Wick Help - Joywax in 3" Diameter Container

[TheUnquietKey]

Hi All! 

 

Sorry this is going to be a long one! I'm a newbie here on the forums as well a newbie to candle making. Over the past three months, I have been diligently wick testing and regularly visiting CraftServer for tips and tricks of the trade and finally decided, it would be worth my while to come on here and ask for some guidance/advice. I know three months is the equivalent of mere minutes when compared to the years worth of experience many of you have and the years it takes to become truly skilled at this art form; however, I'm very serious about refining my skills and making this a lifelong hobby/career. I had my heart set on putting together the perfect Halloween collection for release this year but I'm struggling with finding the right wick and I refuse to put out a sub par product. If my first collection has to wait until Christmas or maybe even next year, I'm okay with that so long as my product is safe and of utmost quality.

 

To break things down: 

 

Wax type: Joywax (parasoy)

Wick Types I've Tried: 

 

CD8, 10, 12, 14, 16, and 18 

HTP 105 and 1212

LX 20, 21, and 22

Zinc 51-32-18

Zinc 60-44-18

Large Wood Wicks

What FO: Testing wicks with joywax only, no FO to start (see below)

What % FO: N/A

What size candle - 8.5 oz. 3" Diameter. Link: https://www.candlescience.com/containers/straight-sided-tumbler-jar-libbey

What additives are you using: None

 

I've noticed there have been many discussions on the forums about whether it's better to test with or without FO but I've stuck to testing without because I really wanted to get a feel for how the wicks react with just the wax. I understand many FO's can react differently with wicks/wax so I prefer to have solid notes on wick/wax/container only before adding FO. 

 

Saying that, throughout my testing, I found that CD12's seemed to be a really solid option. They burned cleanly, no sooting, no mushrooming, FMP (very minimal hangup but I have a feeling I'm going to get this no matter what with joywax because it's so soft).  I tested CD12's without FO first and was happy with the result so poured again with FO and was super impressed with both the CT and HT. But....womp womp womp, I found that at certain times during my test burns, the glass was uncomfortably hot. For testing, I've only been pouring to about 3/8ths of the glass. I've read from several sources that the bottom 1/4-3/8-1/2 of burn are typically the most troublesome and where any major issues with the wick/flame will present themselves and I'm glad I did this because I was able to determine how hot the glass was getting. The glass at it's hottest point was about 150-152F.  It never stayed at this temperature for long and many times throughout the test burns, I could comfortably touch the glass and move it but it was those few times where I had to pull my hand away that caused me concern. 

 

HTP105 burned very similar to CD12 for me but I also had the same problem, the glass was too hot to handle at times during the test burns. 

 

The others all seemed way too big (large dancing flame/sooting/really deep MP) or way too small (tunneling). 

 

I plan to test HTP104 this weekend to see if maybe I'll get similar results to 105 but mitigate some of the hot glass issue. 

 

Short of changing wax/glass, does anyone have any suggestions/recommendations of what I should try next? If I ultimately have to change wax/glass, I certainly will but I want to give this combo my most earnest effort first. 

 

I hope I've given enough information. Let me know if I've left anything out! 

 

Thank you in advance!

 

Kristin

 

[TallTayl]

I would give csn a try. When Cd is a little too much csn seems to fill the void. 

 

Cdn do also for the most part. 

[TallTayl]

Good on ya for all the diligent testing ❤️

 

You will be so so happy you mastered a wax. Once you know how your case behaves (and can detect any changes on the next) you will rocket to successful and safe production. 

[Sarah S]

Great testing procedures! You are learning a lot!

Joy wax is so soft, it's really best to avoid a full MP until you're at least halfway down the jar. In my experience, a full MP in early burns is going to give you a hot sooty mess toward the end. 

Try smaller wicks, or a cooler burning series like TT suggested. I love HTPs, for that's size container I would start with an 83.

[ErronB]

I don't use that wax anymore because I couldn't get over the weird smell it has when burning (and the cure times were drastic with some scents),  but when I did, I used to use CD10 mostly for a 8oz tin, which is about 3". But obviously FO's are gonna play a big part in what size will work best. I did not have much luck with other wick series.

 

 

[TheUnquietKey]

Thanks everyone for your responses! 

 

TallTayl: Are CSN and CDN wicks the same, for the most part? If not, how are they different from one another? Is the major difference with both of them that they burn cooler than other series? 

 

Sarah S: From your experience with Joywax, did you find that any hang-up you had early on in testing melted down eventually about halfway down the jar? I took your advise and tried HTP83. I did a 7-hour power burn and still have a bit more than an 1/8" of wax on one side that hasn't melted. From your testing experiences, do you think this wax will eventually catch up or will the memory ring I've created after 7 hours prevent that? 

 

ErronB: That's so strange, I haven't experienced any weird smell from the joywax when burning and I've tested through two full slabs of it. Perhaps they've tweaked the formula? I tried CD10 and had a similar experience to HTP83, noted above. The only difference is the CD MP seemed much deeper than the HTP MP. I just fear that the remaining 1/8" or so of hang up won't catch up because of the memory ring.  

[TallTayl]

23 minutes ago, TheUnquietKey said:

Thanks everyone for your responses! 

 

TallTayl: Are CSN and CDN wicks the same, for the most part? If not, how are they different from one another? Is the major difference with both of them that they burn cooler than other series? 

 

 

The CSN and cd/CDN are made by different manufacturers and do burn differently. They are different enough to keep me buying all 3. Mostly cd and CSN are my usual go-to.

 

 

cd/CDN are the same manufacturer but have different chemical treatments on the fibers.