Solar Frame Cleaner

[mark williams]

Was wondering if any of you have ever built a solar frame cleaner?
I've built up to around 100 hives,And it seem's that we are alway's cleaning ol' frames that the wax has got ruined in one way are the other(mice,wax molt,ect),anyway I was thinking about building a solar melter,where I could stack about 20 frames at a time on a slite angle,to clean them up.
Would like to have your opinion as to if it would work.Don't recall ever seeing one.

[Barry Digman]

I've put frames in one of those clear plastic storage bins with the snap-on top and set it at an angle to the full sun. It works well here in the high desert, at temps from 85F up. We have a strong, unfiltered sun at 5,300', so I don't know how effective this approach would be in other locales. It's kind of a mess since there isn't a gate valve and the plastic is not the best thing for wax. But it's fast and cheap, and the frames just need to be wiped off after the wax melts. I'm thinking that in places with lower solar "oomph" you could modify one of the solar wax melters to accomplish what you want. Double glazing, insulation, adjustable angle legs, etc. should work fine.

beesource plans for a solar wax melter:

http://beesource.com/plans/melter.htm

[YBCute]

Well, I went to a glass company. Asked them for the set of patio doors they just pulled out of a house. Seals were good so I made up a 6 foot x 3 foot box, 2 feet deep. Works like a champ and also with quesationable boxes and frames. But the bee proplis does stain everything dark.It made them pretty water proof though. If you need a picture, contact me