# Candle Questions



## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

A few questions:

1) I got some wax from a friend and he said that he filtered it but it looks dirty. I plan to melt it and pass it through the finest mesh screen. (I got a set of three honey strainers once... different mesh and I plan to use the finest mesh). Forgot were I got it from. Will this work? Or should I use a stocking?

2) I have some old candles that I made a year or two ago and would like to melt them down and recast them into molds. Will this work? 

3) Candles will be a new addition to our table this year and pricing kinda gets me. I hear a lot of people charge $1 an ounce. Any suggestions? I have no clue what the market will bear.


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## berkshire bee (Jan 28, 2007)

Chef, If your wax is a little dirty a fine mesh cloth will do the trick. I melt my wax in the presto pot I converted and run it through about a 6o mesh and 100 mesh cloth at the same time and straight into my pouring pot. From there it's right into the candle molds. Betterbee sells the filter cloth and you can also use cloth from a fabric store. 

2) I have some old candles that I made a year or two ago and would like to melt them down and recast them into molds. Will this work? 

Yes that works fine.

3) Candles will be a new addition to our table this year and pricing kinda gets me. I hear a lot of people charge $1 an ounce. Any suggestions? I have no clue what the market will bear. 

I don't go on weight alone. Pillars are very easy and fast to make. The tapers take longer. I use the old fashioned metal molds, so there is more time involved in wicking, putting wick putty on, and extra pours after the air rises, so you have to consider your time as well as the amount of wax you use.
You can check stores to see what local prices run, and market varies even from one craft fair to the next depending on the area and draw.
I sell my pure beeswax candles for these prices:

tealights 85 cents ea
small votives $1.19ea
2" votives $2 ea
6" tapers $3 ea
10" tapers $4.50 ea
3" dia x 4" high pillars $10
3" dia x 5" high pillars $12.50

My best sellers are the 10" tapers and the 3x4 pillars
Hope this gives you a starting point. berkshire


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## Chef Isaac (Jul 26, 2004)

So if I remelted the old candles, just take out the wick after it is melted?


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## berkshire bee (Jan 28, 2007)

Yes you can do that


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## honeyman46408 (Feb 14, 2003)

Another thing I have found with the "Presto-Pot" is the longer I let the wax set (in the pot hot) the cleaner it is so don`t get in a hurry to pour, when I can see the bottom through the wax it is nice wax.


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## berkshire bee (Jan 28, 2007)

*presto pots*

honeyman, aren't the presto pots great? You can really control the temperature and they just wipe out clean. when I have enough tapers made, I just set my candle finishers on the bottom to warm them up. I've also saved some votives that were a little rough on the sides by rolling them in the bottom of the warm presto pot and smoothing them out.


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## honeyman46408 (Feb 14, 2003)

berkshire bee said:


> honeyman, aren't the presto pots great? You can really control the temperature and they just wipe out clean. when I have enough tapers made, I just set my candle finishers on the bottom to warm them up. I've also saved some votives that were a little rough on the sides by rolling them in the bottom of the warm presto pot and smoothing them out.


Handyest thing since the pocket on a shirt

I know JF had some things to say about "FIRE" and the Presto-Pot but if I am not through pouring today I just turn the pot temp down real low then tomorrow it dosent take to long to get to pouring temp again. For thoes who dont know about the "Pot" and worry about fire the electric connection has a magnent to hold it on and if you know about megnents if they get to hot they "let go" so I keep mine on top of a stainless steel table with NO flamables close to it.

I have ever rolled anything on the bottom but on the outside, I use the hot plate for the bottom finisher and as always I do a modification the almost any thing, when I got the bottom finisher (Better Bee) I drilled a hole in the "ring" that is around the outer edge so the excess wax will drain into the drain pipe.


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## natural sense (Oct 13, 2007)

*presto pots*

I would love to try a presto pot. Sounds alot easier than the double boiler I'm using. Haven't seen any here in Quebec. How deep are they? Are they deep enough to dip tapers? Would anyone know if these are only available in the U.S.A?


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## honeyman46408 (Feb 14, 2003)

natural sense said:


> I would love to try a presto pot. Sounds alot easier than the double boiler I'm using. Haven't seen any here in Quebec. How deep are they? Are they deep enough to dip tapers? Would anyone know if these are only available in the U.S.A?


They arent deep enough to do 10" dip

http://www.candletech.com/budgetmelter/index.htm


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## honeyman46408 (Feb 14, 2003)

*One more thing*

If you let the wax cool compleatly DO NOT turn the heat on again untill you have taken the wax block out and cleaned the bottom off and added new water in the pot.

REASON--the water under the wax can heat to quick and cause a STEAM pocket that will blow out from under the wax and take the top off the pot---ASK ME HOW I KNOW--DUH  bee careful HOT WAX BURNS


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