Candlemaking
Practical Action
candles may be rolled on a flat warm glass, metal, or stone surface for a very smooth surface
finish.
Equipment
At the simplest level, dipping may be carried out by holding the centre of a wick and dipping it
repeatedly by hand so that a pair of candles is produced (figure 3). Although this will result in a
low production rate, it is the principle on which all dipping equipment is based. In larger scale
production, a large number of wicks are suspended from a frame and dipped in turn.
Figure 4 illustrates a continuous dipping process for four or more wick holders suspended from a
wheel. Using this method, the wheel is rotated after each dip to enable a fresh set of wicks to be
presented for dipping.
Pouring
Pouring candles is very simple and similar in principle to dipping, as it is also a process which
builds up candles layer by layer. However pouring is slower than dipping as only one wick can be
poured onto at a time. For this reason it is normally only used for very small scale production
where a minimum of equipment is available.
Method
Figure 5: Hand pouring
1. Priming wicks
2. Pouring wax onto wick
3. Building candle thickness
4. Hanging to cool
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Wicks are primed (see section on dipping) and suspended. Wax is heated to the correct
temperature (about 70°C depending upon wax mix) and is poured down each wick in turn, using a
jug or ladle. A container is positioned under the wick to catch any wax which drips from the wicks,
and this is re-heated. During pouring, the wick should be twisted slowly to aid the formation of an
even coating of wax. It is only possible for a certain amount of wax to be added at each pouring.
The candle must therefore be built up from many thin layers; the process being repeated until the
required thickness has been achieved. It is important that the conditions are right for pouring: if
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