For more in depth information on wick testing read the non-pictorial version. This was a wick test for Sultry Angel Candle Cocoon Fragrance.
***Candles in these pictures were bunched for photo purposes only. Candles should be burned at least 3" apart.
FIRST BURN
The first few times that a candle with 1or more inches of depth is burned the melt pool should not touch the sides.
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| Different Candles Burning for Wicking Tests |
***Candles in these pictures were bunched for photo purposes only. Candles should be burned at least 3" apart.
FIRST BURN
The first few times that a candle with 1or more inches of depth is burned the melt pool should not touch the sides.
This photo was taken at 3 hours into the first burn. The candles were extinguished shortly after. As you can see none of the melt pools reach the sides. You will also notice differences in flame heights.
MIDDLE BURNS
P-750,P-755,P760.
Middle row--CD18, CD20, CDN18.
Front row--CDN14, CDN16, CDN20
Candles are grouped for photo only. As we are testing they are 3" apart.
As you can see the "p" wicks are all still struggling, tunneling and leaving side wax (hang-up).
The CD and CDN wicks have made melt pools that not only touch the sides but in some cases have melted all hang-up, melted down more then an inch and are getting hot to touch at the point on the glass where the molten wax touches the melted wax.
I have trimmed the wicks only when needed. The back candle is a CDN22 wick. It had a full melt pool on the first burn. Now it is a flame-thrower. You can see here how some of the mushrooms have burst apart and have scattered bits of wick on the glass. The melt pool is too deep and soot is starting to build on the top rim.
The candle in the front is a CDN6. It is tunneling with a tiny flame.
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| CDN wick in front and CDN22 wick in back for candle test burning |
This is using a CDN16. There is still slight hang up. The glass is not too hot and the melt pool is a decent size (~1/2").
Also, the flame is not mushrooming. As you can see in this picture the end curls into the hottest part of the flame and burns to ash. And, happily there is very little soot build up!
You would think candle below looks decent but the melt pool is too deep, the flame is too high and dancing and the sides are already getting really hot. Plus, it has to be trimmed a lot just to keep the mushrooms off.
These candle below was made using Premier wicks P-750. I do not blame the wick type for the trouble. I am just starting to test with these and I think that I wicked these Sultry Angel candles too small. As you can see this tiny little flame is struggling valiantly and is even partially cleaning the sides. But, the scent throw is not as great as a properly wicked candle. So, while this candle will burn a lot longer then the others the scent throw will be weaker, with a tiny flame and it will waste a lot of wax. The other P wicks looked almost the same.
LAST BURNS
Below is an example of the some of the end burns. The candles in the middle still have nice flames, very little soot, clean sides, minimal wick debris and the sides are not super hot. The candles on the right had a full melt pool at the beginning, looked decent in the middle burn (picture above) but when they got past the half way point they totally turned into flame throwers and sooted like crazy. Not to mention you couldn't touch the glass as it was way too hot.
Hope this helped you a bit. There are a lot of things to look for when test burning your candles and this is a starting point.