rjdaines

Never heard of those Permatex things, Googling right now. Safety is paramount.

I guess I gave up on PB because I wanted a pillar (as I have posted elsewhere here) and never went back to it. Only so many hours in a day and I decided to focus on soy for containers and paraffin for pillars. Being rather opaque, I didn't like the was PB didn't glow when it had some color in it. Maybe further experimenting would have found the right color concentration but I put it away. One can't do everything. I still have plenty left so I may come back to PB.

Just ordered this wax, can't wait to see what my results are.

Don't think I'll try more that 6% to 8% FO but I'll do a no color and no FO test first.

The Tacky Wax holds my wick tabs to the bitter end, I usually need a small screw driver to pry them off the bottom.

I made 2 inch diameter pillar candles with the same wax (PB) and scent and got the same results. Now if I was PB it is for votives but the hot throw is poor so in most cases I prefer my votives with some paraffin.

Newbie brain here so ignore me if I make no sense but is it possible to have a tandem wick? The top part of the wick would be for wax "A" and then the rest of the wick for wax "B". Not sure about the junction, maybe a small overlap held together with high temp wax (super glue?). Trick is getting wick A to ignite wick B.

Thanks Stella, that is a very interesting chart, am I guessing right that PB stands for their pillar blend? Their CB 135 also seems to be a good performer, I have some PB in my inventory and may make a container with it and compare HT. I also may get some CB 135 and try that as well.

I made the mistake of posting that candle picture on my Facebook page and now several of my friends want candles. That was not my intent as I am still a newbie to this. While making and giving the candles "as is" I wish I had a better handle on the HT issue. Pretty is nice but fragrance is better. I'll search the forum but are there one or two soy waxes that stand out in your mind as to good HT performers?

If one starts with a candle without dye and scent it gives you a baseline to work from. Finding a wick that works for those conditions I don't think is a waste of time. Add color or scent next and retest. Next candle make with the dye and test. Final step is adding all the components and testing. This would be the most analytical way of doing it. A chore? Yes but at least you would know how the different components effect the burn. Every time I try and "wing it", I end up starting over, maybe with more experience I can take a few short cuts.

Yes, not sure where those decimal points came from. The candle is 4 days old, the HT is not as good as i would like it, maybe it's the cedar but we'll see what happens when it hits the pine layer. I still still up the fragrance % the next time I make one. I have a second that will cure longer. Let me know how that LX22 wick does for you, I was not pleased with the melt pool and the mushrooming, maybe you'll have better luck.

no i am not using the stick ums i was reading somewhere that you really don't need them???

Oh no, I think sticking the tabbed wick to the bottom of the container is very important to keeping the wick straight. Yes there are other techniques, like pushing down through the semi-hardened wax but that's not for me. I use Yaley Tacky Wax that I get from Michaels.

Welcome to the forum and to candle making! There is alot of great information here!

Votives are typically small 2oz candles that are poured in a mold nad then burned in a votive holder. Ecosoya PB is great for this

Pillars are larger, free standing candles. they are poured in amold, but not burned in a container.

I agree with Stella. IMO, Soy wax doesn't really make great pillars.

I will throw in my 2 cents too, soy wax does not make for good pillars in my experience (short as it may be). I am learning the value of paraffin. It may not be the "greenest" choice but it makes for a good pillar candle.

The attached photo is of one of my dual scent candles, cedar is the top tan layer and pine is the lower, green layer. The wax is CB Advanced and the wick is a HTP 104. Fragrance was added at 0.6% but I think I will try 0.8% or 1% next time. Container is roughly 2" diameter.

I don't know if people routinely do this (as I am new to this craft) but I try to save samples of each batch (when possible). I will pour extra wax into either a plastic egg holder (container or pillar wax) or into a votive mold (pillar wax) or some convenient "mold", let cool, pop out and then label and bag. Now i have little wax ingots I can use for cosmetic fixes. They also now become color chips for very lightly colored candles.

I LOVE the look of adv but hate the HT. I have better luck with mixing 464 and adv. I'm testing a jar now with the mix and smell a 8oz "jamaica me crazy" candle from my kitchen to my living room. i do live in a 2 bed apartment but believe me I couldn't get the adv to throw right in front of my face.

Here are the tops of my candles with 464/cba.

Interesting, I haven't been thrilled with the HT of the Advanced, mixing with some 464 could be a fun experiment. Any suggestions for a ratio of mix to start at?

It's all in the marketing, eh?

"$150 Seedless Watermelon candle that smells and looks like the real thing. It even returns to the texture of a Seedless Watermelon because of our proprietary and specially environmentally friendly patent pending process. You will have to use a special warning, NOT EDIBLE, because of the vibrant realism of this candle."

LOL, love it!! Oh and BTW, I'm in AZ too. Looking forward to being able to melt wax in the garage when the outside temp his 110F

I does seem to be a good product (CB Advanced), I like it. It's just taken me about 20 lbs to find some wicks I like in various containers.

Looks like watermelon to me, if it had seeds I swear it was.

My scents are from either from Peak or Candle Science. Next variables being tested are 3 tlb of stearic and the LX20 wick. Fragrance will be the last thing tested problem is, i like so many, hopefully there will be similarity on how they effect the burn. It would be disappointing the have to conditions out for each scent.

What'd you do to this one? And if you add fragrances to the mix, they aren't fragrances from Hobby Lobby are they?

This was a 3x6 pillar made with HL wax and 2 tbs/pound stearic acid and an LX-22 wick. A slight green color was added and no FO. Gentle hugging was applied during the burn. While it can still be improved upon, it was 1000x better than the original picture that I posted, no bulging, no burn through, no soot and no drips.

I have another one now with an LX-20 wick and 3 tbs of stearic.

Here is a photo of my second try at a paraffin pillar based on you suggestions, I think it is a marked improvement.

For a 3" diameter soy-based candle (CB Advanced in my case) I am using an HTP wick, either a 126 or a 1212 depending on FO load and color. I've been very happy with the HTP wicks.

I've been using the CB Advanced Soy wax for a few months now, it is a one pour wax with a great texture and does produce great tops. I've seen a little frosting but that may just me my newbie technique. My main issue has been finding the proper wicks but if you already are familiar with soy you may already know the proper wicks for it. I give it 3.5 thumbs up out of a possible 4.

I went to an LX-18 for the pillar blend in votives and that worked if they were in a tight fitting holder, if not you end up with a dark candle with a lot of unburned waxed. I having not tired the CD wicks but HTP would be a good choice to start with. I suggest getting sample wick packs.

I have not wicked for any pillar that has not had a uniform shape before and am curious as to what "rules" people use for spherical candles. The max diameter is 3". Wicking for that would be my first thought but as the diameter decreases towards the end I'm not sure what would happen.

Thanks for any advice.

I sometimes see that with my Advanced Soy candles and HTP wicks, it may go thru another weak cycle too. My question is, would you sell a candle that behaved like this?