becky0404 Posted November 16, 2007 Share Posted November 16, 2007 Will a wick that is too big tunnel? What causes tunneling? I'm using palm and I'm having a heck of a time wicking my small container (2 3/4") right. I thought I had it right, but now I think my wicks might be too big as I just test burned a new fo and it's tunneling like mad, plus no scent throw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted November 17, 2007 Share Posted November 17, 2007 Reading up on palm wax will help you a lot, Becky. There is loads of information in the threads here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stacien Posted November 17, 2007 Share Posted November 17, 2007 Each wick throws out a certain circumference of heat. Some wicks do bend causing it burn off to the side a little more. If a candle tunnels it means most likely that the particular wick you are using is not burning a big enough diameter. So you have to wick up until the melt pool reaches the edges of the jars. Keep in mind that when you do find a wick that reaches all the way. Make sure the melt pool is at the most 1/4 inch deep otherwise it is burning too hot. Another indicator would be if it is too hot to the touch to pick up the jar. Palm wax is a hard wax that requires a hotter burning wick. So try testing some more wicks or a different type of wick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lantern Light Mama Posted November 17, 2007 Share Posted November 17, 2007 I use a square braid wick in my 3in palm pillars. They burn very slowly, so the wax has time to heat up and get used, if that makes sense. If your wick is too hot, I would think it would tunnel pretty quickly because it's just consuming the wax closest to it before it has time to heat the wax further. I had a hard time wicking my palm wax votives for this reason, so I gave up on them and stuck with the 3 inch pillars. I don't do containers in it, but would think it might act similarly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth-VT Posted November 17, 2007 Share Posted November 17, 2007 LLM is correct. I wick that is too large can tunnel just as one that is too small will. Although one that is too large may create a larger flame and thus more heat (and you would think a larger melt pool) it can also consume more of the wax it does melt in a shorter amount of time, thus preventing you from reaching a full melt pool, and causing tunneling. With palm, air pockets can also give the same appearance as tunneling...and the air pockets are not always noticeable. HTH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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