Candle Burning Guide
Candle Safety Tips
Candles are safe product, but may become hazardous when use in properly or in an unsafe manner. National fire safety agencies report that the bulk of candle fire incidents in the United States are due to consumer inattention to basic fire safety or to misuse of candles. The National Candle Association recommends the following safety tips wen burning candles:
- · Always keep a burning candle within sight. Extinguish all candles when leaving a room or before going to sleep.
- · Never burn a candle on or near anything that can catch fire. Keep burning candles away from furniture, drapes, bedding, carpets, books, paper, flammable decorations, etc.
- · Keep candles out of the reach of children and pets. Do not place lighted candles where they can be knocked over by children, pets or anyone else.
- · Read and carefully follow all manufacturer instructions. So not burn a candle for longer than the manufacturer recommends.
- · Trim candlewicks to ¼ inch each time before burning. Long or crooked wicks cause uneven burning.
- · Always use a candle holder specifically designed for candle use. The holder should be heat resistant, sturdy and large enough to contain any drips or melted wax. Be sure the candle holder is placed on a stable, heat-resistant surface.
- · Keep burning candles away from drafts, vents and air currents. This will help prevent rapid, uneven burning, smoking and excessive dripping. Drafts can also blow lightweight curtains or papers into the flame where they could catch fire. Ceiling fans can cause drafts.
- · Keep the wax pool free of wick trimmings, matches and debris at all times.
- · Extinguish the flame if it comes too close to the holder or container. For a margin of safety, discontinue burning a candle when 2 inches of wax remains (1/2 inch if in a container). This will also help prevent possible heat damage to the counter/surface and prevent glass containers from cracking or breaking.
- · Never touch or move a votive or container candle when the wax is liquid.
- · Extinguish pillar candles if the wax pool approaches the outer edge.
- · Flashlights and other battery-powered lights are much safer light sources than candle during a power failure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why should I trim my wick?
· Trimming keeps the flame low which helps prevents sooting.
· The bigger the flame, the more fuel the candle flame needs. Your candles will burn up to 25% longer by trimming the wick every couple of hours.
Why drafts and ceiling are fans a problem?
· The flame needs stability. A draft will cause the flame to burn erratically. The flame may not be as hot as it needs to be to burn off all the carbon and thus will produce soot.
Why should the candle be free of debris?
· Never drop you used match into the candle. As the candle burns, this debris can become a second wick, creating two flames and excessive heat that can lead to a fire.
· If you burn votives, always remove the metal clip that’s left at the bottom when the candle is finished. Don’t stack another votive on top of the wick clip. This will cause the votive candle to burn unevenly and the flame will get to close to the sides and crack the holder.
Why so some wicks become mushroom shaped?
· When the candle is consuming wax more quickly than the flame can burn completely, carbon deposits may develop.
· This situation is most common when a candle is burned longer than the manufacturer recommends, allowing the heat to build up in the candle. The wax becomes thin and travels up the wick faster than the flame can consume it.
· To solve the problem, blow out the candle and allow it to cool for an hour, trim the wick and relight.
Why is it that candles of certain fragrances drip or tunnel more than others?
· Some heavy fragrances do not consume well in a flame and may also clog the wick. The best wick is chosen, but ever at its best it may create issues.
· If you are a lover of scents like patchouli, sandalwood, pine and other resinous oil, you may find you have to live with a bit of sooting and tunneling to enjoy them.
What causes a candle to smoke, and what can I do to correct it?
· A well-made candle will create virtually no smoke when burning properly. However, if the wick becomes too long, or an air current disturbs the flame’s teardrop shape or the size of the mouth of a jar prevents sufficient air circulation a small amount of unburned carbon particles (soot) will escape from the flame as a visible wisp of smoke.
· Any candle will emit soot if the flame is disturbed by a draft. A well designed candle will recover as soon as the draft is removed. To avoid this, always trim the wick to ¼ inch before every use and be sure to place candles away from drafts, vents, or air currents.
· This situation is most common when a candle is burned longer than the manufacturer recommends, allowing the heat to build up in the candle. The wax becomes thin and travels up the wick faster than the flame can consume it.
· To solve the problem, blow out the candle and allow it to cool for an hour, trim the wick and relight.
Do I really need to use a holder or candle plate if my candle is in a glass container?
· Glass containers, while containing the flame, do not contain the heat. When a candle nears the end of its life, it can transfer enough heat down onto the surface it is sitting on to leave scorch marks.
· If debris in the candle surfaces as the wax nears the bottom and creates a second wick and flame, the heat can easily be enough to light some surfaces, like wood, on fire.
· Always use a plate or holder and always discard the candle when ½ inch of wax remains.
Why is there always a piece left over of a pillar candle that doesn’t burn and thus can be thought of as a loss?
· Pillar candles are manufactured using methods that force the flame to extinguish itself before all the wax is consumed.
· It’s a smart safety feature, preventing the flame and the melted wax from reaching the candle holder.
Why is my candle leaving wax on the sides of the container as it burns?
· “Tunneling” may occur if the candle is lit and then extinguished before the pool of melted wax has formed. Burn your candle as recommended on the label, generally a minimum of 2 or 3 hours to insure a sufficient was pool is created.
How should I use citronella candles?
· Citronella masks the human scent, making it more difficult for mosquitoes to home in on our skin. It may not keep all insects at bay, but it will make them more scarce.
· To maximize the effect, place candles nearby where people gather, using several. Outdoor votive holders that are lawn stakes hang from the porch or gazebo or are in sconces on exterior walls work well with citronella votives.
· Never use citronella inside the home. Some individuals may experience an allergic reaction if the fragrance is intense within a building.
How far apart are burning candles to be placed?
· The candles should not be too near each other, as otherwise they heat up too quickly and start to drip.
· When creating a candle scape of pillars, leave at least 3 inches between candles and place the arrangement on a plate that can catch any wax that drips.
Why do my candles fade or turn white around the top?
· Pigment will clog a candle wick, so candle makers must use dye to color them. Dye is susceptible to the ravages of time, light and chemical reactions.
· Fragrance speeds up the process of fading, so highly fragrant candles have a life span of 6 to 12 months, depending on the scent. As gravity pulls the scent suspended in the candle down, the dye moves as well, fading the upper portion of the candle.
· Many fragrances react with dye, even in the dark, causing the candle to turn yellow or gray (blue and red are particularly susceptible).
· If you enjoy fragranced candles, then use and replace them often to avoid deterioration in appearance and performance.
Will the candles burn slower if put in the freeze first?
· Candles burn poorly if frozen. Frozen wax will result in less molten wax that is available for consumption in the flame. This causes a smaller, dimmer flame that barely generates enough heat to maintain the burning process. Slower yes, but not better.
· For a scented candle it would also limit the volume of the fragrance pool of wax, thereby decreasing the hot throw.
· It’s even possible that the candle will start consuming the wick as fuel and give off excess black soot or smoke.
· Likewise, if you’re in really cold weather and left the candle in a truck of a car, you need to let the candle adjust to the ambient room temperature before you light it.
How do I keep my candle from burning unevenly or “tunneling”?
· This generally occurs when the candle isn’t allowed to form a uniform pool of melted wax on the first burn. “Tunneling” may occur if the candle is lit and extinguished before the pool of wax has formed. Short burn durations are almost certain to cause a candle to tunnel.
· Follow the manufacturer’s recommendation for burn time, as this is what the candle was designed to perform against. If it is not indicated, measure the diameter of the top of the candle and burn it one hour for each inch or until the wax pool approached the outer edge.
What is the best way to extinguish a candle?
· The best way to extinguish a candle is with a wick dipper. This is a metal tool designed to push the lit wick into the pool of melted wax to put out the flame. After the flame is extinguished, use the dipper to gently lift the wick back up. It is now wax coated and ready for the next burn. Straighten the wick to ensure an even burn on the next use.
· Using a wick dipper to extinguish a flame eliminates the smoke, smell and splattering that may occur when you blow a candle out.
· Particularly in highly fragrant candles, where wicks tend to glow for a longer period after being blown out, dipping is optimal.
Once I have finished burning a votive candle, how do I get the remaining wax out of its holder?
· To make the chore easier when the candle has been burned, start by taking a moment before you first put it in to the glass to remove the label on the bottom of the candle.
· Once the candle is used up, place the glass into the freezer. This will usually shrink the wax away from the glass so you can just pop it out.
· If the wax is stuck, let it warm to room temperature, and then place it on the hot warning surface of your coffee maker for a few moments. When the wax is liquid, pour it out (not down the drain though).
· Never use a knife or other device to scrape the glass surface. This imparts tiny scratches that will cause the glass to break the next time you burn a candle in it.
Why did my candle burn down the side, creating a waterfall affect that poured most of the wax onto my counter top?
· Two probable causes are most likely in this event; the candle is in a draft and/or was burned too long. Never burn a pillar longer than an hour for every inch in diameter. Extinguish and cool for 2 hours when the wax pool approaches the edge before relighting.
· Scented pillar candles are more likely to have this issue than unfragranced candles, as the addition of fragrance oil softens the wax. That is why unfragranced pillars make more sense for use at an event, where both drafty conditions and longer burn times are common.
· Mottled pillars have more pronounced weak spots in their walls that may cause the wall to flop outward and curl down the side. After blowing out a mottled candle out, gently massage the soft walls inward to keep them upright.
Why do my votives turn into a puddle of wax and quickly go out when I burn them on a plate?
· Votive candles are designed to liquefy fully to the edges and then down to the bottom of the votive glass. They must be burned inside a snug fitting votive glass. By creating mostly liquid wax, votives can emit more fragrance into the air.
