Soy candles--HELP!

cali-girl · ‎06-21-2010

I purchased a beautifully scented Yankee candle --Pumpkin Chai--one of the ones they make exclusively for Kohls.

The first one I had to return, because the double wicks became sinkholes in the wax, and the pooled wax put out the flame.

I had followed the directions on the candle to trim the unburned wick to 1/8", which is shorter than the 1/4 " I usually do (for regular wax candles.)

Now I have a new one--tonight I trimmed new wicks to 1/4"

The candle has burned for about 1 1/2 hours and is almost completely "pooled" as it is supposed to be. However, the melted wax looks like it's about to put out the flame on the 1/4" wicks. (so far, so good though.)

What am I doing wrong? Are soy candles different to burn? I know they have greater fragrance, burn more cleanly etc., but I wonder what's happening to mine? I absolutely love the fragrance of the Pumpkin Chai--I must resolve this!!! :-)

Any soy candle experts out there?

Also, before I re-light the candle, do I trim the wick again? That is my usual procedure with regular wax candle wicks, but I feel like a newbie !

Thanks in advance for any help/advice you can provide!

PeterDM · ‎07-30-2014

@cali-girl wrote:
I purchased a beautifully scented Yankee candle --Pumpkin Chai--one of the ones they make exclusively for Kohls.

The first one I had to return, because the double wicks became sinkholes in the wax, and the pooled wax put out the flame.

I had followed the directions on the candle to trim the unburned wick to 1/8", which is shorter than the 1/4 " I usually do (for regular wax candles.)

Now I have a new one--tonight I trimmed new wicks to 1/4"

The candle has burned for about 1 1/2 hours and is almost completely "pooled" as it is supposed to be. However, the melted wax looks like it's about to put out the flame on the 1/4" wicks. (so far, so good though.)

What am I doing wrong? Are soy candles different to burn? I know they have greater fragrance, burn more cleanly etc., but I wonder what's happening to mine? I absolutely love the fragrance of the Pumpkin Chai--I must resolve this!!! :-)

Any soy candle experts out there?

Also, before I re-light the candle, do I trim the wick again? That is my usual procedure with regular wax candle wicks, but I feel like a newbie !

Thanks in advance for any help/advice you can provide!

Hi @cali-girl. I've seen these "Yankee Candles" before at Kohl's, but I don't recall them being soy. Does it actually say that they are soy on the label? These "Yankee Candles" that are not sold directly through the company or a licensed vendor are infamous for not burning evenly. It may be that the candle is inferior, and this has nothing to do with the way you are handling it.

marky · ‎03-10-2010

Sorry that I don't have an exact answer to your question, however, many people purchase candles with scents that they love and instead of burning them, they scoop them was out with something like a melon baller and melt it in a wax melter. This way you still get to enjoy the aroma without having to mess with the wicks drowning out. Just a suggestion---I do this to avoid the soot that collects on everything when burning a candle. HTH

RespectLife · ‎02-27-2012

@marky wrote:
Sorry that I don't have an exact answer to your question, however, many people purchase candles with scents that they love and instead of burning them, they scoop them was out with something like a melon baller and melt it in a wax melter. This way you still get to enjoy the aroma without having to mess with the wicks drowning out. Just a suggestion---I do this to avoid the soot that collects on everything when burning a candle. HTH

Thank you @marky

Thank is a fantastic suggestion! I was just recently gifted w/ a wax melter but have a lot of other candles to use up. NONE of which I have been happy with as the same thing happens to me as the OP. What a great idea!

OP-It sounds like you are doing everything correctly. I have had the same problem with NON-soy candles, esp. Yankee and several purchased here on Q. Never with soy. As the others suggested, are you sure it is a soy candle?

Anyways...I love marky's idea.

@terrier3 had suggested Pure Integrity Soy Candles on these boards a while ago. Many of us posters purchased them and couldn't be more pleased! pureintegrity.com

They are the BEST quality soy candle I have ever had...and you will NEVER have this problem with their candles. You may be able to search for that previous thread.

Best of luck to you!

cali-girl · ‎06-21-2010

Thank you all so much for your responses!

@ PeterDM---it did not say soy anywhere on the candle labels--I saw it on the Kohl's website. It appears to me that, on the Yankee Candle website, there are no soy candles offered. So, HUH???? in terms of this Yankee Candle Simply Home version.

The texture of the wax is different than paraffin--it's softer and more pliable.

@ marky--great idea to make balls of wax and melt them.

@RespectLife--thank you for the Pure Integrity soy candle suggestion. I checked out their website--love that it's a family in upstate NY (my home for 40 years) that is producing them. The frosted jars are lovely, reviews are great , scents are varied and sound yummy.

I have had success with my second candle! I trimmed the new wick to 1/4", let it burn for 3 1/2 hours ( 1 hour for each inch across the top of candle) till it was pooled completely. So hopefully this candle will continue to burn well.

Thank you all for taking the time to respond. The QVC community is great, which is why I posted my dilemma here.

goldensrbest · ‎03-10-2010

I saw people liked the pure intergrity candles,i orderd a few,and some wax melts, i really like them,and you can choose the strength.

When you lose some one you L~O~V~E, that Memory of them, becomes a TREASURE.

debic · ‎09-02-2010

They make candle toppers, but I have candles that are too large for the so I use tinfoil to make my own. It helps keep the outer edges warm and you never have that hole in your candle. I don't make it this wide but I do put holes around them. The fancy ones don't work as well but you can put foil under them if you're going for looks.

Hearts Large Galvanized Metal Candle Capper Topper