Those are beautiful! Never thought of beeswax!!! Thank youThe discussion on wooden buckets and troughs got my thinker thinking. I have a large collection of wooden primitive things. I've been a historical reenactor for renaissance, civil war, mountain man, and other situations. I've been using wooden, forged iron, bone, and pottery to cook, store, and general use for many years. The honourable skill of cooperage is highly regarded still. If you have the skill, time, and materials...you are golden. If you must purchase hand made wooden utensils and buckets, prepare to fork over a lot of $ for historically accurate and water proof. Cheap wooden bowls and plates can still be found at second hand stores and flea markets.
I do not wash my wooden items with soap but wipe them out good and dry them thoroughly. If you put water in a wooden bucket 24/7 it will rot in a few years. If it's elevated on bricks and the bottom does not come in contact with the ground, it may last a year or two longer. As mentioned earlier, wooden buckets and barrels will fall apart if they dry out too much.
I seal my wooden tankards and small buckets with melted bees wax. Bowls and bread dough troughs are wiped down with peanut oil. It doesn't go rancid like other oils.
A feast I prepared and served at a reenactment event using some of my wooden wares. My buckets are in storage and would take 36 hours to swell enough with water in them to be tight.
I would rather use glass, ceramics, and rubber utensils to feed and water my flock before using wood. My hand made wooden treasures are too valuable and hard to replace to use for livestock. Next time your in an antique store, try to find a wooden bread dough trough and then check the price tag. I bought mine new for twenty two bucks. They sell for three times that if they are vintage.
oh..and that is a working wooden butter churn in the background. Insides also sealed with bees wax.
