Forrest

So I should be able to make 100 candles in somewhere between 5 and 24 hours This is what I love about candle making, nothing is black and white, it is all shades of grey and trial and error, I need that in my life.

I have been reading this board for almost a year trying to gain what knowledge I can. Then along comes this thread and I learn about Lebermuth, Bulk Apothecary, and the Chemistry Store. After learning all I can I decide my best bet is to try some Lebermuth FOs from the Chemistry Store, but they weren’t cheap and the shipping was high. I got my order yesterday and they all smell wonderful, I can’t wait to get them into some wax. The best part is it turns out they are a few miles from my daughter’s house, I guess I’ll be paying her a visit soon, and the drive takes me very close to The Flaming Candle. Things are looking up

If you drill a hole in the bottom it would make a nice flower pot

I use 6006 and in something that size I would start with a 51-32-18Z zinc core. If that is the jar I'm thinking of both sizes have the same diameter. I have a bunch of the 16oz left over from my daughter’s wedding but I haven’t used them yet.

What wicks are you using?

If you don't mind me asking, about how much time does it take per candle for production?

There are some concrete sealants you can get a Lowes or Home Depot you might try.

Clearly you are better at centering wicks than I am, perhaps I will improve with experience.

Being a systems engineer processes interest me and the one that is currently on my mind is how to wick a large number of containers. The most I’ve ever wicked at one time is probably three and the idea of trying to get the wicks centered in a large number of containers seems like a tedious, time consuming operation. Another reason I ask is because I am toying with the idea of starting a candle business in a year of two and I like to know what I’m getting into before I make any decisions. The thread about “whatcha using to melt that wax” scared me a little.

This is very timely advice as yesterday I got my first crater when I poured my first test candle on a larger container. I was thinking that maybe I should lower my pour temperature or warm the container, but as my room was in the low sixties I should probably do both. Thanks for the advice, it not only verified what I was thinking, it made me feel good, because maybe I'm beginning to understand a few things.

For testing I used 4 hours per burn, but I’ve been burning lots of these for personal use for 5 or 6 months. It kind of makes sense because if you assume uniform distribution of the heat with the wick in the middle all melt pools should be deeper right under the flame than they are at the edge, mine may be an extreme case because it is wide and shallow. Tyler Candles has a similarly shaped container and they double wick theirs.

I don’t have a picture but I think I can answer your question. The wax in an 8oz tureen is about 2 inches deep and 4 inches wide. I think the shape of the container makes it hotter in the middle than if it had straight sides. This causes the melted wax to be cone shaped. I’m using 6006 and once the melt pool reaches the edge of the container I can see my wick tab in the melted wax. I believe I am beginning to understand why straight sided containers are so popular for candle making, and why some people on the board told me tureens were hard to wick. I’m using a large zinc core wick and getting a complete burn on my wax, with reasonable hot throw. I’m just not sure if the larger volume of melted wax is causing me problems that I lack the experience to understand. It could be hurting my hot throw, or making the candle burn too fast. Maybe I should just double wick one of the 8oz tureens and see how that works.

My question is, if my melt pool is ¼ inch deep at the edge of my container does it matter if it is 2 inches deep in the middle? Right now I’m using 6006 and zinc core wicks in 8oz tureen containers or 8oz tins. In my testing my melt pool is good at the edge, but tends to be deeper than I think is optimal, but then what do I know? I want to try an 11oz tureen that has a 4 inch diameter. My thinking is that if I double wick them I can get a good melt pool with more uniform depth, but if depth isn’t an issue then I could just use one big wick. My sincere thanks to everyone who post on this board, you have taken me from “why am I getting no hot throw”, to “is my melt pool OK”.

I am a hobbyist also and I feel your pain. I started last March and it took a lot of trial and error before I could make a decent candle. The best advice I could give you is read this board, almost any question you have has been answered here several times. I am also using a parasoy, but it is 6006. I gave up on the ECO wicks and started using zinc core, they have worked much better for me but I don’t think they make one big enough for the 16oz tin. I have just started experimenting with other wicks for larger containers, but I read that that the Premier 700 series are good. There is lots of good information on wick testing on this board.

Thank you for that information! I've been testing after 3 days or fewer sometimes and that would explain some of the problems I have encountered. My weather was warmer last night and I lit a candle that was half way gone burned perfectly, so I feel that my current problem was due to the house being cold. I think when Christmas is over I'll take two identical candles and burn one in the garage and one in the house. That would give me a good temperature difference. I'll report my test results here.

I'm using 6006, but you are right about the wax being harder in a cold room so it makes sense that it effects the burn. Most people keep their houses warmer that I do so hopefully my candles will burn better for them.

I did my wick testing back during the warm weather last summer, now that the weather, and the temperature in my house, has cooled it seems like my candles are under wicked. Is this a common problem?

I’m using a 60-44-18 in a 4 inch tureen with 6006, but I just bought some CD wicks to try. I have poured around 100 candles with 6006 and never had a wet spot. I just pour them and let them cool on the granite counter top, so they cool relatively quickly. I don’t know why I don’t get them. I’ve used 6006 from 3 different suppliers, so I don’t see that as a factor. I usually pour at close to 170, but sometimes I pour at much less. Are you stirring your wax for 2 minutes when you add the oil?

This sounds more my speed. My wife of 34 years just finished her master’s degree so I have lots of 3 ring binders and office supplies. The pictures I see here help me a lot, and I could fill out the test sheets, scan them and add pictures. I could also scan the notes I have now and add them. I just got some new wicks so I better get started on a candle test logsheet.

I have Excel on my computer and as I am a engineer at NASA you would think that would be my first choice, but I take a lot of notes while I'm making candles and I want to keep everything together. Also I'm doing this as a hobby, and a way to spread some joy to friends and family and using Excel sounds too much like work:)

After multiple episodes of doing things over because I couldn’t remember the outcome of the first time I got a notebook and started writing everything down. That worked well for a short time, but now I find that my lack of organization makes it difficult to find the information I need. I have only been doing this for a short time and I imagine that in a couple of years I’m going to remember I tested zinc core wicks in 8oz tins with 4630 and want to know the results. I would love to know how you organize all the information from your testing.

I have been using 6006 exclusively, but I accidentally acquired a block of 4630 and I also have some 464 that I am not using. I would hate to waste good wax. If I make a 70/30 blend of 4630 and 464 will it give me something like 6006, or will it be back to the drawing board to find the right wicks? Also if anyone is blending these two waxes and could give me some pointers and some wicking advice that would be much appreciated also. At 70/30 I’ll have about 14 pounds of wax and I don’t want to use it all up in wick testing.

I have a similar problem in my den. I solved it by using two smaller candles in different locations.

Thank you so much. That was very helpful advice!

I started off as a newbie in the spring and lots of testing, hundreds of dollars, and many hours spent on this board, I can some pretty good candles if I stick to the two containers and wicks I use. My question is how can I test fragrance oils faster? I’m using 6006 wax and making a candle, then waiting two weeks is not going to get me ready for Christmas. Could I make melts and test them in a few days? Any advice would be appreciated.