white candles and fo

[Vee]

Guys 

Whenever I make white candles (Paraffin wax) and i add any fragrance oil to it I have noticed they turn yellowish after some time.

In fact sometimes as soon as they dry.Even tho i add white color and UV inhibitor they still turn yellowish

And if I make them without FO they don't turn yellow tho they don't stay pure white either

Any ideas on how to make white candles with FO that will stay white...am sure there is some trick/product out there  as i have seen white paraffin candles with FO

Thanks in advance to all the guys who make the effort to help newbies like myself

[ncraiders]

12 minutes ago, Vee said:

Guys 

Whenever I make white candles (Paraffin wax) and i add any fragrance oil to it I have noticed they turn yellowish after some time.

In fact sometimes as soon as they dry.Even tho i add white color and UV inhibitor they still turn yellowish

And if I make them without FO they don't turn yellow tho they don't stay pure white either

Any ideas on how to make white candles with FO that will stay white...am sure there is some trick/product out there  as i have seen white paraffin candles with FO

Thanks in advance to all the guys who make the effort to help newbies like myself

I am not thinking that is because the fragrance oil has Vanillin content.  Vanillin causes it to discolor.  It is the same with soaps as well.  In fact reading up on soap making is were i picked this info up at.  You would most likely need a Fragrance with a 0% vanillin content to keep the candle white.

Edited July 10, 2018 by ncraiders

[runner14jc]

Vanillin is definitely the biggest culprit. There are other fragrance ingredients that can cause discoloration too though. Cinnamon and some citruses for example.

[birdcharm]

Besides the vanilla content aspect of it, are the oils yellow in color if you look at them in a clear vial?  Some f/o's are amber in color, while others are yellow, and some are very pale yellow or nearly or totally clear.  I think this does make a difference too. 

 

 

[Vee]

Yes some FO’s are a pale yellow... but how do I fix the problem? There are companies that make white candles with FO... do they use something to cut the yellowness of wax?i read somewhere that one can use titanium dioxide... not sure of that and what quantity to use. It may affect the burn of the candle too...

[runner14jc]

@Vee I've never tried any of them, but there are candle whitening powders available on the market. I think Lonestar may have one. It could be worth a try?

[birdcharm]

On 7/10/2018 at 11:28 PM, Vee said:

Yes some FO’s are a pale yellow... but how do I fix the problem? There are companies that make white candles with FO... do they use something to cut the yellowness of wax?i read somewhere that one can use titanium dioxide... not sure of that and what quantity to use. It may affect the burn of the candle too...

 

A little bit of white color block or titanium dioxide normally is fine, but too much can clog some wicks.  I'm presuming your wax already has some stearic acid included. 

 

Before there was sufficient information available for f/o's with gel candles (the polarity issue), I was noting the shade or clearness of some scents.  I probably have a list around here somewhere for a couple of supplier's scents as to if they are clear or not, because yellowish f/o's in gel would affect the clearness (i.e., make them yellowish).  I've switched to non-polar for those now for the safety and clarity reasons, but with your question, I can't help but wonder if you used clear f/o's if that would be better ...?

 

[Laura C]

Hi @Vee. So, I'm curious, did you make any white candles with white color block or titanium dioxide? Did they turn out the way you wanted them?

[Vee]

The titanium dioxide did help, I used very little .and of course if I make them unscented that really helps.