Candle FAQ's - Greenhouse Soy Company

"Tunneling" is when a candle burns down the middle of the jar, leaving lots of wax stuck to the side of the jar. Many candles tunnel due to incorrect wick size or type. Greenhouse Soy Company candles are wicked to burn clear to the edge of the jar.

However, tunneling can also be caused by failure to keep your candle lit long enough before you extinguish it. Each time you burn a candle, try to burn it at least until the wax reaches the edge of the container. If you must extinguish your candle early, plan to burn it a little longer the next time. This should prevent your candle from tunneling.

Do I really have to trim the wick?

Yes, you really should trim the wick to 1/4" every time you light your candle. If you don't, problems can occur. Here's why:

Soy candles do not produce the toxic soot that paraffin candles do, but when not properly trimmed, the wicks of all candles can "mushroom" at the top, causing excessive flickering and/or smoke. Keeping your wick trimmed keeps this to a minimum and also makes your candle safer.

Trimming also prevents your wick from curling back into the wax - a common problem with non-metal cored wicks. Because our wicks contain no lead, zinc, or metal of any kind, they are very easily trimmed by just breaking off the top of the wick (the curled part) before lighting.

What is "frosting"?

Frosting is when the soy wax forms tiny, white, frosted-looking crystals on the top of the wax and/or on the sides of the jar. It looks very similar to the white frosted look that sometimes appears on chocolate. Most people don't mind frosting and many even like the effect. In fact, many customers have said they look for frosting as a sign that the candle is indeed made with soy and not paraffin.

Soy candle manufacturers often add paraffin wax (called a parasoy blend) to their candles to eliminate frosting. We are committed to providing you with paraffin-free candles and therefore do not add paraffin to our wax. We have experimented with our dyes, fragrance oils, and pour temperatures to keep frosting to a minimum, but some frosting is to be expected with all pure soy candles.

Votive FAQs

How do I burn votives?

A. Votives are not pillar candles. They are essentially small container candles sold without the container. Votives must be burned in a tight fitting votive holder, not in a large candle holder or on a candle plate. After you are finished burning your votive, you must clean out your holder and remove the metal wick clip from the bottom before burning another votive. Don't have a votive holder? Visit our Votive Holder page.

How do I clean out the soy wax in my votive holder/jar?

Soy wax is water soluble and easy to clean up. Do not dump wax down your sink as it can clog your pipes.

Method 1: Pop the votive holder/jar in the freezer until the wax hardens, at which point it becomes brittle enough to pop out.

Method 2: Hold the outside of the holder under hot water until the wax inside starts to get soft, then dump the warm wax into a plastic cup. Clean out your holder with a paper towel, then wash the holder with warm water and soap and allow to dry. When the wax in the plastic cup solidifies and cools, you can dispose of it.

Tea Light (Tealight) FAQs

What is the difference between metal tea light cups and plastic tea light cups?

Plastic tea light cups generally look nicer than metal cups and the clear plastic allows you to see the natural beauty of the soy wax. Our plastic tea light cups are manufactured with 100% flame retardant polycarbonate plastic. However, plastic tea light cups should not be used in enclosed or covered tea light holders.

If your tea light holder is enclosed (the tea light fits down into your holder and you can't see the tea light cup as the candle burns) or has a closed top, metal (aluminum) cups are recommended for safety reasons.

Because we care about your safety, Greenhouse Soy Company, LLC provides all of our tea lights in both polycarbonate plastic and metal cups.

Soyshell Tart FAQs

I've never used tarts before. How do they work?

Tarts are an easy, economical way to fragrance your home. To melt our SoyShells you must have a tart burner. You can use regular tart burners, which use tea lights to melt the tarts, or electric UL-approved tart burners, which use an on/off switch. Because scented tea lights burn slightly hotter than unscented tea lights and may overheat tarts, we recommend you use unscented tea lights with any tart burner.

Don't have a tart burner? Visit our Tart Burner page.

SoyShells should never be used in candle warmers, on a stove, or with any other heat source.

Why don't the SoyShells in my tart burner fragrance the room anymore when I burn them?

The wax from tarts does not evaporate like in wicked container candles. Essentially the fragrance burns off, leaving the wax in the burner. If you notice that the wax in your tart burner is no longer giving off fragrance, it is time to get rid of the wax and add a new SoyShell. You can usually get rid of the wax by putting the dish that holds the wax in the freezer for a couple of minutes - it should pop right out and then you can replace the old wax with a new SoyShell.

A lot depends on your tart burner, also. Tart burners that burn very hot tend to fragrance your room faster but lose fragrance more quickly.

Miscellaneous FAQs

Q. Are Greenhouse Soy Company candles natural?

Most candles, even 100% soy candles, contain ingredients that are synthetic, such as dyes and fragrances. Synthetic does NOT mean unsafe. Many "natural" ingredients can be harmful, and many synthetic ingredients are perfectly safe and eco-friendly.

We believe two of the most important things to consider when purchasing a candle (other than safety) are:

1) Possible toxicity when burned (determined primarily by the type of wax used)

2) It's impact on the environment (eco-friendliness)

Our product decisions are made accordingly. Our soy wax is made using 100% natural soybeans and contains no petroleum. Our wicks are metal-free and made of natural ingredients such as cotton and paper. Even our dyes are eco-friendly and contain no hazardous solvents. We use only the highest-quality synthetic fragrances (which often contain essential oils).

Do you have a candle question you'd like to see answered on our page? E-mail us at cs@greenhousesoycompany.com.

Manufactured with 100% flame retardant polycarbonate