What Is Happening with These Tealights?

[KristinB83]

Hi, all,

I'm a new candle maker trying to make scented and unscented soy and beeswax candles for home use and for sale, starting with tealights. I've made a number of batches of soy tealights, some scented and some unscented, but I keep running into difficulties after I've poured them. One problem that keeps recurring seems to be frosting (I've included pics below so you all can tell me if it looks like frosting to you or something else). Even with the room temp at an ideal 70 or 72 degrees F, most of my tealights are frosting. My candy thermometer broke and so I've been trying to make tealights without a thermometer, which is most likely the problem, but I still had frosting even with my first batch where I used a thermometer and cooled the wax to the recommended temperature before pouring. I've also found three different recommended temperatures for pouring soy wax at on three different candle supplier websites, so I'm not sure which is the preferred. Can anyone give advice on that?

Another problem I've seen is little white spots forming on the top of the wax after it was poured while it is setting and hardening. The white spots vary in size, from a tiny circle to a bigger amorphous blob.

Lastly, in some of the tealights I've made, I've noticed some pitting on the top of the candles. It looks like little tiny sink holes or something, of various shapes. A few others seem to have issues with little bumps. I've struggled with centering the wicks since I have nothing to center them with at the moment. Is that what's causing some of this? I'm working on obtaining something to center the wicks with before I make any more tealights.

I'm assuming I'm probably pouring the soy wax at too high of a temperature since I'm winging it without a thermometer, but I wanted to check with you all first to confirm. I've attached some pics to this post. See below. If anyone can offer advice (apart from get a thermometer, silly :mrgreen: ), it would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

 

[jcandleattic]

Soy wax frosts. Nothing you can really do about it. It will happen if it's going to happen no matter what you do to try and prevent it. In the off chance that you do get rid of it temporarily, it's just that. Temporary. It will most likely come back.

The sink holes however, that is most likely temp related, and pouring too hot can cause that.

Also keep in mind that both soy wax and beeswax can "bloom" or grow/expand as they age. That's also just another aspect and nature of the wax.

 

[jcandleattic]

Lastly, in some of the tealights I've made, I've noticed some pitting on the top of the candles. It looks like little tiny sink holes or something, of various shapes. A few others seem to have issues with little bumps. I've struggled with centering the wicks since I have nothing to center them with at the moment. Is that what's causing some of this? I'm working on obtaining something to center the wicks with before I make any more tealights.

Are you securing the wicks? or are you just placing them in the tealight. If you are not securing them to the tealight cup somehow, you will end up with a floating wick, that will be unsafe to burn because the wick can float to the edge, melt the cup, and worst case scenario, catch something on fire, best case scenario, extinguish it self as melted wax pours out of the melted tealight cup.

If you secure your wick (glue, silicone, wick stickums) that will also help with the centering issue.

 

[KristinB83]

Are you securing the wicks? or are you just placing them in the tealight. If you are not securing them to the tealight cup somehow, you will end up with a floating wick, that will be unsafe to burn because the wick can float to the edge, melt the cup, and worst case scenario, catch something on fire, best case scenario, extinguish it self as melted wax pours out of the melted tealight cup.

If you secure your wick (glue, silicone, wick stickums) that will also help with the centering issue.

Hi, jcandleattic!

Yes, the wicks are secured with the sticky pretab silver thing at the bottom that sticks to the bottom of the tealight when I put it in. Not sure what it's called. I had read that frosting occurs more in winter if the room is cold, but you are saying that is not the case? Frosting is just part and parcel of soy candle making, then? Thank you for your replies! Very helpful!

 

[jcandleattic]

Hi, jcandleattic!

Yes, the wicks are secured with the sticky pretab silver thing at the bottom that sticks to the bottom of the tealight when I put it in. Not sure what it's called. I had read that frosting occurs more in winter if the room is cold, but you are saying that is not the case? Frosting is just part and parcel of soy candle making, then? Thank you for your replies! Very helpful!

They may frost more in winter, but IME they frost all year, no matter.

So you are putting a stickum on the silver wick tab to secure it? I've not run across any tabs that are naturally sticky, so if you aren't actually putting a stickum on the tab, you probably should do that.

 

[LilyJo]

Yep, frosting happens with soy. Its more obvious when you use candle dyes but it just happens.

The pitting and holes are usually to do with temperature and also air bubbles in the wax when pouring.