[phersbees]

I got a fifty gallon water heater about 3' high and 2' in dia. its glass lined and has a dome bottom with hole for letting honey out. the inside ive got stainless steel I can fab up for frame holder. I don't have 500 dollar for a honey extractor and this is stuff I have laying a round. is there any re son I shouldn't make it out of W/H. I going to end up with about 20 hives or that's what Im shooting for. And I plan on buying one later but will this work?


Also how many rpm does an electric one run?

 

[RayMarler]

I don't know why it wouldn't work. I've a friend that made an extractor, and he made it so it was 300rpm top speed. He says if you keep it at 300rpm or under, it won't shake and walk around as much. I think you should make yours, good luck!

 

[G3farms]

Good idea, just wondering how you are going to cut it open and leave the glass lining in tact?
I would suggest a bunch of zip wheels.

For the motor set up, find a free treadmill, it will have a stout little DC motor and the variable speed controls.

 

[Acebird]

I would be fearful. It is likely that the tank would be under some sort of flexure and if the glass de-laminates you have a very dangerous condition. What would happen if you throw a frame or drop something hard in the tank? Mounting to the tank would be a challenge. I don't think you can weld on it.

 

[Tenbears]

It is doable! from a standpoint of mechanics. However The glass lining would be my concern also. I am not familiar with the methodology of lining a iron tank with glass. I know when sand casting the high temperature of the molten iron often turns some of the sand into glass, If this is done in some sort of annealing process and it has enough durability to withstand being cut, and the abuse of extraction then it would be workable. Before I got two involved I would cut the tank as see how it is made. Or talk to someone who has a good understanding of glass lining.

 

[Rader Sidetrack]

I second G3farm's comment about using a DC treadmill motor with your new extractor. I did the same thing with a stainless extractor tank and reel that I purchased as 'damaged and stripped' at a bargain price.

But not all treadmills have DC motors, so you may need to collect more than one to get what you need. One of the treadmills I salvaged has a fixed speed AC motor and a mechanical variable speed pulley - not convenient for an extractor. The other treadmill has a DC motor and an electronic speed control system which did not require any modification to use with extractor.

The top RPM speed of an extractor will vary with the size of the reel. A 9 frame extractor with a relatively small drum will need a higher RPM than say a 120 frame extractor with a large drum to achieve equal rotational velocity at the outer edge of the reel where the frame top bars rest.

I targeted 350 RPM as the top speed of my 21 frame extractor which is approximately 24 in diameter. I haven't yet had any loaded frames to do an actual test though.

 

[mrflegel]

I took a water heater apart to use it for bands for a cider press basket. The glass delamited. I used a sawsall. Was hard to cut it stright. Was thinking the unused bottom section would work as a wax melter. Using the bottom heating element. Rust is not your friend in a honey extractor.
mike

 

[phersbees]

I took a water heater apart to use it for bands for a cider press basket. The glass delamited. I used a sawsall. Was hard to cut it stright. Was thinking the unused bottom section would work as a wax melter. Using the bottom heating element. Rust is not your friend in a honey extractor.
mike

I make smokers and stuff out of them. The way I do it is with a plasma cutter or fiber disk. The glass chips with the plasma but not bad mainly causes the glass to bead up. Fiber disk is nasty but its the way to go. Draw your line and take and easy.

I just figuared glass liner stop rust. I've got S/S sheet metal but its hard to make it compelety round and I like the dome bottom in heater.