DonC

Hi' Hope this helps........... Easy Plastics to Recycle The easiest and most common plastics to recycle are made of polyethylene terephthalate (PETE) and are assigned the number 1. Examples include soda and water bottles, medicine containers, and many other common consumer product containers. Once it has been processed by a recycling facility, PETE can become fiberfill for winter coats, sleeping bags and life jackets. It can also be used to make bean bags, rope, car bumpers, tennis ball felt, combs, cassette tapes, sails for boats, furniture and, of course, other plastic bottles. Number 2 is reserved for high-density polyethylene plastics. These include heavier containers that hold laundry detergents and bleaches as well as milk, shampoo and motor oil. Plastic labeled with the number 2 is often recycled into toys, piping, plastic lumber and rope. Like plastic designated number 1, it is widely accepted at recycling centers. Plastics Less Commonly Recycled Polyvinyl chloride, commonly used in plastic pipes, shower curtains, medical tubing, vinyl dashboards, and even some baby bottle nipples, gets number 3. Like numbers 4 (wrapping films, grocery and sandwich bags, and other containers made of low-density polyethylene) and 5 (polypropylene containers used in Tupperware, among other products), few municipal recycling centers will accept it due to its very low rate of recyclability. Another Useful Plastic to Recycle Number 6 goes on polystyrene (Styrofoam) items such as coffee cups, disposable cutlery, meat trays, packing “peanuts” and insulation. It is widely accepted because it can be reprocessed into many items, including cassette tapes and rigid foam insulation. Hardest Plastics to Recycle Last, but far from least, are items crafted from various combinations of the aforementioned plastics or from unique plastic formulations not commonly used. Usually imprinted with a number 7 or nothing at all, these plastics are the most difficult to recycle and, as such, are seldom collected or recycled. More ambitious consumers can feel free to return such items to the product manufacturers to avoid contributing to the local waste stream, and instead put the burden on the makers to recycle or dispose of the items properly.

Just my 2 cents, as I see it. Para candles are inferior to soy candles in many ways. Soy candles are inferior to para candles in many ways. Volkswagons gets superior fuel mileage to SUVs, but if you get hit, you're screwed!! SUVs are safer for the occupants if they are hit, but get lousey fuel mileage. People buy what they are comfortable with for different reasons. For me, burning soy candles in my home is a personal choice based on facts as I know them. Based on this personal choice, I choose to make and sell them as well. I don't push soy on anyone. If you want soy candles, you will buy them. If not, you won't. I sell only soy candles because I believe that in their natural state, they burn cleaner and longer. Only MY opinion. As for a seperate page on my website to explain what soy candles are and are not, that won't happen. People are perfectly capable of doing their own research and making up their own minds based on their own opinion. If customers start calling me asking questions, I will give them my opinion and suggest that they do a google on soy wax and come up with answers on their own, and form their own opinions based on the "facts" as they understand them. I really do believe that they will respect you and your business more if you do that, rather than trying to "jam" soy down their throat with "facts" that may, or may not be "facts". Just my 2 cents...................

Thank You Stella, I am fully aware that frosting isn't caused by dye. I was just saying that with undyed candles, it wouldn't be as noticable, if at all. It is weird though, I have been pouring now for over a week(I'm new) and have yet to see any frosting on any of my candles. I have been making container, votives and melts. All came out perfect so far!! I have had a couple that had a chalky finish on the tops, but when I did a second pour, it disappeared completely and came out baby butt smooth. I am using C-3..... No additives or dye Heat to 180, transfer to pouring pot... add scent, 1oz per pound pour at 100 For votives and melts: 14oz V-1 2oz C-3 and proceed as above out of nearly 100 votives and about 70 melts NO CRACKS YET. Excellent release. The only problem I had was when I reduced the C-3 to 10% and I got cracks in a couple of melts. went back to 2oz and all is good:D

Thanks Violet, I forgot to mention that I don't use dye in my candles:D So frosting probably won't be an issue.

Is it ok to store finished container soy candles in a cool basement? I simply have no room in the rest of the house to store them. I was lucky just to get my wife to give me the room to pour upstairs!!! The basement stays about 65-68 degrees year round.

I agree Nat..............very well written and very informative indeed. Is this material under copyright, or may we use parts of it for our own websites? Thanks for the info and take care:smiley2:

I had heard the issues about V-1 cracking and asked my supplier about them. She was quick to admit there was an issue with it. She offered me a substantial sample to play with free of charge and suggested that I try adding a small amount of C-3 to the mix and try it. WELL, I have been pouring votives all day long, dozens of them and not even the hint of any cracks anywhere and the release is super!! Here is what I did; 14ozs V-1 2ozs C-3 = 1lb wax 1oz FO (Baby Powder) Brought wax up to 180 and turned the pot OFF. Added FO and stirred hard for about 3 min, non-stop. Allowed wax to cool to about 105-110 and poured 6 votives. Once these were set up (about 1hr), I removed them and I turned the pot back on. Once the wax was just liquid again(no thermometer this time), I stirred it gently for about a minute and poured another 6, and continued till the pot was empty and I started the process over again. Once I get the hang of this process I will double up on the "recipe" so that my melting pot will have a bigger reserve for more candles. Hope this helps

I had heard the issues about V-1 and asked my supplier about them. She was quick to admit there was an issue with it. She offered me 10lbs to play with free of charge and suggested that I try adding a small amount of C-3 to the mix and try it. WELL, I have been pouring votives all day long, dozens of them and not even the hint of any cracks anywhere and the release is super!! Here is what I did; 14ozs V-1 2ozs C-3 = 1lb wax 1oz FO (Baby Powder) Brought wax up to 180 and turned pot OFF. Added FO and stirred hard for about 3 min, non-stop. Allowed wax to cool to about 105-110 and poured 6 votives. Once these were set up (about 1hr), I removed them and I turned the pot back on. Once the wax was just liquid again(no thermometer this time), I stirred it gently for about a minute and poured another 6, and continued till the pot was empty and I started the process over again. Once I get the hang of this process I will double up on the "recipe" so that my melting pot will have a bigger reserve for more candles. Hope this helps

Thank You ALL for your help as always!! But get this............ I was at the local grocery store(mom& pop) and was talking to the owner about my new interest in candlemaking and that I had to go and buy a scale in order to make accrate measurements, etc.. He told me to follow him, so I did. He took me out into the storeroom and pointed over into the corner on a table and said, "take it out of here and it is yours". He was pointing to a table top meat scale!!! This thing cost over $600 30 years ago!! It works perfect, has a back lit display, measeure down into the ounces and up to 125lbs. AND best of all FRRRREEEEE.. State made him replace a perfectly good and very expensive quality scale with a new digital one. Bad for him and good for me!! Thanks again for all of your input and help!!

Here are a few links that might help........ http://ekats.safeshopper.com/307/cat307.htm http://www.printeryhouse.org/ProdPage.asp?Prod=G1118&cat=432 http://www.tecventureshawaii.bigstep.com/generic204.html Hope these help you out:smiley2:

This has nothing to do with candles, but it does concern trademarks. When I was in High School in 1967, there were pizza and sandwich shops all over the east coast selling a sandwich called the "Steak Bomb". The little pub down the street from my school sold them. Nearly 20 years later, a guy opened a sandwich shop called USA Subs and last year he decided to "trademark" the name "Steak Bomb" as his own. The government issued it to him!!!!!!! Now he is telling everyone else they can't sell steak bombs anymore because he owns the trademark. His attorney has sent them all C/Ds. The shops in his area have ALL told him to go pound sand and high powered law firms are just frothing at the mouth to fight this guy in court if he tries to go forward with any action. No court in the country is going to uphold this "trademark" and they know it. As for Love Potion, and Love Potion #9, they have been around in countless forms since at least the early 60s, including a #1 hit on the music charts back in the 60s. Any good patent attorney will tell you that you can trademark a ham sandwich if you want to. A court of law will determine if it can be enforced. You can do what you feel comfortable with, but if it were me, she would be "pounding sand.":cool2: :tiptoe:

You are very welcome!! Glad it was what you were looking for. Happy Shopping!!!

Thanks Everyone!!!!:smiley2:

Good point CareBear, For me, it isn't so much getting the formular down, as it is just learning to work around the wax and the equipment, and pouring, etc. I wish I knew what type of soy it was though. I ordered it from Ditto Candles two weeks ago, and it just said soy container wax. There is nothing on the manifest that says either and the company is now out of business, so I cant contact them either!! Oh well.........I realize that once I start using the new wax(c-3) I will have to re-calculate everything. In the meantime, I will just use this stuff to play with and use the candles for our own use. at $1.75 a pound!!!!!!:undecided

Ok, just got my first shipment of "stuff" and I have everything except for a scale. Soy wax, fo, eye dropper, therometer, coconut shells for containers to experiment with..... My question is, can I use a measuring cup to calculate a pound of wax until I get my scales? If so, using what formula? ALSO, am I safe to use 1oz of fo per pound of wax? I got 4 5lb bags of soy wax, but have NO CLUE what type of soy. I plan on using c-3 when I am up and running, but for now, will play with what I have. Thanks for your help:D

Here is a link to a site that has what I think you are looking for. http://www.webstaurantstore.com/third156/boxes.html

If you want something simple, maybe you should consider PayPal. Their shopping carts are very user freindly and simple to set up. If you have never been to their site before, check it out it is very informative for people with no tech skills. HTH Don

I indicated 100% soy because if If I have to use additives, it isn't pure. And if I cant make candles using pure soy like I tell people they are, then I won't make them at all. I will use para instead and sell them as para. It really bothers me when people say they are making 100% soy when in fact they aren't. Just my opinion.....

Congrats!! Display looks absolutely wonderful as to all of your candles!! Great Job....:smiley2:

I posted to this forum as well as to the business forum yesterday and today and both times the post was removed with no explination. If I did something wrong, so be it, and I am sorry for that, but I have looked around and couldn't find a reason why anywhere. Could the moderator who removed it let me know what I am doing wrong so that it won't happen again. Thank You:undecided

I am all for PMs....how do you do that?

Thanks Stella, May I email you about this?

I am new to candle making. In fact, havent even got my wax yet. I am in the process of setting up shop in my basement. It occured to me after reading posts on this board about humidity, sunlight, heat, etc., that I might want to check on here first before going any further. My question is this; Am I going to have issues pouring in my always cool basement. It isn't drafty or anything, but it stays at a pretty constant 65-70 degrees year round. I have a dehumidifier I can use if I need it, but I really don't want to heat it unless it is absolutely necessary. I live in New Hampshire and our heating bill is already too high. I know that I will get a number of different opinions, but I need to know if I am wasting my time working on the basement or not. We have no room in the regular part of the house. If the basement won't work, I am going to have to make other plans I guess. Better to find out now, then later after all the work is done!!! Thanks in advance for your advice.........

Thank You Shelly:smiley2:

Thanks Everyone!! Really appreciate all the great input. Someday when I get really smart...I can give advice as well:tiptoe: