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Has anyone tried making their own bottling wax using part beeswax? What percentage of beeswax did you use and how well did it work (coming on and coming off)?

Chino Brews
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anton2g
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  • I'm quite curious about this. What would you use to heat the wax and dip the bottles into? I'd imagine there has to be something more ideal than a stove pot? What do you do to pop the cap from underneath all the wax? – Scott Nov 04 '13 at 16:41
  • I attempted making a bottle wax already using hot glue gun glue, crayons, and paraffin wax melted together in a clean soup can. Prior to dipping the bottles, I wrapped a strip of filament tape under the cap to create an easy pull strip. This method worked pretty well. The bottles turned out looking great, easy to open, but the wax was too brittle. A friend suggested adding beeswax, and I was wondering if someone had experience with this. – anton2g Nov 04 '13 at 17:29
  • That's an interesting concoction. In doing a bit of research on this, I see others have tried a similar mix, minus the paraffin wax. Lo-and-behold, there is such a thing as bottling wax: http://www.etchedimages.com/wine-bottle-wax From what people are saying, the extra couple of dollars is money well spent given the simplicity of not having to mix it all yourself. What filament tape did you use, specifically the width? Looking at what's all online, I don't see any that aren't excessively wide – Scott Nov 04 '13 at 17:58
  • Disregard that last question, it appears such tape is readily available in the same store I linked above: http://www.etchedimages.com/dipping-wax-for-wine-bottles/tear-tape-for-nochip-dip – Scott Nov 04 '13 at 18:04
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    This is what I used and it worked very well. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000SPNHJI/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

    The reason I wanted to make my own bottling wax is two fold. One is color selection. I can create any color I want to match my labels or look I am going for. The second reason is that I think making it yourself embodies the whole principle of homebrewing. I don't brew beer because it is easier or cheaper, I could just the same walk to the store and buy a bottle of beer, just the same as I can go buy sealing wax.

     – anton2g Nov 04 '13 at 19:08
  • @Scott I've heated up beeswax for other purposes (candle making) and I'd definitely recommend a rice maker. It won't heat it too hot and it keeps it at the right temperature when it switches over to the 'warm' setting. It's REALLY hard to clean afterward though. I'm sure you could use beeswax but I don't think it would peal off as nicely as normal bottle wax. – pjreddie Nov 06 '13 at 15:31

1 Answers1

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I'm aware that this doesn't include beeswax.

Use Crayons and Hot Glue Gun sticks melted together (melt glue first) at a ratio of equal number of crayons sticks to glue sticks.
Crayons give waxy feel and colour and the glue gives durability. Instruction video here http://youtu.be/Heanyho4zTA

Another Compiler Error
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  • This should be a comment because it does not answer OP's question. – Chino Brews Jan 07 '14 at 22:03
  • I could modify my answer with: No I haven't used beeswax. Recipe requires 0% beeswax, 50% Crayon, 50% Glue Gun sticks. It works pretty well, using a knife to cut around and peal the wax off. – Another Compiler Error Jan 07 '14 at 22:19
  • I'm not being difficult, this is just the way stackexchange works - if you are directly answering a question, post an answer; otherwise post a comment. Your comment is useful, regardless. Not trying to get into a flame war here. Thanks for your comment. – Chino Brews Jan 07 '14 at 22:45
  • Neither am I, sorry if that came across like that. I recently came across the video and its unusual for me to have anything to contribute. Thats why I asked if modifying my answer would allow the info to stay and answer directly the question. A better answer should get voted up above mine. – Another Compiler Error Jan 07 '14 at 23:42
  • @ChinoBrews Just checked I need +50 rep to comment so I couldn't have :( – Another Compiler Error Jan 09 '14 at 14:17