How to Clean Beeswax

There are several ways to clean beeswax. If you have access to a solar wax melter then that makes the process a bit easier, but we don't have one. I use a somewhat different method that works quite well and has since we started cleaning our own beeswax in 2011. And the beautiful part is that anyone with raw, dirty beeswax can do this from home without any special equipment.

We use beeswax in all of our lip balms and body balms so cleaning the beeswax makes it usable for our products (no stray bee legs or dirtiness from the hive).

So, how do you go from this (beeswax cappings):

to this:

Before I explain the steps involved, here are a few key tips to remember:

• Use a pot or utensils that you don’t need any longer.  Beeswax is very difficult to remove and it’s just easier to part with a pot you no longer want or need than to use one of your good ones.
  
• Do not leave the beeswax unattended.  It can easily catch on fire (as any wax can).
  
• Melt the wax on a lower setting, not high.
  
• Be patient with this process, it takes awhile.
  

Okay, now that I’ve said those things, let’s move on to cleaning the wax.

• Fill your pot with water to about halfway and add the unclean comb.  Don’t stuff the pot though.
  
• Turn the heat to medium or medium-low and let it melt.  When the beeswax has melted and is boiling with the water, then turn off the heat.  Remove the pot from the heat and let it cool down completely.  This takes some time, so don’t hover over it.  I’ll even allow mine to cool overnight.  As the beeswax cools, it’ll separate from the water and the dirty particles that were in the comb.  The beeswax floats on the top and the other particles and water settle underneath it. 
  
• Once you’ve removed the melted wax, set it on paper towels to drain. On the bottom of the wax there will still be lots of particles, etc.  Cut these away with a sharp knife so that all you’re left with is a slab of wax.  It’ll still be somewhat dirty, but that’s okay for now.
  
• Throw out the dirty water (but not down the sink as any particles and beeswax will clog your drain).
  

• When you’ve removed all the major particles you can, the final step involves melting the wax without the water.  
• Clean the pot as best you can to remove any of the dirty particles and wax.  To be safe, you’ll want to do this in a double-broiler or at least put your smaller pot in a larger pot of water so that your pot with the wax does not sit directly on the burner.  If the wax gets too hot it can ignite.  
• Add your semi-clean wax to the pot, turn the burner on low.
  

• While the wax is melting, cut up an old, but clean, pair of stockings. I simply cut the feet off of them and stretch them over the openings of a clean containers (i.e. smaller margarine tubs, yogurt cups, or even milk cartons – not the plastic kind). Or, you can even use cheesecloth or another fabric that has larger holes for the wax to pour them (but small enough that the larger particles won't fall through).
• Once the wax is completely melted, pour the wax over the stockings which filter out the bee particles and dirt so that you end up with clean wax.

• Allow the wax to cool completely (depending on the size of the container and how deep the wax is, this could take overnight).
• Once it’s completely cool, you can cut away the container and store your beeswax until you’re ready to use it!

Or, you could purchase your beeswax or beeswax products from us!