Gloria Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 I've been making candles for a few weeks and I am pulling my hair out with wick sizing for C3 soy wax. Right now i am using a 3 inch container and trying all kinds of wicks, most recently: CD (18 and 20), HTP (105 and 1212), LX (22). and can't get a full burn pool with anyof them in 3 hours. Now, I know I am new at this but I felt like these wicks were on the large size. If a wick is too big can it burn down too hot and end up tunneling? Or should I keep trying bigger wicks? I've done 3 or 4 three hour burns with each of these wicks thinking that it would "catch up" by now....any help is greatly appreciated!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 How tall is it? That would factor in also... Are you using any additives? How much FO are you using per pound? It is not uncommon for full melt pool to happen around the 2nd or third burn. The 18 or 20 sound like torches to me in a 3" diameter container! Assuming you are not trying to wick a really heavy oil or too high of a fragrance load, you could try something like a CDN 14... might be a CD 14 or 16, but somewhere along in there, depending on the FO... Burn for 3 hour stretches, let the candle cool and trim the wick before relighting and see how that goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloria Posted February 22, 2008 Author Share Posted February 22, 2008 I am not using any additives. No FO. Just cargill C3. I wanted to get a correct wick size before I started adding other dimensions to the problem.I've been doing 3 hour burns. The container is 3 inches wide, 3.5 inches tall (8oz). so, after how many burns do you usually get a full burn pool? I'll try going down a few sizes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kigers24 Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 I use a CDN 14 or HTP 105 with C3 wax in my 8 oz. square mason jar, never any higher.HTP 105 is a little hotter than CDN 14 but not as hot as a CDN 16.Haven't had to use a CDN 16 yet in my square mason with C3 wax.Like Stella said, I don't expect a full melt pool till the 2nd or 3rd burn. My jars tend to burn hotter in the bottom half, and if I try to rush the full melt pool, they always get too hot the bottom half of the jar.I burn mine 3 or 4 hours at a time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vio Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 Could it be the fo you're using is just a tough one? Are you using dye? Or you mean no additives like just c-3 with a wick? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 Vio, read up - no FO, no dyes! I agree with Kigers - I pour a similar sized container that is a standard 8oz. widemouth canning jar - measures 3" in diameter x 2 1/8" inside. I use a CDN 14. I have not encountered any factors thus far that have caused me to need to deviate from that wick size.There is no race to achieve full melt pool! The goal is to use as little wick as possible to achieve a complete burn of the wax in the container and to generate enough heat for good hot throw. You have to test containers all the way to the bottom (except when they are obviously overwicked) and should be dialing in your wicking for the last third of any container. A container's interior temperature INCREASES toward the bottom of the container because of the retained heat. If there is hangup on the sides of the container, this is when it usually 'catches up." Whether FMP is achieved on the first or the fifth burn is not the big issue - a good, clean, slow burn with good hot throw is the goal and the goal is reached when the candle has burned all the way to the bottom. Test burn in an area with "normal" room temperature and no drafts. Keep your wicks trimmed between 1/8" - 1/4". It doesn't take a huge wick to properly burn C3.Good luck and have FUN!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoniasCreations Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 Vio, read up - no FO, no dyes! I agree with Kigers - I pour a similar sized container that is a standard 8oz. widemouth canning jar - measures 3" in diameter x 2 1/8" inside. I use a CDN 14. I have not encountered any factors thus far that have caused me to need to deviate from that wick size.There is no race to achieve full melt pool! The goal is to use as little wick as possible to achieve a complete burn of the wax in the container and to generate enough heat for good hot throw. You have to test containers all the way to the bottom (except when they are obviously overwicked) and should be dialing in your wicking for the last third of any container. A container's interior temperature INCREASES toward the bottom of the container because of the retained heat. If there is hangup on the sides of the container, this is when it usually 'catches up." Whether FMP is achieved on the first or the fifth burn is not the big issue - a good, clean, slow burn with good hot throw is the goal and the goal is reached when the candle has burned all the way to the bottom. Test burn in an area with "normal" room temperature and no drafts. Keep your wicks trimmed between 1/8" - 1/4". It doesn't take a huge wick to properly burn C3.Good luck and have FUN!! Sorry for thread jacking but is there a way you can tell if the wick is to small after so many burns? Like could you tell it is too small after the 4 burn and there is about 1 1/2 inches left on each side still. Or do I really have to go all the way to the end of the candle to find out? Thanks for any help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 Sorry for thread jacking but is there a way you can tell if the wick is to small after so many burns? Like could you tell it is too small after the 4 burn and there is about 1 1/2 inches left on each side still. Or do I really have to go all the way to the end of the candle to find out? Thanks for any help. Antonia, you have given absolutely no information with which I could help. What wax, what additives, what FO, the inside dimensions of the container, what size/type wick? When you ask a question, PLEASE give us enough informaton to base our answers on... And YES, it is a NORMAL part of candle testing to test all the way to the end unless a candle is vastly under or over wicked. If my containers had 1½" of hangup all around, they would not have even burned at all 'cause my containers are only 3" in diameter! :rolleyes2 So obviously, we are not even talking about anything similar here...:undecided Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntoniasCreations Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 Antonia, you have given absolutely no information with which I could help. What wax, what additives, what FO, the inside dimensions of the container, what size/type wick? When you ask a question, PLEASE give us enough informaton to base our answers on... And YES, it is a NORMAL part of candle testing to test all the way to the end unless a candle is vastly under or over wicked. If my containers had 1½" of hangup all around, they would not have even burned at all 'cause my containers are only 3" in diameter! :rolleyes2 So obviously, we are not even talking about anything similar here...:undecidedOK wow, well I was just trying to ask a general question about how someone that is new to this could tell if their wick is to small. Sorry I didnt give any info on a candle, was just trying to make it a general question. And the 1 1/2 inches was just to give an example, not a fact about my candles. But I quess there is not a general or an around about way for a seasoned candle maker to tell a newbie what a too small of a wick would look like. Thanks for the info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloria Posted February 22, 2008 Author Share Posted February 22, 2008 Thanks for all the advice! I was getting paranoid and going up up up in size since i wasn't getting full burn pool. All the info I've seen thus far hasn't mentioned "burn all the way to the bottom!" I will keep on burning and see what happens with some of the smaller wicks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReneeM Posted February 22, 2008 Share Posted February 22, 2008 In that size jar (ours are about the same width) with C3, we normally use the eco 14 wicks. Not everyone is crazy about them for some reason, but they work well for us! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gloria Posted February 22, 2008 Author Share Posted February 22, 2008 I am testing an Eco 12 as we speak! Good to know I am not so far off base...Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SatinDucky Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 I am not using any additives. No FO. Just cargill C3. I wanted to get a correct wick size before I started adding other dimensions to the problem. Granted I haven't used soy much but I thought it was about the same as paraffin in how the FO affects the burn. The "correct" wick size for an unscented candle wont be the same as one with FO would it? I never tried the soy unscented to compare so I may be completely off base here... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gdawg Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 in my experience lol if i have any, unscented vs. scented your wicks will be a tad off, also i used to expect a full mp within the 1st burn but then realized that with soy it's not really going to happen unless you have a torch. so i go by the 3rd burn it should be caught up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vio Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 Vio, read up - no FO, no dyes! Oh yeah. Nevermind! I gotta stop posting after 1 am. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kigers24 Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 In that size jar (ours are about the same width) with C3, we normally use the eco 14 wicks. Not everyone is crazy about them for some reason, but they work well for us!Umm.... I used an ECO 6 in the 8 oz. square mason (height 3.5", diameter 3") with C3 before switching over to the CDN 14. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReneeM Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 We don't use the mason jars, ours are about 4" in diameter. Tried using a smaller wick but wasn't getting a good burn pool. :undecided Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted February 23, 2008 Share Posted February 23, 2008 A 4" container will need a larger wick than a 3" container... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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