Getting Started with AAK 464 Soy Wax
With over ten years of our own internal testing of AAK's 464 Soy Wax, we have developed a few tips and best practices to help you get the most out of this popular wax. Watch Kevin above to learn more.
TRANSCRIPT
Hey there, Kevin from CandleScience here with a few tips and best practices for working with AAK’s 464 soy wax.
464 is our bestselling wax and a favorite of soy candle makers everywhere, including us here at CandleScience. Why? It’s a user-friendly soy wax that gives you a great scent throw and has an appealing finish that consumers love.
But like any natural product, your results with 464 heavily depend on your process. In this video, we’ll be sharing with you our tried-and-true process backed by over a decade of working with and testing this wax. Let’s get to it.
MELTING
464 should be melted using a double boiler or designated candle wax melter. This ensures that you do not scorch or burn your wax. You can help the melting process move along by stirring periodically to break up any clumps of wax that form, but it’s not necessary to do so.
FRAGRANCE
Always use fragrances developed and tested for use in candles. We recommend starting with a 6% fragrance load, which is approximately 1 oz per lb of wax. You might have noticed 464 has a maximum fragrance load of 10%, but it’s not always ideal to use that much. Too much fragrance, especially dense fragrances, can cause burn issues and may not result in a stronger scent.
MIXING TEMPERATURE
Allow your wax to reach 185°F, mix in your fragrance, then remove from the heat source. Think of 185ºF as the “Goldilocks Zone.” It’s hot enough for the fragrance to fully bind and mix with the wax and cool enough to ensure no fragrance is lost. Basically, 185ºF is just-right for getting the best scent throw from your finished candles.
After adding the fragrance, stir gently and thoroughly for 1-2 minutes.
WICK TYPE
The wick affects, well, pretty much everything about the candle, from the burn quality to scent throw. We recommend the CD wick series for 464 soy wax. Our extensive testing has found that the CD series generally performs the best across a wide range of materials. The ECO wick series is also a good option for 464.
Check out our wick guide to find recommended sizes to begin your testing. This will give you a good starting point to find the perfect wick for your container.
POUR TEMPERATURE
The temperature at which you pour your wax into your containers can affect the appearance of your finished candles. Typically, 464 should be poured around 135ºF to get the smooth tops and appealing finish users love about this wax. You may find that you need to adjust your pour temp based on the conditions where you’re making your candles.
CURE TIME
Waiting is never fun, we get it. But giving your finished soy candles enough time to cure will reward you with a great scent throw. Based on our testing we’ve found that a two week cure time is ideal for 464 soy wax.
AAK’s 464 is a great soy wax to work with, and it results in candles that look--and most importantly, smell--wonderful. We hope these tips help you get the best result out of your 464 soy wax candles. And as always, if you have additional questions or could use a hand feel free to reach out to us at [email protected]. Thanks for joining us, and see you next time!