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Palm wax shrinkage


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On 11/1/2018 at 9:51 PM, Ladymvb said:

I did something wrong. The bottom got solid before the top.  Do you all wrap your jars &/or place them under something so the cool slow?

 

Set your jars on cookie or baking racks and set the jars about 1-2" apart. You want air flow over, around, and underneath your jars. This allows for more even cooling and will help with the problem of your wax hardening faster at the bottom.

 

When I set up for candlemaking I pull out my oven racks and place them on my countertops. Then I place my wicked jars on top of the racks so there is air flow underneath the jars. My jars are also set apart from each other so there is air flow in between jars. 

 

I pour very hot around 200-210 degrees F. The heat of the wax heats up the whole jar and the jars are set up so that air flows all around. That way my jars cool slowly and evenly allowing maximum crystalization patterns to form. I flip my jars just as the top layer has crusted over. I know when its ready by seeing the wax slosh around just underneath the crusted tops. Thats the perfect time to do the jar flip. I flip each jar and place it on the same rack so it will continue to cool evenly.

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2 hours ago, Candybee said:

 

Set your jars on cookie or baking racks and set the jars about 1-2" apart. You want air flow over, around, and underneath your jars. This allows for more even cooling and will help with the problem of your wax hardening faster at the bottom.

 

When I set up for candlemaking I pull out my oven racks and place them on my countertops. Then I place my wicked jars on top of the racks so there is air flow underneath the jars. My jars are also set apart from each other so there is air flow in between jars. 

 

I pour very hot around 200-210 degrees F. The heat of the wax heats up the whole jar and the jars are set up so that air flows all around. That way my jars cool slowly and evenly allowing maximum crystalization patterns to form. I flip my jars just as the top layer has crusted over. I know when its ready by seeing the wax slosh around just underneath the crusted tops. Thats the perfect time to do the jar flip. I flip each jar and place it on the same rack so it will continue to cool evenly.

I set them on the cookie rack; however, I place a thick layer of paper towels and a styrofoam on top of the rack, and then put my jars on that.  I guess I should not do that?   Right?

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27 minutes ago, Ladymvb said:

I set them on the cookie rack; however, I place a thick layer of paper towels and a styrofoam on top of the rack, and then put my jars on that.  I guess I should not do that?   Right?

No, probably not. that's probably why the bottoms are cooling so much faster than your tops. The towel and styrofoam is absorbing the heat and cooling it more quickly than the tops are doing since there is nothing on the tops absorbing that heat. I don't use a cookie sheet, I just place my jars on the counter with nothing under the jars. Never really have a problem of them cooling unevenly. 

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JC is right. Nix the towels and styrofoam.

 

I would like to just add I used to place my jars directly on the countertops and the bottom 1/2" of wax would never form the crystal patterns like the rest of the jar. So I spoke to my wax supplier and they suggested the baking racks for air flow under the jars. So that's when I tried putting the jars on top of baking racks and then the crystalization went all the way to the bottom of the jars. So that is why I have been using baking racks to place my jars on top of ever since. I use them because they work for me.

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