My2Scents

I've read that RRD wicks are directional, flowing better in one direction than the other. But what if you have a spool? How do you know which direction is correct? They don't have lines or a "V" like ECO and HTP wicks. Can't seem to find anything on this.

Getting the mushrooms with no FO doesn't surprise me - I asked mainly because of your sooting issues. I use ECOs and while the flames to tend to be a bit large (and I actually like them that way) I don't get any soot problems with them. Although wicks are very personal, try an ECO with no FO and see if you get the same result.

Thanks SpaceGirl, I will try that. Of all the wicks I have tried so far, the ECo has been one of the best in my tests

What is a 51z wick? I am reading a thread on another forum right now, and it was recommended for an 8 oz tin to use that wick. The wax was j223 but still, might that help somewhat??? If you can figure out the general wicking difference in that wax compared to yours, you might be able to find the right size?

The 51z is a zinc, already tried it and the zincs mushroomed the worst for me. Plus when I put it out the mushrooms fell in the wax so I couldn't even trim them off. It did give me a great melt pool though

Are your tests with just wax or FO as well?

I am testing with FO now, however I did originally do tests with no FO or color and still had mushroom troubles

A CDN 14 is a good starting point for that size container and does not produce a "huge flame" (at least in my candles) so long as one keeps the wick trimmed properly. The same or similar size CD should work also. I think a CD 10 would be inadequate for a container of that diameter.

I did try a CD 14 on my first test along with an ECO 10, both gave me a very good melt pool, however both had very large flames and I could see soot rolling off of the quite often. The CD 14 also mushroomed considerably. That was why I tried to wick down but it didn't work. If I trim the wick shorter than 1/4", maybe 1/8", then my flame is not so large until the end of the burn then it smokes again. Maybe I just need to keep these wicks trimmed shorter?

I have tested the RRD, CD, HTP, zinc, LX, Premier, CSN, and ECO trying to find a wick that will not mushroom for me in 8oz tins. At this point I am getting the least amount of shroom from the Premier and ECO, but the Premier gives me too deep of a melt pool. I will probably be going with ECO for myself. The problem is every wick seems to give a different performance for each person

Well the ECO 8 didn't fare too well. The first burn wasn't bad, left about 1/8" all around, but the next 2 burns both tunneled and never caught up. Seems like the only way I can get a full melt pool in this 8oz tin with a single wick is to use a wick so large that it turns into a torch and smokes.

Candlelady,

I ALWAYS trim my wicks to 1/4 " before burning and zincs were in my first batch of testing, The mushroomed the most for me of all I have tried except maybe the RRD.

Arlene,

I just poured the tester with the ECO 8 this evening and will burn tomorrow with my fingers and toes crossed. Just for giggles I also poured one with a CD10 and an ECO 6 just to see what they do.

My ongoing testing looking for a wick that will not mushroom for me in an 8oz tin with an 80%444 20%4627 blend. Tonight I burned my latest tests using an ECO10 and CD14. After 4 hours both had a very good melt pool, just shy of the edge. The CD14 however had significant mushrooming. The ECO10 had only 1 or 2 very small dots and I can definitely live with that. However I noticed the ECO10 threw off much more soot than the CD and I was not happy with that. I am going to try wicking down to an ECO 8 in hopes that the slightly smaller flame will throw less soot while still maintaining a sufficient melt pool

Thanks Arlene, if I can't get the Premier, ECO or CD to work out in my new tests I will have to give those a look too

This is still the 3 inch tin right? How tall is it? How are you able to tell how deep the melt pool is if you can't see through it? I'm a n00b so I'm curious.

The tin is about 2"tall but I only poured it half full for the test. It melted clear to the bottom, and I could see the bottom of the tin after 3 hours. I dipped a toothpick in to measure the actual depth.

What size premier wick did you test? I used Eco 12 in the 8 oz tin, and they work great.

I tried 760, 765,767,770,and 777 in the Premier wicks. My ECO and CD wicks just arrived today so I have more testing to do. I am running out of options though LOL

In my wick testing so far, the LX and RRD wicks have only curled very slightly, not enough to give an uneven melt pool. HTP's curl alot, and zinc cores have no curl. I am testing Premier's right now and they have not curled for me

Well so far my testing with the Premier wicks have a mixed result. Good melt pool almost to the edge, about 1/4" deep and far less mushroom than other wicks I have tested, but still more than I would like to have. I still get 3-4 petals about 1/16" in dia after a 3 hour burn which tends to hinder the flame.

So I decided to try another test. Since I had mushrooms in straight 444 and in my mixture of 90%444 and 10%4627, I wondered what I would get with a 70/30 mix. I wicked down since there was more 4627 in the mix, and lo and behold after 4 hours I had only a few very small dots clinging to my wicks. I could live with this, however, (there always seems to be a however) my melt pool is almost to the edge but has now grown to 3/4" deep!!!

I still have CD and ECO on the way for testing LOL Good thing I am a patient man!!

Horray! My Premier wicks were on my doorstep when I got home from work. I poured a few testers tonight, gonna cross my fingers and fire them up tomorrow

Welcome to the mushroom farming community LOL

I have been having a terrible time trying to wick my 444 wax in an 3" dia 8oz tin with anything that will not mushroom, no luck. The only thing I have managed is getting a 2.5" dia tumbler to be mushroom free usig HTP83 or HTP93, depending on the FO used. As soon as I got to HTP104 or above, it's fungus time. I do have ECO, CD and Premier on the way to test as well, hopefully something will work. I know my FO is not the issuue since I had the mushrooms with no FO in the testers

I was reading this thread and was wondering if you found the right wick yet? I don't make these but found this thread interesting.

Kimmeroo

I have not found a wick as of yet, but I have ECO, CD and Premier on the way for testing. I have found wicks that give me a decent burn and melt pool, but for now I am unwilling to live with the resulting mushroom development

Vio,

How did you make out with the premier wicks? I ordered a sample pack of them to test from TN Artesian, still searching for a wick that works for me.

My2, I scanned but did not see if anyone asked or you mentioned if you are trimming your wicks to ¼" before each burn? If the wick is too long, it doesn't surprise me that you are seeing 'shrooms! If this has been mentioned, forgive my blindness...

I don't believe I was asked, but yes I trim them every time before lighting. You should see my growing pile of mushroom clippings LOL

I did have a strange thing happen on my last test of LX wicks. I tried LX21, LX22 and LX24 in my 8oz. tins. The LX24 gave me a full melt pool in about 4 hours, but the LX21 and LX22 both had very weak flames and left almost 1/2" on the sides. Don't have any idea why the acted that way

Keep burning- those tins can catch WAY up by the bottom- they get hot and melt everything off the sides- even very thick hangup.

-Kristi

Thanks, I will try that. I'm testing 3 LX sizes now and will allow them to burn all the way down. So far the LX and HTP seem to give me the smallest amount of mushroom, but still more than I would like to have. I wish my CD and ECO samples would arrive so I could test those, I'm so impatient LOL

BF, I think that trying to attain a full melt pool in 3-4 hours on the first burn is unrealistic - soy burns down, then out. Did you burn your testers all the way down? If it's a 3" container, I would start with a CDN 14 and go up or down one from there depending on the burn. I dunno about paraffin, but the C3 I use in that dimension container takes a 14. If the tin becomes too warm, back down to a 12. If it hasn't made FMP by the third burn, wick up to a 16.

HTH

Stella,

I didn't burn them all the way down if I had significant mushroom on the wick. The only wicks that didn't mushroom were the HTP83 and smaller, but giving me only a 2-1/2" melt pool after 4 hours I didn't think it would catch up in a 3" container

Wow I'm glad I didn't go with the 444 then if it cools bumpy after a burn. Have you tried just adding some universal soy additive to the 444 yet? It might help the frosting and the bumpy thing as well, and maybe clear up the shroom thing.

Vio,

It does look pretty ugly after it cools. The 444 is actually 98% soy with 2% soy based additive which I assumed to be something similar to USA, but I could be wrong there

Hey Boyfriend! For my soy jelly jars (inside diameter of 2 3/8 inches) I have to use 83s and 93s and need to go up to 104s with some of the heavier oils. So if you like them you may want to bump up to a 104 or even larger!

Also - if your FO percentage is too high it will contribute to mushrooming, too.

HTH

Judy,

I did try 104, and 105 but the mushrooms grew wild on both of those even in the testing with no FO

I did initially pour straight 444 and truthfully, they were not all that bad. The tops were fairly smooth, but no matter what temp I poured at I had frosting. I originally poured jars so it was much more noticable. However even the plain 444 mushroomed badly for me. Adding the 4627 eliminated the frosting and smoothed out the tops noticably. Also after cooling down from a 4 hour burn, the top remains smooth and doesn't cool bumpy like the plain 444 did

No problem Vio, I am much n00ber at this than you:D so I appreciate any and all input