rjdaines

I trim my HTP wicks, produces a nice flame that lasts many hours.

I don't do soap so I don't post in that forum, feel free to repost it there if you wish. I'm not making any point other than knowing the products we make require raw materials and we need to be cognizant of where those raw materials come from. One can then make their own choice. Paraffin candles come from petroleum, soy wax from soy oil, and palm wax from palm oil. All three make their ecological impact.

" Expanding production of palm oil, a common ingredient in processed foods, soaps and personal care products, is driving rainforest destruction and massive carbon dioxide emissions, according to a new study led by researchers at Stanford and Yale universities." Link Make up our own mind if using palm wax is ecologically green or not.

Shipping costs, I use the best, closest supplier.

No, another example of form not following function.

I always trim my HTP wick to to 1/4 inch and have never had a problem at any time during the life of a candle. I would still tell customers to trim to be on the safer side of things. When sizing wicks I try to shoot for near full melt pool in as many hours as the container's diameter. The first and second burn are usually short of this but one has to consider the heating of the container after the halfway point. I guess I could do a few test burns without trimming but it would still bother me not to recommend that practice.

Paraffin candles don't need a cure but just the same I usually let mine sit for 24 to 48 hours. As far a soy candles and cure times, with the waxes I use (415, 444, and 464), I've never found that curing made any difference with HT. That said, I do let them sit for a week before testing.

Keep your recipe simple to start with so don't use vybar. Consider CD wicks rather than zinc. Post photos so we can see the melt pool. Not all FOs will work well in all waxes.

I believe the jars say that it is all vegetable wax and with wicks appears to different depending on the size of the candle. I don't think there is any paraffin in them.

I think you may be over thinking the flash point data of the FO. Flash point the the temp at which the FO will ignite. It will be releasing fragrance well below that temp. Cooking it for 20 minutes will drive off some of the FO. I would stick with the heat to 185, add FO, stir and then pour at the temp you like. Once the FO is in the wax the flash point data doesn't mean too much.

24 to 48 hours tho it's reading to burn in 24.

I've used all three, 415,444, and 464; find that CD wicks work for me.

I'd buy CD wicks from CS.

Took me forever to find the right double wick configuration, trying different types and sizes. In my system, the answer was 2 ECO-1 wicks. That said, there are still some FOs that will kill the flame and, unfortunately, I have to avoid those. I', not saying the ECO-1 wicks are your solution, just that a lot of testing can be required to find the best match.

Sink holes tend to form next to wicks, the worst of the ones you don't see until the candle is burning and then it's too late to fix. While 6006 is a low shrink wax, I found that it shrinks more that 4630. A brief heat gun treated should fix it and you won't lose a significant amount of FO. What causes sink holes? People seem to think that uneven cooling causes it. 6006 has a recommended pour temp of between 160 and 180, so you might have been in that range. Container shape may also cause uneven cooling.

I double and triple wick 4630. My largest container is 5 inches.

Jar thickness might work in two ways. A thin jar will not absorb as much heat as a thick jar so it would heat up and cool down quicker. You'd get a faster MP with a thin jar but external temps might affect it more. A thicker jar will absorb and retain the heat better but be slower at reaching it's final temp. Slower forming MPs, slower cool down but less affected by room temp. Just the way I look at it.

I hear a lot of technical complaints about 4627 which I don't have with 4630. Is 4627 that much better than 4630 that it is worth the aggravation?

People who burn soy candles don't seen to mind residue and I think we stare at our candles a lot me than some customers do. And, yes, try the CD wick for a slightly hotter burn.

Agreed, some FO work better in some containers but not others. I use Elemental Jars, small and large Status and then 8 oz and 15 oz Apothecary. It's not too much work to make a batch and pour into most of those. The large Status does seem to give the least bang for the buck but not in all cases.

Then it's something in the wax and if you already have the hottest wick I don't know what to suggest. Maybe it will disappear at the last third if you haven't gotten there yet. Sorry.

When I fist melt my wax in a Presto Pot I do seem bubbles but never after that. Taking a fresh piece of slab and putting it into a pouring pot "might" give you some residual bubbles but one would have to add FO and whatever and pour really fast. Not realistic. Differential shrinkage is the answer, the wax contracts more than the glass. This is why people put votive candles into the freezer to release them from the glass holder.

A little confused by your description, it the band an inch and a half thick or high? If thick, then it's hang up and if it is to side side, then we have uneven heat (twist the wick). If it's just a very thin film (residue), some ingredient in the wax is not burning off and would be a harder fix.

Maybe I didn't read some of the comments on this thread right but here are just a few of my observations. Lipped jars are hotter than straight sided - the lip tends to trap heat and makes the wax warmer and therefore throw better. These jars are harder to wick for some folks. Straight-sided jars burn a little cooler because hear escapes more easily and can be a challenge to wick because they do burn hotter going from halfway to the bottom. I wick for the second half of the burn and enjoy the enhanced HT from this point on. A huge, sooty flame for the second half of the burn spoils the enjoyment and would make me less prone to buy another. Double wicks in an apothecary (lipped) jar will give a great HT because of the extra heat. For example with 4630 I use 2 Eco-1s and those are still on the too hot side but the HT is amazing. Temp of the MP and the size of the MP are the key factors. The rest is all compromise between the aesthetics of the burn, flame size and height, flame dancing, sooting... Of the waxes the OP mentioned I have used CB-A (no HT for me), PB (good HT but didn't like the wax), and IGI 6006 (good HT but didn't like the wax) I ended up not using any of those. One concern is that so many waxes and FO have been used that efforts were diluted and the goal never attended because of this. I don't know all the waxes listed but it looks like the OP was trying both soy and paraffin, working on both would be a huge challenge. Pick one wax, paraffin, soy, or parasoy and work with that.

I thought wet spots were place where the wax separated from the glass, poor adherence. I don't think it has anything to do with air in the molten wax.