How to Prevent Air Bubbles When Making Candles

Air bubbles in jar candles are caused by two things:

• temperature
• movement

The single best way to avoid getting air bubbles in your glass jar candles is to make sure to pre-heat your glass jars to about 160 degrees before pouring your candle wax into them. This is, of course, difficult to measure, but setting your glass jars in an oven that's heated to about that temperature for 5 minutes should do the trick.

Never pour hot candle wax into cold glass jars! Doing this will cause your candles to frost and will certainly cause air bubbles on the sides and bottoms of your candle jars. Never do this.

Once your candle was has bee poured, don't move it! Shaking the wax as it dries could result in air bubbles that you might not see, such as ones in the center of the wax. What will happen is that the wax would not burn well when the candle is lit, and if you're selling candles professionally, lengthy, even burns are a huge indicator of a well-made candle.

1. Use well-made, heavy glass jars. Solid glass may be heavier and more costly to ship, but are less likely to burn when the candle is lit, and stay prettier longer. They can also be cleaned easily and typically don't show streaks as strongly as thin glass does. The bonus is that you can sell them for more, as well. They are more durable and are also more valuable.

2. Always heat your glass jars before pouring candle wax into them (see avoiding getting air bubbles above).

3. Clean your glass jars before using them for candles! Nothing is worse than getting residue and "things" in your candle wax. Particles can also be a fire hazard, so make doubly-sure that your glass jar is completely clean before pouring in the wax.

4. Glue or stick your wick to the bottom of your glass candle jar with a wick sticker. This will prevent the wick from moving around while you are pouring the wax. It must be completely centered and stand up straight as an arrow (so you will also need a wick guide).