beewax candles help

As a beekeeper I have lbs of beewax. I have tried to make candles a few times now but they do not burn well. I tried using a thicker wick but they still do not give a very big flame and often go out. Any idea's if I am missing something? I use pure beewax, I don't mix it with anything.

Are you using actual candle wick or just heavy string? I think you really need regular candle wick and not string.
We made candles in the past and tried string but it doesn't work we had to but candle wick. I can't remember where we got ours.

No, I used candle wick. I got it at Michael's. I used the yellow brood wax, only thing I can think of is maybe I used too much heat when I melted down the wax to pour into the mold, but usually too much heat will cause the wax to crack and loose color, but it didn't... it has me stumped. Maybe I will try an even thicker wick and see what happens.

A wick, by definition, wicks fuel to the fire. If your pure beeswax is not flammable your candles will not burn properly. Add paraffin or tallow.

I made a beeswax jar candle last year and also some beeswax Christmas ornaments. I didn't have a problem with the beeswax burning but just recently learned that you should let the candle cure for at least 24 hours. I'm going to try my hand at making beeswax tapers next week. I want to get the hang of candle making because that is something that I can sell at the Farmer's Market without having New York State Ag and Markets come in and certify my kitchen.

I'd love to see some pictures of some candles that anyone is making. Some pictures of the whole process would really be nice.

That is a good idea to add a little paraffin, not sure what tallow is? I will give that a try. I will post some pictures after I make a batch. I hope you post some pictures of your beeswax tapers Backtotheland

This explains it better than I can. I use a small amount of tallow in a lube I make for my muzzleloaders, and Black Powder Cartridge rifles. Some hard core buckskinners make tallow candles.


Tallow is a rendered form of beef or mutton fat, processed from suet. It is solid at room temperature. Unlike suet, tallow can be stored for extended periods without the need for refrigeration to prevent decomposition, provided it is kept in an airtight container to prevent oxidation.
In industry, tallow is not strictly defined as beef or mutton fat. In this context, tallow is animal fat that conforms to certain technical criteria, including its melting point. It is common for commercial tallow to contain fat derived from other animals, such as lard from pigs, or even from plant sources.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tallow

http://pilgrimsandpioneers.blogspot.com/2008/02/making-tallow-candles.html

enjoy

Very interesting! Not long ago I had discovered sinew and hide glue. It is amazing stuff that works great for backing bows. Deer season gave me the chance to get all the materials together and I made a batch and backed an Oak long bow with it, the outcome was much better than backing with fiberglass. My next project for sinew is snow shoes. I can't believe the amount of uses one can get from animals, alot of people think the only thing that can be harvested is meat and leather or fur. This is one more thing to add to my list. I will learn some more about tallow and try to proccess some for my candles, I will let you know how it turns out

If you're ever interested in selling some of your beeswax I'd be interested. I need it for making my lotions and lip balm.

Psalm25 wrote:Very interesting! Not long ago I had discovered sinew and hide glue. It is amazing stuff that works great for backing bows. Deer season gave me the chance to get all the materials together and I made a batch and backed an Oak long bow with it, the outcome was much better than backing with fiberglass. My next project for sinew is snow shoes. I can't believe the amount of uses one can get from animals, alot of people think the only thing that can be harvested is meat and leather or fur. This is one more thing to add to my list. I will learn some more about tallow and try to proccess some for my candles, I will let you know how it turns out

Good luck, my first few efforts were somewhat disappointing, get a cheap double boiler at a thrift store, it'll save you a lot of pains.

Sonshine, when I started making candles I went to AC Moore and picked up a container to melt my wax in. It was right in the same area where they sell the candle making supplies. I'm going to try making a few natural colored beeswax candles first and then I'm going to try my hand at making colored ones.

Sonshine wrote:If you're ever interested in selling some of your beeswax I'd be interested. I need it for making my lotions and lip balm.

My wife makes lip balm and soap out of the bee's wax, it is so much better then the stuff at the stores.
I would be happy to give you some, I can send it p.o.d. Maybe we could work out a deal... one of my hobbies is collecting seeds from around the world. If I put a postage paid envelope in with the package of wax, maybe you could pick me a few wildflower seeds native to your area? No worries about them getting out of control, I grow them in a confined area, in my sun room. Often I only plant a couple and keep the rest for display and/or trade.

12acrehome wrote:

Psalm25 wrote:Very interesting! Not long ago I had discovered sinew and hide glue. It is amazing stuff that works great for backing bows. Deer season gave me the chance to get all the materials together and I made a batch and backed an Oak long bow with it, the outcome was much better than backing with fiberglass. My next project for sinew is snow shoes. I can't believe the amount of uses one can get from animals, alot of people think the only thing that can be harvested is meat and leather or fur. This is one more thing to add to my list. I will learn some more about tallow and try to proccess some for my candles, I will let you know how it turns out

Good luck, my first few efforts were somewhat disappointing, get a cheap double boiler at a thrift store, it'll save you a lot of pains.

A double boiler is on my "keep an eye out for" list. I am also looking for a small electric burner so I can do it outdoors. When I made the hide glue I made it inside, in one of my wife's pots. I learned a few things making it for my first time, one thing being that boiling down critter hide and hooves really stink. I also was reminded of something I learned soon after I became married... happy wife, happy life lol! So, I will be making my future concoctions in my workshop

Psalm25 wrote:

Sonshine wrote:If you're ever interested in selling some of your beeswax I'd be interested. I need it for making my lotions and lip balm.

My wife makes lip balm and soap out of the bee's wax, it is so much better then the stuff at the stores.
I would be happy to give you some, I can send it p.o.d. Maybe we could work out a deal... one of my hobbies is collecting seeds from around the world. If I put a postage paid envelope in with the package of wax, maybe you could pick me a few wildflower seeds native to your area? No worries about them getting out of control, I grow them in a confined area, in my sun room. Often I only plant a couple and keep the rest for display and/or trade.

I could do that. Is it just flower seeds you would be interested in?

I could do that. Is it just flower seeds you would be interested in?[/quote]

Any type of seeds is fine, does not have to be flowers. If you happen to have any wild onion seeds at hand I would sure be happy to take a few. I was reading a post where you had mentioned you have wild chives growing, I would be happy to take a few seeds from those if there is any at hand. But ether way it any kind is wonderful.

We don't usually let the wild onions come to head, but I'm sure we could manage that. I also have some herb seeds, loofha seeds as well as lots of vegetable seeds. All open pollenated/heirloom. If you'll send me a PM on what all you may be interested in I'll see if we have it and we can go from there. Thanks.

wild flower seeds?? What ya got from KY? I might hook ya up with some seeds next fall. We have let a few small sections go wild for humming birds and butterflies. Anything in particular you might want for your collection?

Sonshine, are loofa's hard to grow? I would like to get some and see how they come out to put in my soap gift baskets.

backtotheland, I don't know yet. I got some seeds and plan on trying them this year for the same reason, to put with soap baskets. I'll try to send you a couple if you would like to try them. They are vines, so you'll need something for them to grow on. We have some lattice set up for them.

I've grown them a couple times. No they are not hard to grow, like any other gourd they need plenty of water and a fairly rich soil. What I found tricky was getting the inner sponge out of the rind, or peel. You have to let them dry completely then cut the ends off the fruit, then you separate the inner "sponge" from the casing. A long fillet knife, or hack saw blade can work if you're careful.

Thanks Sonshine and 12acre. I saw someplace on line where they just cut circles out of the loofa and poured the soap in there and let it set. I would like to try that too.