wakeylad Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 Hi:I have a few older candles from 2001 (YC) and they stated that the wick should be trimmed to 1/4". I noticed that they now state that the wick should be trimmed to 1/8". When I use the 1/8" trimmer, I end up getting an ugly little stub. Surprisingly, it lights and gives a nice flame.FYI: I tested one of their candles with a 1/4" trim. The first two burns were okay but the flame was a little larger than normal. On the third burn it turned into a 2"+ monster and was throwing soot like crazy. After I trimmed to 1/8", I got a nice clean, stable flame. Personally, I prefer the 1/4" wick over the 1/8" stub but I just wondered if anyone knew of the reasoning as to why some of the big players are moving towards 1/8" trims.ThanksNeil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjdaines Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 I've moved to the 1/8 inch trim myself though 1/4 work fairly well too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pam W Posted April 9, 2012 Share Posted April 9, 2012 The first two burns were okay but the flame was a little larger than normal. On the third burn it turned into a 2"+ monster and was throwing soot like crazy. After I trimmed to 1/8", I got a nice clean, stable flame. The wick should be trimmed every time the candle is re-lit Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolverine Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 That is why all my candles say, "Trim between 1/8 and 1/4 inch before every lighting." However I do think the 1/8 is better and does not seem to effect the burn time to reach full pool. Most people just reach in the container and break off the wick with their fingers and that seem to give the 1/8 anyway.:smiley2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakeylad Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 The first two burns were okay but the flame was a little larger than normal. On the third burn it turned into a 2"+ monster and was throwing soot like crazy. After I trimmed to 1/8", I got a nice clean, stable flame. The wick should be trimmed every time the candle is re-litHi, Pam:Yes, I trimmed the wick to 1/4" the first couple of burns, as opposed the the labels 1/8" recommendation, just to see how it would burn. The first two burns actually were okay. When I lit the candle the third time, that's when the flame morphed into the 2"+ beast of smoke alley. Then I decided to trim the wick to the labels recommended 1/8". After that, it burned okay.I had one of my candles, that smoked and danced with a 62Z and I trimmed that to 1/8" and it burning with a steady smokeless flame right now.ThanksNeil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakeylad Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 I've moved to the 1/8 inch trim myself though 1/4 work fairly well too.Did you have to change the wick size to accommodate the difference in length? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjdaines Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 Did you have to change the wick size to accommodate the difference in length?No, trimming short just seems the slow the process by which, over time, the wick will become too long and the flame too high. If you extinguish the flame every 3 hours then this is not an issue. Some people like to burn their candles all day or all evening, so this forestalls the over-sized flame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HorseScentS Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 No, trimming short just seems the slow the process by which, over time, the wick will become too long and the flame too high. If you extinguish the flame every 3 hours then this is not an issue. Some people like to burn their candles all day or all evening, so this forestalls the over-sized flame.But sometimes do you have a problem with the wicks drowning when you trim to 1/8"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakeylad Posted April 10, 2012 Author Share Posted April 10, 2012 But sometimes do you have a problem with the wicks drowning when you trim to 1/8"?I was reading an article, or a posting, that actually said the larger wick may be more prone to downing since it melts the wax faster than the wick can burn it. It's been a long weekend for me but, if I remember correctly, the 1/8" wick promoted burning outward instead of downward (1/4" wick). Of course, that will also depend on your wick selection.I had some old candles that had drowning issues when trimmed to 1/4" and I'm now testing them with 1/8" trims. I'm still in the process of wick selection for my wax/container combination, but I'm tempted to try two parallel tests, one with 1/4" wicks and the other with 1/8" wicks.On the YC candle I tested, I got the impression that they wicked up to counter the shorter wick length since a 1/4" trim gave a 2"+ smokey flame but the 1/8" trim produced a nice steady flame.Personally, I prefer the 1/4" look but the 1/8" does appear to have a tamer flame, from my initial observations. I'll check my bookmarks at work to see if I have a link to the article/posting and post it to the thread.ThanksNeil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjdaines Posted April 10, 2012 Share Posted April 10, 2012 But sometimes do you have a problem with the wicks drowning when you trim to 1/8"?No, past drowning issues were eliminated by using a different wick (switched to ECO). The flame and melt pool seem to regulate each other (up to a point), low flame = smaller melt pool and everyone seems to be happy. Once you have a FMP and the glass heating, the melt pool size is no longer just determined by just the flame size, this is when drowning can happen (based on my observations). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakeylad Posted April 13, 2012 Author Share Posted April 13, 2012 I did some 1/8" testing this week and noticed that I can grossly overwick and not get any smoke or soot. Saying that, I'm testing 4630 with 10% fragrance and the bigger wicks yellow the melt pool (BTW, adding 10% wasn't intentional - I get good CT and HT from 6.25%. I just made a mistake on this batch.)I noticed on my older "big boy" candles from 2001 that they used to recommend trimming to 1/4" but now recommend trimming to 1/8". I have read articles regarding European Standards that relate to sooting. I'm wondering if the switch to 1/8" has something to do with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjdaines Posted April 13, 2012 Share Posted April 13, 2012 Also depends on how long the candle burns for, the wick eventually grows and will show any imperfections (sooting). I just finished a test with an Elemental jar, parasoy, and a HTP-62. Wick was trimmed to 1/8" and even with power burns there was no soot on the glass; I'm thrilled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wakeylad Posted April 14, 2012 Author Share Posted April 14, 2012 Rj:As a 1/8" and 1/4" burner I will be definitely following your posts. If the big boys are moving towards 1/8" then I think that is something we should be aware of. I prefer the 1/4" myself but the 1/8" testing is definitely something that I will revisit.I think we have to question why the big boys are moving in this direction. Maybe they something we don't know.Take care and have a good weekendAlso depends on how long the candle burns for, the wick eventually grows and will show any imperfections (sooting). I just finished a test with an Elemental jar, parasoy, and a HTP-62. Wick was trimmed to 1/8" and even with power burns there was no soot on the glass; I'm thrilled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rjdaines Posted April 14, 2012 Share Posted April 14, 2012 Problem is, how many retail customers actually trim their wicks? If the larger makers can educate the buying public to trim wicks then that will help all of us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HorseScentS Posted April 16, 2012 Share Posted April 16, 2012 (edited) Also depends on how long the candle burns for, the wick eventually grows and will show any imperfections (sooting). I just finished a test with an Elemental jar, parasoy, and a HTP-62. Wick was trimmed to 1/8" and even with power burns there was no soot on the glass; I'm thrilled.That's awesome, rj! You've inspired me to give the Libbey Elemental jar another try. Right now I'm getting a beautiful burn with Peak's Creme Brulee in 4627 with an HTP 83 wick trimmed to 1/4". Edited April 16, 2012 by HorsescentS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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