JoyPeaceElise Posted October 14, 2018 Share Posted October 14, 2018 Good afternoon, I recently had some trouble with sinkholes due to uneven cooling, which I believe was because I left my candles to cool too close together. Now, I am having this issue where the candles dry in funny patterns, leaving an ugly looking candle body because of discoloration and pockets of, something! (See picture attached). This candle was made with Candle Science scent Fallen Leaves with C-3 soy wax. The scent was added at 170 (fragrance has a flashpoint of 200). The candle was poured at 140 (because when I poured the batch before at 125 they came out chunky and curdled on top). Does anyone know why this is happening and how I can correct it? Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenni Wix Posted October 18, 2018 Share Posted October 18, 2018 I don't have experience with this specifically but I'm guessing it might help if you list how much fragrance you used per pound of wax. If there are pools of oil, I'm assuming there is too much FO to be incorporated fully in the wax. If its just pockets, it could be a moisture or cooling thing? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerven Posted October 18, 2018 Share Posted October 18, 2018 I wish I could give an answer but I'm stumped as well. Incidentally, I saw something very similar in an experimental non-soy wax blend that used CS Black Sea. The curdled appearance didn't correct after melting and repouring. Might be the FO? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trappeur Posted October 18, 2018 Share Posted October 18, 2018 It looks like a cooling process to me. When the candle is completely cooled it should all disappear. I have had that happen many times to me but once cooled, those spots were gone. Trappeur Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted October 18, 2018 Share Posted October 18, 2018 How well are you mixing? I use C3 and heat to 185, add fo and color. Stir for a good 2 minutes it’s a wide silicone spatula. Cool to 105 and pour into warm glass jars. Perfectly smooth candles with no cavities. Any higher of a pour temp will leave you with nasty cavities. Uneven mixing can curdle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted October 18, 2018 Share Posted October 18, 2018 Incidentally, I’m going to chime in for @moonshine for a sec. hoping she chimes in here. she and I make the same test candles a couple of states apart and compare notes. We make them several times a week comparing burn tests too. The differences can be astonishing. Most recently we made candles using the same wax, same jars, same fo load, same bottle of fragrance, everything and her candle curdled while mine came out smooth as a baby’s bum. The differences? The stirring tool, fo add temps and pouring temps. In hers the fragrance looks exactly like that picture above. The FO is between those layers of wax. I actually added my FO much lower and poured at the same temp (105). In all reality mine should have come out like that, but no, it was perfectly fine. So today I sent her a set of the same spatulas I use since this is not the first time our candles look so drastically different at the end. As much as i I balked at taking temps early on (and for years after) I confess that only when I began to pay attention, make them the exact same way every time did I finally make a halfway decent, repeatable candle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerven Posted October 19, 2018 Share Posted October 19, 2018 Wait, what... The FO blended in smoothly at a lower temp but not at the higher temp? What FO was that? What was the flash point? Maybe there is something to that whole flash point method of adding FO... or maybe there's some bizarre polymerization going on. Otherwise, I can't wrap my head around that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted October 19, 2018 Share Posted October 19, 2018 7 hours ago, Kerven said: Wait, what... The FO blended in smoothly at a lower temp but not at the higher temp? What FO was that? What was the flash point? Maybe there is something to that whole flash point method of adding FO... or maybe there's some bizarre polymerization going on. Otherwise, I can't wrap my head around that one. I use that FO in the same wax and 4 others without that appearance. Strike that. I use same name by different manufacturer. I remember seeing another pic just like that one recently. Something else is going on. What is the lot # of the wax? What FO load? how long are you stirring, etc. what are you stirring with? Is your scale accurate? is your thermometer accurate? are you heating over a double boiler? we need more info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerven Posted October 19, 2018 Share Posted October 19, 2018 Was that particular batch of C3 used in other candles and turned out fine? If so, my two guesses would be an accidental mistake in heating (heated too high, maybe) or the FO did something weird. I found the tester I made with CS Black Sea that did something very similar. It looks better several (about 6) months later but the distinct curdling and layering of whatever separated out is still visible. The top even has a crusty appearance with many, many itty bitty, partially exposed pockets under the surface. It was an experimental blend of co92, stearic, and an additive. It's strange because I use a very similar ratio of these ingredients in another blend, which uses about 1% castor flakes and looks great. I'm convinced it's the FO doing something it shouldn't be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted October 19, 2018 Share Posted October 19, 2018 @Kerven, look at this thread for more data to piece the puzzle together. The temp WRT vessels is a new issue with a change to glass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerven Posted October 19, 2018 Share Posted October 19, 2018 (edited) I should be able to figure this out... but what is WRT? Incidentally, the candle that curdled for me was made in a straight sided tumbler from CS. Edited October 19, 2018 by Kerven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerven Posted October 19, 2018 Share Posted October 19, 2018 (edited) Oooh, you know what... It didn't occur to me until now but I don't recall seeing how much FO was added in either thread. How much was it? Too much FO can cause sweating, but even more FO can cause curdling. Edited October 19, 2018 by Kerven Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonshine Posted October 23, 2018 Share Posted October 23, 2018 On 10/18/2018 at 5:31 PM, TallTayl said: Incidentally, I’m going to chime in for @moonshine for a sec. hoping she chimes in here. she and I make the same test candles a couple of states apart and compare notes. We make them several times a week comparing burn tests too. The differences can be astonishing. Most recently we made candles using the same wax, same jars, same fo load, same bottle of fragrance, everything and her candle curdled while mine came out smooth as a baby’s bum. The differences? The stirring tool, fo add temps and pouring temps. In hers the fragrance looks exactly like that picture above. The FO is between those layers of wax. I actually added my FO much lower and poured at the same temp (105). In all reality mine should have come out like that, but no, it was perfectly fine. So today I sent her a set of the same spatulas I use since this is not the first time our candles look so drastically different at the end. As much as i I balked at taking temps early on (and for years after) I confess that only when I began to pay attention, make them the exact same way every time did I finally make a halfway decent, repeatable candle. Yep....mind boggling that mine looked just like the OP picture with the exact same lot of fragrance oil and scent and same wax and everything - except my stiring tool my jar was a 12 ounce straight sided one and this was a first for me - I have never seen this phenomenon ever and I always use glass I am changing my batteries in my scale and using a new thermometer along with my new stir tool @TallTayl, thank you! next time around Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cazzak Posted July 7, 2019 Share Posted July 7, 2019 I had this same experience with my candles which i made last night. Im reluctant to redo them. Have you burnt them and does it behave normally, is it just an aesthetic thing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candle199910 Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 Hi I had this same problem. I used coconut soy wax. And a 6% FO load. I dont know what happened I did everything to manufacturers instructions. 5 days later then curdle appearance is less but not completely gone. I'm leaving it longer to see if it will go away but on the sides of my jar it seems to either have wet spots or cracks happening. I'll leave it to see what happens. I'm just as confused and frustrated as you are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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