Best safety tab for votives

[EricofAZ]

Friends, I'm curious what you would recommend as the best wick safety tab for votives.

Please keep in mind that 32mm x 6 mm are not available in the world. There are only two suppliers. WicksUnlimited which sells minimum order of 100,000 and will not quote prices unless the inquiring company is a large buyer (I tried, they won't tell me how much they sell the tabs for.)

There is one reseller that bought from WU that I was referred to and the price is ten cents EACH which makes the tab prohibitive.

So, given that we are stuck with either:

32 x 3

or

20 x 6

Which would you suggest?

The 32 wide self centers and keeps the wick from drifting towards the glass like the 20mm ones do (as reported here on this forum).

The 6mm height terminates the burn earlier so the bottom of the glass doesn't get so hot.

Given that only one can be selected in the world, which do you feel would be the safest choice?

(I noticed store bought votives use 20x3 which makes no sense to me at all.)

Thanks.

[rjdaines]

I like the 3mm neck but seal the bottom with that permatex to stop sucking from the bottom

[Georgia]

I had to go look, but I use 15 x 6. I don't put the wick all the way to the bottom but crimp up in the neck. I think if you have it wicked correctly, the melt pool isn't too deep and the wick doesn't fall over.

BCN has 31.8 x 3.8...kind of a compromise...

[EricofAZ]

I'm not worried about the wick falling over. A 3mm neck will hold the wick just as well as the 6mm. The issues are:

1) 3mm burns down lower and superheats the bottom more than the 6mm

2) the 15/20mm doesn't self center and can move off center causing the wick to burn against the side of the glass.

So I have to choose the lesser of two evils. Which is the greater concern? Hot bottom or hot side?

[EricofAZ]

Wait, I think I see two solutions:

Use the 32mm base and bend the base in three places forcing it to sit higher (and it will still self center), or, use the 32mm base and add something to choke the wick at a certain point, like a glass bead, etc.

[ChrisR]

I've used the 20 x 6 mm tabs for my votives for years and never had a problem! I tried the self-centering tabs and hated them.

[Camay]

I've always used the 20 x 6 mm too, and never seen one move around.

[EricofAZ]

Ok, so maybe the self centering is not as important as the tab height.

I did finally get a reply from Wicks Unlimited and they quoted for the 32x6 a decent price. $1,200 for 50,000 which is 0.024 each.

Anyone interested in a coop? That's 100 for $2.40

[Camay]

Yikes! That's a lot of wicks! What is the wick type? Just curious.

I usually get my wicks at candlewic when they do their 50% off sales. But I see that they only have the 3mm self-centering wick. Have you tried that one? I would at least try the 3 mm before investing in a bulk buy.

[EricofAZ]

hehehehe, Ya gotta supply yer own wicks, these are just the tabs.