AnjieBurdett Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 Hi again.My Mum, being the insane horder that she is :rolleyes2, opened a cupboard door today to reveal a bag of old candlewax and countless glass jars and containers with bits of old wax still in the bottom!!! When I laughed and her and asked her 'Mum, WHY??' she looked sheepish and said she was intending to melt them down and make new candles, but still doesn't know how to make a candle!! Well....I laughed until tears streamed down my face, but I guess you had to be there Anyways, what i would like to know is CAN these be melted down and reused? Parts of the wax are pretty yuk and blackened with bits of matches stuck in them LOL, but is there a way of melting it down and cleaning it up? Getting the debris out of the melted wax? Then I can make her some new candles so she can start collecting wax again Thanks for your help, if you can help??Anjie,x. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lauchie Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 NO!!!!!! I would put it on a warmer till the scent was all gone & then I would throw it away. Use new wax to make a candle. That is what I would do. She might be able to use the containers to make the candles but PLEASE tell her to use new wax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luci Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 Make firestarters! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fern Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 No, you really wouldn't want to use that old wax because of the debris that's in it...bits of old matches and wick can catch on fire, so you're better off just making firestarters, like Luci said, if you have a fireplace to use them in. I suppose if you melted down the old wax and strained it somehow to catch the debris, you could reuse it...but then all I can see happening with that method is that the wax will begin to solidify and clog up the strainer any way, but I could be wrong. Maybe someone else has some ideas on how to do that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
candlesprite7 Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 IF you're dead-set on making new candles you can melt the wax on a double boiler (an old coffee can set in a pot with boiling water) and you can use some cheese cloth to strain out the debris.Though it would be better to use the scented left-overs as melts and toss them out when the scent is completely gone. Fire-starters are an excellet way to get rid of left-overs too. You can re-use the glass the candles came in too. Just put on a baking sheet lined with foil upside down and stick in a low heat oven for a little while until the wax melts off, then you can wash with warm soapy water to get rid of the residue.Just keep an eye on the glass, sometimes it'll crack and break...Dont give away any of those recycled candles and keep a close eye on them when burning, especially since you dont know how they are going to burn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sag_77 Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 I agree the only thing I know to do with scrap wax is fire starters. I have tons of scrap wax that I have been given from family and friend that I am trying to find another use for as fire starters just don't do well around here.As for the debris it is easy to get out with paint strainers. I get mine at NAPA for about .10 each and use them all the time. They work great for all types of debris, animal hair is my main use as no matter what I do my presto pot seems to get my cats hair in it. To keep their hair out of my finished candles I use the paint filters as I pour from my presto pot to my pour pot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnjieBurdett Posted February 21, 2007 Author Share Posted February 21, 2007 LOL ok, ok. Was just a thought . I'm new to all this and am learning quick I can tell ya.I'll chuck the old wax, but I will reuse the containers because I am having an absolute nightmare time trying to find any at a reasonable price here.Thanks for all your comments.Anjie,x. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luci Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 I've not tried to sell my firestarters, but I am giving them away. They really don't cost me anything but a little time and the cupcake liners. The people I give them to seem to really appreciate them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
candlesprite7 Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 I've not tried to sell my firestarters, but I am giving them away. They really don't cost me anything but a little time and the cupcake liners. The people I give them to seem to really appreciate them.I do that too...just give them away to my friends who like to go camping...I have a bunch who go winter camping and I think they are nuts....lol...but they really appreciate the firestarters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Connie Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 Firestarters are a good way to go, if you would like a little money back. I sell mine for 75 cents @ and at any given show, I will sell 100 or more(sometimes 300). Been selling them now for a couple of years. Have regular customers that come just for firestarters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sugarysweet95 Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 Hmmm, I'm going to completely disagree with most people on this thread and say, yes you can re-use old candle wax, but i wouldn't sell themI always use up my old candle wax. I find that when i melt the wax in a double boiler, pretty much all the ikky stuff sinks to the bottom and as long as your careful pouring, it stays at the bottom. I suppose you could use a tea strainer or something, maybe if it was metal you could put it near a flame to make it very hot so the wax didn't solidify in it.Anyway i use the old wax to make tea-lights and little votive type candles - use up all my odd bits of wicks this way too. I re-fill old metal tea light containers and use yoghurt pots as a mould for the votive style candles. My mum has several candles burning every night so i give them to her and generally they work fine. I wouldn't sell them though, just in case!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
7 Pawz Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 I have recyled candle wax and made some great candles. I just finished making a 13 in. pillar from a star mold, it turned out really rustic looking and is red, going to look great this christmas . I have made pillars, votives and container candles. Sometimes, you can make pretty chunk candles out of the recyles. I group the same type of wax together for recyling, such pillar wax with pillar wax, same color type, etc. The wax has to be strained of debris, if it is too dirty, out it goes:grin2: I don't recyle the same wax more than once, anymore than that, the wax may break down chemically. I keep these for myself.I'd recommend getting your mom a candle kit from a reputable candle supplier online and let her get started. Once she gains experience, she may want to try recyling later:grin2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sugarysweet95 Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 Once she gains experience, she may want to try recyling later:grin2:I started of my candle making obession with recyling wax, no proper kit for me!!!! My room at uni had a dampish smell, so i got some fragranced candles to help take the smell away! Anyway these candles always had loads of wax left over, so i decided to make a candle! I melted the old wax and soaked some string in it, used paper clips to rig the string upright in the container and poured in the melted wax! It worked a treat and hence began my obsession!!! Hmm, maybe if that first attempt hadn't worked i'd be a lot richer right now!!! LOL!!!!!So if she justs wants to use old wax, she probably won't need a proper starter set! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wickedwanda Posted February 22, 2007 Share Posted February 22, 2007 my sister just discovered that burning candles brings on her sons asthma, and it just so happens she had some brand new candles, well a few had been used..so now she is switching to wickless and smelts(using electric burners), so i took all her candles and used heat gun and melted all the wax and made smelts for her.they all made like a walmart bag over flowing full...i used long tweezers to pick out any debris, and believe this or not but one of the candles that hadnt been burnt had stuff in the middle of it..now i ask you ,,how did that happen, and it was bought from a craft show, not store bought.anyways she was happy, she has tarts to last maybe a week:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.