How To: Wood Wick Candle Care (Top Tips)
- ERYN.K
- Oct 6
- 2 min read
Updated: Oct 7
There’s nothing quite like the cozy, gentle crackle of a wood wick candle to instantly elevate your home and ambiance. They look beautiful, smell incredible, and offer that extra special sensory experience—but let's be honest, they can be a little temperamental if you don't know the secrets to keeping them happy!
Wood wicks need a little more love than their cotton counterparts, and we've put together our top three tips to ensure a beautiful, long-lasting, and fragrant burn every single time.
TIP 1: Always Trim Your Wick
This is the most important tip and the #1 reason a wood wicks will struggle to stay lit or have a very small flame.
You must trim the wick before every single burn. Once your candle is completely cool, use a wick trimmer, nail clippers, or even your fingertips (gently!) to snap or cut off the black, charred wood. You want to leave only about 1/8 of an inch of wood above the wax.
Why It Works: The flame needs to be close enough to the wax to draw the liquid fuel up the wood. If the wick is too long, the burnt wood material acts as a barrier, causing the flame to extinguish itself or drown.
Don't Forget: Make sure to remove all the little bits of trimmings from the wax pool before lighting.
TIP 2: Always Allow a Full Melt Pool
Ever notice how a candle starts burning down the middle, leaving a wall of wax around the jar? That's called tunneling, and it wastes wax and fragrance.
Commit to a long uninterrupted burn until the entire surface of the wax is liquid and melts all the way out to the edge of the container. This can take anywhere between 1 to 3 hours depending on the size of the jar.
Why It Works: Wax has a memory! If the first burn only creates a small circle, subsequent burns will follow that same path, resulting in wasted product and a much shorter lifespan for your candle. A full melt pool ensures an even burn every time.
TIP 3: Mind Your Drafts & Burn Time
Always burn your candle away from open windows, air vents, or fans. Air currents will make your flame dance erratically, which causes it to smoke, produce soot on the jar, and burn unevenly.
Limit your burn sessions to no more than 3 to 4 hours at a time. Burning for too long causes the wick to get too hot, resulting in a large, smoky flame or an overheated container. Allow the wax to cool and harden completely before trimming and relighting.
Always place your candle on a stable, heat-resistant surface, and extinguish it when there is only 1/2 inch of wax remaining in the jar.
Happy crackling! And do let us know how these tips worked for you, or if you have other tips you’d like to share with us!
Treat yourself or a loved one to some gentle therapy (or simple rest and relaxation) with our artisan hand-poured soy candles, or check out some of our other gifts available.
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