f/o and wick performance

[Gbhunter]

I have libbey jars that are wider in the middle then the neck. Its 3 and 3/4 in diameter. I use a #5 square braid. The scent throw is amazing , but it shrooms and after being blown out it smokes for a good minute or so. But when I change the wick to something different I get no scent throw. I use Candlewicks soy 125. I also use spooled raw wick I usualy coat them with palm wax so they don't flopinto the wax pool. Even the #5 sq are does not clear the walls .I might have to go up to #6. Before anyone says anything about wicking down I tried #3 and it was a misrable failure it left tons of wax on the walls. Is it possible that the palm wax that is keeping the wick straight is causing the shrooming?

[Stella1952]

after being blown out it smokes for a good minute or so

Instead of blowing the flame out, try dipping the wick into the MP with a wick dipper. This extinguishes the flame with zero smoke and reprimes the wick for the next burn.

the palm wax that is keeping the wick straight is causing the shrooming?

'Shrooms occur because material in the wax is not being fully combusted, which collects at the tip of the wick. Square braid has a more upright stance, which might contribute to this. Contaminants in the wax are another source, dyes, particularly pigments, and a high FO load or particular FO. Sometimes wicking one size larger helps; sometimes not - depends on what's causing it.

[Gbhunter]

This is the image of the shroom after 4 to 5 hours.

This is the pick.

Obviously I think I will need to wick up to get the side wax out.

Edited December 22, 2011 by Gbhunter

[Gbhunter]

Is this considered bad after 4-5 hour burn?

[Stella1952]

GB, I don't use your wax, but I do notice some things right off the bat that could be improved. Your lop-sided burn shows that the heat in the container isn't centered. If the heat had been centered, it's possible there would have been far less hangup, if any. It appears to need a little more heat.

The wick looks pretty nasty, even though the 'shrooming certainly isn't the worst I've ever seen... The wick in your picture looks pretty clogged and oxidized to me. I suggest you try a CD or CDN in that container - size 14-16.

How much FO did you use and what FO was it?

[Gbhunter]

I used 5.5% by weight of a coffee scent. Since stabilo wicksbare the same as CD, I can say that they too mushroomed. Also I use raw wicks. The lopsideness is from my wife keeping it near the fan.

Edited December 22, 2011 by Gbhunter

[Pam W]

I used 5.5% by weight of a coffee scent. Since stabilo wicksbare the same as CD, I can say that they too mushroomed. Also I use raw wicks. The lopsideness is from my wife keeping it near the fan.

That is a NO-NO :-}

[Gbhunter]

I wish there was a way to widen the wax pool with out making it deeper. I think these libbey 18.5 oz jars are crap. Due to their size in the middle it makes them hard to wick. Is a little shrooming such a horrible thing? I thpalked to a candlear...I think that's how you spell it. Anyway I talked to this guy and he told me in glass containers especialy ones that are wider in the middle then the neck I should not burn longer than 3 hours and that sometimes a bit of shrooming is unavoidable. How ever in this candle I think I may have added too much color. So I have another colorless candle and will see how that burns,if that fails then it must be the palm coating I used on the wick.

I have one candle that I raw wicked and it never shroomed.

Speaking of color I know this to be a stupid question but how much is too much each one of these 18.5 oz jars takes 420g of wax, what would be my color limit?

Edited December 22, 2011 by Gbhunter

[HorseScentS]

Is a little shrooming such a horrible thing?

No, I don't think so. Before I started learning to make candles, when I was a customer, I didn't think anything of shrooms, I thought they were normal. Some chandlers give their customers printouts that explain that mushrooms are a gentle reminder to trim the wick.

Interestingly, when I was using 6006, I got big shrooms with low FO loads like 6%, and almost no shrooms when I went up to a 12% FO load. Of course, I don't want to use that much FO and I've switched to 4627 which throws well with low FO loads. It's an oily soft wax. I wonder if adding cocanut oil to your wax would help, but I don't have any experience with that.