A questions to the experienced members

[Ravens]

I'm still quite new at this wax business, so I'm playing with a variety of waxes. I have one that sets sooo fast that now I'm curious to find out what it contains.

It is the container/tart wax from the candlesource. I'm very pleased with the throw, but I'm curious to know what would make a wax set so quickly.

I usually melt one pound, heat it to 180 degrees as instructed, add FO, stir and pour. As I pour, the wax start to set while still in the pouring cup! So I put it in the microwave and end up with nearly 1/2 cup of liquid wax again (well, maybe not quite half a cup, but quite a bit).

Does anyone know what type of wax this is. Because it sets so quickly, does it mean it contains a lot of paraffin? Tried to find out some more info. about it on the website, but no luck.

Like I said, it has an excellent HT, but of all the waxes I have and tried, this is one super-fast setter!

[Judy, USMC]

How are you melting the wax the first time? Are you melting in one container and transferring it to a glass pourer?

I use metal pour pots because they retain the heat better than glass. It may be just the combination of the type of wax and the glass...

[Starr]

It very well could be your pour pot. Judy's right about glass not holding heat as well as metal. Personally, I prefer metal because I can see better how much wax is left in my pot but the downside is sometimes (especially on cool days) i have wax that's cooled before it's been poured.

[Jane42]

We use glass pour pots, but we heat them before pouring. Since we heat our jars, we just put them all in together so everything is warm. If I forget to put the pour pot in, I run into the same problem you are having.

Since we work in the basement, where there is no oven, we have a turkey roaster in the candle area that works great for this. Helps keep cleanup a breeze!

HTH

Edited December 18, 2009 by Jane42

[Ravens]

I use a Pyrex cup. I see how that could play a role, but the wax starts setting as I pour it out of the Presto pot (which I shut off just prior to transferring the wax to the Pyrex cup), so I have all these funny looking "icicles" on the rim. Then, when I put the Pyrex cup in the microwaves to liquify the wax again, it takes at least twice as long as it takes the other waxes. Hmmm:confused:

[ChrisR]

I have a couple glass pyrex measuring cups I use for small pours and always stick the empty cup in the microwave for 30 sec. before I pour the wax from my presto into it. I pour in my basement and its pretty cool down there, so the glass is always cold. Naturally when the hot wax hits the cold glass it's gonna start to set up, common sense!!

[Ravens]

Yes, it will start setting if it hits the cold pyrex, but this wax starts setting as I'm pouring out of the Presto pot, which is still rather hot!

I'm wondering if this is a wax with a high paraffin content... None of setting happens with the other waxes.

[Judy, USMC]

You are right in assuming it may be the paraffin - the paraffin usually used to make only pillars has a high congeal point. Some up to 142 degrees. So depending on their custom blend it could be setting up faster.

I would first double check the temperature of the wax with a thermometer. If it does read 180 I would say you could bump it up another 5 degrees and see if that helps. Try pre-warming the oil, too. Just put the bottle in a bowl of warm water, cold oil will also drop the temp. Pre-heat the glass pourer, pre-heat the tools and try again.

If you are still having problems I definitely would contact your supplier.

[Ravens]

Judy, thanks for the tip about prewarming the oil. You're absolutely right, 'cause when I pour the FO in this wax, it turns it hard (the wax hit by the FO congeals), and then slowly, with stirring and keeping the temp up, it'll dissolve.

So you think I'll have no problem bumping the temp to 185 and then adding the FO? I use a candy thermometer stuck to my Presto pot.

[chuck_35550]

You can buy a digital oven thermometer which has a probe attached by long silver wire. This gives you a constant read out and also can be set up to time your stirring. You can buy them at Walmart for pretty cheap. HTH.

Steve

[Judy, USMC]

I'm fairly sure you can go higher. When I'm using straight Paraffin Pillar I heat to 195 with no problems ... The flash point should be well over 200 degrees.

I just checked a website for a general range of paraffin pouring temps and they vary from 175 - 185 (+/- 5 degrees).

So if you heat to 185 and add the warmed oil it will not exceed the temps I found. I still recommend warming your glass pourer, too.

If the oil is crystalizing when you put it in the wax it's telling me the room is cool, too. More shrinkage will occur in a cool room even with a one-pour wax. So put a small box over them to let them cool a little more slowly.

HTH

[bugtussle]

IGI makes 2 votive/pillar paraffin waxes that start congealing very quickly - 4761 (Lonestar) and 4614 (BCN.) I would imagine that is what you have. Carole

[topofmurrayhill]

IGI makes 2 votive/pillar paraffin waxes that start congealing very quickly - 4761 (Lonestar) and 4614 (BCN.) I would imagine that is what you have. Carole

At first I thought it was something like that, but she's using the container blend from Candle Source, which is 128 MP so I dunno. Sounds like Judy is pretty much onto it. Check the thermometer, warm the Pyrex, and probably take the wax hotter out of the Presto.

Ravens, there might also be an issue of speed. Some people have a method for keeping the mixture warm after it's out of the melter, but otherwise you have to keep things moving along. Even though the melt point is low, the paraffin blend might have a higher and more distinct congealing point than a soy wax. To get a nice tart you should also pour it hot enough so it's fully liquid in the mold.

Edited December 19, 2009 by topofmurrayhill

[Ravens]

Thank you, Steve! I'll be heading to Walmart in a little while, so I'll look for that thermometer.

Judy, you're right again. My room is rather chilly (mid 60s); will try the cardbox trick. Thank you.

Top, maybe with some practice I'll be a speedier pourer (I invented the word just now, lol). Right now, after I add the FO, I stir it vigorously while I count to 60, then stir gently a couple of times. I have my pyrex cup right next to the pot. After the last gentle stir, I pour the wax in the cup as quickly as I can, and that's when within seconds I notice the wax that starts to congeal in the presto pot and around the rim. I let it be and take the pyrex cup and start filling my ice cube trays (they're at room temperature) or the fluted metal molds. After 8 fillings or so, it starts to congeal again, so off to the microwave I go!:rolleyes2

Thank you all for your help and advice; you're the greatest!

P.S. Do you think Loren will tell me the composition of this wax if I asked him?

[topofmurrayhill]

I gathered from the website that it's probably a paraffin blend. I've only heard the microwave recommended for soy, I suppose because it's a fat. Using a metal pour pot you could keep a hot water bath handy or a fully enclosed hot plate on low heat. The easiest thing would be to heat it in the Presto to whatever temperature you need to give yourself time. I don't think I ever really stir for 30 seconds, so you could save a little there. Pre-warming the Pyrex will help a whole lot.

[Judy, USMC]

There's no harm in asking Loren ~ at least find out if this is predominently soy or paraffin.

If it is mostly paraffin, and your jars are at room temperature, you may experience jump lines in the containers when you start pouring into them with the warmer wax. This will be resolved by warming the jars, too. They won't need to be super hot - but warming to about 90 should help.

If you don't have a problem don't worry.

[chuck_35550]

I keep a small toaster oven on my work table that holds about a dozen jars at a time. I keep them nice and toasty (no pun intended) until time to wick and pour. I pour the amount of wax I need into my glass coffee pour pot and put it on a hot plate and put my thermometer in to monitor temp. I set my timer for 2 minutes and stir in my fo and or color. I grab a jar out of the oven and wick it and place it on my scale and tare and then pour and place in a covered box. The whole process goes rather quickly and I can pour several dozen candles in less than an hour. I use a turkey fryer. The wax will leave a white film on the pour area or spout of the pot almost immediately. No big whoop. You won't have that problem in the Spring and Summer. HTH.

Steve

[topofmurrayhill]

Just a little correction. Earlier I posted that I don't stir for 30 seconds. What I meant to say is that I usually don't stir for a full minute. No harm in doing so of course, especially with larger batches, but you can trim a little time there if you need to.