TallPineCandles Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 Good morning. As of late, after sitting for about 12hrs some of my candles look like the photos. This is 464 w/8% F/O. The F/O is Grapefruit. I heated to 180, added F/O around 160 and poured at 150 (+/- 5). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 Sinkholes. Soy is famous for them. Even tops that appear “perfect” often have these voids under the surface we prevent them with managed Cooling temps, pour temps, and additives to me it looks like they were poured too hot and cooled slowly. Large grains in soy usually point to the cooling rate. the cracked tops indicate the candles cooled at the top before the middle could cool and complete the shrink phase. Soy wax is brittle. In cooking terms it is “short”. The wax has no choice other than to make air cavities And cracks in the top when it is not “stretchy” like many paraffin waxes. All wax expands when warm and shrinks when cool. Controlling the amount of shrink solves 99% of candle problems like this. many disagree, but I have the best luck preventing cavities in soy by pouring at the cloudy and even slightly slushy stage. Smooth tops are a nice bonus for the effort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallPineCandles Posted April 25, 2021 Author Share Posted April 25, 2021 1 hour ago, TallTayl said: but I have the best luck preventing cavities in soy by pouring at the cloudy and even slightly slushy stage. Smooth tops are a nice bonus for the effort. I think I read recently that heating 464 to 150, adding F/O at 125 then pouring between 110-105 stops this. Have you tried this and if you have does it seem to be better? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted April 25, 2021 Share Posted April 25, 2021 23 minutes ago, TallPineCandles said: I think I read recently that heating 464 to 150, adding F/O at 125 then pouring between 110-105 stops this. Have you tried this and if you have does it seem to be better? 464 contains additives that need some heat. All soy wax needs more heat than these new myths. Otherwise you will get seepage where the fragrance pools at the bottom and causes potential for fire. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallPineCandles Posted April 26, 2021 Author Share Posted April 26, 2021 7 hours ago, TallTayl said: All soy wax needs more heat than these new myths. So what do you suggest? You stated that you like to pour when cloudy or slightly slushy. Do you still heat to 180 then add the F/O immediately then wait until cloudy/slushy to pour? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted April 26, 2021 Share Posted April 26, 2021 I heat to 185*F typically, then stir in fragrance and color with a wide silicone spatula for a good two minutes. Then I set the pitcher in front of a fan and stir every few minutes to fully move the heat around until the wax starts to cloud. Pour. Takes no time at all. If you do not stir while rapid cooling, the wax will not cool evenly and you will end up with lumps of cold wax stuck to the sides of the pour pot along with warmer wax in the pot. This is not fun. Stir, stir, stir to keep the wax liquid to ensure a smooth pour and perfect tops. when in production mode I set box fans flat (blowing upward) on the bottom tier of wire shelves like these: Pour pots would line up above the fan on the other shelves to cool from the bottom. I would work from left to right stirring until cooled to temp, pour, repeat. I could get through 300 or so candles in mixed fragrance quantities in a couple hour session from start to finish. I would print all the labels as the pour pots cooled. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NightLight Posted April 26, 2021 Share Posted April 26, 2021 Agreed pouring too hot. You must add fragrance at 180 to combine into wax. 160 too hot. Do tests for your environment in pour temp. 150, 140, 130. Three testers no biggie. Monitor room temp this is factor. Each person has different pour technique as we all have different work spaces. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallPineCandles Posted April 26, 2021 Author Share Posted April 26, 2021 13 hours ago, TallTayl said: Then I set the pitcher in front of a fan and stir every few minutes to fully move the heat around until the wax starts to cloud. Pour. Never thought of setting my pour pot in front of a fan. Going to give this a try. Will let you know how this works for me. You are always such a help TallTayl. Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted April 26, 2021 Share Posted April 26, 2021 3 minutes ago, TallPineCandles said: Never thought of setting my pour pot in front of a fan. Going to give this a try. Will let you know how this works for me. You are always such a help TallTayl. Thank you. Hope my tricks work well for you. No matter what you do stir more often than you think you need to. Moving the heat around is key to small grains forming in the soy. Small grains mean no cracking, pitting and super shiny surfaces. I like the wide silicone spatulas because they move lots of wax quickly without adding air. You can scrape the sides very effectively with no effort, which is a key to soy wax. I have an air cleaner like this one in the shop. The air comes out the top, and is perfectly sized for lining up a pour pot or three when I don’t want the big racks in the way. It is also handy for quick chilling other small products in molds. if I absolutely HAVE to make soy candles these are my most prized tools. It is much easier to not need to make soy candles any more, lol. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallPineCandles Posted April 26, 2021 Author Share Posted April 26, 2021 16 minutes ago, TallTayl said: if I absolutely HAVE to make soy candles these are my most prized tools. It is much easier to not need to make soy candles any more, lol. So, what wax are you using now? Since you do not HAVE to make soy candles...LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted April 26, 2021 Share Posted April 26, 2021 1 hour ago, TallPineCandles said: So, what wax are you using now? Since you do not HAVE to make soy candles...LOL Mostly coconut blends. I’ve learned enough about most of the coconut waxes to tweak them as I need them and make custom from scratch for myself. Thankfully I’m not doing fairs and festivals anymore so I can take my sweet time and just enjoy the whole process again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallPineCandles Posted April 26, 2021 Author Share Posted April 26, 2021 Good for you....do you run a website for your products? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted April 26, 2021 Share Posted April 26, 2021 I do - both a business site and Etsy - without coconut candles at this time. Too distracted by the perfect spring weather to force myself into the studio. I can pm the address to not break the self-promotion restriction. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NightLight Posted April 26, 2021 Share Posted April 26, 2021 Interesting observation. Was at friends house who has tons of high end candles, soy and coconut. The majority of high end are paraffin blends. The cold and hot throw, appearance are excellent. Coconut wax candles appearance nice, cold throw not so good. Soy candles I have seen age at house, not good. To me if you want to sell wholesale, the paraffin blends are winners across board for fragrance, appearance and longevity. Regarding coconut wax blends, the waxes are always sold out, and formulas not stable. The coconut wax beads I tried were disgusting smelling. The Igi coconut wax was not impressed with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted April 26, 2021 Share Posted April 26, 2021 6 minutes ago, NightLight said: Interesting observation. Was at friends house who has tons of high end candles, soy and coconut. The majority of high end are paraffin blends. The cold and hot throw, appearance are excellent. Coconut wax candles appearance nice, cold throw not so good. Soy candles I have seen age at house, not good. To me if you want to sell wholesale, the paraffin blends are winners across board for fragrance, appearance and longevity. Regarding coconut wax blends, the waxes are always sold out, and formulas not stable. The coconut wax beads I tried were disgusting smelling. The Igi coconut wax was not impressed with. I was not a fan of coconut at first, but it grew on me as I struggled and learned more. the outages are maddening, just like the shortages of my soaping oils for so long. When I got out of my head and just rolled with it things came easier. Paraffin varies from batch to batch like any other, moreso lately, and the price rose steadily. Most paraffin blends are not my favorite to burn as I can smell the base wax too much and the soot... th worst was the weird flame differences between burns depending on where in the country they were burned. 🤷🏻♀️, but they have a place in the market for sure. I like a good candle no matter the wax. soy wax is HEAVY. Like burning sludge. Good on the lobby for such a powerful campaign to make everyone think it is so good. Great marketing story. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daisymay66 Posted July 9, 2021 Share Posted July 9, 2021 On 4/26/2021 at 12:37 PM, TallTayl said: I do - both a business site and Etsy - without coconut candles at this time. Too distracted by the perfect spring weather to force myself into the studio. I can pm the address to not break the self-promotion restriction. Would you pm me your info please? I’d love to try a Coconut candle and I know yours would be amazing 😻 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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