Container Blend Survey Results

[topofmurrayhill]

The results are in.

Don't forget this survey was not conducted in a scientific manner. The sample is composed of any CT member who chose to respond, sometimes prompted via PM, and respondents were free to rate any wax they pleased.

The survey isn't intended to suggest which container blend is best. Each product is used to good effect by experienced candlemakers and rated highly by some people. The best wax is the wax that meets your needs and expectations as well as the wax you know how to use well.

Each blend is formulated according to a different strategy, which typically involves tradeoffs of one quality for another. Nobody has yet discovered a formula that produces the perfect wax, but I hoped we could uncover a few clues about what aspects of wax performance are optimized by the various approaches taken in these products.

Most of all, I hoped it would just be fun and interesting to see how this comes out!

[topofmurrayhill]

Scores for each wax and category are the mean of all the 1 to 5 ratings. The number in parentheses is the standard deviation, which is an index of variability. A lower standard deviation means the respondents were more in agreement. A higher standard deviation means opinions varied more.

J-223 (IGI 4633) - based on 24 ratings

One-Pour: 3.56 good to very good (0.95)

Scent Throw: 4.48 very good to excellent (0.80)

Glass Adhesion: 2.44 fair to good (1.31)

Wicking & Burn: 3.77 very good (0.95)

Appearance: 4.10 very good (0.87)

J-50 (IGI 4636) - based on 12 ratings

One-Pour: 4.29 very good to excellent (0.66)

Scent Throw: 4.67 very good to excellent (0.42)

Glass Adhesion: 2.58 fair to good (0.67)

Wicking & Burn: 4.21 very good (0.63)

Appearance: 3.92 very good (1.04)

Comfort Blend (IGI 4627) - based on 15 ratings

One-Pour: 4.00 very good (0.97)

Scent Throw: 4.20 very good (1.05)

Glass Adhesion: 3.33 good to very good (0.94)

Wicking & Burn: 2.27 fair to good (1.12)

Appearance: 4.13 very good (0.96)

Harmony Blend (IGI 4630) - based on 16 ratings

One-Pour: 4.06 very good (0.97)

Scent Throw: 4.16 very good (0.90)

Glass Adhesion: 3.03 good (1.12)

Wicking & Burn: 3.44 good to very good (1.27)

Appearance: 4.19 very good (0.88)

[topofmurrayhill]

One-Pour Performance

1. J-50 4.29 (0.66)

2. Harmony 4.06 (0.97)

3. Comfort 4.00 (0.97)

4. J-223 3.56 (0.95)

Scent Throw

1. J-50 4.67 (0.42)

2. J-223 4.48 (0.80)

3. Comfort 4.20 (1.05)

4. Harmony 4.16 (0.90)

Glass Adhesion

1. Comfort 3.33 (0.94)

2. Harmony 3.03 (1.12)

3. J-50 2.58 (0.67)

4. J-223 2.44 (1.31)

Wicking and Burn

1. J-50 4.21 (0.63)

2. J-223 3.77 (0.95)

3. Harmony 3.44 (1.27)

4. Comfort 2.27 (1.12)

Appearance

1. Harmony 4.19 (0.88)

2. Comfort 4.13 (0.96)

3. J-223 4.10 (0.87)

4. J-50 3.92 (1.04)

[Jane42]

Thanks!

[topofmurrayhill]

-- J-50 has the edge in one-pour performance. It's also a strong point of the original IGI blends. Respondents seemed reasonably satisfied with the one-pour performance of the blends, but less so with J-223.

-- All the container blends are considered to be good throwers, but the J waxes have a slight edge over the original IGI blends and J-50 stands out somewhat.

-- Respondents seemed least satisfied with the glass adhesion of the blends (resistance to wet spots). The original IGI blends have an edge in this regard. J-223 came in last, but with a lot of disagreement among the respondents, perhaps reflecting its sensitivity to container type and pouring conditions.

-- The J waxes have the edge in ease of wicking and burn qualities. Comfort Blend seems to be the worst in this regard. Ratings for the original IGI blends don't show strong agreement between the respondents, perhaps reflecting the impact of different container types on wicking.

-- Respondents were generally satisfied with the aesthetics of the candles produced with these blends, with the original IGI blends having a slight edge.

-- The original IGI blends seems to trade off wicking and burn qualities for a flatter pour and better container adhesion.

-- The J waxes seem less "controversial" than the original IGI blends, meaning respondents were more in agreement. They seemed most in agreement over J-50.

-- Notable areas of controversy (high standard deviation) are the glass adhesion of J-223 and the wicking/burn qualities of Harmony Blend.

[topofmurrayhill]

JS 123 is the only supplier blend I received ratings for. With only 5 ratings and high standard deviations, I didn't feel the results were reliable enough to include it in the comparisons, but here are the numbers:

One-Pour: 3.80 very good (0.75)

Scent Throw: 3.00 good (1.41)

Glass Adhesion: 3.00 good (1.10)

Wicking & Burn: 2.80 good (1.17)

Appearance: 4.00 very good (1.26)

[butterfinger]

Thank you Top....I can see you spent a lot of time and effort to develop this and we appreciate it very much!!!!

[Brenda (OH)]

IMPRESSIVE !!! Your statistics remind me of my "past" career :lipsrseal and very helpful in current one

[Anna]

Thanks Top,you did alot of work!

Anna

[Fern]

That was quite interesting Top...thanks for the info!

[Prudence]

Thank you for the time & effort you put into this survey.

It is very informative and beneficial.

I got a free 10# slab of the harmony blend from my supplier and am anxious to try it.

[jenniejr]

Thanks for all the info and work you put in on this Top!

[sharyl55]

Thanks for doing this. Interesting results. I've not tested the J50. Looks like I should.

[mysty72]

Sorry I was late to the party!! I just found this message today. Thanks for putting this together, it's very helpful.

[sawyer's moon]

Wow! Thanks for all the time and effort you put into this! Looks like I've made the right choices .

Jen

[shafferbuns]

Thank you! You answered a lot of my questions in one shot. Truly appreciated!

[Wick'd]

Very interesting! Thanks for taking the time to compile it!

[Margaritamama]

That's awesome!!!! Thanks Top.....

[AngelaVA]

Wow, thanks! Now you should do one on the soy and soyblends, lol.

[Sara]

Thanks Top. The Stats Ho in me is just getting over a major orgasm.

You know an additional question I would have liked to see in there? Is an "overall" grade of the waxes. Like (example here) I might think J223 has wet spots and would rate it very poorly based on that. But based on two other factors I can overlook the wet spots and give it a "5" versus a "3". Does that make sense?

[Donita]

Thanks Top. The Stats Ho in me is just getting over a major orgasm.

You know an additional question I would have liked to see in there? Is an "overall" grade of the waxes. Like (example here) I might think J223 has wet spots and would rate it very poorly based on that. But based on two other factors I can overlook the wet spots and give it a "5" versus a "3". Does that make sense?

Yes thanks Top.....since I am just starting to pour jars again I found this very interesting.......SARA.....you are supposed to be paying attention to this board.......get with the program girl.... there's no time for extra curricular activities. ;) Donita

[topofmurrayhill]

Thanks Top. The Stats Ho in me is just getting over a major orgasm.

You know an additional question I would have liked to see in there? Is an "overall" grade of the waxes. Like (example here) I might think J223 has wet spots and would rate it very poorly based on that. But based on two other factors I can overlook the wet spots and give it a "5" versus a "3". Does that make sense?

Finish your cig yet?

I agree there should have been an overall satisfaction question. It crossed my mind earlier (but not early enough).

[Sara]

I agree there should have been an overall satisfaction question. It crossed my mind earlier (but not early enough).

That's always the way it is

Still it is interesting info. Even looking at how many people responded for what.

[Cami]

I am starting out again with the candles after a break for several years. I used the J-50 back then, and still have a case left... It really has a great scent throw, and I actually wasn't sure which one pour I would use since I saw the Comfort and Harmony blends, and read how well others liked them... I think I will stay with the J-50, and see how that does for us. Thanks for compiling the information and taking time to share the results.. It certainly provided valuable details about these brands and their overall performance.

Thank You.... I whole heartdly agree about the Soy Wax results also.. we could really use more info in that area....

[topofmurrayhill]

I am starting out again with the candles after a break for several years. I used the J-50 back then, and still have a case left... It really has a great scent throw, and I actually wasn't sure which one pour I would use since I saw the Comfort and Harmony blends, and read how well others liked them... I think I will stay with the J-50, and see how that does for us.

It's interesting to see how these blends do what they do and J-50 is one of the more interesting ones.

There seems to be a lot of some kind of additive in it, maybe that Astorlite C stuff. It makes the blend very opaque so you get the most pastel colors with this one, but apparently it doesn't harm the scent throw much. The additive seems to make the wax more cohesive and less adhesive. Since it doesn't stick to the glass much as it shrinks, the surface doesn't get so concave. It has one of the flattest surfaces of all the samples I tried, but this seems to be at the expense of more wet spots. When I tried pouring it without FO it mostly separated from the glass - the only one of my samples to behave that way.

As I said earlier in the thread, nobody has discovered the perfect formula and often one virtue is traded off for another. In this case the outstanding score for one-pour and the mediocre score for glass adhesion are probably directly related.