help with candle making?

yippee_kye_yay

i love glade scented glass candles, but find only half of the wax burns away. so im thinking i can melt this all down and make new candles? what would i need?

obviously i need wick, am i right in thinking i can just buy a long strand and cut it to my required length?

also ive just looked on ebay and they have the little metal things that go in the bottom of some candles, i think they were called tabs/substainers. do i need to use these?

and also i have loads of red thick glass tea light holders left over from my wedding, would i be ok to melt the wax straight into the glass, or would i need to use empty tea lights?

and finaly if i melt the scented candles down to make new ones would they still be scented when they reset? or will the smell go when i burn them down?

thanks in advance if you read and/or reply

yippee_kye_yay

oooh another question, cortesy of dh. will it be possible to chop down birthday candles and drip the melted wax around it? so i wouldnt have to buy new wicks?

Kevie192

Definitely not.

Using anything other than 'clean' wax and brand new wicks can be extremely dangerous.

In theory, you can melt down your old candles but can never be sure there is not a small amount of wich left that will flare up. You can also not be sure how much fragrance is still left in the wax. If you add to much, you can have flare ups. Think oil on fire on top of water - same thing.

It also matters what type of wax it is. There are different kinds for containers candles and pillar/moulded candles and you cannot be sure which kind is in your currnet candles. If you use the wrong one, the contraction of the wax when cooling can create air pockets in the candle and it may explode.

If you want to make candles, I can help you to do it safely and properly but you will need to fork out for the proper equipment and supplies and not just bodge something together from old scraps. Cutting corners with candles is very dangerous. This is your house we're talking about and it only takes a small error to cause a serious fire.

Kevin x

Gingerbiscuit_2

Ive done it few times with pellets of wax (new) and added bits of other left over candles to use up. Obviously this is 1 or 2 candles at a time and not heated directly so cant really say about explosions above!

You can use moulds and thread wick through and stop the end so you dont need the metal tabs, but if you are wanting to use old cups say you will need some weight to hold the wick upright while it sets. You supposed to dip the wick in wax few times let it dry then put in cup and put the wax over the top - you still need to support it at the top but this is supposed to keep it steady while it sets.

Kevie192

I'm talking about explosions whilst burning the candle, not whilst making it!

You can buy pre-waxed and pre-tabbed wicks which are much easier to use. When melting the wax, always make sure you use a double boiler method rather than direct heat to avoid any burning.