flaps into a basin of water containing half a teaspoon of soap per litre. This coats the mould with something to stop wax getting stuck to it.

Remove the mould, shake the sheets to remove excess water, reposition them, pour wax over the mould liberally, close the mould and plop back in the basin of water.

It is possible, depending on the dexterity of the operator, to produce up to 50 sheets an hour with this system.

Dipping the mould sheets in water and sunlight (dish soap/teepol) liquid solution.

Mould placed on hinged frame. Somehow the mould always aligns itself so to get the right match of comb cells on each sid

Beeswax poured into the mould. Adding 5-10% by weight of propolis to the wax before sieving increases wax yield and also decreases brittleness of the wax. Propolis strengthened sheets are also better for catch box strips.

Close the mould and press gently to eject excess wax.

Dip the entire mould into the water and soap mixture again and leave for 10 seconds.

Remove the mould from the water and open.

Congratulations - you now have a nice wax sheet! Demonstration courtesy of Mbongeni Ntantiso of Makana Meadery.

Garth Cambray is Director of Makana Meadery, makers of Honey Sun Mead and other honey based products.

In South Africa, Wacker Silicone type Elastocil M4514 RTV-2 Silcone and catalyst are available from Specialist Composites, North End, Port Elizabeth. They are contactable on 041 484 3747 or by e-mail at composites@mweb.co.za

Feature

The Bush Mechanic - DIY beeswax foundation mould

By Dr Garth Cambray

Following on from "Make your own honey extractor, this month gives some handy guidelines to making a beeswax foundation mold.

Using your mould:

Science in Africa - Africa's First On-Line Science Magazine


February 2006	Feature