Candles have grown in popularity in homes across the UK, with companies like Yankee Candle selling vast numbers of their products to consumers. As a lot of candles are purchased and used every year, that means a similar number run down leaving a small amount of wax and often an empty jar as well.
You can recycle a candle by simply making a new candle with left over wax and a new wick. Keep hold of the jar or plastic tube the candles are bought in to make creating a new candle easier, and all you’ll need is a new wick.
Can You Make A New Candle With Old Wax?
When you heat candle wax, it first softens down and then eventually melts into a liquid. It’s exactly the same process that you’ll be familiar with when you light a candle and it gradually burns down with use. If you deliberately melt wax, it can be turned to a pourable liquid in as little as a few minutes.
Don’t be deceived by the fact that when you light a candle the wick is on fire, the temperature of the wax is significantly lower, as the flame effectively hovers on the wick just above the wax. As you probably know, heat broadly rises, so the temperature of the wax doesn’t need to be anywhere near that of the flame to melt.
What Temperature Is The Melting Point Of Candle Wax?
If you think back to science lessons at school, you’ll probably remember bunsen burners and glass beakers of water boiling away. We learned about heating solid objects (like ice) to turn them into liquids (like water), and heating them more to change them again into their gas forms (like steam).
While there’s a great simplicity with knowing the Celsius temperatures for water – the melting point (ice to water) of ice is zero degrees Celsius (aka Centigrade) or 32 degrees Fahrenheit, and the boiling point of water (water to steam) is one hundred degrees Celsius or 212 degrees Fahrenheit – other materials aren’t as easy to remember.
The same certainly applies to candle wax, and is complicated by the fact that it’s not a pure material – the make up of candle wax varies quite significantly by the candle brand and variety you’ve purchased.
A good rule of thumb for melting candle wax is that it melts at approximately 60 degrees Celsius. It will begin to soften slightly earlier at a cooler temperature of around 50 degrees Celsius.
60 degrees Celsius is approximately 120 degrees Fahrenheit, while 50 degrees Celsius maps to 122 degrees Fahrenheit.
How To Melt Candle Wax
Once the wick of a candle expires, you’ll be left with little more than a puddle of warm-to-hot wax. Once cooled it will be a solidified mass of wax in the bottom of the container.
Of course, there will be wax vapour that evaporates away as you use a candle, but some always remains. It’s this leftover wax that you can use to create a new candle.
Melt candle wax in an old saucepan or in the microwave. Regardless of the method, heat gently and keep checking to see if it’s softened. Avoid overheating the wax, you just need it to liquefy.
Can I Mix Wax From Different Candles?
Most of us buy a range of different candles, as we like to mix things up with colours and scents to enjoy in our homes. As a result, it’s common for leftover wax to come from different colours and scents of candle.
Mixing the wax from different candles can give you a unique result. Scents and colours can combine to create new smells and appearances.
A good rule of thumb is to avoid mixing too many at once where possible, but often you’ll have a limited selection of expired candles to work with – so why not see how it works out?
It’s usually best to melt all the wax you intend to combine together, and mix it into a single combined liquid, especially if you are aiming for a uniform appearance to the candle.
How To Form The Candle
Earlier we mentioned keeping the jars and plastic tubes that candles are bought in – and now we’ll get to why. We keep saying on this site that re-using materials is even better than recycling them, and here’s a great example of why you shouldn’t have thrown that empty candle jar into the recycling.
Re-using the candle jar is a great way to form the new candle shape. They also generally look great because they’re designed to be out on show by the designers of the candles you buy.
Candle shapes form and become rigid as wax cools, so pour the melted wax into a used candle jar around the new wick. If you’ve not got a jar available, find something that’s suitable for warm liquids like a mug or drinking glass.
Generally speaking, you’ll be leaving the candle in place in its container, so don’t use anything that you’ll be needing again before the new candle’s been used and is finished with.
What You Need To Make A New Candle
We’ve touched on this already earlier in the article, but all you’re likely to need for your new candle that’s new is a wick. Bigger supermarkets sometimes sell them, but a better choice is art suppliers, craft shops or online stores like Amazon. Here’s a few options you can buy now at Amazon:
Candle Wicks
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TheAmbrella Candle Wicks for Making Candles 50Pcs- 10cm Long Pre-Waxed Wicks with Metal Tabs & 3-Hole Wick Holder – Low Smoke & Longer Burning Time – Perfect for DIY Candles
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ALAMANIA Candle Wicks for Making Candles 20 Pcs 10cm Long Pre-Waxed with Metal Tabs Includes Stainless 3 Hole Wick Holder, Long Burn Time Perfect for Home and DIY Candles
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Meifyomng Cotton Candle Wicks, 1 Roll 200 Feet Braided Smokeless Natural Replacement Wicks for Oil Lamps and Candles, DIY Handmade Candle Making Supplies
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VEVOQIM 240pcs Candle Wicks Set,100pcs Candle Wicks for Making Candle (10/15/20cm) with 100pcs Glue stickers,10pcs Candle Wick Holders & 30pcs Wick Tabs,Long Lasting & No Black Smoke for DIY Candles
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Candle Wicks- Natural Cotton Candle Wick Core 200ft/Roll with 100 Pcs Metal Wick Sustainers Tabs Soy Wax Candle Wicks DIY Craft Candles Making Supplies Kit
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You’ll need your candle container (such as a jar, mug or glass) and new wick available, as well as the wax you’ve melted to hand. Before we continue, in a moment we’ll be getting to pouring the wax, so a quick warning that it may be hot so pour it carefully when the time comes, and avoid contact with fingers!
Hold the new wick vertically in the middle of the jar, and slowly pour the wax into the container, keeping the new wick as still as possible. Ideally, keep the wick raised slightly from the bottom of the container so that it won’t be visible at the bottom of the candle once the wax hardens.
You’ll need to avoid the wick moving until the wax has solidified, so if you think you’ll struggle to keep it in place, we’ve got a trick for you.
Rather than using the wick straight away, you can use something long and thing that’s more solid to create a hole through the candle where the wick will eventually be. Something like an old biro of pencil are perfect for the job.
Follow the same principle in holding the pen/pencil still while pouring the wax around it but leave a small amount of wax to fill the space later. Once hard, you can remove it to leave a narrow hole down the middle of the wax tube.
Guide the new wick into the gap, and use the leftover wax to fill around it. You’ll still need to hold it in place, but the hardened wax will provide a lot more support and prevent it going too far from the centre.
Donating Old Candle Wax
Of course, not everyone has ambitions to be a candle making god or goddess! If you’ve got candles that have finished their useful like and don’t feel like turning them into new ones, there are still options to recycle them.
While most wax from old candles ends up in the general waste, and jars end up in the glass recycling, the wax can be recycled too.
There are candle companies that have entire ranges made from re-used and recycled wax. It’s more environmentally friendly that making new wax while used candles end up in the bin.
You can donate old candle wax to companies like this who will turn your waste wax into a brand new candle with very little effort on your part.
Candle Jar Recycling
Jars and other packaging from your candles shouldn’t be ending up in general waste bins as they’re mainly glass and cardboard these days. It’s worth noting that both can be recycled too in case you weren’t sure.
Candle jars are made in the same way to the jars and glass bottles you’ll find in your kitchen that are bought in the supermarket. They can be recycled via your normal household glass recycling bin.
