Wax tarts aren't working - no scent

[LauraZ]

Hello,
I'm new to making wax tarts (made candles years ago) and I seem to be having a problem. I've made them twice now and both times the hot throw is almost non-existent.

Both times I followed the directions on the suppliers' websites for the correct temperatures to heat the wax and when to add the FO.

First try - I used EcoSoya from Brambleberry and scented at only 1/2 ounce per pound of wax and read more to find I needed to double that. The scents I used were from Wholesale Supplies Plus (Orange Dreamsicle and Oatmeal Honey) Cured maybe 10 days.

Second try - I used Pillar of Joy from Nature's Garden and scented at 1.5 ounces per pound of wax just to be sure I had enough. I used a scent from Nature's Garden - Sweet Potato and Brown sugar. The wax tarts cured for 2 days.

I'm using warmers I bought from Scentsy. I really want to make this work and I can't figure out what I'm doing wrong.

Any suggestions would be very greatly appreciated
Laura

 

[HappyGoNaturally]

I only make candles, I've never made melts. It kind of sounds like the scents may have been lost during the process. ...?
What are the flashpoints of your scents?

 

[IrishLass]

Welcome, Laura! :wave:

It very well could be that the fragrance oils themselves are the cause of the problem (i.e., they might just be lightweights in the scent-throw dept.). I haven't used the particular FOs you mentioned, but for what its worth, anything orange-scented tends to turn out so much lighter than other fragrance oils for me.

Hopefully more folks will chime in soon!


IrishLass

Edited to add- looks like HappyGoNaturally and I were posting about the same time. lol

 

[LauraZ]

Thank you for replying and for the welcome!

I didn't know to check the flashpoint and to be honest I don't exactly know what it means.

I went and looked them up and the flashpoints are as follows:
Orange Creamsicle = 124 degrees
Honey and Oatmeal = 200 degrees
Sweet Potato and Brown Sugar = 178 degrees

I'm sure I poured FO into the Pillar of Bliss wax at 180
but I have no idea what temp with EcoSoya as that was my first try and the instructions just said to melt in the microwave and said nothing about checking temperature.

Do I need to let the wax cool down before adding FO?

 

[lsg]

I use a combination of soy wax, bees wax and palm wax. This combination seems to hold the scent. I use EO in my wax tarts.

 

[HappyGoNaturally]

I've never used palm wax, but I think I probably have an issue with the use of palm, lol, which I feel a need to explore! (This having to do with palm plantation monocultures in place of rain forests, but that's an entirely different topic!)

I think the Honey and Oatmeal and Sweet Potato and Brown Sugar sound like they should be working with soy wax.

What type of soy wax are you using, Laura? (Brand/Type)

I've been reading a lot about this lately and put into practice some of what I've read -- poured several candles last week and they all have cold scent throw. There is the opinion of some (not all) that the temperature of the wax (which in some way relates to the flashpoint temp), has much to do with the binding of the scent; also, the way the scent is added/stirred to ensure it's "in there" good.

Oops! Sorry, I was interrupted during my post and I see that the type of waxes have been noted already ... but is it "Joy Wax" or "Pillar of Bliss?" If it's PoB, I see that it says: melt wax to 195 degrees ... drop melted wax temperature to 180 degrees and add 1 ounce of fragrance per pound of melted wax. With the Honey-Oatmeal (200 FP), it would be safe to add this fairly soon after turning off the heat, maybe try it at 185, slowly adding, lots of stirring; stir well again before pouring.

From long ago, my candle books suggested adding scent a drop at time ... I've been adding scent very slowly, stirring all the while. While doing it this way, rather than just pouring it in and stirring, making cream or lotion comes to mind ... slowly adding, while combining. With that wax being 50% paraffin, I wonder about adding any vybar ...?

Is the EcoSoya the pillar blend or advanced? Some of the EcoSoya waxes require specific types of fragrance oils suited particularly for soy waxes. For instance, the advanced needs special oils, where the EcoSoyaPB does not. But, I'd like to add that the low FP of the orange scent might be making this a bit tricky -- IrishLass mentioned about orange-types! I think maybe you could try mixing a bit of the Orange Dreamsicle with your Honey-Oatmeal to bring up the FP of the orange (mixing them well) and add your scent somewhat shortly after the wax has reached its full temp. -- at about 175 or so, this might do better.

 

[LauraZ]

I can't thank you enough for your help! I tried out another small batch today. The EcoSoya wax type I have is the Advanced kind so I'm going to stick with the Pillar of Bliss (not joy - that was a typing mistake). I used a different scent today to try it out. I added the fragrance oil at just under 180 and took a fair amount of time stirring very thoroughly for a full two minutes. The FO I used is Christmas Tree Farm and has a flashpoint of 165.

I looked up the Vybar - that looks like a great product to have on hand. I see that Nature's Garden carries it so I'm definitely going to order some next time I place an order with them.

Those Youtube videos make wax tart crafting look very easy but there is definitely a learning curve and I didn't expect that! I'm feeling confidant that I'll get there at some point

I'll let the wax tarts I made today cure for a day or two (not sure if this is truly needed but I don't want to take any chances) and hopefully will have a happy update very soon.

Thanks again
Laura

 

[HappyGoNaturally]

Yes, some of the youtube videos over-simplify to be sure!! Often, they don't tell you everything you need to know -- sometimes I get annoyed if I watch them, some of them leave out so much critical information, it's horrible! I hope you have some nice cold throw from your melts! (I only needed to ask you about the name of the wax to clarify, as I see they have a wax they call Joy, I figured it was Bliss, but didn't want to give you any wrong info if I could avoid it!) With your advanced wax, I don't think you even need vybar, but you would have to find a scent that has been specified for that wax, at least that's what I've read.

About the "learning curve" -- I'm not sure that ever really stops! ( lol ) After all of these years, I'm still learning, happy to share what I find out!

 

[LauraZ]

Happy to report that my last batch of wax tarts worked wonderfully!! I'm so happy and my house smells amazing My daughters are going to be excited because I told them I'd make them a bunch if I could get it to work. Now they don't have to buy the expensive Scentsy bars. How fun to have a hobby I can gift to people and make them happy

I am definitely going to try that vybar - it's very inexpensive and you barely use any so even gives just a little boost to the hot throw, why not right?

 

[HappyGoNaturally]

That's great to hear! The gift aspect is a real advantage too!

I have been using a very small amount of Vybar-103 whenever mixing 3/4 paraffin pillar wax and soy, mostly because it's supposed to help with opacity and scent throw. It looks like Vybar-103 is intended for waxes with a melt point above 130dF. and Vybar-260 for below 130dF. So, if it does have any advantage with soy wax, I guess the 260 would be used.

I read that it helps with uniform dye dispersion and a reduction in surface flaws, but, again, I'm not sure how it works with soy, as I haven't been using it in 100% soy containers. Maybe I'll get some and do some of my own tests, as I've tried to go out reading about it and I'm not getting anywhere. One thing is certain though -- it's a polymer -- so if it had some results in soy and was used, the candle is no longer "100% soy."

It might be worth a try for me in regard to color -- I don't use much, but I've had some uneven distribution regardless of amount of stirring, maybe this could help with that in my own candles, not sure! So, I'm with you -- I think it may be worth a try unless someone tells me otherwise.

 

[HappyGoNaturally]

LauraZ ... I just wanted to add here ... I don't know if anyone may have some reviews on this company (did not check that out), but saw these "ultra strong soy scents" on this website that may be of interest, so I just wanted to mention it ... http://www.northstar3c.com/shop/Category/Ultra-Strong-Fragrance-Oils-A-D

 

[LauraZ]

LauraZ ... I just wanted to add here ... I don't know if anyone may have some reviews on this company (did not check that out), but saw these "ultra strong soy scents" on this website that may be of interest, so I just wanted to mention it ... http://www.northstar3c.com/shop/Category/Ultra-Strong-Fragrance-Oils-A-D

Thank you and sorry for my delayed reply - we've had a wedding and adoption in our immediate family in the last 2 weeks so my hobby time has been almost zero.

That looks like it might be a great option! I do wish they had more reviews but they have a sample pack which they offer with free shipping so I think I might give this a try.