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Candle Burning Tips

Burning candles is an art and each person does it a bit differently. However, there are some key items to remember when burning candles:

• Keep your candles out of a draft. If your flame is flickering then your candle is in a draft and it will burn unevenly and/or drip.

• Keep your wicks trimmed. Candles need oxygen to burn properly. If the wick is too long or contaminated it will impede the flow of oxygen and cause your candle to smoke.
  
• How long should wicks be trimmed? The 1/4" length is the starting point. 1/8" is way too short for any candle larger than a birthday cake candle! I find candles burn better if the wick is longer, but 1/4" is a good length for first lighting the wick. If you observe carefully, you can find an optimal burning length for the candles you make and trim your wick accordingly. If 1/4" is too short, 1/2" will work great once burning.
  
  Our wick is designed to curl when burned, so the edge of the flame burns off the carbonized wick, usually keeping it at an optimal length. The optimal length will vary according to the ambient temperature, too. I just trim to 1/2" every now and then, and if the candle starts smoking. Before I relight a candle I usually trim the wick to 1/4" or so.

• Hugging! The candle wick in a candle is constantly feeding fuel (the wax) to the flame and a pool of wax is created around it due to the heat. The size of this wax pool can vary due to wick size, ambient air temperature, thickness of candle, how long it has been burning and other variables.

While a taper will rarely leak on the sides, pillar candles need more attention. Some will burn forever, some need to be "hugged" (folding some of the wax along the edge in closer to the wick), and some can only be burned for a few hours or they may leak over the side causing a mess and impairing the looks of a decorative candle.

Some decorative candles should only be burned for a short period of time since they are designed more for artistic reasons than to produce light for an extended period of time.

• Beeswax will naturally form a dusty coating over time called Bloom. Bloom, as it is referred to, rises to the surface of a candle when some of the low melting point components of the wax migrate to the surface of the candle. The colder the temperature is ( in the environment), the bloom will appear faster ( for example at 32 degrees it will appear within 24 hours). The bloom is easily removed by wiping the candle with a soft cloth or, if there is a lot of detail in the candle, use a hair dryer for about 15 seconds , you can also run the candle under warm water (but not too hot)

• Always use caution when burning candles to prevent fires!
  All candles must have proper holders. Candles that are not held vertical and stable may burn on one side only or drip wax. All pillars should be in a container to prevent wax damage.
  Occasionally when extinguishing a candle, the wick will burn down slightly making it more difficult when you wish to re-light it. Scraping the wax slightly around the base of the wick (digging a small 1/4 inch hole) will make re-lighting the candle easier if there is a problem.

• Benefits of Beeswax vs. Paraffin:
  Pure Beeswax is one of nature's most perfect products. Prized since ancient times, fragrant beeswax candles burn longer and cleaner than ordinary wax candles. In fact, pure beeswax has the highest melting point of any known wax. Its slow, smokeless flame gives off more light and heat than other waxes and there's no dripping. Made by industrious honey bees from the nectar of flowers, beeswax has a sweet, natural fragrance all its own.

It might surprise you to know that paraffin is basically the grayish left over sludge produced by petroleum refineries. This paraffin residue is bleached with toxic chemicals and then used to mass produce your average candle. Paraffin waxes contain aromatic compounds which are released when a candle is burned. These compounds have been proven to be carcinogenic. As paraffin wax burns it creates a black soot that coats your walls ceilings and lungs. This petro-soot is as harmful as second-hand tobacco smoke.

It turns out that some paraffin candles emit such hazardous pollutants as acetone, benzene and lead. These harmful substances impair the quality of indoor air. The National Candle Association has recognized the fact that beeswax candles burn cleaner and drips less than those made with paraffin wax (the fumes of which have also caused kidney and bladder tumors in laboratory animals). If you have noticed sooty deposits in your house, paraffin wax candles may be at fault. Initially beeswax candles may seem to be more expensive than paraffin candles yet this is not so. Paraffin wax burns away much quicker than beeswax nullifying any price disparity