powderblueboutique Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 So, I put my tins on the back burner, and ordered some 2.75" glass containers. I was thrilled when a htp 104 worked perfectly! That was until the second burn, it flickered all over the place with no evidence of a draft. I poured some more candles with eco's and cdn's. THe ecos drowned out. The cdn is doing pretty well, but even on the 4th burn, now it is starting to flicker.There doesn't seem to be any difference in the FO that I use, I have tested 3 different types. Coud it be the wax? to much FO? I use 30 grams per 16 oz. I decided not to color thinking maybe that was the culprit- still doing it.Also, the cdn seems to flicker more when I first light it. The htp continued throughout the entire burn. Just not really sure where to go from here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firefly Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 I'll try to provide input although I don't use that type of glass container. I do use a 8 oz square mason jar and in that I use a 44-28-18C which works well and others here have mentioned an HTP 105 works on that size as well.I use HTP83 on smaller glass jars like this: http://www.canwax.shoppingcartsplus.com/catalog/item/634635/6335718.htmFor all my soy wax I use 7% fragrance per amount of wax for Enchanted Lites and for CB Advanced I bump it up to 8% and use wax coloured blocks to grate into my melted wax (I just grate until I like the colour so don't have an exact measurement). My FO's are from different Canadian suppliers. For my non glass containers (ie. tins that are 2/3 oz shallow or 2/4 oz deep I use LX wicks which I like). What type of soy are you using? I use Enchanted Lites mixed with palm and Ecosoya CB Advanced mixed with palm wax.Hopefully others can help you out. Maybe try a tealight with an LX10 wick (that's what I use for mine) and see if your wick works better. Is your candle in a draft area at all? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderblueboutique Posted November 29, 2008 Author Share Posted November 29, 2008 Thanks for your reply! I use GB444. The fragrance that I use comes from candle science. I purchase all phthalate free types. 30 grams= roughly 7% as well. gb444 can easily hold nine- so they say.I did not try an htp 83, because I tried a 93, and that seemed a little small- so I think 83 would be really too small.My thought is the wicks that are too small aren't consuming the wax fast enough, thus flickering. The wicks that are too big, are consuming too fast, thus flickering. I cannot seem to find "that wick". Gosh I am unsure that it exists. But I cannot imagine that no one has succesfully wicked this wax.I guess my next venture would be just straight wax, that will tell me if it is the fragrance, but at that point woud I need to try another company?I have my eyes on enchanted lites- have since I started testing this, I guess I could do a side by side comparison to see if that wax works a little smoother.As far as drafts, I really don not feel a draft I also move the candle to a completely different location to see if it will stop. but, nope. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Maybe, just maybe we can figure it out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderblueboutique Posted November 29, 2008 Author Share Posted November 29, 2008 Oh, and I do have an RRD 37, Do you think that is too small? Haven't used this wick type yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firefly Posted November 29, 2008 Share Posted November 29, 2008 I've used RRD47's in a 3 oz shallow tin and a 4 oz deep tin with good results (it just didn't allow for a long burn time but burned well otherwise). I agree trying straight wax would be a good place to start to see what happens, then from there add fragrance, then try colour. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderblueboutique Posted November 29, 2008 Author Share Posted November 29, 2008 yeah, I think I will pour those tonight with nothing added. If they flicker then time for a new wax. I am hoping that they will so I don't have to change FO's! I just haven't really had luck since I started this. Starting to really get bummed out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firefly Posted November 29, 2008 Share Posted November 29, 2008 powderblueboutique,Post your results with the straight wax. It can get really discouraging at times to find the right combination of wax, scent and wick.When I started out I was using straight palm wax and only used FO's and wax blocks for colour. Then customers wanted soy and I started doing straight Enchanted Lites soy wax. The heat gun became my best friend and I initially found soy really tricky to work with. Then I made my first all Esential oil candle but the hot throw wasn't great. So started mixing in a bit of palm with my Enchanted Lites wax to help with scent throw. Then just started using Ecosoya CB Advanced a month ago and love it but you do have to wait at least two days for the cold throw to be there and I haven't used EO's with that wax blend yet.To keep costs down a bit I still continue to use palm wax with my soy wax. Still planning to experiment with other Ecosoya's and an Igi wax in the new year when I'm not so busy with the Christmas season.It takes time and patience to make candles and to make them well. Don't give up just maybe take a break from it and come back to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderblueboutique Posted November 29, 2008 Author Share Posted November 29, 2008 Most definitely will! Because it is every wick that I use, I can't imagine that it is the wicks that are the problem. I have a newer 10ib batch of gb444 that I have not used yet, so maybe results will be different with this batch.I have some FO's that are for soap, I could try those as well just to see. Who knows!I will get back when I have them burning...Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lightning Bug Posted November 30, 2008 Share Posted November 30, 2008 Many times the shape of the container makes for the flicker. Taller ones tend to have this problem more and it is caused by the air current being formed by the heat of the burning wick. Never could figure how to totally stop it. Trying just wax to see the results would be interesting. I would make several and wick them with different wicks and give it a try. I think you could always melt down and reuse the extra wax as to not waste it. Good luck. Beth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderblueboutique Posted November 30, 2008 Author Share Posted November 30, 2008 okay, I am prematurely writing because I am really confused! The absolute opposite is happening that I thought would. I made three candles:1. gb444 .5oz (non candle FO) htp 1042. gb444 christmas tree FO .5oz htp 1043. gb444 no FO htp 104I have not experienced flickering yet. I am on my first burn at three hours.I am experiencing less of a melt pool. I was using 7% 30 grams FO in previous testing. Now .5oz per 8 ounces of wax. No color. I would have thought that the wick would burn hotter, but it seems to be burning cooler. There is quite a bit of hangup on all the jars. A little on the first burn is usually fine , it tends to catch up around 4th to 5th burn, but this seems to be a lot, comared to the htp 104 that I tested before with color and more FO. Is this weird? I still need to test another 3 hour round tonight for the flickering. But this is now throwing everything off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderblueboutique Posted December 1, 2008 Author Share Posted December 1, 2008 okay, on the second burn the non-candle FO started to flicker towards the end of the burn, so did the staight wax. But, it was within the last 10 minutes. The christmas tree FO did not flicker. However, the htp 104 is too small with .5 oz of FO.So, I am going to test an eco (hoping that it will not drown with less FO) and an htp 105 in christmas tree.Really just baffled at these results. But what can ya say! Yet another new test tomorrow. Wish me luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firefly Posted December 1, 2008 Share Posted December 1, 2008 That is interesting but sounds like you are slowly figuring it out. Last night I was burning a 100% beeswax candle that I made with colourant and Lavender EO. Don't usually make beeswax ones but my friend gave me a bunch of beeswax she doesn't need so thought I would experiment. I used a big 8 oz deep tin and had to use 2 wicks of the 44-28-18C wicks and I noticed my wicks were flickering too but it's just for me so I'm not too concerned but still want to figure it out as well.How are your newer tests working out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderblueboutique Posted December 1, 2008 Author Share Posted December 1, 2008 You must have been writing as I was checking in! I used eco 12, and the 105, just finished the first burn with good results. 105 is just shy, but the second burn might prove to be just fine- hopefuly no flickering. The eco12 did really well, I am concerned it might be a little big towards the end. It did not drown though! So, that is great news. I guess just changing the amount of FO was the trick. The really good news is that the hot throw didn't change a bit! I heated to 180, and instead of adding FO right away, I added at 150. I stirred for atleast a minute. Not sure if that is the trick here, but hey seemed to work!Well, atleast they are just for yourself. I have some beeswax, I thought that I might make a lip balm with it. I attempted with soy wax a while back, but the softness of the wax threw the recipe off. I have very little supplies for the balm. With the uncertainty of the globalization act, not sure I will go there. Heck maybe I will try a beeswax candle- if it won't push me over the edge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firefly Posted December 4, 2008 Share Posted December 4, 2008 Well I'm glad to hear things are working out better for you. I heard some quote awhile back about how the miracle happens when you are about ready to quit. Sometimes I feel that way about the bath and body business. It takes a lot of patience and a lot of trial and error. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderblueboutique Posted December 4, 2008 Author Share Posted December 4, 2008 no doubt! I have been making soap for 7 years now. Just recently I had a really bad case of dreaded orange spot. I think four batches went bad. I had no idea what was causing it. I changed just about everything, including scale, supplier, and therapists (J/k!) Still not sure what caused it, I even completely switched to EO instead of FO, just in fear that the FO may have been the problem. But, I kept plugging away, because this is my passion, and I have worked really hard over the years to finally start a business of my own- well, not quite yet, January for my soaps jewelry and vintage jewelry (candles when and if I am ever done testing).Well, the candle situation is not totally over. I am using the frosted tumblers from genwax, they taper towards the bottom. I think that I am going to have to do a four hour burn on the first two burns, with a smaller wick. the 3rd burn is getting too hot, major flame thrower towards the bottom, I am sure. I could change tumblers all together, I should check the classifieds to see if I can purchase just one from someone to see the difference. In the meantime, I will just test a few here and there.Thanks for all the chats, really has kept my spirits up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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