Candle Care Instructions
Just became the owner of a Wavemade soy candle? Here's what to do to get the most out of your purchase and make our candles a small daily ritual you look forward to.
1. First burn
Before lighting your candle for the first time, trim the wick to about 0.2-0.4 in (0.5-1 cm). That keeps the flame at the right size to melt the wax evenly out to the edges of the glass. Soy candles burn about twice as long as cheap mass-market candles, which are usually made from paraffin. Let the first burn run for at least 3-4 hours, or until the top layer of wax has melted all the way to the edge of the jar (the "full melt pool"). Getting a full melt pool on the first burn is what keeps every burn after it even - skip this step and the candle can start tunneling. Every burn after that should also run for around 3 hours, or until the wax fully liquefies again. If you're heading out in the next 30 minutes, it's better to wait and light it another time.
2. The wick
Wick length matters. Keep it trimmed to 0.2-0.4 in (0.5-1 cm) with regular scissors before every burn. A wick left longer than 1 cm causes a large flame, soot, a dirty wax pool, and a hotter jar - and burns through the candle faster. Trimmed too short (under 0.5 cm), the flame won't have enough heat to melt the top layer of wax, which can cause tunneling (uneven burning, with wax left built up on the jar walls).
3. Where not to burn a scented candle
How strong a scented candle throws and how evenly it burns depends on a lot of factors, and placement is a big one. Keep your candle away from windows, drafts, damp spots, and areas with competing smells (like the kitchen while cooking). Burning it in the wrong spot means the scent will barely come through, if at all.
4. Safety
Never leave a lit candle near anything flammable - curtains, plants, paper - or anywhere within reach of children or pets. Always burn under adult supervision. Once there's only about 1 cm (0.4 in) of wax left in the jar, it's time to stop - continuing to burn it down further can overheat the glass (and in the worst case crack it) and damage the surface underneath.
5. Putting it out
Just blowing it out works in a pinch, but it leaves the wick smoking and can leave a faint burnt smell behind. We also don't recommend snuffing a jarred candle with a metal lid to cut off the oxygen - the smoke released from the wick gets trapped and reabsorbed into the melted wax, so the next time you light it, you may notice that burnt smell again.
TROUBLESHOOTING
Running into problems with your favorite candle? We've got you. TUNNELING - wick was the right length, but your candle is burning unevenly and wax is building up on the jar walls? Try wrapping the (unlit, cooled) candle in aluminum foil around the outside, then light it - the foil raises the temperature inside the jar enough to help the wax melt out to the edges. If the flame has gotten very small and the wick is barely glowing, try carefully pouring off or removing the excess wax pooled around the wick - the flame should pick back up and the candle should burn normally again. Keep burning until the top layer reaches the jar walls. If the wax has melted to the edge on one side but not the other, it's usually because the wick has tilted to one side under the flame's heat, causing uneven burning. While it's lit, gently nudge the wick back to the center with a metal tool (the tip of a spoon works well) and give it a few minutes for the wax on the other side to start melting too.