Wax Clean UP

[dbloomingdale]

I thought this might be the place to ask this question. I have this one pound wad of natural beeswax. I wanted to get it into smaller amounts and was thinking that melting the whole thing might take too long and so I decided to start grating it with my all purpose kitchen grater. Needless to say, this was the wrong thing to do and as I am typing this, the block of wax is now being melted via a double boiler process in a pyrex cup. I will then pour the wax into plastic ice cube tray which will lend me more manageable portions of beeswax. Something that I have done many times before and now I am wondering why I decided to do the grater thing. Anyway, I am now left with a grater with wax stuck to it. I've run it under hot water to soften it and tried scraping it off with my finger nails. Well, that only goes so far. Don't suggest putting the grater in the oven as it has a rubber handle. I guess I could always buy a new one but.... well....I am kind of stubborn. Any and all suggestions are welcome!!!

Diane

 

[DeeAnna]

Turn your stove burner on low. Hold the grater by the (rubber) handle. Carefully pass the metal part of the grater over the heat. When you see some of the beeswax turn liquid, quickly wipe the melted wax off with a paper towel. Repeat until clean. The point is to not get the metal super hot all over; you only want to gently heat sections just enough to melt the wax. Instead of the stove you can use a heat gun or a candle flame.

Next time, try this -- line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Pour melted wax in a thin layer over the parchment. Let cool until brittle, using the refrigerator if needed. Remove the wax from the parchment and break the wax into small pieces. Weighing an accurate amount is easier and the thin pieces melt faster.

 

[SaltedFig]

Or you can put the grater in a pot of boiling water - the wax will melt and when the water cools, it will set on top of the water.

If you are doing a tray pour, run a knife over the wax once it is set but still warm and soft, to get even sized portions for stacking.
(you'll be pleased you did that later )

 

[dbloomingdale]

Turn your stove burner on low. Hold the grater by the (rubber) handle. Carefully pass the metal part of the grater over the heat. When you see some of the beeswax turn liquid, quickly wipe the melted wax off with a paper towel. Repeat until clean. The point is to not get the metal super hot all over; you only want to gently heat sections just enough to melt the wax. Instead of the stove you can use a heat gun or a candle flame.

Next time, try this -- line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Pour melted wax in a thin layer over the parchment. Let cool until brittle, using the refrigerator if needed. Remove the wax from the parchment and break the wax into small pieces. Weighing an accurate amount is easier and the thin pieces melt faster.

The clean up on this was so quick and easy. I would never have thought of it. My grater was cleaned up in SECONDS!

 

[soapmaker]

Just now noticed this post. Which would be better after making lotion bars....stove heat or boiling water? They also have beeswax in them and I don't want that going down the drain. I pour from a SS pitcher.

 

[DeeAnna]

When I make lip balm, lotion bars, and similar salve-type products, I wipe out the container with a paper towel or newspaper while the residue is still warm. A lot of times these softer products don't need extra heat, but that can vary. If need be, I'll warm the container until the residues are soft, and then wipe out the container. Then wash with hot water and soap.

Not sure that melting the residue with boiling water would do anything more than make more of a mess, but I'm not entirely sure what you have in mind with your question. I hope this helps.

 

[soapmaker]

Thank you, I will try heat and wiping with paper towel.

 

[Chris_S]

Thank you, I will try heat and wiping with paper towel.

I do exactly what DeeAnna suggested when i make my candles and lip balms ect i try to wipe it out while its still warm if i forget or cant do that i use a glass pyrex jug to pour my wax so i pop it in the microwave for 2 minutes max and then wipe it out and the ss bowl i use for a double boiler just gets left on there while hobs on for 2 minutes and its easy just to wipe off with paper towel. just make sure you use oven gloves or use a towel iv picked them up before forgetting how hot they would be and it didnt end well

 

[SaltedFig]

The advantage of using a pot of boiling water for melting wax is that the wax floats to the surface - once the water has cooled, the wax can be lifted of in a clean sheet (and re-used if you want, just remelt it by itself to remove any residual water first).

This technique is useful when you have a lot of things to clean, especially fiddly things, or things that cannot be directly heated.

 

[SideDoorSoaps]

Soooo, I made some beeswax candles for the first time the other day and while I was sealing some lip balms thought to myself I could use my heat gun to melt the residue off my grater. And it worked!! I melted it all down from my heat gun into the Pyrex measuring cup I had used and then poured out the little bit into a little overrun tin I keep. Thankfully the glass didn’t get so hot I couldn’t touch it from the heat gun.

 

[lyschelw]

Or you can put the grater in a pot of boiling water - the wax will melt and when the water cools, it will set on top of the water.

If you are doing a tray pour, run a knife over the wax once it is set but still warm and soft, to get even sized portions for stacking.
(you'll be pleased you did that later )

This is the method I tend to use as well. Or I blast it with a heat gun and wipe with a paper towel if I have feeling adventurous.