Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Admin note: this post appears to be self-promotion intended to engender emotion and gather clicks to their sales site. If responses get out of hand the thread will be locked

 

Soy wax is natural and made from soybeans, while paraffin wax is made from petroleum. Petroleum is used to produce oil and gas. Discovered in 1850, paraffin wax is made by removing the waxy substance from crude oil. Paraffin wax has a lot of toxins, which, when inhaled, can have adverse reactions, including nausea, vomiting, headaches, or even benzene pollution that can lead to lung cancer. 
On the other hand, [deleted for self promotion] is natural and emits no toxic fumes upon burning. It is an Eco-friendly alternative to hazardous smoke.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This topic feels like bait, but I will play. 

Anyone thinking soy bean oil wax is all natural is not fully presenting the process.  you don’t just squeeze a soy bean and magically produce oil and wax.  Hexane is used to chemically extract the oils. Then the oil is hydrogenated to make it stiff enough to withstand being in a candle.  Many additives are combined depending on the brand and purpose to hold fragrance, and perform like a candle is expected. 

 

I live in soy country. The amount of chemical fertilizer and pesticides and herbicides sprayed to produce a heavily government subsidized crop is not ecologically preferable to any other wax. Farmer friends have given their lives to cancers directly linked to the chemicals sprayed on their fields. The human cost, combined with the runoff into our drinking waterways is no better than that from golf courses. 
 

paraffin is inert, and presents no difference in what is released into the air than any other carbon based fuel.  When properly combusted any candle wax will produce water and carbon dioxide. Beeswax does the exact same. As does tallow.  As does palm. As does olive oil which was used for thousands of years before. As does carpet and other decor people bring inside Most willingly. 
 

when adding fragrance, yes even essential oils, the resulting air pollution is the same. 
 

let’s all extol the virtues of our chosen fuel without the need to parrot talking points created by one lobby or another. Fear marketing is old. 

  • Like 11
  • Thanks 1
  • Thumbs Up 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Also, paraffin wax is a by-product of something that is already in use.  We can't, and should not, ignore that clearing land for waxes without regard for the natural habitat or the creatures that live there should not be something that goes unchecked or unregulated, our resources are not infinite.  And, yes, when chemicals are sprayed without considering the consequences, we are truly upsetting the balance ... we need our bugs, our birds, our butterflies for reasons other than their mere beauty, and some of these chemicals are being found in our own food!  So although waxes from soy and palm may be from plants, we can't let that blind us to how the farming of those plants may be harmful in their own ways.

  • Like 6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

IMO, plant-based is preferable to petroleum by-products. Sustainable, renewable, responsible agriculture is a possibility, and we have a large selection of oil-producing plants to choose from... albeit those oils will need to be extracted (ideally, without solvents) and modified to achieve wax-like consistencies. I wish they would make more waxes and wax-like materials from oils such as rice bran, apricot, wheat germ, etc.; the common, domestic oils that are used in a variety of industries and don't require as aggressive practices as soy production. I long for the day when we can scrub carbon from the atmosphere and turn it into all sorts of materials, candle wax included.

 

I'm not going to get into the whole decomposition/combustion products of paraffin vs botanical waxes. In an ideal combustion, the products of paraffin would be water, carbon dioxide, and energy, but it's not often that we see ideal combustion (read: without carbon balls/mushrooming, soot, or smoke) in a candle, so we end up with partially reacted products or secondary reactions. Same holds for botanical waxes.

 

Whether or not to use paraffin is something of a moral and ethical dilemma for some. I'm not touching that. However, I will say it has been proven that mishandling of petroleum and petroleum products can be harmful, if not disasterous, to both flora and fauna.

 

Choose your poison.

Edited by Kerven
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This post reminds me of all the people I see on Reddit dumping $5 worth of essential oil into each soy candle they make just to get a semi good HT and having no idea how toxic some of them can be when burned.

 

But it's natural, right! Burning anything natural is fine!

  • Like 5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, bfroberts said:

People are shameless when it comes to self-promo.

 

They certainly can be.  We really don't need to scare people out of using paraffin candles in order to sell soy candles, that's a negative form of advertising, imo.  There are a lot of people who like all kinds of candles.

  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 5 months later...
On 9/22/2020 at 6:35 AM, Forrest said:

I used to use 6006 because I like to argue with myself, but then I realized that millions of dinosaurs were killed in the production of my paraffin wax, so I'm switching to pure soy, 

 

I hope this is sarcastic...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 3/18/2021 at 5:01 PM, NightLight said:

Well then we better bring up the topic of “organic soy wax” that I see some Etsy sellers say they use.

Really? REALLY. NOT!

If they can get away with saying it, then I should be able to get away with saying that paraffin is organic.  After all, it is carbon based and requires zero pesticides...

  • Like 1
  • Thumbs Up 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...