The Science of a Pheylonian Beeswax Candle

THE WICKING

The wicking in each of our candles is essentially the most important factor. They are made from natural plant fibers, as this is the only type of wicking that withstands the long burning properties of beeswax. Each wick is stranded to a specific thickness to suit the different diameters of candles. Then, the wick is hand-processed utilizing age-old techniques that Iilah learned from his Ukrainian Baba.

Each candle is designed to burn within the diameter of that size of candle, given that the wick stays trimmed between 3/16" (5 mm) to 3/8" (9 mm) long. The benefit of using plant fiber wicks is that they do not ‘disintegrate’ or ‘burn down’ on their own. This is very important, as normal wicks would burn completely away long before the pure beeswax candle would properly consume the fuel.

With an Original Pheylonian Beeswax Candle, you never need to ‘pour off the wax’ or ‘dig for the wick’. It is important however, to trim the wick back to 3/16" each time before you re-light the candle. As the candle wax burns ‘down’, you need to re-trim the wick, or ‘hug’ your candle. See ‘METHODS OF CARE’ below for more complete burning instructions.

THE ECONOMICS OF THE DIFFERENT DIAMETERS

We make our candles in a variety of different sizes to provide the best candle for efficient, economic use. Each different diameter of candle has been designed in a balance between the wick and the width of the candle.
For example, the Temple Lite models are 3 inches wide. When you light a TL6, with the wick trimmed to 3/16" (5 mm), it will take 2.5 to 3 hours to melt the pool to within 1/4" of the edge. This wick is designed to burn shy of the edge to prevent the liquid pool of wax from leaking out. While the flame is ‘melting’ the pool of wax (it is not evaporating it, it is merely melting it), there is minimal burn-off.
Once the pool reaches the full melt diameter to which that wick will melt, the candle then starts to burn down. If this TL6 is extinguished any time after three hours, you will find that there is barely an eighth of an inch gone. Even if you continue burning this candle you still get incredible value, dollar per hour, when compared to the paraffin alternatives, soy and veg wax candles, and less-than-pure-beeswax candles.

Below is a chart to explain the hours of use that will give the
maximum efficiency and economy for each of our different candle lines.

This is not to say that any one of these candles cannot be burned for an indefinite period of time. Please take note of the ‘Suggested Maintenance’ timing in which you should either trim the wick back to 3/16" (5 mm) or preferably, push the side walls into the liquid pool to raise the level of the wax, which will shorten the wick at the same time.
Most of our candles can be ‘hugged’ two times before it is necessary to trim the wick.

METHODS OF CARE

Wick Length and Maintenance

The most important factor with an Original Pheylonian Beeswax Candle is to keep the wick trimmed between 3/16" (5 mm) to 3/8" (9 mm). If the wick gets longer than 1/2 inch, your candle will be burning with a very large flame which will melt a wider ‘pool’ in a very short time. This can result in the ‘pool’ melting through the side of the candle and leaking out. You then have a 3/4 inch wick that proceeds to melt the wax even faster, taking you into the experience that we have nicknamed ‘Chernobyl", or in other words, ‘Melt Down’. This statement is not designed to scare you, simply to emphasize the importance of trimming the wick.

Hugging Your Candle

‘Hugging’ is an alternative to trimming the candle’s wick when the candle has burned down somewhat and the wick has gotten taller. This involves pushing the side walls into the liquid pool to raise the level of the wax, which will shorten the wick at the same time.

Pure Original Pheylonian Beeswax Candles Should Not Smoke

If you ever see smoke coming off the candle, it is simply telling you that the wick is too tall. A large wick smokes because it is melting the wax so fast, it is not burning efficiently. Correct this by trimming the wick back to 3/16" (5 mm.) or by putting the candle out, letting the pool solidify and trimming the wick when cooled or before re-lighting.

When to extinguish your candle

Besides putting it out when you want to, the only time an Original Pheylonian Beeswax Candle needs to be extinguished is when the wick has become taller and has melted the liquid pool very close to the edge of the candle. Extinguish the candle by dunking the wick in its own liquid pool, or snuff the candle out with a snuffer. Then, gently bend in the sides, thickening the side walls that have become very thin. Let cool and trim the wick before relighting.

Why you should never ‘blow out’ your Original Pheylonian Beeswax Candle

The plant fiber wicks that are used in our candles work by conducting the liquid beeswax up the wick to the flame, very much like an oil lamp. If you blow out the flame, this type of wick continues to smoke and smolder. Smoldering means there are still small embers burning inside the wick, burning the wax out of the fibers. Generally, this will not completely damage the wick, however, it could leave the wick brittle and unable to re-light or hold a flame properly. 

Ideally, your candle should always be extinguished using a snuffer or by being ‘dunked’. ‘Dunking’ is a method of dipping the wick into its own pool of liquid wax using an implement like a pencil, chopstick, the point of your wax scissors or even a small stick. 

Never throw out left over beeswax.

All the scraps from your candles can be reused for a variety of household to craft purposes.
For information on these uses, our inexpensive ‘WAXEMS’ pkg. has very complete instructions on many household uses for beeswax, along with our family recipes for lip balm, hand cream, healing salve, etc.
The best way to use up most of your scraps is to simply recycle them back into any other Original Pheylonian Beeswax Candle. Simply shave the left over wax into small pieces or break it up into chunks and use it as fuel to ‘fill up’ your candle whenever possible.