With a refillable candle, you can keep your pot for life, so you want to keep it in as good condition as possible. You’ve invested in a refillable candle and, naturally, you want it to last as long as possible. Read on for the best ways to care for your refillable candle.
Candle care, yes, is a matter of safety, but it is also an investment in your own self-care. Good candle care will mean you get the most enjoyment possible from your candle. And it’s often these little things that are invaluable as moments of mindfulness, especially in the middle of a busy day or week (or life!)
So; from first burn to cleaning out the empty candle pot, here are our top tips and tricks for caring for your refillable candle.
How to avoid tunneling.
The first burn of a candle affects how it burns thereafter. So, to start well, make sure the first burn is for a couple of hours - the exact time varies from candle to candle. As the surface of the candle melts, it forms what’s called a melt pool. Wait until this melt pool covers most of the surface of the candle before extinguishing your candle.
Generally, this will ensure you avoid what’s known as tunneling. Tunneling - where the candle burns in a narrow tunnel down the centre of a candle, instead of melting the whole candle - is a candle-lover’s nightmare.
We use a soft, natural wax for all of our candles, which naturally “pulls” down as the candle burns. So don’t worry if there’s a little wax left at the sides of your GHFS candle as you burn it, it should “pull” itself down as it goes.
Wick trimming - how do I do this?
Trimming your refillable candle wick may seem like a bit of a faff, but it can extend the life of your candle and will ensure a safe, slow burn.
Our candle wicks are made of organic cotton coated in natural wax, so do give a lovely, clean burn. But wick trimming will keep them in the best shape possible. Before you light your candle each time, trim your wick to around 0.5cm and no more than 1cm. A shorter wick will burn slower, meaning your candle lasts for longer. It will also mean a smaller flame, which is much safer.
If your candle ever starts to smoke, extinguish it immediately and wait for it to completely cool and harden before lighting it again. It will likely need a wick trim before re-lighting.
Do I really need to trim my candle wick?
Proper candle lighting, extinguishing and wick trimming can be a wonderfully relaxing ritual that enhances the enjoyment of your refillable candle. Taking the time to trim the wick forces a moment of concentration, bringing you into the present, enabling you to enjoy the scent and glimmer of your candle more fully.
Wick trimmers are easy enough to find in a department store or online, but here are our top picks for a piece beautiful kit to adorn any mantle:
Ribbon and Bow Wick Trimmer from Jo Malone
Leather and Brass Wick Trimmer from Loewe at Harrods
Wick Trimmer from Molton Brown
What’s the safest way to extinguish a refillable candle?
Like any candle, safety is key. So we recommend extinguishing your candle with a snuffer. This cuts off the oxygen supply to the wick thereby extinguishing the flame. It saves you having to blow your candle out and avoids any risk of splashing hot wax.
As with wick-trimmers, you should be able to pick up a snuffer in any good department store, but we’ve found some lovely ones here:
Minimalist Candle Snuffer from Dior
Bluebell Stem Candle Snuffer from Jo Malone
How long can I burn my refillable candle for?
Is it possible to burn a candle for too long? In a word, yes.
GHFS refillable candles are made from a natural wax which melts at a lower temperature than paraffin wax. This means it liquifies quicker. Once most of the surface of your candle is liquid, it should be extinguished. This will usually take a couple of hours and is long enough to allow the candle’s scent to fill a room. Not only will keeping your burn times to a minimum extend the lifetime of your candle, it also keeps fire risk to a minimum.
Can I burn more than one candle at a time?
You can definitely burn multiple candles at the same time. There are just a few basic safety considerations to be aware of. You may want to light a scented candle as well as dinner candles, or you may want to layer the fragrances of two different scented candles. Our scented tealight packs are the ideal way to try out scent layering. Individually, they are powerful enough to scent a whole room, but small enough to light two and create your own unique scent blend.
If you are burning multiple candles in the same room, just make sure they’re more than 10cm apart from each other.
What’s the best way to store my candle?
Whether you store your candle covered or uncovered is really a matter of taste. Some candle brands recommend covering your candle to preserve the scent, but our candles hold their scent even uncovered. Plus, you may enjoy the cold-throw of your candle, which is the scent a candle gives off even when unlit.
The real benefit of covering a candle is that it will stop any dust settling on the surface of your candle. Using a cloche to cover a candle can also look great, adding a touch of drama to your candle-lighting ritual every time.
The absolutely essential storage instructions for refillable candles are to keep them upright, in a cool, dry environment. This keeps the candle’s wax and oils in the best condition and helps make sure it burns as well as possible.
How do I clean my refillable candle out?
In order to refill your candle pot with a new Pillar Refill or Poured Refill, the pot needs to be cleaned out completely. Your refillable candle may, at the end of burning, have a little wax residue in the bottom of the pot. You’ll need to clean this out, and remove the wick from the bottom of the pot too.
For full instructions on how to clean out your empty candle pot, head to our article on "How to Properly Prepare Your Old Candle Holders for Refilling".
What are the main safety concerns with refillable candles?
As with all candles, care ought to be taken when burning refillable candles. We include a candle care card with all our candles, but here are the basics:
- Keep candles out of reach of children and animals
- Never leave a burning candle unattended
- Burn candles on a heat safe surface
- Burn candles in a well ventilated environment, but out of the way of drafts
- Place candles away from any loose fabrics or anything that could be a fire risk
- Place candles at least 10cm away from each other when burning
- Keep the candle free of any dirt or foreign objects
- Keep the wick trimmed to between 0.5cm and 10cm
Enjoy your refillable candle.
Now it’s time to sit back and enjoy your refillable candle. As long as these basic safety rules are followed, burning your refillable candle will be a joyful, relaxing experience. And these top tips will soon become second nature. We hope the time you take to care for your candle will also become a moment of self-care too.
All of our scented refillable candles are available on our website. And if you have any questions at all about candle safety and candle care, do drop us an email or DM us on Instagram.
Every Great House Farm Stores Candle and all of our Pillar Refills come with their own care card, so you can always refresh your memory and brush up on the basics whenever you buy a new candle.