TallTayl

That is some dedication to your craft.  😊

Are the secrets PG rated?

Bleached square braid. 

I don’t know of any soy based pillar after the discontinued EcoSoya  Pillar Blend. For pillars and novelties I lean to beeswax personally.
 

when wicking novelties, and pillars, you’ll probably want to underwick to prevent wax blowouts during burns.  They take a long time to test fully.  

Did you happen to pick up the cd sizes in between what you tried? Cd14 and cd16 are nice incremental steps.

wooden wicks come in dozens of thickness x width combos and from different wood types.  The smallest of the sizes can do very well in that size jar.  
 

CDN are always nice to keep on hand also. Along with Premier700 series.  
 

sometimes the wicking issues stem from fragrances. I have not tried your wax, but you have loads of options with the many wick series and sizes available.  

I have not done any updates lately. When did it start?

What type of device?

have you shut down and rebooted?

34 minutes ago, hellomarie said:

I was just informed by Bitter Creek that their Blue Sugar fragrance oil is not longer available as their supplier went out of business.

I have tried dupes before and found they are not the same. Does anyone know a supplier of the original blue sugar?

 

Slightly desperate here as this fragrance is central to my business. Any help is appreciated!

If you cannot find an exact of your bottle, you may want to send it out to have your own made. Most labs will require 25 lbs, but at least, if their dupe process is good, you will have it and can sell off surplus to others who love it. 

I use the one from AHRE. It has been the closest to the one I used from the scent works before they went OOB suddenly. 
 

Note: i have not purchased any fragrances from AHRE since they were acquired by the same investment firm that bought WSP and others. I cannot confirm if it is the exact same today as what I have from pre-acquisition. 

Looks fine to me at this point.  Keep taking temps with your IR thermometer to make sure it doesn’t overheat as it gets further down. 

2 hours ago, GailC said:

I always use Regional Rate A and B boxes to ship candles. I print my labels through USPS and I've never seen the option for Priority Mail cubic. In fact, I've never heard of it.

 

I guess I will have to look into Pirate Ship. But I like using USPS, and scheduling a pick up, and the free A and B boxes. I remember when they had Regional Rate C boxes.

 

 

I would probably stock up on a&b boxes til they’re gone. They will be calculated as dimensional boxes after the switch.   You can still schedule pickups through usps.com without purchasing labels there if I recall? 
 

just checked shippo and you can easily schedule a pickup in their system. Phew!

Freedom was 464 from what I recall 

2 hours ago, franu61 said:

Yup, it is a good wax.  It just used to be so much better 

 

that needs to be embroidered on a pillow.

53 minutes ago, franu61 said:

Won't really change anything.  Still gonna rely on pirate ship!  Remember to try the box in a bag option to see if it saves anything.  When you do box in a bag ( or any bag) it does not take height measurements  into account, so usually saves.  Easy enough to "make" a bag out of a couple grocery bags, heat gunned closed.

I think some of the success of this trick depends on your particular post office. I've had them reject things with some postal reps but not others. It's worth a shot if you have a good relationship with your local PO! As long as the bag is sturdy enough to not get ripped off in the machines along the way it sounds like an interesting application of their rules.

I rely on Etsy and Shippo, which will both see the elimination of some classes of service, and re-zoning rates.  It will be a hit but it seems they're working with those "temporary rate increases" from the holiday season. We got no relief last year, so the pennies this year look good by comparison =D 

My thoughts.: 
 

While I will miss the convenience of Regional Rate A & B boxes,  usps had already worked the cost of the “free” boxes into the postage prices in recent years. The total cost to ship was very nearly to the penny the cost of the cubic rates for typical purchased boxes of the same size.  Ebay and PackagingPrice.com had many sizes to choose from which gave us lots to fully test.  I’m thrilled with some that are available as they can really elevate a brand with little effort. 
 

- Published “counter rates” are always shocking.  Using services like Pirate Ship and Go Shippo have saves many of us small businesses enough to remain strong and competitive. 
 

- UPS rates through pirate ship and go shippo were surprisingly competitive in 2022 for parcels over 1 lb, giving a nice option to customers.  
 

- FedEx prices soared in 2022, causing many of us to choose other services to keep overall costs to customers affordable. I wonder how FedEx will respond to the new usps and ups changes in 2023? 
 

Some things that helped save a little more shipping $  in 2022 included testing light weight folding type boxes.  Many ECT 32 and similar thinner material folding boxes weigh less than typical corrugated “heavy” wall and provide enough protection for my typical shipments.  The overlapping folds really added to the structure for smaller items. On average the shipping savings more than covered the cost of the box for items weighing < 16oz that qualified for first class rates. That savings increased profitability of individual transactions noticeably.

changing dimensions of my products allows for more flexible shipping boxes. I continually evaluate  molds and packaging to pack more efficiently. Clam shells, for instance, take a considerable amount of space in shipping cartons.  Changing from clams to something smaller makes shipping much simpler. Ditching plastic clams also got me one step closer to packaging independence while reducing single use plastic.  Since I don’t have a physical shop to worry about, the hanging portion of the clam was not needed anyway which gave so much more flexibility. 
 

does the shipping news change anything you will do in 2023?

https://about.usps.com/newsroom/national-releases/2022/1110-usps-announces-new-competitive-prices-for-2023.htm
 

https://goshippo.com/blog/how-the-2023-usps-shipping-rates-will-affect-your-e-commerce-business/

Highlights:

1) Retirement of Regional rate services

2) new shipping rates 

3) Change to shipping zones (which may increase shipping rates)

Retirement of Regional Rate:

This is part of a larger effort to simplify the Priority Mail rate structure and eliminate any redundancy between Regional Rate Boxes (RRB) and Priority Mail Cubic (PMC) shipments. PMC has proven to be the more popular option, offers the lowest possible rates for USPS shipping, and serves the same needs as RRBs. The only difference is that Regional Rate Boxes were free while cubic boxes are not. The Postal Service does not expect this to impact any shippers negatively. Furthermore, you can continue to use your Regional Rate Boxes until you run out.

New Rates:

• No price increase for Parcel Select Ground which, coupled with our recently improved service standard to 2-5 days from 2-8 days, offers a reliable and economical option for shippers

• No price increase for USPS Connect Local, which gives businesses of all sizes the ability to reach local customers at affordable rates

• Reduced pricing for some Retail Priority Mail Flat-Rate products below the temporary price currently in place 

• Priority Mail Commercial rate to increase by 3.6 percent, well below the rate of inflation

Changes to Shipping Zones:

Splitting Local, Zone 1, and Zone 2 into Three Different Zones

In the past, the USPS has lumped all three of these shipping zones into a single column and has charged the same rate for each. Zone 1 is a 50-mile radius from the point of origin of a package being delivered, and Zone 2 stretches as far as a 51-150 mile radius. Because of this, you may see a particularly notable difference in shipping cost for packages that have to travel to Zone 2.

Here is a link to another ASTM/UL temp discussion

I know a lot of folks at the ren Faire that would pay  that and more all day long  for a pickle candle! They missed their market, lol. 

30 minutes ago, AudraT said:

I have noticed some fragrances from certain suppliers seem to work better with my wax brand than others and I think you are right, it's the right type of chemicals for the right wax. As an example, The Flaming Candle fragrances seem to work out better for my soy than Candle Science's fragrances.
 

I've never tried measuring the temperature of melted wax in a candle (something I know you suggested in another post) but I've read that you want a wick hot enough to burn a melt pool 1/2 inch thick and to burn the melt pool 1 inch in diameter for every hour. So, if I have a 3 inch diameter candle I want the melt pool to reach the inside diameter of the jar in approximately 3 hours and I want the melt pool to remain a consistent 1/2 inch thick.

Bold part is another candle myth actually.  That is a limit versus a goal for appropriate waxes.  Try to burn a coconut wax like that and you’ll miss out on some awesome throw.  Burn a palm like that and you will have a 250*F+ mess.  Burn beeswax like that and expect glass to shatter. 
 

I look at a 1/2” deep melt pool as a fail in my candles.  I give a side eye at 1/4”.  Soy type waxes form a clear melt pool that tops a layer of sludge.  The deeper/hotter the melt pool, the quicker that sludge teeters to the clear point and begins to burn too hot, too dirty or otherwise overwhelms the wick especially in the last half of the candle’s life.  
 

The sludgy wax pool is also prone to tippy wicks leaning off center and potentially getting too close to the glass possibly leading to shatter. Flat &  coreless wicks (CD, CDN, HTP, LX, BLSQ and many others) need more support to keep from leaning. I have seen some begin to sag in a melt pool, collapsing onto themselves.  It was eye opening. 
 

it seems that melt pool myth started when fragrances started not performing well - back in th 2015/2016 time frame. Many of us oldies had it easy when pretty much every FO worked perfectly at 6% or less in just about any wax. We could wick to powerburn all the live long day without ever needing to worry about high temps. Those were the days, lol. 

7 minutes ago, AudraT said:

Are you guys talking about the American Soy Organics Midwest and millennium waxes? Back when I was trying to find a good wax and I didn't know much about candle wax suppliers, I gave American Soy Organics Freedom wax a try. It's what I'm using right now and I do like the wax very much. I am very new to candle making so I don't know if there are better soy waxes out there or if Freedom wax is actually considered not bad / pretty good.

Yep. Midwest soy is comparable to GB 415.  Millenium is comparable to GB464. 

A powerburn is a very long, full day+ burn as if a customer lit and forgot it was lit. It can be performed when perfectly trimming, and should also consider imperfectly trimmed wicks. Customers will never trim perfectly even if they promise they will.  
 

max temp for containers according to the UL testing range in the US I have researched state 125*F for metal and 140-145*F for glass. You can Google candle tests for various recognized resellers, like Disney, Home Goods, etc and see the test results in PDF format. It is a very good set of tests to learn to perform. The Tests also reference ASTM, which has been discussed many times here and on many presentation type slide decks easily googleable.
 

somewhere, some time ago, someone started a discussion that ASTM limits container temps to 175*F.  I purchased the ASTM standards doc for candles, and have directly contacted ASTM to ascertain the temp and learned there is not one stated by them as claimed. This does not mean there is none in your country, it is just not ASTM standard. UL in the US is the referred to source.
 

Related topic: I encourage anyone burning and selling candles to learn the ASTM standards. If anything happens to a  candle while someone burns it, the best defense is to follow the published standards. 

Wick up=next bigger size. 
wick down= next smaller size. 
 

may need to wick up/down several sizes for different fragrance oils (and/or dyes) in the same wax/container. 

1 hour ago, Octo said:

Thanks for the replies!

That is a good idea re. trying without dye. So I can try to pinpoint the issue. 

Re wicking - do you mean using the exact same type of wick (TCR 33/18) but trim it longer?

I trimmed this wick to 5/8 inch or 16mm. 

 

Maybe I will try 2 candles without dye, everything else the same except trim 1 wick to 16mm and the other to 21mm.

Close.  The next size up from TVR 33/18.  I’m not familiar with your wick series to recommend a size. 

In my experience, HT comes from two things:

Quality fragrance that is compatible with the wax and the right wick for the job. 
 

quality fragrance is the best start. Not all are compatible with soy waxes on a chemical level. No amount of heat temp, cool temp tricks can fix a fragrance that just isn’t ideal for soy waxes.  Fragrance labs that supply retailers use different aroma chemicals, different diluents and different concentrations of the aroma chemicals. Some fragrances will do ok, but won’t ever be like your favorite commercially made candle made by companies that have their fragrances custom made. A quality candle fragrance will withstand wax temps hot enough to fully melt the wax with no noticeable loss of potency.  Many on this board use palm waxes, and waxes where palm and similar components require temps of 200*F+ to fully melt. We use the same fragrances in lower temp waxes with no issues. You will find lots of wives tales as you search for clues to make wonderful candles. 
 

wick series all burn differently in different candle systems.  Some reach ideal combustion rates and temperatures for specific wax and fragrance combos better than others. I often need to cycle through many wick series and sizes in different fragrances/containers to find the right one for the job. There’s a sweet spot in wax/fragrance/container combos to coax out the best throw,

How fun! Candle making is a giant rabbit hole. 
 

that one looks slightly under wicked.  You can pull that wick, smooth the surface to level if needed, and stuff a wick into the old hole to dial in your size for that container/wax/dye/fragrance combo.  Every combo is a unique “system” that you will want to take good notes for.  The next combo may be similar or very different.  
 

enjoy your new obsession 😊

30 minutes ago, EID said:

Thank you so much for the advice, I think I will do exactly that, use an inexpensive wax. Thanks again!

Play around with waxes, some may be too easy to burn compared to what you’re starting with.  Palm, IME can be a pretty reliable one to slow and contain that last bit of burn depending on your choice of wick.  Good luck!