TxGirl Posted August 12, 2006 Share Posted August 12, 2006 This is only my second post. I just started making candles yesterday. So far everything is going pretty good. I have a question though.Some are made with J223 wax, some are CB Advanced, and also a 50/50 blend of the 2 waxes on some of them, all poured in jelly jars. After sitting overnight their tops look good and smooth, but the middle has sank just a slight amount on the J223 candles and the 50/50 blended candles. Is this OK or do I need to level them out. If I level them out, can I use a heat gun to do that? Or do they require a re-pour? Is a small amount of sinking normal? It's very minimal, but if they shouldn't be like that I would like to fix it. Thanks for your help!Kim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eugenia Posted August 12, 2006 Share Posted August 12, 2006 They need a second pour. Some waxes require one, others do not. As the wax shrinks and cools, it pulls in towards the wick, forming the cavity you are noting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doglover Posted August 12, 2006 Share Posted August 12, 2006 You may also want to make sure that there are no air pockets in the center of the candles. As the wax shrinks/cools, this can happen. I have had it happen even with single pour waxes (as I tend to pour hot). You can poke a few holes down into your candle, and can usually feel the pockets. Then when you repour, do so at a cooler temperature. I have also leveled out the tops of my container candles with a heat gun--even after doing a repour. (Be careful of the wick! LOL) It just depends on the wax, candle, and especially pouring temp. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TxGirl Posted August 12, 2006 Author Share Posted August 12, 2006 I have also leveled out the tops of my container candles with a heat gun--even after doing a repour. (Be careful of the wick! LOL) It just depends on the wax, candle, and especially pouring temp. Good luck!Thank you for the replies, everyone. I very much appreciate your help.I decided to try just heating the tops to level them first to see what would happen, before resorting to a repour, and it seems to have worked. The tops are nice and flat now. However I can see why a repour would be the best sollution because just melting the tops to level makes them not quite as shiny as they were before. Doglover, when you say be careful of the wick, do you mean be careful to not melt the wax off the wicks? When reheating the tops, that was what I was concerned about - that the heating would melt the wax off the exposed wick. Not sure if it matters, but thought I'd ask.I'm doing a test burn now of one soy, one J223 and one 50/50 blend. They are in 8 oz quilted jelly jars (the newer shape/design jars), the wicks are LX14 & HTP83 trimmed at 1/4 inch and so far I'm very pleased. The soy is doing good and the J223 is doing good - both have an LX14 wick in them, but the 50/50 blend with the HTP83 wick isn't burning as good yet. The melt ppol isn't quite reaching far enough yet on that one. It's only been 1 hours so far though. PS. I've been heating to 190 them mix in scent and dye, then cooling to 150 and pouring. Kim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doglover Posted August 12, 2006 Share Posted August 12, 2006 Doglover, when you say be careful of the wick, do you mean be careful to not melt the wax off the wicks? When reheating the tops, that was what I was concerned about - that the heating would melt the wax off the exposed wick. Not sure if it matters, but thought I'd ask.KimI meant to be careful not to burn the wick or set it on fire when using a heat gun. You can actually singe the wick or blacken it to where it looks burnt. I know from experience! LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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