Intuitively, you would assume that burning a container candle for a longer period of time would make the candle burn away faster. However, allowing a candle to burn all the way across its surface before extinguishing the flame prolongs the candle’s life.
This simple act of letting your jar candle burn longer helps to prevent tunnelling. Tunnelling occurs when the candle melts down the middle leaving a “wall” of un-melted soy wax around the the diameter of the container. The next time you light the candle, that initial “wall” of solid soy will act as a barrier; your candle won’t be able to melt all the way across the container and much of your candle will be wasted
- Always keep the wick trimmed to 1/4 inch (6mm).
- If a candle burns unevenly it is in a draft. Rotate the candle 90 degrees periodically to keep burning uniform, or move it to another location.
- The first time you burn the candle let the wax pool cover the entire surface, this will teach the candle to burn evenly across, improves scent throw, and extends the burning time.
- Once your candle has burnt out, the wick base can be removed easily (be careful not to burn your self). There will be some remaining soy wax in the bottom of the jar, this is normal. The jar can then be cleaned of the remaining wax with warm water and soap.
If you do find your self with a tunnelled candle, there are a few ways to rectify the issue to save your candle.
Don't try removing the hard wax rim, it will probably tunnel again. What you need to do is to reset the wax memory, by wrapping the edge of the container or the top in a dome-tent of aluminum foil, with only a small opening at the top for air. Fold the foil over a few times to give it more structure and keep it in place. This process will help melt the wax rim and teach your candle to burn wall to wall of the glass in the future.
Always watch this process carefully and and be careful removing the foil. It will be hot.
Tunnelling can drown or shorten a wick, as wax melts over top. After you’ve solved your wax issue, you might still need to deal with the wick, and it’s easier to do so before the wax dries and buries it completely. If it has just fallen into the liquid wax, try rescuing it with a pair of tweezers and holding it until it can stand up on its own again.
Another option to save your candle is to sacrifice some of the wax to make sure the wick is long enough to light. You might need to pour out some melted wax very carefully into a container that can be disposed of until the wick is long enough.
