Quentin

First of all, let me apologize for the poor quality photo that I submitted. That's not my usual habit. The reason the wicks look so bad is simply because I had just blown them out to take the picture. I'm trimming my wicks religiously. Yes, I'm convinced now about the use of the proper size wick, use of additives and the correct wax for the job. Remember, I said I was just wanted to see what the difference would be between the two waxes with identical wicks (24 ply flat) and the same fragrance and coloring--- 12oz. Michael's Pillar wax for 10oz. mold vs. same amount of Country Lane "general purpose" candle wax. 25 ml of Mel's Bayberry Ess. Oil Blend. 1/4 block Color Science color tabs. Poured at somewhere around 171F over waxed wicks. Other than that and with my limited experience, that is all I have to offer you. I feel like a college freshman again, trying to answer a professor's 1st question of the first day of class. I'll post another poor picture of the end results here soon. You ask some really tough questions.

No, I never expected an identical burn. I was merely satisfying my curiosity. I don't look at them as failures. I'm looking at what each one's strong points are. Right now I've got one on the shelf behind me that is a mixture of the two. I've taken an early retirement. I've got a lot of time on my hands. Just to be on the safe side, I ordered some stearic today. Q

I bought my first pack of paraffin at Michael's craft store. I got the 9lb package because of price. I thought all paraffins were the same. Not! It was several weeks before I bothered to read the label that said it was used "for jars". Back to the same place and got the one that was designated for "pillars". The package mentions nothing about additives but I'm assuming it has something or other. I ordered a slab of Country Lane brand "general purpose wax". It mentions nothing about additives, but it looks quite different from the other two. The previous ones were solid white. The Country Lane wax is sort of clear and icy looking. It resembles Crystal Meth in appearance. The picture I posted was of the Michael's pillar wax and the one on the right was the Country Lane. So many different opinions on temperatures and such. The waxmaker says do what the mold maker says. The mold maker says do what the waxmaker says! It looks to me like this whole candle thing is 33% chemistry, 33% trial and error and 33% like making Jello! The one percent that remains is the big unknown. I just keep plodding along. I'm not giving up. I'm obsessed with it now. Q

At what point in your pillar making journey with paraffin, do you know it's time to consider some sort of additives are needed? Stearic acid perhaps? I've tried to do everything in a step-by-step, scientific method type of way. I'm taking notes, etc. I can't seem to get any sort of consistent results. Really puzzled as to what should be done next. Q

Where should I start in search for one of these Presto Pots?

0.84 oz. (25ml) of fragrance to 12 oz. Country Lane #70304 general purpose paraffin. The mold holds about 10 oz. You can smell the fragrance on the candle but very little, if any, fills the room. I understand that's a problem with paraffin. Same formula as Orange Candle No. 1 BUT with the paraffin mentioned above. Q

A melting pot and and a beat up pan that lost it's finish years ago make up my double boiler. Supplies are kept under my bed. Next room over is my office/computer room. There, I assemble everything. From there, its on to the kitchen to do the cooking. Q

Thanks Pam. In the short time I've been in this forum, I've seen a number of posts that mention a heat gun. What type of heat gun is everbody talking about? Do you blow the heat down directly on the top of the candle in the mold? Do you just wave it back and forth and heat the mold while the wax levels off? Could someone send me a link to where I can buy the type I need; or just send me a picture? I may already have one in the garage and just don't know it I'm burning that same candle right this minute. So far, so good. Q

I'm using some sort of plastic mold I bought from Amazon. Let's see if this link will work. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B06XP3RM7Q/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Now, here's the other candle made with the "general purpose candle wax" from Amazon. I poured it at around 175 degrees, left the room to let it cool. Came back in an hour and it was sweating, had a VERY deep well. So I punched a hole on either side of the wick, filled it in, left it out to cool over night and it came out looking like an orange with skin cancer. What could have caused this?

Without a digital thermometer as opposed to my old "analog" bar thermometer, it will always be hit or miss.

Check out the answer I just gave to JC. I AM taking notes now. I also print a sticker with a test number and put it on the bottom of the candle. Then, I amend the new sticker with all the pertinent changes and slap that one on the bottom of the new candle. To answer your question about the temp, somewhere around 160 or a little bit more. That assumes the thermometer is accurate.

I'm starting to get mixed up and ahead of myself. Let's see... I used your suggestions and that one is burning beautifully now. I repeated the same thing with Scented's suggestions and got the same great results. That wax was the one I got from Michael's craft store that was designated for pillars instead of jars like the first paraffin I bought there. Now I'm testing THAT pillar wax with the same formula, but using the "general purpose" paraffin I bought from Amazon. I'm pouring that one in the morning. We'll see what difference it makes. As far as the temperatures, the packages are very vague. Most of them say to pour at about 160-180 degrees. Some mention dropping to the proper pouring temp but they don't specify what that is! I'd say I'm pouring somewhere around 160 or a little more if the thermometer is right.

Thanks, I learned something today. I've tried to follow the wax maker's instructions. They give what temps to melt and their label mentions pouring temp but then it doesn't tell you what the pouring temp is! I think I have been pouring too hot, though.

Thanks Scented. Being new to this, I don't know what you mean when you say "finish off the bottom".

By the way, that hole you see at the bottom of the picture is about 1 inch deep.

What did I do wrong here? I punched two holes on each side of the wick like your supposed to. Then I refilled the cavity with the same wax. I poured into one hole and the wax came out the other, so I assumed it was filled. I removed the centering tool so you could see. What do I do next? Can it be salvaged. I followed the paraffin maker's heating temps, went to bed, and this it what I found this morning.

I've pretty well decided that the wicks I've been using is a major problem. Some of the the "free" ones the mold seller "gave" me, look more like something you would use to tie up your tomato plants. They've already been put out in the garage. You are certainly right about not knowing what I'm using. I took the advice that JC and TT gave me and I'm looking right now at a candle that is burning beautifully. I'm making some more pillars on Friday. I'll use the same formula you just gave me in the same mold and see how that works. Only one problem with that. I can't remember what wick I used! I'll start taking better notes. Really! I promise! Q

Thanks to both for all the thought provoking ideas. I've been mulling it over in my head. Would I accomplish anything by using the same stuff as before and same size, but start out with the thinnest wick in my possession and see where it goes from there?

Just to show you how new to this I am; I first thought all paraffins were the same. I've bought "Paraffin Wax" from Michael's craft store. That's all the information the package gives. Then I did a search for paraffin on Amazon and found "General Purpose" wax. I submitted a question as to what exactly is general purpose wax. I got several answers from consumers and even the seller that it was 100% pure paraffin. So I ordered a 10lb. slab which I haven't used yet. Not all the pillars I've made have been like the disaster shown in my picture. I just never know what to expect. Mostly, I've used molds that are 3 inches in diameter. That's all the information I have to offer at this point. I take constructive criticism quite well, so lay it on me. Q

Thanks to all of you for your help. This was paraffin poured in a mold. It was doing great for a couple of days, then I walked away from it (which was pretty stupid) to go do a chore in the garage. I came back and found this. I could have set the house on fire! I don't know anything about wick sizes and series. I don't even know where to find that information. The mold is 3 inches in diameter and it was a pretty large wick, so you're probably on to something there. They were cheap wicks that came "free" with the mold. The wicks he sends out, I now know are junk. How exactly do I find out what size wick I need? What is a "series" when it comes to wicks? What would cause the wall to get too thin. I think I'm doing a good job of centering but maybe not.

What went wrong here? I poked a small parallel hole on either side of the wick. Both went all the way to the bottom. So I took a little larger probe and made the holes bigger and twisted it until they were nice and round. The candle burned beautifully for a couple of days, then disaster struck as you can see in the picture. I'm going to take a guess at what I did wrong. Y'all tell me if I'm right or not. I pored more hot paraffin on the top and filled the well, thinking that this would fill the cavities inside. I'll bet I was wrong.

Helpful information from both of you. I saw lots of things I was doing wrong by not running a probe. Thank you. How long do I wait in the cooling process before I start probing?

I've been making candles now for about 6 months. I've seen so many different ideas on which wax to use in pillars, in particular paraffin. Is it absolutely necessary to make probe holes everytime to fill the shrinkage area inside? Should I only do that if I see evidence such as a visible hole after the candle has cooled? I've got plenty of questions, but this will do for now