I'm Not Too Pretty to Burn . . . I'm Too Precious to Ignore*

What safety precautions must I take?
All the standard warnings apply when burning any candle. See the label to the right for specifics.
Is it dangerous to burn my Dèjá UCandle™ Creation?
No - not if you burn it right. In fact, it will hurt your candle's feelings if you just treat it as eye candy instead of putting it to the use nature intended. There is, however, a special way to burn your candle that will help preserve its custom emblazed picture or pictures. This special way is called "tunneling" - and you can train your candle to do it.
All the standard warnings apply when burning any candle. See the label to the right for specifics.
Is it dangerous to burn my Dèjá UCandle™ Creation?
No - not if you burn it right. In fact, it will hurt your candle's feelings if you just treat it as eye candy instead of putting it to the use nature intended. There is, however, a special way to burn your candle that will help preserve its custom emblazed picture or pictures. This special way is called "tunneling" - and you can train your candle to do it.
Tunneling allows your outer candle wall to remain intact, thus preserving the picture that makes your UCandle creation unique.
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What does it mean when a candle "tunnels?"
Tunneling is when a candle burns straight down the middle instead of to the edges. Most people do not consider this a good thing, because eventually, as the hole gets deeper, the lit flame will melt wax from the candle wall. The melted wax may eventually rise up around the wick and drown out the flame. If the built up wax makes it impossible to light the candle, you can scrape it away using a butter knife. Why would I want my candle to tunnel? Burning down the middle allows the outer wall of your candle and its custom-emblazed image to remain intact rather than be engulfed by the fire. It also creates a beautiful, soft glow that lights your image from the inside. |
How can I "train" my candle to tunnel?
Basically, a series of short burns will "train" your candle. As it burns, a small well of melted wax forms a circle around your wick. The more it burns, the larger the circle. Allow the melted pool of wax to extend at least 1 ½ inches in diameter - but never any closer than ¼ to ½ inch from the edge to maintain the integrity of the wall. Allow the candle to harden before relighting. This first burn is crucial - it forms the basis of your candle's "memory" for each subsequent burn. Will my candle "remember" how far it is supposed to burn the next time I light it? Yes - your candle should "remember" to burn only to the edge that was previously formed, and get deeper rather than wider. Of course, some candles are "smarter" than others, so keep a close eye on the tunneling progress. If it appears to be burning beyond the appropriate edge, blow it out. 1 to 1 ½ hours is a good amount of time to burn the first time out. My circle is off center. What should I do? If is not unusual for the circle to form slightly closer to one side. To remedy this, immediately after extinguishing the flame, use a butter knife to even out the circle so the well is more evenly centered. Have a container ready to to receive the hot wax you will be digging out. Eventually, when the well is deep enough, you may want to trim the wick very short, and insert a tea light or votive candle in the opening. Hence,you can perpetually burn your candle without fear of damaging your custom-emblazed image. |
The tunneling process at the beginning.
Making progress.
Don't let the well get any closer to the edge of the candle than is shown on the bottom of the above shot. Keep a careful eye on subsequent burns to ensure the crater doesn't get any wider and begin to collapse the outer wall. You may take a butter knife to the thicker wall to enlarge the well for more symmetry.
Pictured left.
When the well is deep and wide enough. Add a tealight. Or, if you prefer a deeper down glow, keep relighting the original wick and tunneling down the candle until it is deep enough for a votive candle. |
What happens if I decide to burn my candle to the edge, including the picture?Short answer: the picture will go up in a blaze of glory.
Long Answer: Depends on whether the candle does or does not have a protective coating. Candle without a protective coating: Image will be consumed pretty quickly once the flame hits it. FOLLOW ALL SAFETY RECOMMENDATIONS, including and especially never leaving the candle unattended and burning on a fireproof surface. Just for fun question
Will freezing my candles make them last longer?
The short answer is "No." It may even make them crack For the long answer, read this posting from the Keystone Company's blog *Subtitled: "How to crater-train your candle." |
Candle does have a protective coating: The protective coating is non-flammable and somewhat flame resistant. Basically, the coating will simply melt down the outer wall of the candle that is not covered by an image. The coated image will eventually burn - but very reluctantly. In our testing, the coated image briefly stays lit, then goes out.
FOLLOW ALL SAFETY RECOMMENDATIONS, including and especially never leaving the candle unattended and burning on a fireproof surface. |
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©2011-Present. Kim McCahan Batson, Dèjá UCandle™ Co. and ucandles.com, Chapel Hill, NC. Unless otherwise noted, all photography, text, content, and images are created by and the exclusive property of Kim M. Batson. All rights reserved. Please contact [email protected] for reprint permission.