brookstone

One of my testers asked an interesting question which I do not believe there is a definitive answer to. She wanted to know if there was a standard room size in which to test various size candles? I told her that I did not believe there was one. During our conversation I told that I would throw it out here. Throw. I'm wondering however, after we spoke, should you compare various size candles in the same room when rating their hot throw for example? Should a 4/8/16 and votive be judged in the same room? Or would you test a votive or 4 ounce in say a bedroom and a 8 or 16 ounce in a larger family room. A hot throw rating of 8 for a 4 oz in the bedroom is equal to a 16 oz 8 rating in the family room. Any thoughts?

Trying to understand your testing process better as I'm relatively new and always trying to learn so that I may be able to improve. If I understand correctly TDTD (and this may seem repetative, you are testing for cold throw. You are testing the three waxes you mentioned. You are testing a variety of wicks but that should not affect the cold throw. You have held constant the amount of FO, dye, and containers. Are you then adding the FO or pouring at different temps and that is what you are testing?

Thanks Sara. Getting pretty good scent throw overall but have yet to find the wick that gives a full melt pool on my apo jars (diam just under 3") using CBL-130. I guess the fun part of teting for me is that you get to enjoy the scents and overcome the challenge of getting all the variables to sync.

Thanks bugtussle. Always helpful to know if things are proceeding as they should.

I thougth I would post a longer than usual initial post so I hope no one minds. I'm normally short winded. I found this site seven or eight months ago when I was hired to assist in running a candle company. I've been a lurker since November. Unable to find employment for quite a period of time I was up for a challenge. Without going into detail it was more challenge than I had imagined as the owners had a different "retail philosophy" than I had been brought up with. Most of my family is in some form of retail or selling to the public so I have a pretty good idea. I did enjoy making candles however (much less stress than previous positions). I attempted to improve the quality of their candles (less wet spots, cracking, caving ect) and production schedule. To no avail as people kept returning no matter the look of their product. When the owners indicated they wanted to sell I put in an offer. Unfortunately, the offer I put in and they laughed at was eventually the one they accepted from another buyer. So I decided to retool my business plan and begin testing. I have found that 99.9% of the posters are most knowledgeable and helpful. There has been invaluable tips that I have picked up such as pouring the wax and then wicking for testing purposes. That just seems so obvious but I would not have thought of it. Well I have begun with 4 oz jars and have moved to 8 oz. Some success and many failures. Having a background in finance and mathematics I find it rather enjoyable trying to isolate the variable that makes something run perfectly. I do have a few interesting thoughts from answering the phones/working at the old shop and a couple of questions. Paraffin has nothing to do with Jimmy Buffet. Those are Parrotheads. No mam, trust me on this one. We are able to put the pillar with the scent you enjoyed in a container. That is a jar candle. Sending out the holiday scents after Christmas will do the retailer no good.Questions I hope someone will be willing to comment on. A flame should be approximately 1 inch high? The melt pool should grow about an inch/hour? For all containers? After I have lit the candle I get a variation (depending on secent) in the amount of what appears to be sweating on the unmelted portion of the candle. Is this too much FO? Will changing the wick change the hot throw? Tough to tell sometimes. Any thoughts are welcome as I learned a long time ago from a previous superior, "This is not meant to be a criticism but rather a comment from my years of experience."