realmarcha Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 flame bounce all over the place and smoke like a chimney? I am using 6228, 6% fragrance, and very little liquid color (1 - 3 drops) in a 3" pillar. My first 2 or 3 burns are beautiful, but then all h$ll breaks loose; I have a bouncing, flickering flame that spits out smoke all over the place. I thought I had the wicking pretty much figured out, but then I went to pour 7 new fragrances, and cannot get any wick to work. Could it possibly be the liquid color? I am totally stumped on this one ! I am really getting ready to give up on this pillar idea, even though, I love creating them. PLEASE HELP! I have tried the following wicks:CDs, Premier wicks, Fil-Tec Ultra Core and X-Trim. I did try a "regular" 62z and found that it may work, so I read on the board that some of you like the low smoke zinc. I would like my pillar to consume itself instead of leaving a wall...will the zincs do this if wicked properly? Thanks again all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topofmurrayhill Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 A draft can cause it. An untrimmed wick or too big a wick can cause it. How big is your flame getting? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
realmarcha Posted October 10, 2005 Author Share Posted October 10, 2005 No drafts and I always trim my wicks. The wick being too big, or the flame to large could be my problem. On my notes I have written large flame, large, flame, large flame. The funny thing is, these wicks worked before and are now giving me fits. I am relatively new to paraffin waxes; hooked now though, so I really don't know what wicks work best yet. Any insight? Thanks or your reply! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dee Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 I sure find that different fragrances can cause a problem too. My local supplier, who sells very high quality (meaning expensive) FOs has been telling me to decrease the FO amount in pillars. Have you tried HTP or pure cotton wicks. I'm not too sure, but I don't think the majority of pillar makers use zinc wicks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ShellyRobyn Posted October 10, 2005 Share Posted October 10, 2005 I use flat braid with no smoking unless it's drafty or too large. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
realmarcha Posted October 10, 2005 Author Share Posted October 10, 2005 If trying a new wick, such as a flat braid, LX, or square braid, what wick would I start testing with? Again, using 6228, 6% fragrance, and 1 - 3 drops of liquid color in a 3" pillar. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgia Posted October 11, 2005 Share Posted October 11, 2005 I use 1/0 square braid in 3" pillars with great results. I buy raw and prime it myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scented Posted October 11, 2005 Share Posted October 11, 2005 LX range 26 to 30Flat ply 24-36 (36 for super heavy FOs lol) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dee Posted October 11, 2005 Share Posted October 11, 2005 As Georgia says, with square braid I'd start with a 1/0 or 1. With flat ply I'd start with a 30. However, I find that I sometimes get excellent burns the first time and then on a marathon burn they can conk out, so be sure to do one long burn. As I said before, I'm finding that HTP wicks are working better for me with heavy or strong fragrances. Haven't tried Performa, but the local supplier keeps bugging me to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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