leenabug Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 First I am going to tell you what is in my wax for those of you who understand chemistry! I am using GW435 soy(which has cottonseed oil) and I add about 1 heaping teaspoon of coconut oil per lb. After trying many different wicks( lx, rrd, eco), I have wicked most of my 8oz jelly jars with a cd-14. I use 1 to 1.25 oz of fo per lb of wax. My problem is that I can't seem to get a good enough of a burn time. The scent throw is good, melt pool 1/2" and under. Why does my candles burn up quicker than "store bought" and other soy candles. Is it my wax or my wick that I need to adjust? I can't figure this out. I read something on here about adding UA to increase hardness, which would help burn time?. What is that?Also when you place my candles in sunlight, they turn colors bad. especially the blue ones, they turn green. Will that UA help this as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 For loss of color, try using UV absorber. USA will smooth out the wax, offer better hot throw, and make the wax more resistant to frosting. It is an emulsifier and has a higher melting point than the wax.As to why your candles are burning more quickly - if you are using a standard 8 oz. canning jar (vs. the 8 oz. widemouth canning jar), seems like the CD 14 might be a bit much. Have you tested a CD 12 & 10? The extra oils (CO & FO) in your "recipe" may be causing the candle to burn more quickly - dunno. If you try the USA (not UA - that's for paraffin), you probably could leave out the coconut oil and back down a little on the FO to 1 oz. pp.How are you testing your candles? I hope you are burning them down to the bitter end to check on the temperature of the container during the last half of the candle's life. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisR Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 Another thing.......everyone tries to get a full melt pool on the first burn. This is not necessary!! My candles don't usually get a full melt pool until the 2nd and sometimes 3rd burn. You have to remember that the candle will actually burn hotter closer to the bottom and will usually 'clean up' the sides. I agree that the CD14 seems way too big for that size jar. Before you add anything else, try your CD10, burn it to the bottom and see how it does. I add UV powder to all my candles (it does not effect your burn), which really does work at preventing fading at about 1/8 tsp/lb. Blues & purples and sometimes red are the worst when it comes to fading, so I add 1/2 tsp. per lb. for those colors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vicky_CO Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 Guys I think I would like to know what here burn time is to begin with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FireStarter Posted March 31, 2009 Share Posted March 31, 2009 Palm Stearic also aids in hardening the soy wax. I use it to smooth out my tops, but can't say for certain that I've noticed a huge difference in burn time though..I usually get about 80 - 100 hours out of my 16 oz colonials with 6% stearic, which was about the same before I started adding the Stearic. Sorry if that didn't offer much help.. :embarasseI would listen to Stella.. she's super smart! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted April 1, 2009 Share Posted April 1, 2009 I agree that knowing the burn time would help in getting more specific suggestions for solutions. I use a soy blend (NatureWax C3) which already has some additives in it, so I have not tried palm stearic, but that is a viable solution used by many folks using other waxes. Beeswax as an additive also will harden softer soy waxes and extend the burn time. Ya just have to use good, solid testing techniques (1 hour of test burn per inch of inside container diameter; extinguish, cool, trim wick, repeat...) and be willing to try different things to get what you want. ChrisR's point is very well taken - full MP on the first burn with soy wax container candles is NOT what one wants because at the end of the candle, the container will become too hot. Hangup on soy wax container candles frequently catches up toward the second half of the container as the inside temperature increases.You didn't menton anything about hot throw, but remember that too much heat can burn off the FO and reduce the HT.Give us a little more specific info when you have time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leenabug Posted April 2, 2009 Author Share Posted April 2, 2009 Thanks all, these suggestions have really given me some more things to try. I actually started out with a cd16 in my jars, (that was to get a full melt pool first try) then after I realized it would catch up after a couple of burns, I went down to a cd14. lol! I thought I was doing it right! I think my best burn time was 36 to 42 hrs on the 8oz jelly jar. But a tester recently told me the most she thought she got out of one scent was 24 hrs! This upsets me terribly, I feel that I don't have something right, even though the candle is burning evenly with good hot throw. I think I need to adjust my wax and then try to wick down. The way it is now, the cd 10 doesn't work. Where I buy my wicks, they don't sell a cd12, but if I can get my wax adjusted the cd 10's might work? I will need to ask more questions to understand about those chemicals(additives). But I have to wait until tax season is over. (Hubby owns plumbing company and I am the secretary, Yuck) I just can't seem to understand what I need in my wax. .........See you all after April 15. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted April 2, 2009 Share Posted April 2, 2009 You might wanna search the veggie wax forum for GW435 and see what other users have to say about wicking this wax and its throw... I got lots of specific hits when I searched just now... HTH A member in this thread said:"I found that most of my fragrances did well with either a HTP 104 or HTP 105 in 4 and 8 oz. jelly jars." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leenabug Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 awww, i spent so much time testing wicks and finally settling on the cd's. i have hundreds of them! The thought of switching to another wick makes me want to cry! Plus alot of people have said that the cd's work well for them in this wax. I think I have some good fo's and some good wax and some good wicks. I think I need to adjust it somehow. I am gonna try that UV that was mentioned and see if that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leenabug Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 It just dawned on me that when I tried the cd 10's I did not add coconut oil, it was not melting all the way across....... So I tried one again, now that I add coconut oil and it achieved full melt pool! True I am halfway down the jar, but it is still a 1/4" melt pool However the hot throw does not seem to be as good......why would this be? Surely the smaller the wick the better the hot throw? Where can I buy the cd-12's? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leenabug Posted April 5, 2009 Author Share Posted April 5, 2009 I wish I was not stuck on this , i am suppose to be doing taxes.................................................... Maybe I can test in the background while filling the ledger and sneak a peek at this board at night? lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 So I tried one again, now that I add coconut oil and it achieved full melt pool! True I am halfway down the jar, but it is still a 1/4" melt pool However the hot throw does not seem to be as good......why would this be? Surely the smaller the wick the better the hot throw?First, I am confused (a frequent state for me...) - did you simply add CO to an existing candle or what?Second, there is no rule of "the smaller the wick, the better the hot throw." It simply depends on the container, the wax, the additives, the FO, the wick (and perhaps the phase of the moon). The Melt pool has to get to a certain temperature and size for best hot throw. Inferior FOs will never give a good hot throw even if everything else is perfect. I'm spozed to be doing taxes too...:rolleyes2:laugh2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leenabug Posted April 6, 2009 Author Share Posted April 6, 2009 No, what I meant was.........when I first tested this 435(w/cottonseed oil) for the proper wick, the cd-10 wouldn't work. So I shoved it aside, made a note that it was to small and kept going. I eventually wicked the jars with a cd-16, then after I started adding coconut oil to my wax I went down to a cd-14. I don't have cd-12's at my supplier and since I had ruled out the cd-10's , i thought that was the best I could do. But it just now dawned on me that when I ruled out the cd-10's THERE WAS NO COCONUT OIL IN MY WAX. And now my wax DOES have coconut oil in it. Could the cd-10 now work? So I jerked out the wick I was testing(a cd-14, 1/2" melt pool,good hot throw, but burning up candle quickly) and replaced it with a cd-10. I did achieve full melt pool..................BUT by this time I had tested the candle to the halfway point, (with the cd-14)where it starts getting hotter,(before changing to the cd-10) so I am wondering it I go back and retest starting with a full jar, will it drown it out or catch up? Guess we will see........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leenabug Posted April 6, 2009 Author Share Posted April 6, 2009 What is the temp to have the melt pool for good hot throw? Can you check it with a candy therm.? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 What is the temp to have the melt pool for good hot throw?Depends upon the wax, FO & wick... It would be difficult to accurately check the temp with a normal thermometer because of the shallowness of the melt pool & the flame of the wick... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharon in KY Posted April 6, 2009 Share Posted April 6, 2009 I have some CD12's I could send you. PM me your address and I'll send a few, these are 9" long so if you have some wick tabs you could get 2 more wicks out of them. But a CD10 should work even without CO, unless the batch is just a little harder than usually. Maybe cut the CO to 1 teaspoon per lb. Also the tester that said she thought she only got 24 hrs of burn time... I would not count her, she needs to write down when she lit and put out the candle, then you get the jar back with the notes. Guessing is not always right. When I used the jelly jar I would get 50 to 60 hrs burn time, with a CD 8 or 10. Usually had to use the CD10 cause customers would not burn to the sides before putting out. Also time will depend on how much wax you put in your jar, I filled mine almost to the top. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leenabug Posted April 7, 2009 Author Share Posted April 7, 2009 When I add the UV should I still be able to use the cd-10's? If I understood that other person.........it makes the wax harder? And once I add the UV I should stop adding the coconut oil, right? The chemical part of wax is what I don't understand.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella1952 Posted April 7, 2009 Share Posted April 7, 2009 As far as I have noticed, the UV absorber doesn't affect the consistency of the wax nor the burn nor the throw. It just protects from fading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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