Candle Making Instructions - Equipment

There are a couple of pieces of equipment that are needed before you start purchasing supplies for candle making. Supplies are items including wax, wicks, fragrance,and colorants-- the actual ingredients that go into the candles. The candle making equipment needed does not have to be expensive and it can most likely be found right in your kitchen already.

The first thing to make sure you have on hand before anything else is an ABC Type multiple purpose dry chemical fire extinguisher. An ABC type is filled with monoammonium phosphate which is a yellow powder that leaves a sticky residue and could damage electrical appliances like a computer. Make sure to keep your work area clear of unnecessary clutter and anything that could be damaged by this type of extinguisher.

You will need a double boiler since it is safest to heat wax slowly that way. You should not be heating any wax in a pan directly on the heat source. By using a double boiler, the wax is heated by the water in the bottom so it does not get hot enough to create a fire hazard. Make sure to keep water in the bottom pan at all times and check it often. The water will evaporate and a dry bottom pan is the same as cooking directly on the burner. You can create a double boiler out of pots that you already have or look for some old ones that would be suitable at yard sales. You can also use a pour pot as the melting vessel. This is a deep narrow metal container with a handle and spout. If you take a short tin can and cut out both the top and bottom it can be placed inside the bottom pot with the pour pot sitting on that so it is only in contact with the water and not so close to the heat source. If you have metal cookie cutters, they can be used instead of the tin can.

A thermometer is another necessary piece of candle making equipment. You can use any cooking thermometer you might have already. The best would be the kind with the clip so that you could just hook it on the side of the pan. Make sure you have one that is long enough to reach well into the pot so that you get an accurate reading.

A digital scale is also needed to make sure your ingredients are the correct amount. Since you will have to measure out fragrances and they really need to be accurate for you to achieve the desired result for your candles, you should have a digital scale with increments down to.10 grams or better yet.01.