Literally... What the Wick!!

For whatever reason, candle wicks are the things I find the most stressful.... This is why I love and I'm big on communicating with my customers for feedback because I was at the stage of making amazing fragranced candles,  I got too caught up in choosing the candle wax type, containers, scents and ensuring my measurements were on point.

Unfortunately, for me I've learned the hard way, having to deal with returns and replacements that cringing feeling of failure and apologies, I realised not concentrating on my wicks (as well as falling victim to an amazon deal) can prove to be a big mistake, when you watch your beautifully made and perfectly scented candles fail epically because they burn too fast, funnel and tunnel or not stay lit at all can be so soul crushing! 

After reading every candle blog, asking anyone who would listen and throwing myself at the mercy of many candlemakers forums for guidance, I initially assumed a lot of my failures were due to how much fragrance I was loading so I messed around with different brands only to fail again.

I always assumed the wick choice was based on the size of my candle containers and because I aim to be sustainable I always opt for cotton wicks in general so I thought I was on the right path. Clearly I wasn't.

The picture on this blog post is of the old white wicks I used to buy but after someone in a Facebook group asked me 'what about your wicks?' I realised that was one area of candle making I didn't really explore.

Im going to explain what I found out about different types of Wicks which then helped me to change the type that I bought and how much its dramatically improved the quality of my candles.......

So why is Choosing the Right Candle Wicks So Important?

Choosing the right candle wicks is actually more important than you think whether you are buying candles as well as if you are making them. You want to avoid candle wick problems and have high-quality candles that you can get the most joy from. I’ll even go so far as to say, that the containers, type of wax, and scent you select doesn’t matter if you have the wrong candle wicks in your life. 

Like many things, I learned the importance of using the right candle wicks the hard way. When testing my candles at home I have them in smaller jars to the ones I sell so they always burned well and I was mainy worried about scent throws and burn times. Even when I had 3 complaints about one of my candles not staying alight, because they were the same scent from the same batch I automatically assumed it was my measurements and fragrance load that impaired the quality. Slowly I came to discover that within some batches some candles were well received with no complaints but one or 2 of them had to be returned so I realised its not my beautiful mixing hands its the wicks I choose!!!

After researching on how to to decide to choose candle wicks there are a handful of important things to aim for: 

• consistent flame – no self-extinguishing 
• even melt pool across the diameter of the candle
• safe, moderate temperature
• smoke-free burn – no soot while burning
• long burn time – a.k.a. life of the candle 
• small, safe flame
• non-toxic, clean burn

As you can see there is a lot to consider when thinking about candle wicks. For me personally I like to use cotton wicks as they are thick and has tighter stitching and they work well with vegan friendly waxes. Here are a few of my wax failures....

Candle Wicks: Where To Start

“How do I choose a candle wick?”, you ask, there are few things to determine before choosing your candle wick size from the length and with and whether it even matches the wax you're using.

1. The Diameter of the Candle

Let’s start with the most vital factor in choosing candle wicks – the diameter of the candle. Luckily, the first step is very easy to do. Check the information from where you purchase your containers or measure your jar/container.

2. Fragrance and Colour Measurements 

You have to consider the amount of fragrance or colour you are planning to add to the candle. The more colour or fragrance you include the thicker you’ll need your wick to be. Always be careful when choosing colour brands as well. Ive noticed I get better candles when I use small amounts or no dye at all!

3. Candle Wax Type

The next step involves your candle wax type. Each candle wax type has a different melting point and density. At the moment I'm using Rapeseed and Coconut Wax as compared to Soy I feel I can work with it better. Some wax manufacturers recommend certain wicks to match their waxes as well.

4. Candle Burn Time

Last but not least, consider the burn time of the wax. Soy and most vegan based waxes have a longer, slower burn time than paraffin wax so a thin to medium wick may be best. On the other hand, if you intend to burn the candle in short intervals like 1 to 1.5 hours versus the recommended 4 hours, a thicker wick would be better in order to form a melt pool quickly across the candle to avoid funneling. I use a thicker wick with my candles as the wax I have has a great scent throw you can burn it in shorter intervals.

What are the different types of candle wicks?

This bit can actually be quite fun. For me I found it fun as well as challenging as obviously I had to spend miney trialing wicks until I found the best one for me. But there's certainly more to candle wicks than size! After searching and looking and many candles I realised theres quite a few!

ECO CANDLE WICKS: 

Eco Candle wicks are basically a coreless flat braid, interwoven with 100% organic cotton and paper fibers that provides great strength. These are self-trimming and clean-burning with minimized mushrooming and a clean burn. Excellent for waxes with a lower melting point. Each comes with wick tabs and is pre-coated in soy wax for ease of use.

•  ECO wicks is best for soy pillars and tall container candles up to 7 inches in height such as mason jar candles.

FLAT LX CANDLE WICKS:

LX wicks have a very flat finish, although braided in natural cotton threads. They help candles have a consistent flame due to their curling ability that reduces mushrooming, afterglow, soot, and smoke. Each is coated in natural soy wax, fully biodegradable, and environmentally responsible. 

• Best for wax blends and soy containers candles with a 2 to 3-inch diameter, no longer than 5 inches tall 

HEMP CANDLE WICKS:

As obvious as the name Hemp Candle Wicks are made from 100% organic hemp, biodegradable, and non-toxic. Each is dipped in natural beeswax. You can buy them pre-tabbed or in a spool to make any desired candle height. The pre-tabbed are highly recommended wicks for beeswax candles.

• These are best for beeswax pillars and container candles 

Do candle wicks need to be waxed?

You don't have to buy pre-waxed candle wicks because you can get them without. However, a pre-waxed wick will improve the performance of the wick and is considered superior in the candle-making world, especially when it comes to a great scent throw! Pre-waxed wicks are easily available because if you dont– you’ll need to wax them yourself if you have the patience. I have always worked with with pre-waxed candle wicks so I cannot have an opinion but eventually I would like to get a spool and give it a go myself!! 

However there is, one exception…

WOOD WICKS:

Wood wicks don’t need to be pre-waxed for a great burn. Ive never tried them but a lot of people recommend wood wicks that are made from native, sappy fruit trees and sourced sustainably from the Forests they come from. I would love to try them one day because I have bought wooden wick candles and they create a cosy atmosphere, crackling, and all! 

• Wood wicks are best for all types of candles: soy, palm, coconut, beeswax, and blends. You can choose from different sizes.

How do you know if you are using the wrong candle wicks? 

When I was using the wrong candle wicks it caused me a host of candle problems. I thought I'd highlight some of the issues I had: 

Self-Extinguishing Issues: If a candle wick self-extinguishes and therefore fails to burn you have one of two problems happening: 

1. The candle wick is too thin or short – investigate your wick against the size and width of your containers 
2. The candle has too much fragrance – I found fragrance calculators helpful to avoid adding too much next time. 

Issues With Mushrooming: This was a major issue for me. When a wick is mushrooming, it splits as it burns. This can be avoided this by doing two things:

1. Trim wicks after use, removing excess buildup.
2. Choose a thinner wick.  

Excessive Flickering Issues: A flickering wick, other than a wood wick, can cause smoke or soot. This candle wick problem is often caused by one thing:

• If the candle wick is too thick for the candle size it will cause the flame to flicker. 

Issues With Tunneling: If the candle does not melt across the container from edge to edge a tunnel will likely occur and your scent throw will be weak. Tunnels form in candles for two reasons:

1. If the candle is only lit for a short time before the melting pool can reach across the diameter of the candle a tunnel will form. Burn candles in 4-hour intervals for best results. 
2. The wick was too thin and did not have enough strength to create a full melting pool. 

Deep Melt Pool: A melt pool that is too deep can greatly reduce the amount of burn time, meaning the life of the candle. This had happened to me also and I opted for a thinner wick of the same brand as the one I was using

• Using a wick that is too thick for the diameter of the candle can cause a melt pool deeper than half an inch.

Candle making is truly trial and error and we constantly show our appreciation to our close friends that love to test our imperfections that we cant retail and especially our customers because if we didn't have them we wouldn't be able to continue to test and push ourselves to buy and use the best products we can find in order to create gorgeous candles that are cost effective.