same princable as a solar wax melter. however with large amount of honey you wouldn't have enough constant sunlight to fully heat it before it cools off overnight.
Liquefying Large Volume of Honey
- Thread starter IanB
- Start date
-
Love Gotmead and want to see it grow? Then consider supporting the site and becoming a Patron! If you're logged in, click on your username to the right of the menu to see how as little as $30/year can get you access to the patron areas and the patron Facebook group and to support Gotmead!
-
We now have a Patron-exclusive Facebook group! Patrons my join at The Gotmead Patron Group. You MUST answer the questions, providing your Patron membership, when you request to join so I can verify your Patron membership. If the questions aren't answered, the request will be turned down.
With a cover to insulate the metal plate side at night, it should hold enough heat in overnight, especially if this is done in summer.
I think I'll do a detailed design of one, and test it on a couple of buckets of honey that are crystallized.
I think I'll do a detailed design of one, and test it on a couple of buckets of honey that are crystallized.
Hi:
Yes ... I forgot that you have nuke cheap electricity, but is not the case where I live, and every watt is burned Oil No. 6 and it costs lot of money.
You can do the way you like, but let me tell you one thing: as low the investments are as high the production costs should be, as high the investements are as low the production costs should be. It's almost an axioma.
Bills will come, I'm sure of that.
I still like Wayne's ideas, specially the solar one, actually I'm going solar soon on other stuff that concerns us here in the tropics.
Regards.
Wayne, you're brilliant.
Keep us posted on your progress. Photos would be nice.
I especially like the hexagonal shape...to please the bees...
Wayne,
I'm not sure you even have to go to that extent (at least in the summer). I've discovered here in So. Cal, all I have to do is put a 2/2 foot piece of plywood down in the middle of my nice back asphalt driveway, place the 5 gallons of honey on top and tomorrow when I'm ready to use it, it is all nicely liquefied. The plywood is important, otherwise it melts the bottom of the bucket.
Cheers
Jay
I'm not sure you even have to go to that extent (at least in the summer). I've discovered here in So. Cal, all I have to do is put a 2/2 foot piece of plywood down in the middle of my nice back asphalt driveway, place the 5 gallons of honey on top and tomorrow when I'm ready to use it, it is all nicely liquefied. The plywood is important, otherwise it melts the bottom of the bucket.
Cheers
Jay
We still await another commercial meadery
I am still waiting to here from another commercial meadery here. The solar idea is really great, and maybe a potential for next year, but again, K.I.S.S is the principle. Wattage is cheap in relative terms compared to water and having to be at the winery replacing the water and pumping the water, and preventing it from spilling from the wallmart tub.
I like the solar idea, and it might have worked now that it is at least sunny in the northeast. This is how we melted honey last year (it was summer when we fermented remember!) This year it is springtime!
ian
I am still waiting to here from another commercial meadery here. The solar idea is really great, and maybe a potential for next year, but again, K.I.S.S is the principle. Wattage is cheap in relative terms compared to water and having to be at the winery replacing the water and pumping the water, and preventing it from spilling from the wallmart tub.
I like the solar idea, and it might have worked now that it is at least sunny in the northeast. This is how we melted honey last year (it was summer when we fermented remember!) This year it is springtime!
ian
Last summer I put a bucket in a black garbage bag and put it in the sun. Worked great on a 100 degree day.
Actually you have heard from at least one - I know Noe runs a commercial meadery (I wouldn't have known other than the gold he won in the commercial competition at the Cup).
Yeah, but depending on where you are in SoCal (and I used to live in Fontana so I know exactly where I'm coming from!), you literally could fry an egg on the sidewalk (well, black asphalt pavement anyway).
Up here in the mountains, we get the solar input but the surroundings are generally much cooler from all those lovely mountain breezes, and all the heat freely radiates away at night....and let's not forget mfalenski and Smarrikåka, who both have fledgling commercial operations starting up and are similarly trying to work within somewhat constrained budgets.
BTW - My solar oven enclosure idea was specifically directed at Ian, for his locale. New England isn't exactly known for its number of sunny days over the course of the year (and I did some grad work at UMASS Amherst, over on the "sunnier" side of the state, so I know firsthand the kind of limitations that high latitude and lots of airborne water can put on insolation), but without a huge outlay for materials (they should all be cheap - and many should be available surplus) you can build a solar oven capable of liquefying honey over the course of several moderately sunny days, even way up there.
Hmmm
PM doesn't help the industry. It gives one person, one piece of information. I want the whole community to know how to get this done if they do decide to go pro. That is why I post it here so other people can learn with me.
I would love to hear from Brad at B.Nektar, and I would love to hear from anyone with this problem. Most (even commercial sized meaderies) do not need to heat this large amount of honey, as they have quite a few smaller batches going, which only require the heating of one to ten pails at a time. I am sure Brad is at this size, so hoping he chimes in.
I actually love the solar option. I guess next time I run into this I will modify my container to try for the solar option and see if it works. Moving the buckets in and out of the tank is a pita, and it would be nice to just stack them in there, and let it go to to town for 3 weeks liquefying.
PM doesn't help the industry. It gives one person, one piece of information. I want the whole community to know how to get this done if they do decide to go pro. That is why I post it here so other people can learn with me.
I would love to hear from Brad at B.Nektar, and I would love to hear from anyone with this problem. Most (even commercial sized meaderies) do not need to heat this large amount of honey, as they have quite a few smaller batches going, which only require the heating of one to ten pails at a time. I am sure Brad is at this size, so hoping he chimes in.
I actually love the solar option. I guess next time I run into this I will modify my container to try for the solar option and see if it works. Moving the buckets in and out of the tank is a pita, and it would be nice to just stack them in there, and let it go to to town for 3 weeks liquefying.
Oh, Hey! How's it going? I've been lurking. 
The solar idea is pretty cool. But leaving that much honey outside near Detroit is just asking someone to steal it. (just kidding)
We got away from buckets a long time ago (this makes it sound like I've been doing this a long time, doesn't it?) because of this exact problem. Buckets suck for commercial meadmaking. We switched to drums and a drum heater. Basically, it's just 2 silicone bands with electrical wires inside. You set the temperature (wildly inaccurate) and let it sit. Got them from Mann Lake: http://www.mannlakeltd.com/
Having said that. When we want to liquificate (my new word. like it?) I use an old hot waterbed heater pad and wrap it around the bucket. Then duct tape it on. I only have one, so it doesn't work well for anything other than our Xtra Limited sized batches.
My next ninja move is to build a honey warming closet. Shipping honey in totes would be WAY cheaper per pound since we'd be able to fit about 330 gallons on a pallet instead of only 220 (55gal drum x 4). The problem would be that I can't wrap a heat band around a tote. SO, I'm going to build an insulated cube with the floor missing. The cube will have 4 x 48" electric baseboard heaters attached to the inside walls at the bottom. A thermostat will control the heaters. Small 4" computer case fans will be placed very strategically within the box to circulate the air. The entire box will be attached to a rope on a pulley so it can be raised and lowered in our warehouse. We'll place the 330 gallon tote in the spot below the box, then lower the box over it. Shazaam!! Liquid honey.
I like to think of running a meadery like one of my favorite South Park episodes, The Underpants Gnomes
Step 1: Steal underpants
Step 2:
Step 3: Profit!!
Running a meadery is all about figuring out what happens in step 2.
The solar idea is pretty cool. But leaving that much honey outside near Detroit is just asking someone to steal it. (just kidding)
We got away from buckets a long time ago (this makes it sound like I've been doing this a long time, doesn't it?) because of this exact problem. Buckets suck for commercial meadmaking. We switched to drums and a drum heater. Basically, it's just 2 silicone bands with electrical wires inside. You set the temperature (wildly inaccurate) and let it sit. Got them from Mann Lake: http://www.mannlakeltd.com/
Having said that. When we want to liquificate (my new word. like it?) I use an old hot waterbed heater pad and wrap it around the bucket. Then duct tape it on. I only have one, so it doesn't work well for anything other than our Xtra Limited sized batches.
My next ninja move is to build a honey warming closet. Shipping honey in totes would be WAY cheaper per pound since we'd be able to fit about 330 gallons on a pallet instead of only 220 (55gal drum x 4). The problem would be that I can't wrap a heat band around a tote. SO, I'm going to build an insulated cube with the floor missing. The cube will have 4 x 48" electric baseboard heaters attached to the inside walls at the bottom. A thermostat will control the heaters. Small 4" computer case fans will be placed very strategically within the box to circulate the air. The entire box will be attached to a rope on a pulley so it can be raised and lowered in our warehouse. We'll place the 330 gallon tote in the spot below the box, then lower the box over it. Shazaam!! Liquid honey.
I like to think of running a meadery like one of my favorite South Park episodes, The Underpants Gnomes
Step 1: Steal underpants
Step 2:
Step 3: Profit!!
Running a meadery is all about figuring out what happens in step 2.
I like it. Nothin' fancy - parts all readily available and relatively cheap. My kind of engineering! ;D
I have an idea that might make it even better - what about if you take a pallet and cover it over with a cardboard "shell," and then spray some of that expanding polyurethane foam insulation inside the cardboard covering? That could be the floor you'd then set your totes on before you lower the cover assembly down from above, and an insulated floor will really increase the thermal efficiency - so running the setup will take a lot less electricity.
Oh, Hey! How's it going? I've been lurking.
The solar idea is pretty cool. But leaving that much honey outside near Detroit is just asking someone to steal it. (just kidding)...
The Underpants Gnomes
Step 1: Steal underpants
Step 2:
Step 3: Profit!!
Running a meadery is all about figuring out what happens in step 2.
Ha!
I'm lucky I don't have vodka squirting out my nose...(or milk, If I were still a schoolgirl...)
That's actually part of the plan. I just wanted to get to the part of the underpants gnomes before I forgot what I was going to write.
That's actually part of the plan. I just wanted to get to the part of the underpants gnomes before I forgot what I was going to write.
Wait.
Are you telling me that you were aiming to get vodka to shoot out my nose?!
