Double boiler question

[Wick'n'Wax]

This may seem like a daft question

When you use the double boiler method, i.e. 2 saucepans, can the top pan or jug sit inside the bottom one, so its touching the bottom of the (lower pan) or does it have to sit on the top edge?

the reason I'm asking, I'm looking to buy something like a metal bucket for making balloon orbs and was thinking of maybe a crock pot/casserole dish. I've seen one in the charity shop, its a large one and the next one sits inside it, rather than on top of it.

Is that ok to do, or shouldn't the top pot sit IN the water?

[gmp]

The top pot sits inside the boiling pot in the water, not on the top edge. I use a small metal cookie cutter in the bottom pot so that the top pot is a bit crooked. It allows the water to circulate better and it prevents the top pot from "popping". I don't have any experience with using crockpots or casserole dishes for melting wax.

[SoyCandleQueen]

I just fill a sauce pan with some water and place my pour pot inside that pan and melt my wax in the pour pot.

Dawn

[8-GRAN-ONES]

I do the same..pour pot inside of the large pot of water..I use a Jar ring to

keep my pour pot off the bottom of the water pot..

[Pam W]

I just fill a sauce pan with some water and place my pour pot inside that pan and melt my wax in the pour pot.

Dawn

that's what I do...but I keep the temp low enough that it doesn't "pop". If I'm melting just a small amount of something, then I hang the melt pot on the side of the pan by it's handle and the pot is not flat on the bottom.

[WaxFlower]

I bought a double boiler ring at northstar. Place the ring in the bottom of my sauce pan, fill my sauce pan with some water and set my wax pot on top of the ring. This keeps the wax pot off the very bottom of the lower pot to avoid over heating or scorching your wax. The ring works great, it's fairly heavy and doesn't "pop" and jump around in the pan. Hope this helps.

http://www.northstar3c.com/ccp/media/ccp0/prodsm/sm_dbl_boiler_maker.jpg

[Trae]

When I used a double boiler, I bought a metal strainer that had "legs" on the bottom (the bottom was flat). Then I'd set the pour pot in the strainer inside a bigger pot of water.

[Alan]

Some glass beads, or even a handful of pea gravel, in the bottom of the first pot will serve well to create a barrier. It'll lead to gentler boiling and eliminate the popping. HTH

[Pam W]

Some glass beads, or even a handful of pea gravel,

Alan,

That's a great idea. When the gravel gets yucky from dribbled wax(I'm sloppy), I can toss it back out in the yard, the hot AZ sun will melt any wax down into the ground and smother the weeds. bet a parrot could never think of this

[SoyCandleQueen]

Some glass beads, or even a handful of pea gravel, in the bottom of the first pot will serve well to create a barrier. It'll lead to gentler boiling and eliminate the popping. HTH

I'll just have to have DH get me some pea gravel from where he use to work. Where he works now, she gets supplies from where he use to work so he can grab some for me. Thanks for that tip.

Dawn

[Wick'n'Wax]

thanks for the ideas

scoured a carboot (large outdoor sale) today, and not one single metal pouring pot, not one metal bucket, nothing!

will have to keep looking, was thinking about a metal waste paper bin

[Pam W]

Coffee can:grin2:

[Wick'n'Wax]

that'd be a lot of coffee lol.

Today, driving past a DIY shop, I had a quick look outside and spotted a metal bin, going back tomorrow

[sharyl55]

I got a great tip from Donita a while back. Don't know if stock pots are available in the UK. Here they come in different sizes. I bought the large one to hold the water and the next size smaller for the wax. It is deep enough for the balloon candles and over dipping just about everything.