please, fix my candle....

[Arne]

I got a very nice, large candle for xmas. It is in about a pint sized jar.

The outside layer of wax never melts, so now the wick is in a hollow, and below the outer layer of wax... soon, the wax will melt and the wick will be below the top and it will not burn...

I thought about microwaving it to level out the wax, but the wick will still not be long enough to burn.....

Can I get a wick somewhere, or do I have to put votive candles in the hollow?

[Miriam C.]

Arne get a spoon and heat it with hot water. Use the spoon to scoop away the old wax. Good luck

[Micro469]

Light the candle, and when the wax in the center around the wick melts, turn the candle upside down and pour it out. That way you can still use it until the center burns to the bottom.

[Rick Sheerin]

Arne- go to your local craft store and pick up a candle warmer. It should melt all the wax in the jar in a couple of hours. They should also sell wicks there. Cut the wick to size, wrap a pencil around the top of the wick and set it in the middle of the jar of melted wax with the pencil resting on top of the jar. Trim the wick after the wax cools.

[Micro469]

Arne- go to your local craft store and pick up a candle warmer. It should melt all the wax in the jar in a couple of hours. They should also sell wicks there. Cut the wick to size, wrap a pencil around the top of the wick and set it in the middle of the jar of melted wax with the pencil resting on top of the jar. Trim the wick after the wax cools.

Didn't realize it was in a jar. What Rick said but with a few changes. attach the wick to those little metal bases they have for it, then push that to the bottom with a piece of coathanger, then suspend the wick in the middle wrapped around a pencil. When the wax is melted of course.....

[vwbeamer]

I keep my old candles and melt them in an old pot.. I pour them in old glass jars, i use any cotton string laying around for a wick, but the store bought ones are more than likely better.

When you melt the wax, do it on low heat, I imagine a wax fire would be hard to put out...

[rebapuck]

Burn and pour til the center is hollow enough to drop in a tealight.

[Billy K]

Arne, I do "fix" candles here at home with the pencil and candle wick trick.

When all else fails, a candle warmer and two or three "hollowed" candles will make one good one; same method for wick.

You can salvage a favorite scent by adding wax from the same hobby shop you get the wick at. It won't be as strong but, will give a bit of life.

Good Luck!

[Laredo]

Several years ago I got a lovely ceramic "candle" -- you plug it in and it melts the interior wax. No wick, so no aerosolized lead fragments from burning the wick. This year, though, the scent had entirely departed the wax (it came with one designed to infuse a whole room with 'fresh linen' scent).

So I turned it on and let it melt and then poured it off, cleaned the interior of the vessel and added (because the wax meant for it is not currently available) about a dozen tealight candles that I hulled out of their little aluminum cups and deprived of their wicks. I melted the first half-dozen in a tin can over a very low flame, poured the wax into the ceramic vessel, added the rest of the (pumpkin spice) candles and plugged it in. Result? house smells really nice.

The candles are way stronger burned on their own.

For your candle in a jar, try this:
Set the jar in a heavy (CI if you have it) 8'' skillet with 1/2'' of water in it. Bring the water to a simmer and let the wax melt in the jar (the skillet behaves like the bottom of a double boiler). Once it's melted the wax will level out again. Take about a 12''-14'' length of heavy cotton string and rub it between buttered or safflower-oiled fingers, then double it up and twist it to create your wick, which you slip into the salvaged fitting off the bottom of the original wick (weighted, if need be, with a couple of pinch-on fishing weights the size of bbs).

Suspend that into the bottom of the wax with the pencil method already described and set the jar somewhere to cool slowly. You can repeat this up to a dozen or so times, until the wax evaporates down. The butter / oil on the string increases its ability to light and hold a flame but won't change the smell of the candle.

IF that sounds like too much trouble, get yourself a "mug warmer" and set the jar on it, turned to low, and just don't worry about the wick.

[TheresaD]

Arne, it sounds like you didn't burn it for long enough the first couple of times that you had it lit. I've learned that about the jar candles. First off you need to make sure you trim the wick before lighting it so that it's a little less than 1/2 in. long. Once you light it for the first time you should ideally let a jar candle burn for long enough that the wax can melt all the way across. When the candle is only lit for short periods of time you end up with the tunnel problem and get stuck with a hollow core for a candle.
The jar warmers mentioned are great because they allow you to use the candle without getting the mess from carbon from the wick burning. They do a really nice job and the candle burns completely. You could give it a shot with the votive candle. That might be all you really need. But make sure you let it burn all the way across. The only thing with this is that I'm not sure how easily you will be able to get at the original wick once the votive burns down completely. I would suppose it will just be directly below the old wick so you might be fine. Good luck!

[Arne]

I google "microwave a candle" and came up with some videos with purple flashes in the box. Must be that little metal plate on the bottom of the wick.

I put mine in my microwave and nuked it for one minute. Melted a bit, no flashes.... finally, after 3 minutes I had melted it all down..

So, now that I know I can do that, I'll head off to a craft store and look for wicks...

Lacking that, I'll just buy a small candle, melt the big one until it is soft enough to stick the small one into it flush...

Thanks for the help.

[rebapuck]

I have a number of those rechargeable-battery flickering votives. I really like the effect and safety. My plan is to hollow out a large candle enough to hold one of these votives.