What is tunneling? How to avoid it, or what to do to fix it? 

Tunneling in candles – what is it? Have you ever been in a situation when you bought a container candle and lit it, and after a while, you saw that the wax does not melt to the edges of the container, and as a result, a tunnel is formed around the wick? If – yes, then your candle has a tunnel. And it is usually formed in candles for two reasons:

1. Short candle burning time. When you light a candle for the first time, it should burn for at least 2-3 hours. During this time, the fire will melt the wax to the edges of the container and this will help to avoid tunneling. With each subsequent lighting, the wax will melt faster to the edges of the container, but we recommend not extinguishing the candle faster than the melted wax reaches the edges of the container. We also remind you that the candle should not burn longer than 4 hours at a time.
2. Very short wick. The wick should be trimmed by 1/4 inches before each candle lighting. If the wick is cut too short above the level of the wax, it simply won’t have the power to melt the wax to the edges of the container. You can read more about how to cut the wick correctly in the article “How to cut the wick correctly”.

If you do encounter a tunneling problem, don’t worry. You can easily fix it:

1. If the wick is too short and the fire is very weak, then you need to remove some wax around the wick with a small spoon. This will help the flame to melt the wax to the edges of the container.
2. You can also use a life hack for quick results. Take a sheet of aluminum foil large enough to wrap around the candle. Wrap it around the candle and secure the top of the foil to prevent it from unrolling. Leave a sufficient opening at the top for air access. This will increase the air temperature under the foil and the wax walls of the tunnel will melt faster. Wait 20 minutes or until the wax has completely melted. We recommend that you do not leave the candle unattended when it has a foil cap. When the wax melts to the edges of the container, remove the foil. When the wax from the wax walls of the tunnel melts, it will flow to the center of the candle and can flood the wick. Do not worry. You can scoop up the excess melted wax with a small spoon and relight the candle.

I hope you found this information useful. Read more about candles and their care on our blog.

With love Enjoy my candle