Proper candle wick care ensures a clean burn and extends your candle's life. The primary steps involve checking and trimming the wick, as well as using appropriate tools for extinguishing.
Essential Steps for Candle Wick Care
Taking care of your candle wick is simple but crucial for optimal performance. Based on best practices, here are the key actions you should take:
1. Center the Wick
- Always check that the wick is centered in the melted wax.
- Ensuring the wick stays centered helps the candle burn evenly, preventing tunneling (where wax melts only down the middle, leaving a ring around the edge). Gently reposition the wick while the wax is still liquid if it drifts off-center.
2. Trim the Wick Regularly
- Regularly trim the wick to about ¼” tall.
- A shorter wick prevents excessive flickering, sooting (black smoke), and mushrooming (a large carbon build-up at the tip). Trimming before each burn is recommended.
- Tools for trimming:
- Wick Trimmer: This tool is often angled, making it easy to reach into jars and get a clean cut.
- Scissors: A standard pair of scissors can also do the job effectively if a dedicated wick trimmer isn't available.
3. Use Proper Extinguishing Tools
- If you don't like the smoke produced when extinguishing a wick by blowing on it, consider using alternative tools.
- Recommended Tools:
- Wick Snuffer: A bell-shaped tool that lowers onto the flame, depriving it of oxygen without causing smoke or wax splatter.
- Wick Dipper: A tool used to gently push the lit wick into the melted wax pool for a moment, extinguishing the flame cleanly and coating the wick for the next burn (then immediately lift the wick back out and center it).
By following these simple steps – ensuring the wick is centered, trimming it to ¼ inch using a suitable tool, and using a snuffer or dipper to extinguish if preferred – you can significantly improve your candle burning experience.
