How to distinguish stearin candles from paraffin? How to make DIY stearin candles

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Humanity since the discovery of fire has been looking for ways to maintain it. At first, this function was performed by a torch in which resin burned. It was poured into the recess of the wooden handle. However, the torch was short-lived due to the burning of the handle. The resin began to be poured into clay and glass vessels. Along with resin, animal and vegetable fats were burned. Moreover, a piece of moss, a bunch of plant fibers, and then a piece of twine or a strip of cloth fell into the burning material. This type of wick laid the foundation for wick lamps.

History of the lamp

The first lamps were not perfect. They smoked terribly, and the light from them was weak and often dimmed.

Later, the clay bowl turned into a closed teapot with a wick inserted into its spout. This is how the oil lamp appeared, which for several hundred years became the best source of lighting. Its flame was brighter, but when burning, the lamp smoked. Soot helped defeat the invention of lamp glass.

Candle story

The other child of the torch is the candle. At first, candles were made from wax or tallow. They appeared in the X century AD. Easiesttallow candles were made. The wick fell into the melted lard, was taken out, the lard solidified on it. And this procedure was repeated several times to create a candle of the required thickness. Much later, special forms for candles appeared, into which melted wax or lard was poured.

There was little light from the tallow candle, but a lot of soot. Because of this, several of these candles were usually lit at the same time in the room. Then the chandelier was invented - a candlestick that has branches for fixing several products.

Material for replacing fat was required for a long time, but was found at the dawn of the 19th century. For candles, stearin, which was an integral part of the fat, began to be used. Thus, the stearin candle was born. When it appeared, it instantly gained popularity, displacing greasy. She burned brighter, while not giving soot and not getting her hands dirty. Stearin candles surpassed their predecessor in all respects. And they began to be applied everywhere.

Many argue about what came first - a kerosene lamp or a stearin candle. Stearic acid, from which candles were made almost immediately, was invented in 1816. Kerosene replaced oil in lamps only in the middle of the 19th century.

Candle properties

At first, wax and paraffin served as the material for candle production. Later, stearin was used. Paraffin and stearin have different physical and chemical characteristics, which affects the difference in candles made from these materials.

Paraffin is a product of oil refining, which is a mixture of various hydrocarbons. Stearin contains glycerin and stearic acid. It belongs to esters. This caused their different melting points: for paraffin - from 36 to 55 °C, while for stearin from 55 to 72 °C. This makes stearin products harder, allowing better shape retention. At the same time, the flame temperature of a stearin candle reaches 1500 °C, and that of a paraffin candle reaches 1400 °C.

In candle production almost no paraffin and stearin are used in their pure form. More often they are mixed in various proportions. Typically, stearin candles are used, the composition of which is 96% palm oil and 4% paraffin.

Differences

How to distinguish a stearin candle from a paraffin one? In life, paraffin is distinguished from stearin by the use of alkali. When the alkali reacts with stearin, the result is soap, which precipitates under the action of acid. Paraffin is neutral with respect to the alkali solution, so nothing will change.

Stearin is the most commonly used raw material for the manufacture of various decorative items.

Handmade

If in the old days candles were used to provide normal lighting of the premises, today stearin candles are increasingly taking on the role of an interesting decorative element that can create a romantic or solemn atmosphere.

Now there are many items of candle production sold in specialized stores,both the simplest and those that amaze the imagination with their quirkiness and originality. At the same time, such jewelry is quite amenable to self-production using simple materials that are freely available. Do-it-yourself creation of this decorative element does not need too much financial expenses and does not take much time. At the same time, giving free rein to your indomitable imagination and putting your soul into your work, you will create an unprecedented thing that can give joy to you and others.

Material

We will work wonders from stearin, paraffin or wax. For people who are new to making candles, it is best to start their experiments with paraffin, as it is the easiest to work with. Paraffin is either bought in a store or obtained from ordinary white household candles or their cinders.

Also, stearin is easy to get from ordinary laundry soap. To do this, you need to grate the soap on a coarse grater or cut it with a knife. Next, the resulting chips are placed in a metal container, completely filled with water and sent to a water bath for melting. After dissolving the soap, it is removed from the heat, after which vinegar is added to the resulting composition. A mass of thick consistency will appear on the surface, which, after the final cooling, can be removed with a spoon. This substance is stearin. It should be rinsed under running water and wrapped in a clean cloth to remove excess moisture.

Wick

The best wick can be a thick cotton thread. You can use twisted or woven floss. Artificial materials for creating a wick are absolutely not suitable, as they quickly burn out, while emitting a disgusting smell. The easiest way to get a wick is from ordinary candles.

Form, dyes, dishes

A variety of containers can serve as a shape. These can be sand molds or coffee cans. If you want to make the decoration tapered up or round, you need to take a container that is used as a mold, such as a plastic ball. It is necessary to make a longitudinal cut and make a hole in the upper part of the mold, having a diameter of at least ten millimeters, so that the composition can be poured there without hindrance.

As dyes, you can use wax crayons, food coloring or natural substances, such as cocoa. Dyes based on water or alcohol are not suitable.

You will also need dishes: a saucepan or a bowl of small dimensions is quite suitable. It is important that it fits comfortably in the water bath.

Additional materials are needed in order to add beauty to your work. In addition, you can use any flavors. The use of additional substances can only be limited by your imagination. It can be beads, shells, sparkles, and from smells - cinnamon, vanilla, essential oils.

Progress of work

Necessarygrind the raw material that is selected for work and expose it to a water bath. When using household candles, the wick is removed from them. In the case of using the remnants of already used candles, it is necessary to clean them from dark soot. Slowly stirring the mass, achieve its complete melting. A pre-prepared wick must be dipped into the mass several times so that it is well saturated.

The composition must be added paint and fragrance. When using wax crayons, they must first be crushed with a fine grater. If two or more colors are used at once, it is possible to achieve a marbled color. When the mass is divided into several parts and they are dyed in different colors, it becomes possible to make a multi-colored product.

The form that is chosen for the craft must be lubricated with vegetable oil or dishwashing detergent. To secure the end of the wick, a pencil, toothpick or stick is used. It is installed on the form so that its free end lies approximately in its middle part and reaches the bottom. To make the design more reliable, the free part of the wick is supplied with a weight.

The melted mass is poured into the mold, after which it is necessary to wait until it completely hardens. Next, the candle is pulled out by the wick. If it is difficult to remove the product, it is necessary to immerse the mold in a vessel with hot water for a short time.

Stearin candles are decorated in many ways. You can place dried flowers and seeds on the edges of the form. Then carefully pour the heated mass into it. To make a coffee candle, you need to sprinkle the bottom of the mold with a layer of coffee beans, fill them with a liquid mass, and put coffee beans again at the top. Decorating with shells, beads and rhinestones is done after waiting for the product to solidify and take it out of the mold. Fastening of decorative elements occurs by means of glue. Such a stearin candle, the photo of which is given above, will give a holiday to you and your loved ones.