Soy Candles

My wicks are smoking!  How dare them.  You have a special event happening and everything is elegantly laid out, and then the candles start to smoke.  Now what do you do?  Don’t panic, here are some ideas.

1. What kind is your candle?  Paraffin wax candles are more likely to smoke.  Instead try using a soy wax candle, as they put off much less smoke if any.
2. Ah, the wick.  Cotton wicks tend to burn cleaner than zinc core wicks.  When a wick gets those black balls on the top when burning it is called shroom.  Zinc core wicks shroom more and can create more smoke.  Burn only candles with cotton or natural products wicks.
3. Do you blow out your candles?  This creates more black smoke.  Try using a wick dipper.  This is a metal tool used to push the wick down into the melt pool to  extinguish it and then use it to pull the wick back up straight for the next time.  Wick dipper use means less smoke!
4. Has your candle had the proper care?  Be sure and let it burn all the way across the first time that you burn it, before putting out the wick.  Is the wick being trimmed like it should?  It should be trimmed to 1/8 inch each time before burning. 
5. Drafts can cause a candle to put off more smoke.  Check the placement of your candles before lighting them for sudden hidden winds. 

The factors most involved in the smoking wicks has to do with the type of candle wax being burnt and the product in the wicks.  Using gourmet soy candles with cotton wicks is the answer to reducing the amount of second hand inhalation of wick smoke in your home.