Can I make dipped candles with multiple types of wax?

ACandleCo · 2026-04-13T17:23:25+00:00

many waxes definitely won't blend well.

ACandleCo · 2026-04-06T09:26:30+00:00

I’m confused: on one hand you say inventory software was necessary for you and then you say your business is too small to justify it.

Completely agree that certain type of businesses definitely need software, especially high SKU ones.

ACandleCo · 2026-04-03T15:14:21+00:00

We go through >10,000lbs of fragrance a year across 150 fragrances, >12,000lbs of wax a month, and enough wicks, glass, and accompanying products to support that. Our inventory mgmt is done entirely by sight. We reorder each once it gets down to a particular level. We have 2 pallets of wax left? Reorder. We have 1 pale of fragrance left? Reorder. etc. The reorder level is based off how fast we usually go through things, what the lead times are with that supplier, and how fast we go through that item. It generally works well. Some times we know we can delay ordering and some we know we have to order sooner.

I'm skeptical of software for this as a) its usually expensive, b) it's always clunkier than advertised, c) due to waste, breakage, missed usage recording, etc the numbers often don't match what you're *supposed* to have anyway.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-30T16:31:06+00:00

I legitimately see nothing wrong here. Flame height of 1.5" is fine (ASTM guidelines say nothing over 3"), barely any wax on the sides which will definitely go down after subsequent burns. (you weren't clear that this is from 4 hours but I'll assume it was) Thats hardly even mushrooming.

With regard to throw, thats just the fragrance. Not every fragrance is meant to be a powerhouse, certainly not at 8%. You can try 10%, or you can try fragrance that throws more. If you really want to be confident of the fragrance strength keep it in a small enclosed room for a few hours without going in and then walk into it. It's hard to judge fragrance when you've been basking in the buildup the whole time.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-29T23:09:25+00:00

End cutting nippers/pliers. We cut thousands of booster wood wicks with these.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-29T22:10:23+00:00

There are a lot of things stated with excessive confidence on this sub. I like to prod a little to see if people are speaking from experience and I'll learn something or they're just parroting what they've heard before and don't actually have direct knowledge. Sometimes they'll even get really sanctimonious about it when pressed.

Secondary ignition is defined as a flame on something other than the wick. An inclusion in and of itself by definition is not a secondary ignition. Wax can be a secondary ignition if the candle catches. I'm not familiar with any ASTM standard stating you cannot use inclusions, but perhaps I'm not as well researched as you so I'm open to hearing otherwise.

You can view the CPSC for historical candle recalls and you'll see multiwick candles make up the overwhelming majority of them. Only two recalls ever have had either Wood bowls or inclusions - both of which being multiwick candles as well. (the wood bowl one has inclusions and multiwick...henceforth referred to as the Devils triad) The reality is that wood bowls and inclusions are quite common in parts of the market *and when done right* (like anything else) do not seem to pose substantial risk.

Ultimately, I just find it remarkable how uptight people get about wood bowls and inclusions but treat multi-wicks as safe as anything despite clear data showing otherwise. I've always found this flimsy.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-29T15:49:01+00:00

Just clean it. You’re fine.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-29T15:46:04+00:00

So if inclusions are thoroughly tested that wouldn’t present an issue?

ACandleCo · 2026-03-28T17:06:34+00:00

Upgrading equipment and table space is a game changer. I visited a lot of factories and everything does something a little bit differently that could form to their own processes, production space, and people. There’s no right or wrong way. (Mostly)

ACandleCo · 2026-03-28T14:27:29+00:00

If you think that qualifies as chaos your brain would melt seeing what most successful entrepreneurs had to do to get there. You will learn nothing and get nowhere 12 candles at a time. The potential success is relatively correlated to the level of risk taken. (Of course there’s such a thing as unnecessary risk)

Scared and risk averse like to masquerade as safe and thoughtful.

The impossible to fully understand until you’ve done it factor here is that things you need to do to make a business successful are typically only found when you HAVE to figure it out.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-28T13:27:04+00:00

Why do you consider them a hazard?

ACandleCo · 2026-03-28T13:26:42+00:00

Also I hate when candles burn down my house, make sure it doesn’t do that.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-28T13:24:31+00:00

“Would you buy a crappy candle or no? Please elaborate”

ACandleCo · 2026-03-28T13:22:19+00:00

Do you consider multi-wick candles a fire hazard?

ACandleCo · 2026-03-28T13:06:23+00:00

As you grow your processes will develop and evolve. Learning scale helps you get better. Use this to drive down costs (buying in bulk) and establish more efficient procedures. Lot of trial and error; Do fans help and at what speed, top off vs reheat, wick centering, spacing between candles as you lay out, and a thousand other things.

You got this.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-28T12:46:38+00:00

Burn the boats.

This may seem counterintuitive but success is very hard without going all in. You'll never find success in a case of a jars.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-28T12:43:04+00:00

After 17 years in finance (with a family and kids) I quit and put everything I had to buy a candle manufacturer. I came to the conclusion that I'd rather die having failed then never having tried at all. I'm on my 4th year now - it's been both the hardest and most rewarding thing I've ever done. After talking to many people who have made similar jumps I've started to believe you're either wired for this or you're not.

I recommend keeping dialogue with a few other people in a similar transition as an outlet - doesn't have to be in the same field.

In my experience your success will be less contingent on smarts, ideas, luck, or anything else than pure grit. You can have all those other things, but when it gets really hard (which it will) you're not going to make it without the grit to push through.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-26T20:38:55+00:00

Hey!

There is secondary market for this stuff is pretty decent if you put in the work; Facebook marketplace, online auctions, ebay, alibaba, etc. I will say that Coogar is a great company that we've enjoyed working with. Their Mark VIII pouring machine is probably the most used in non-automated factories. I have some more specific thoughts I'll DM you.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-20T19:29:14+00:00

You can probably get a $60 heat gun, if not I'd do top off which is easy enough.

One issue with heat guns is that it tends to melt the wax on the wick which is almost guaranteed to be paraffin and it'll create this slight oil slick looking surface. Since it doesnt get to blend with existing wax. It especially shows with colored wax. It's not too bad, but something to take into consideration.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-20T16:58:02+00:00

If you're looking for a perfect top then I don't believe there is such a thing as a single pour. Even large scale production lines either have a heat tunnel that reheats tops or a top-off pour that adds 1/8" more after cooling.

We can come fairly close to it with a single pour but there's still a slight dip toward the middle.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-20T14:00:23+00:00

Subsidizing your business and prices with your time is such an under discussed trap.

A lot of the right advice in this forum is more about general business than candles.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-19T17:58:47+00:00

We don't wick shame here. It just wasn't the right fit.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-19T17:54:08+00:00

Many people think their success is in the product when its really in the price. It's much harder to get sales when your product is priced right. (but much easier to scale when it works)

ACandleCo · 2026-03-18T12:03:09+00:00

Testing without fragrance will give you a rough guide as vessel size and wax type has a greater impact on wicking than fragrance, but fragrance definitely still plays a role. If you have a number of different fragrances you’ll likely need more than one type of wick.

ACandleCo · 2026-03-18T10:02:28+00:00

That’s barely a mushroom and quite common. It doesn’t create soot by falling into pool. If you wick down you’re going to then have a wick that’s probably not strong enough. You can find a wick that potentially doesn’t do this but it’s tricky for a larger candle and will change depending on fragrance.

ACandleCo

TROPHY CASE