talking about wicks and yield

[cybersix]

Hi all,

I'm reading the wicks tables on wicks unlimited site.

There is one information I found interesting, which is the yield.

What I'd like to know if is this number can give me an idea of which wick burns cooler, supposing to read the tables by the melt pool diameter for every wick. I'll try to give an example because it's hard for me to say.

The site says "higher the yield, the less heat generated" or something like that.

Let's say I need a 2.5 melt pool.

Looking at the tables I find for example an LX 21, which has a yield of 352.

For this melt pool I find also an ECO 4, which yield is 372 (I'm not talking of diameter of candles for now, so it's just a guide line from tables).

Since the ECO has a higher yeld, does it mean that I get less heat achieving almost the same pool?

This is what I imagined, but I wanted to ask to you experts!

TIA

[Brenda (OH)]

Good question ! I have always wondered the same thing you are asking. I hope somebody chimes in with the answer.

[kdmorgan]

Hi Sabrina!

The yield is actually how many yards of wick it takes to weigh out to 1 pound. So, for the LX21, it takes 352 yards of wick to equal 1 pound. The ROC (rate of consumption) tells you how many oz. per hour that the wick burns up.

I have read on Atkins & Pearce's website that their wicks are all tested in straight paraffin wax without additives so, if you add additives (FO, Steric, etc.), it doesn't really help that much because you are using a different type of fuel.

I think the ROC does give you a good idea of a starting point and wicks in different families with similar burn rates.

HTH,

Kim

[topofmurrayhill]

Yield corresponds pretty well with the thickness of the wick, so that's one way you can think about it and use it. Wicks with the same yield are about the same thickness.

when you don't have direct experience or information to go on, similar thickness is one of the clues you can use to guess what sizes perform similarly in two different types of wick. It sometimes works very well for determining a starting point for testing. If the two types of wicks have been tested by different companies, you can sometimes get a better starting point from the yield than the burn rate. It's a more consistent measurement.

Yield comparison works best for flat-braided wick types. It doesn't work well for very small sizes or for cored wicks. I've also noticed that some of the flat braids from Fil-Tec have unusual performance characteristics relative to yield, so it doesn't help with those either.