How important is it that your tarts pop out of the bowl?

[Candybee]

Sorry but I don't agree. I have used a variety of waxes including parrafin and soy and found palm to make the best tart wax melts. Perhaps you are using the wrong type of melter. And as far as taking longer for palm to melt than other waxes are you serious? I found no difference whatsoever and furthermore the scent starts filling the air the moment the bottom of the tart starts to melt.

Nor have I ever had a palm tart 'spew wax' with one tart or more in a burner. Although I have heard this can happen with soy but have also not seen this in all the years I have been making tarts and/or candles. So I am very skeptical of this being a characteristic of the wax.

I have been using palm wax for my tarts for several years now and really love and admire how nice a tart it makes.

[Stella1952]

If you do a search, you will find that this is a common problem with palm wax melts. We've discussed it many times in the past. Glad YOU have had no problems. Hope your customers don't either.

[Debbie73]

I use palm wax, also. The feather palm I use in the clam shells. I use the glass glow in the silicone molds. The silicone molds are smaller in size than the regular 1 oz tarts, but using the silicone molds, you are able to make a lot at one time. I have several different shapes that I use and really do like them!

[Stella1952]

as far as taking longer for palm to melt than other waxes are you serious?

Well, sure, dear. If soy wax melts at around 115°F (give or take, depending on the product) and palm wax melts at 135°F (give or take, depending on product), guess which one takes longer to melt?

So I am very skeptical of this being a characteristic of the wax.

Needle penetration values don't lie. The problem isn't the time it takes to melt nor the temperature, it is that palm wax is a very hard wax and it doesn't soften much between the solid state and the liquid state. The harder the wax, the more likely it is to spew through the hard, unmelted top when heated from underneath.

I don't think you understand the problem I described.

Spewing doesn't occur during the first melt nor does it ALWAYS occur - certain factors have to be present for this to happen. When the wax is reheated from underneath, the hard unmelted "crust" on top can seal the liquifying, expanding wax underneath, build up pressure and spew hot wax. If only one small tart is used, chances are that the sides of the melting container will get warm enough to melt the edges of the top "crust" and this phenom will not occur. The problem occurs when one uses a larger volume of wax (such as wickless candles which folks set on melters or several 1 oz. tarts in one melter). The size & shape of the melting container is a factor. If the shape is like a shallow bowl, it's less likely to occur. If the shape is deeper with straighter sides, it's more likely to occur. But the bottom line is that palm wax is more likely to do the spew than is softer soy wax. The best melters are the type which heat from above. This totally eliminates the potential for pressurized spewing of hot wax of any type.

Don't get me wrong - I LOVE the look of palm wax melts, the scent throw and the ease of molding, but the safety issues I explained detract from it being an ideal tartmaking wax. I did not say that one should not use palm wax for tarts. I said it was not the ideal choice. Read the first and last sentences of my original post!

[jenscandles]

The problem isn't the time it takes to melt nor the temperature, it is that palm wax is a very hard wax and it doesn't soften much between the solid state and the liquid state.

Stella, the paraffin pillar wax I've been playing with has a melt point of around 140. However, it's not nearly as hard as my palm wax. I should not have a "spewing" problem with pillar paraffin tarts, should I? I'm thinking not, but I've not had a chance to retest either since my melter got lost in my move.

I'm debating whether I need to go with a votive wax with a slightly lower MP for my tarts or if I'm probably good with paraffin. I'll know more once I get my new melters and can test again.

[blazerina]

Somehow I got into the habit of adding steric to my tarts. I think I started doing this because I began with the really soft 6006 wax. I also like to add a bit of straight canning paraffin wax to up the hardness. And now that I use a different wax, I still do it out of habbit I guess. I don't know that it really helps or hurts. I don't sell my tarts but I'm very happy with them. Maybe I'm just biased, lol.

As a consumer of tarts, having to pop them in the freezer is just part of life to me. Sometimes ya do, sometimes ya don't. :smiley2:

[Stella1952]

I should not have a "spewing" problem with pillar paraffin tarts, should I?

Jen, I honestly do not know because I don't work with paraffin at all, so I couldn't speculate on how it might behave. Hopefully, someone who understands the pressure spewage phenom and works with paraffin will chime in.

[grama]

Never had any trouble with paraffin tarts "spewing", be it container or pillar wax. I make tarts out of whatever wax I happen to be using at the time. I always add enought wax so I will have a few left over for tarts. As far as popping out of the bowl, I don't really worry about it. Nobody has ever said it is a problem for them. Just pop in freezer for a few minutes and they slide right out. I really don't like to use palm wax for tarts. jmho

[jenscandles]

Jen, I honestly do not know because I don't work with paraffin at all, so I couldn't speculate on how it might behave. Hopefully, someone who understands the pressure spewage phenom and works with paraffin will chime in.

Thanks Stella, I forgot I had asked that!

Got my new melters from the co-op the other day and I've been testing the tarts I made. With the Illuminations warmer my tarts I made out of the IGI 1274 mottling wax are taking FOREVER to melt!! Seriously, 1/2 hour later I was thinking, gosh I don't really smell it yet and i went in the kitchen to check and there was just a hint of a MP with a nearly solid tart in the middle! I was trying the mottling wax to see if I could get a good mottle (it was decent except for the top center of the tart). Last time I was making tarts I made them with the IGI 1343 and using my tealight warmer they melted pretty quick. Wish I could find my tealight warmer to test these new melts. The two waxes have a nearly identical melt point but maybe all the stearic added to the 1274 makes it not ideal for melting tarts.

I had also made a few tarts for me out of the feather palm and i got perfect crystalization all over it! But after reading the various threads about spewing palm wax I'm hesitant to offer them to the public.

I also bought the candle warmer and dish that does not use the bulb to heat, and will test these mottled tarts in there before I give up on them. In the meantime I found 5 lbs of the IGI 4794 votive blend in the garage that I forgot i had and will make a new batch of tarts for testing.

I guess the good news with the 1274 and Illumination Warmer was I put the bowl in the freezer for a "few" minutes (meant it to be 5 but turned into 15) and the wax did just pop right out of the bowl!