Missmalodi Posted September 3, 2020 Share Posted September 3, 2020 Hi there, I'm trying to balance melt point and hardness with my candle wax. I want to prevent cracking in the cold but also prevent melting in the sun. I have a number of paraffin waxes I'm testing with varying congealing point and hardness (dnn). It seems the waxes with higher melting points are more prone to cracking (especially when setting). I wonder if there's something I can add to soften the wax and reduce the likelihood of cracking, while preserving the melt point? Thanks MM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted September 3, 2020 Share Posted September 3, 2020 Not sure where you are located or what is available to you, but a wax that sounds like it should fit out of the box is 4786. It is very rubbery for lack of a better word. What you’re describing is the need for a gellant or plasticizer. Without knowing what you’re working with it’s hard to advise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Missmalodi Posted September 3, 2020 Author Share Posted September 3, 2020 Hi there, thanks so much for your advice. I forgot to mention, I'm making pillar candles. I see this one is a container wax, but perhaps I can still make a pillar candle with it? I'm located in the UK. I haven't really settled on a particular wax yet - I have tried Kerax 4600 (congealing 56C and dnn 14) but that melted in the sun and I have tried Kerax 1301 with higher congealing point (64C) and same hardness (14dnn) but that cracked significantly when it cooled after pouring? Perhaps that was just to do with the pour but I have read that Paraffin waxes are particularly brittle. I also read somewhere that adding a soft microcrystalline wax could help? I'm not sure? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Ford Posted September 9, 2020 Share Posted September 9, 2020 small amount of petroleum jelly or mineral oil....2-4% by weight Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Missmalodi Posted September 10, 2020 Author Share Posted September 10, 2020 Awesome! Thanks, Brad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carinahughes Posted January 3, 2021 Share Posted January 3, 2021 On 9/10/2020 at 12:08 PM, Missmalodi said: Awesome! Thanks, Brad. HI Missmalodi, how did that go? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Missmalodi Posted March 3, 2021 Author Share Posted March 3, 2021 On 1/3/2021 at 11:25 AM, Carinahughes said: HI Missmalodi, how did that go? Haven’t tried it yet! Am waiting for the weather to warm up before I get back into the workshop! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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