Accu-Soy Test

For those of you who are interested I poured these a couple of days ago. These aren't the best pix but might give you some of idea of what to expect.

If you look at the square mason, right under the "M" you will see what I would guess to be a crack for lack of a better description. The tall jj has the same effect close to the bottom of the jar and to the right of the word "Ball". I am now thinking that maybe the jars weren't warm enough and that may be from shock. The tops came out real smooth but I did notice a very, very faint crack from the wick extending to the side of the sq. mason. I wicked using htp 93, no fo or color. I have them testing right now and so far they look pretty good. I had posted a question earlier about cutting the slab and but found that the wax was pretty easy to cut especially because my hubby did it

For those of you who are interested I poured these a couple of days ago. These aren't the best pix but might give you some of idea of what to expect.

If you look at the square mason, right under the "M" you will see what I would guess to be a crack for lack of a better description. The tall jj has the same effect close to the bottom of the jar and to the right of the word "Ball". I am now thinking that maybe the jars weren't warm enough and that may be from shock. The tops came out real smooth but I did notice a very, very faint crack from the wick extending to the side of the sq. mason. I wicked using htp 93, no fo or color. I have them testing right now and so far they look pretty good. I had posted a question earlier about cutting the slab and but found that the wax was pretty easy to cut especially because my hubby did it

Pics too small. Sorry!

Are the cracks in the wax or the glass?? I can't tell.

Thanks TLC for the update. I see the cracks. You are right, you may need to warm the jars a little more or have them cool a little slower. Also, I find (not with my soy, but with some other blends) that I can get cracks when I pour and then later turn the my candle room heat off for the night in the shop. It gets really cold in the shop. We leave the heater on in the main part of the shop and I leave a window open in my candle shop/room. We only leave it on 45 though. We have a loft so the heat can go up and travel down the stairs to my candle shop/room too.

I wonder how the frosting would be. They are white so it is hard to tell. Let us know how the throw is when you know. Thanks!

I see what looks like wet spots but not cracks.

Are the cracks in the wax or the glass?? I can't tell.

No. The glass is not cracked. I will try to get a better pix later today.

I can definitely see the cracks -- in the wax. Click on the pics.

Wow, Holly! Your eyes are GOOOD! LOL

Thanks TLC for the update. I see the cracks. You are right, you may need to warm the jars a little more or have them cool a little slower. Also, I find (not with my soy, but with some other blends) that I can get cracks when I pour and then later turn the my candle room heat off for the night in the shop. It gets really cold in the shop. We leave the heater on in the main part of the shop and I leave a window open in my candle shop/room. We only leave it on 45 though. We have a loft so the heat can go up and travel down the stairs to my candle shop/room too.

I wonder how the frosting would be. They are white so it is hard to tell. Let us know how the throw is when you know. Thanks!

Hi Holly. :smiley2: I don't know how you test your candles but after the first 4 hr burn I did see some slight hang up. I am using the htp wicks and the hang up is on the opposite side of the curl of the wick. Maybe it will catch up with the next burn. I am going to pour some with fo and color (in heated jars) in the next day or two. I will keep updating this post as I go along. :smiley2:

Wow, Holly! Your eyes are GOOOD! LOL

Yep she sure does. She had eagle eyes .

when i read that you were using a 93, i kind of expected it to be too small. are you using no color no fragrance? If you are going to color and fragrance, you may need the 104 or even the 105.

Wow, Holly! Your eyes are GOOOD! LOL

Thanks, but actually, my eyes are HORRIBLE when I take the contacts off. But, with them on I can see really well and can catch all kinds of flaws in lots of things. If I do not click on the pictures I can only really see the first one the most, but if I click on the pictures I can see both.

The first one is right under the M and the second is kinda in the middle (at the bottom) and it slants to the right as it goes towards the bottom.

Hi Holly. :smiley2: I don't know how you test your candles but after the first 4 hr burn I did see some slight hang up. I am using the htp wicks and the hang up is on the opposite side of the curl of the wick. Maybe it will catch up with the next burn. I am going to pour some with fo and color (in heated jars) in the next day or two. I will keep updating this post as I go along. :smiley2:

Gotta get the kids at the bus and do the barn. I will respond shortly thereafter.

Man, Holly - I need some of those contacts! I can't see the cracks either, although I see some sort of irregularity where you describe it.

TLC - FWIW, although I don't use this wax, I get cracks and other oddities from the room temperature being too cold after I pour. I also have an outside shop that I have to turn the heat down in when I'm done, and it gets down around 50 - 53 degrees at night. When it's warmer, I don't have these problems. For me, warming the jars themselves doesn't seem to make much difference.

Lori

Hi Holly. :smiley2: I don't know how you test your candles but after the first 4 hr burn I did see some slight hang up. I am using the htp wicks and the hang up is on the opposite side of the curl of the wick. Maybe it will catch up with the next burn. I am going to pour some with fo and color (in heated jars) in the next day or two. I will keep updating this post as I go along. :smiley2:

Ok, I am not as experienced with single wicking soy as I am double wicking, but Carrie is right. Most likely the HTP 93 will be too small. I would have to see the flame to tell for sure. Also, like she said, depending on how much FO if any and if dye is used. I have been testing single wicks in the GL-70/30 (70% soy, 30% paraffin) for my one wick, special occasion jars (frosted hurricanes) and have found so far that most scents do the best with an Eco 6 -- 8 percent oil. Now this is not really comparing it to many types of wicks but comparing to an Eco 4. I am not sure how an Eco 6 compares to a HTP 93 but the Eco 6 looks larger to me. An HTP 93 looks closer to an Eco 4. I should add, if the flames look good and if they should not be any bigger than it could catch up as it burns down. Soy can do this.

I have also found that with certain waxes that burn down before out (like most soys and some soy/paraffin blends) the wicks that bend will make it more difficult to get an even meltpool. I would try the HTP 4 or 5 like Carrie said and see if that helps. I prefer the look of the bend in the wicks with the one wick candles but can easily cause an uneven meltpool -- mostly if the candle is not burned for the full amount time indicated.

I ended up choosing the RRD's or Hemps for the CB-3 soy because even with double wicking the ones that had a definite bend would cause that uneven meltpool. I do not single wick this wax. I can still sometimes get it just from certain air currents that may cause the wick to drift or lean very slightly to one side (not much but just enough to make a difference). The Hemps are less likely to lean. Of course, I can't go up another size because then they would be over wicked.

Hopefully, you have a size up to use. Good luck and let us know how the scent throw is. Do you have fragrance in those candles? If not, I can understand, because sometimes it is a good to see how a wax burns first without anything in it.

~Holly

Man, Holly - I need some of those contacts! I can't see the cracks either, although I see some sort of irregularity where you describe it.

Boy, I am starting to think I am seeing things. But really, I can see them. I think TLC can see them too -- in the pics. And to think.....I can hardly see the big "E" without the contacts. :embarasse I guess I did not eat enough carrots growing up. 20/20 with contacts.

I am going to check the second burn but you guys are probably right in thinking that I will need to wick up. I have 104's and 105's (htp) to wick up with if I need too. I started with the 93 because I have had the most experience with them. As far as the fo goes, I tossed it around but then decided to do it naked (not me but the wax, don't want to scare the neighbors ) to get a base line. Holly, I could send you a pound of wax to test if you want. Just let me know. Thanks for the tips peeps.

Here is an update with better a pix.

http://www.atvbarn.com/atvbarn.htm

This is after the second burn.

I am going to check the second burn but you guys are probably right in thinking that I will need to wick up. I have 104's and 105's (htp) to wick up with if I need too. I started with the 93 because I have had the most experience with them. As far as the fo goes, I tossed it around but then decided to do it naked (not me but the wax, don't want to scare the neighbors ) to get a base line. Holly, I could send you a pound of wax to test if you want. Just let me know. Thanks for the tips peeps.

Hi TLC,

I have just a moment -- gotta get finish up some stuff in the shop for tomorrow and I have to really focus at this point. I will PM you a little later. Thanks!

I would go with a 104 on the 8oz round jelly jar and go with a 105 in the square mason jar.

I prefer the look of the bend in the wicks with the one wick candles but can easily cause an uneven meltpool --

I'm just curious here... have you ever tried twisting the wick a few times before putting them in the jar? When I was testing the HTPs and CDs I tried that and it did seem to even out the burn and was easier to do than offsetting the wick. (These wicks gave me a lot of soot in my wax, however, so I quit testing with them.)

In looking at the pictures of those 2 candles burning, it looks like the square Mason is melting a bit to one side - maybe twisting the wick would get it to burn more evenly for you. (They get quite a bit hotter farther down in the jar too.)

Just a thought...

Lori

I never thought of twisting the wicks. Sounds like a pretty good idea. I will give it a try with the next pour. I will need to wick up on the sq mason for sure. It has a ton of hang up now and will never catch up. The 8 oz jj is burning good and clean now. No hang up, just a slight film on the glass. I am almost thinking of wicking down on that jar. Thanks for the tip!

You're welcome for the tip - learned that here!

I just reviewed the thread and realized you're using the 93 in both jars. I'd do what Carrie suggests for wicks, try twisting them 2 or 3 times before putting them in the jar, and then burn all the way down. Both jars get hotter during the second (bottom) half of the burn, especially the square mason (mine do anyway). You might even want to pour 2 square masons, 1 with a 104 and 1 with a 105, just to see the difference in how they do all the way to the end.

If it was me, I'd also add some FO so that's getting tested at the same time - might as well have a finished candle when you're all done.

You're welcome for the tip - learned that here!

I just reviewed the thread and realized you're using the 93 in both jars. I'd do what Carrie suggests for wicks, try twisting them 2 or 3 times before putting them in the jar, and then burn all the way down. Both jars get hotter during the second (bottom) half of the burn, especially the square mason (mine do anyway). You might even want to pour 2 square masons, 1 with a 104 and 1 with a 105, just to see the difference in how they do all the way to the end.

If it was me, I'd also add some FO so that's getting tested at the same time - might as well have a finished candle when you're all done.

Today I added color and fo when I poured. I twisted the wicks on all jars but a little to much on a couple and the wicks came loose from the tabs (they were already stuck to the jars) after I poured. I used htp 105 in one and a 104 in the other so I guess I did good. Any idea how long I should cure them before I test? I am hoping with this pour that I don't get any cracks. Time will tell. Now I just need to wait, wait, wait and wait some more...

Today I added color and fo when I poured. I twisted the wicks on all jars but a little to much on a couple and the wicks came loose from the tabs (they were already stuck to the jars) after I poured. I used htp 105 in one and a 104 in the other so I guess I did good. Any idea how long I should cure them before I test? I am hoping with this pour that I don't get any cracks. Time will tell. Now I just need to wait, wait, wait and wait some more...

Sounds like you did good to me! What did you use for FO and color? Can't wait to see these!

I've had lots of wicks pull out of the tabs after I stuck them down in the jars - frustrating! Now I give them an extra squeeze with my needle-nose pliers before I stick 'em in the jar! (that's if I remember to do it!)

As for curing - I have no idea on this wax. I use a para-soy blend. I did some 100% soy candles last year and waited about a week to burn them. You can burn right away to test the wicks, but most soy seems to need a cure period for the best test on its scent throw. Maybe Holly or Carrie or another soy user will be back soon to fill us in on that for sure.

Lori