Terminology for candle making

Why is it important to know the terminology of candle making?:

1.It helps you find the information you need faster and more accurately, both when dealing with suppliers and when searching for information.
2. Helps to understand the production process more clearly.
3. Makes it easier to get a foothold in the industry.
4. Knowing your deadlines will reduce your production and troubleshooting time.

As with learning any language, some of these terms can be quite confusing. Terms such as afterglow, mould, mushroom formation or opaque surface are common terms that you will come to recognise, and there are many more.
To make it easy for you, we've put together a comprehensive glossary of everything you need to know to master the art of candle making.

GET TO KNOW THE GENERAL TERMS FOR MAKING CANDLES:

AFTERGLOW: The light coming from the wick of a snuffed candle.
BOOSTER OR ADHERED WICK: A reinforced wick is a wick of various sizes and thicknesses where a second narrow wick is added in the centre. The reinforced wooden wick is ideal for vegetable wax candles, beeswax candles or candles with intense scents and dyes.
BURN CYCLE: (not to be confused with burn rate or burn time). The burn cycle is the burning of a candle for four hours, then extinguishing it, allowing it to cool, then repeating the cycle. This process is most often used to assess the appropriate wick selection as well as for general candle testing.
BURN RATE: The amount of wax consumed per hour in grams. The burn rate may vary depending on the size of the container, the type of wax and the choice of wick and the heat it generates. A good rule to follow is
BURN TEST: A specific, controlled, structured burn, usually used to determine the correct wick size. This is the 4th step in the candle making process and one of the most important steps. Once the waxes, vessel sizes and scents have been selected, it is important to carry out a burn test to assess the best size and type of wick for your particular candle. Take our daily test...
BURN TIME: This is the total time it takes for the candle to burn out. Different factors contribute to different burn times, such as: the type of wax, the wick and the size of the container.
CARBON BUILD-UO OR MUSHROOMING: a cap of soot, resembling a mushroom, formed on the wick during combustion. This 'mushrooming' is most common with cotton wicks, but rarely occurs with wooden wicks. To avoid this, remember to shorten the wick and clean the soot when the candle is finished burning.
COLD THROW: The intensity of the scent emitted from an unlit candle. This is one of the main priorities of every candle manufacturer. Different types of waxes have different scent diffusion.
FINISHING (with a heat gun): Blowing with a hot air gun or blower to smooth out irregularities and other imperfections in the surface of a candle that occur after initial production. The causes of surface roughness are varied, but the most common are incompatibility with aromatic or essential oils, too rapid setting or too cold a room temperature.
FLASH POINT: The limiting temperature to which a product can be heated so that, under standard conditions, the vapours evolved from them will ignite instantaneously if a flame source is present. The flash point of odours is given in the Safety Data Sheet (SDS).
FRAGRANCE LOAD: The percentage of fragrance concentration in a batch of candles. Different fragrance manufacturers use different fragrance concentrations. Therefore, when choosing fragrances, it is important to choose quality products with a higher concentration, which will not only save you money but also guarantee a more stable burn with less dilution of the wax. As a standard, fragrance suppliers recommend using 8-10%. With Aurae fragrance oils, we always suggest starting with 3% when testing. Also, one of the main rules when choosing the concentration of fragrances in a candle is the size of the jar. The larger the candle, the lower the percentage of fragrance required.
FROSTING: The formation of white crystals on the surface of a natural wax (usually soy) due to the different temperatures during the candle's setting. Frost spoils the aesthetics of the candle. It is therefore very important to control the temperature throughout the candle making process. To avoid frost, try to heat the containers and regulate the casting temperature.
WET SPOTS are areas of wax stains on the glass where the wax does not fully adhere to the glass. This phenomenon is usually caused by improper dispensing temperature or too rapid cooling.
GUTTER: Excess melted wax that oozes from cracked hard candles.
HANG UP: The remaining wax on the wall of the candle jars when the candle has finished burning. Wax residue is caused by the candle burning down the well and can be avoided by making sure that the candle forms a full melting pool when burning.
HOT THROW INTENSITY: This is one of the main priorities of candle manufacturers. Mixtures of different waxes give better scent diffusion. 100% soy wax usually does not offer particularly good scent diffusion or requires a high percentage of scent application.
JUMP LINES: unintended horizontal lines or rings around the sides of a candle jar or pillar candle.
MELT POINT: The temperature at which the wax begins to melt. Each type of wax has a different melting point, so always take this into account when working with a new wax.
MELT POOL: A liquid pool of wax when a candle is lit. Ideally, the liquid wax pool should form 2-3 hours after the candle is lit. The ideal 4-hour pool is 0,5 cm deep.
MIX TEMPERATURE: The recommended mixing temperature for waxes after the addition of fragrance and dye. Each wax is different, so all additives should be mixed exactly according to the instructions.
MOTTLING: The 'snowflake' shapes that appear in the wax of a solid (pilar) candle already made.
SDS: Safety Data Sheets (SDS) provided by manufacturers of raw materials (waxes, fragrance oils, dyes, additives, etc.). They are very important because they contain all the information on: flash point, melting instructions and information on the product's ingredients and materials.
OUT OF BOTTLE: The first appreciation (impression) of a fragrance after opening its packaging.
POUR TEMPERATURE: The exact temperature at which the prepared wax (with fragrance and/or colour) is dispensed. Each wax has a different dispensing temperature and the instructions for the wax must be followed.
POWER BURN: Burning a candle for more than 4 hours at a time. Often referred to as burning a candle for 8 hours or more. However, this is dangerous and we do not recommend it
RELIEF HOLES: Holes that are specially made in a candle when it begins to cool. This eliminates air pockets. Relief holes are used to remove the smegholes together with the blower.
A SINGLE-PLY WICK: A single-ply wick is made of a single layer of material, but can vary in width. It is the choice of wick width that influences a beautiful burn. The following wick widths are currently available in the aurae.lt e-shop: 12mm, 16mm.
EMPTY AIR HOLES (SINK HOLES) in a finished candle: holes or empty wax cavities caused by air pockets are the most common occurrence in soy wax candles. These can be avoided by following the precise instructions for melting and dispensing temperatures and by making the candles on a smooth surface. Sometimes the 'holes' can be repaired with a blower. These cavities often occur near the wick and are one of the main causes of 'tunneling' of the candle.
SWEATING: the aromatic oil released from the wax (often accumulating on the surface of the candle in small droplets or even a small pool). This phenomenon is often caused by the candle moving quickly from one temperature to another. Soy wax is particularly sensitive to changes in temperature.
WAX CUBES (TART , WAX MELTS): these are scented wax cubes without a wick, used to diffuse the aroma. The wax cubes are heated by placing them on a clean heated container or wax candle holder. The cubes are often used for aromatherapy purposes.
TRANSITION TEMPERATURE: The temperature or range of temperatures at which a wax is cooled and changes from a liquid to a solid state.
TOP POUR or SECOND POUR: also known as a second coat, this is an additional application of wax on a defective candle that has already been made (after repairing any air voids or smoothing the surface).
TUBE WICKS: Tube wicks create a beautiful circular flame and burn well in all vegetable and beeswax blends. They can be used alone or in combination with cotton wicks or thin, single-layer wooden wicks. This wooden wick is designed for candles up to 63,5 mm in diameter. For larger diameter jars, we recommend using several wicks evenly spaced apart.
TUNNELING: When a candle is made with a wick that is too small and the candle does not form a melting pool of the full diameter of the vessel when it is lit, a combustion 'tunnel' is formed. A wall of wax is formed around the circumference of the candle.
WAX: the raw material from which a candle is made. The most common types of waxes are paraffin wax, beeswax, soy wax, coconut wax and various vegetable wax mixtures.
WICK DOWN: also known as a size smaller wick. A smaller wick size should be tested when testing for optimum results. This means choosing a wick that is 1 width smaller.
WICK UP: This is also known as a wick that is larger in size. A larger wick size should be tested for optimum results during testing. This means choosing a wick that is 1 width larger. This may also mean using an additional wick.
WOODEN WICK: A single-ply or multi-ply wick, curved and decorative in shape, made of 100% wood or semi-wood, fibre material or combinations of cotton and wood. All wooden wicks sold in the aurae.lt e-shop are environmentally friendly, natural, chemically untreated and made from FSC certified wood.