Bushlite and Ikea Jublo candles?

[kard133]

I have recently brought a brass bushlite, which works fine with Prices household candle, but when I use the ikea ones,(which I prefer because they dont contain parrafin wax, and are easier for me to get) the centre of the candle melts, leaving a wall of a milimetre or so of solid wax around the edge. When the candle burns down, i.e the flame is around fifteen milimetres of so below the rim, this wall then melts, and as the candle rushes up, sprays wax all over the lantern and extinguishes the flame.
I think this is happening because the stearin has a higher melting point than parrafin, and the Ikea candles are twenty two milimitres in diameter versus twenty for the prices and are a tighter fit, so the contact with the aluminium candle holder acts as a heatsink, preventing the candle from melting at the edges.
Has anyone else experienced this, and if so, aside from shaving the candles, have you been able to overcome this?

 

[Toddy]

Now there's a suprise. I don't like Ikea candles because I find they're carp compared to the Price's ones. I didn't know about the paraffin wax.

Not many ways to thin down a candle except by scraping back. You could try melting the top layer off with a hot air gun I suppose
Interested to hear how you manage in the end though

cheers,
Toddy

 

[seg1959]

I use a potato peeler to quickly scrape away a thin layer from the IKEA candle, it takes me maybe a minute to thin down 4 half candles. No problem after that.
Worth the effort, in my view, for the price difference.
I think the problem the OP described is mechanical - it happens because before thinning, the candle is very tight so the spring cannot push it up as it burns.
Seg

 

[cranmere]

Also, the size of the wick makes a big difference and it sounds as if Ikea are using wicks which are slightly too fine.

 

[kard133]

I use a potato peeler to quickly scrape away a thin layer from the IKEA candle, it takes me maybe a minute to thin down 4 half candles. No problem after that.
Worth the effort, in my view, for the price difference.
I think the problem the OP described is mechanical - it happens because before thinning, the candle is very tight so the spring cannot push it up as it burns.
Seg

As you suggested, I thinned the candle down to slightly thinner than the prices candle, this alleviated the problem somewhat. The candle still burns a well, but since the wall is thinner the candle pushes up earlier, so wax doesn't douse the flame, just gives a pop. I have tried burning an unaltered candle, without a container, and there is an uneven wall around a millimetre thick and 7 millimetres high from the top of the wax puddle around the flame. The wick is thicker on the Ikea candles than the Prices ones. Burning a Prices candle under the same conditions the wall is uniform, and around two millimetres high. The major difference, however, is that the wall on the Prices candle is soft enough to deform from gentle pressure using a metal pick, while the Ikea candle is hard, and can be tapped without deforming. This means that with the Prices candle, the wall is pushed into the well, giving a smooth motion as the spring pushes up. With the Ikea candle, the wall has to melt, when the flame is low enough to transfer heat to that area, and when it is thin enough, it collapses, giving a jerky motion, accompanied by that audible pop. If the candle is not thinned down it take longer to reach this stage, and the well of wax is greater, so the pop is accompanied with a shower of hot wax which douses the flame and sprays wax over the glass and the inside of the lamp.
Of course, I may have a dud box of Ikea candles, but based on various discussions on candle making I found online, stearin is used to harden candles, so a candle made from 100% stearin will be harder than a paraffin wax or parrafin/stearin mix candle, and have a higher melting point.
I think if I shave the candle down to around 17-18 millimetres, it should be thin enough to work without popping.

 

[kard133]

Oh, and an interesting thing, the 100% stearin wax (stearic acid), when it hits the brass, it turns it green, like corroded copper.

 

[Toddy]

Often commercial candles are given a crisp outer shell to make them look pretty or a different colour.
They use a cheaper inner wax to bulk up, sometimes a granular mixture that's really the cheapest of the cheap methods.
It works, they all burn, sort of. Just not always so good in things like the candle lanterns.

There are really good wicks available from a company that braids them in England. Midfords. They will happily advise on sizes suitable for the pool (the melted bit of the candle) / diameter of the candle you need. They also sell really cheap beeswax for those who make their own candles Their selection pack of wicks is a good buy too.

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Midfords?_rdc=1

cheers,
M

 

[kard133]

Returning to Ikea for a browse, I found another candle they call "Dagligen", made in Poland and pale purple in colour (the ones I found, on the website it shows different colours). They are the same diameter as the Jublo, but according to the website, are a parafin/vegetable fat (stearin?) mix. Tried one in the bushlite, after cutting approx six centimetres off of the bottom, worked perfectly. They retail, at least in Bristol, for 75 pence for a pack of four.