The Essential Guide To Paraffin Wax
The National Candle Association says that more than 1 billion pounds of wax were used in the United States last year for candle making!
If you’re just getting into candle making, this guide might be for you. If you’re new here, welcome! you’ve been around for a while, maybe consider jumping into the paraffin wax debate to offer your two cents.
Whatever your purpose, let’s talk about:
- Where paraffin wax comes from
- Different properties of wax
- Different choices of paraffin on the market
- Selecting the right wax for your application
History of Paraffin
Definitely the most controversial wax on the market these days.
Paraffin is often criticized as unsafe but it still remains one of the most popular wax types for making candles. It’s refined from a byproduct of oil refinement called slack wax.
Slack wax is nasty and full of a bunch of impurities, so scientists/manufacturers transform this wax using the magic of chemistry until it meets a certain level of oil content (0.5% or lower) or even until it meets FDA approval for contact with food sources.
This is “fully refined” paraffin wax and it has the right properties for making candles… melting temperature, moisture content, color, etc.
Paraffin has been around longer than more natural waxes like soy, coconut, or beeswax, so it’s a relatively mature working material with pretty well known troubleshooting and limits.
Finding information about how to work with paraffin is relatively easy, and most older books you’d find in a library on candle making usually assume paraffin is what you’re working with.
General Characteristics
Paraffin is extremely versatile.
What candle types can you make with paraffin?
Any type of candle can be made from paraffin, it’s just a matter of figuring out which “type” of paraffin is best for you.
Softer blends work well for containers and wax melts since they flow much more freely.
Harder blends usually require a second pour because they cure more “sturdily” than softer waxes, but work well in candles that need sturdiness, such as pillars and votives.
Paraffin also tends to allow a more vibrant range of colors than soy or other waxes will allow typically due to lower opacity and resistance against frosting, which is a common drawback of soy wax.
It’s also known to have some of the best, if not the definitive best, scent throwing capabilities of any wax on the market.
Scent throw is a subjective topic, but not impossible to measure with the right framework.
The other thing to note is that a lot of waxes on the market aren’t really “pure paraffin”… they occasionally have different additives blended in them for performance, sustainability, or other reasons.
As you’ll see below, the market has plenty of different paraffin wax varieties – the goop in the wax to make it behave a certain way is what distinguishes these.
What kind of paraffin waxes are there?
Four tests help define the characteristics of paraffin wax:
Melting Point – the temperature where the material transforms from a solid to a liquid (ASTM D87).
Max Penetration – a measure of how hard the material is. Hardness influences other physical characteristics (ASTM D1321).
Max Oil Content – The amount of oil in a wax determines many of its properties in addition to it’s refinement level (ASTM D721).
Saybolt Color – The color of a wax in manufacturing is normally used for quality control. If something is off about the color it usually indicates something is wrong with the wax (ASTM D156)
How good is paraffin for candle making?
Performance-wise, paraffin is generally one of the best waxes on the market.
Many big-box stores use paraffin for its performance, stability, and consistency – factors that scale well in a retail model.
Unlike natural waxes, paraffin doesn’t have rigid curing requirements. The scent throw will be as designed within hours as compared to weeks or months.
Natural waxes have a less stable crystal structure which hardens over time. Paraffin doesn’t react much when melted down and re-hardened.
Selecting the Right Paraffin
Not all paraffin wax is created equal.
Container candles are best made with some variations while votive or pillars require another. Selecting the right wax can be tricky when you’re just starting out and have no idea which characteristics are important for what you’re making.
If you start with “hobby wax”, that is, wax bought from a hobby store with seemingly zero ties to the popular manufacturers, the best guidance is to follow the instructions on the bag. Hobby wax is marketed and sold for either general or specific use, depending on where it’s bought.
If you are more serious about making candles, you’ll probably want to purchase from bigger suppliers of paraffin wax such as:
- CandleScience
- The Flaming Candle
- Lone Star Candle Supply
- Aztec Candle & Soap Supplies
- Candlewic
- The Candlemakers Store
Find a local supplier if you can. Shipping wax can become pretty expensive and dip into your profit margin if you’re selling them.
The International Group, Inc. from Canada manufactures the most popular paraffin wax offerings on the market today. Their normal branding is “IGI” with a number following it. If you’re reading around or hearing people talk about their “4627 wax”, they’re referring to “IGI 4627” which is available through a lot of different suppliers despite a single manufacturer.
Container Candles
Recommended paraffin: IGI 4627
- Melting Point: 131 °F
- Pouring Range: 175 °F – 185 °F
- Max Fragrance Load: 12%
The most common paraffin waxes are IGI 4627 and IGI 4630 for container candles.
If you don’t know where to start with container candles and you’re interested in using paraffin, IGI 4627 is a good recommendation. It is a single-pour paraffin wax with a fantastic reputation for holding a tremendous amount of fragrance (10%-12%) and having incredible hot and cold throwing abilities.
It can be incredibly messy to work with because it’s so soft. You might find yourself scooping it into your melter with a spoon or ice cream scoop.
Store it in a cooler area where the wax doesn’t blend into itself too much. It’s usually recommended to preheat your containers before pouring this wax to optimize jar adhesion.
If you don’t want the headache and misery with the sometimes messy workability of it, or you don’t want the slightly higher price point, buy IGI 4630 instead. It comes in a slab form which you’ll need to break up to have any luck with melting it down – use a hammer and chisel or a heated bread knife. It’s known to be much harder than most other wax.
You’ll have to get creative!
If you don’t mind the price point but want a competitive wax to try for your containers, buy ProBlend 400 from The Flaming Candle. It pours well, holds color extremely well, and allows for a large amount of fragrance oil.
Votives & Pillars
General Recommendation: IGI 4625
- Melting Point: 142 °F
- Pouring Range: 175 °F – 185 °F
- Max Fragrance Load: 6%
- VERY HARD slabs
If you’re jamming into votives or pillar candles, paraffin is a solid choice.
There are a few other waxes that perform well in pillars and votives, but paraffin, or a paraffin mixed with other waxes, is a traditional selection for a lot of candle makers.
The IGI 4625 is a popular choice for votives and pillars for paraffin, both mixed and not. It’s sturdy, which you’ll notice right away when you start working with it.
The slab is extremely hard. Break it up with a heated up cutting tool like a butterknife – you’re sure to get a decent workout from this alone!
Despite holding only 6% max fragrance this wax has a reputation for a good scent throw. Hot throw is a product of the entire candle, not just the fragrance oil.
Read our guide on hot throw for more information.
This is extra true if you wick well and use fragrances that respond well to the 4625.
Experiment to find what works best for your application.
Everything Else
There are many variations to paraffin wax for other applications or artistic appearances.
Although a typical candle might try to avoid unpleasantries like mottling, some paraffin (IGI 1274) is designed specifically to make that happen.
Other blends are much less brittle than typical paraffin to allow for more creative approaches – you probably never burn these since they’re usually more decorative than practical.
Wax melts are generally easier to get away with different waxes. Since there isn’t a wick to jam up with dyes or fragrance, you can usually load up to the max with tarts and wicks.
You have to be very careful that you don’t choose a combination that ends up burning a bit and filling your house (or your customer’s houses) with the smell of fuel.
Waxes with a higher melt point allow a slower and more even release of the fragrance. This has a lot of dependencies on the wax melter being used too… temperature, location, etc.
Selecting paraffin wax for specialty applications really becomes a niche of its own and warrants a fair amount of experimentation and research to find what works best for you.
Testing is critical to ensure you make safe and well performing candles. Check out our burn test guide to learn more!
Paraffin Wax Guide
| General Paraffin Wax Market | ||||
| Wax | Use | Explained | Supplier & Manufacturer Temperatures | Estimated Market Price |
| IGI 4627 – Parafflex 4627 (Comfort Blend) | Containers | Benefits – Excellent hot throw – Excellent cold throw – High fragrance load allowance (6% – 12%) – Single pour – High color range – Great adhesion, especially if containers are pre-heated – HTP wicks have tested well with this blend Cautions – Messy because it is so soft. – Handled easier in cooler temperatures – Recommended to pre-heat containers prior to pour |
Melt Point 131 °F (55.0 °C) Pouring Temp 175 °F – 185 °F |
$1.70 – $1.81 per pound Generally comes in bag |
| IGI 4630 – Parafflex 4630A (Harmony Blend) | Containers | Benefits – High color range – Excellent hot throw – Excellent cold throwHigh fragrance load allowance (6% – 10%) – Single pour (claim) – Great adhesion, especially if containers are pre-heated Cautions – Recommended to pre-heat containers prior to pouring – Recent complaints about the “one pour” claim by the community |
Melt Point 119 °F Pouring Temp 165 °F – 175 °F |
$1.57 – $1.67 per pound Generally comes in a 10-lb slab |
| IGI 4786 – Parafflex 4786 | Containers Tealights |
Benefits – Good hot throw – Good cold throw – High fragrance load allowance (6% – 10%) – Good adhesion Cautions – Being phased out of the market a bit by IGI 4627 and IGI 4630 – Multi-pour since it is a harder blend |
Melt Point 124 °F Pouring Temp 180 °F – 190 °F |
$1.59 – $1.67 per pound Generally comes in a slab |
| ProBlend 400 – The Flaming Candle | Containers | Benefits – Easy to select a wick for this – Holds color well – Single pour most of the time – Holds a lot of fragrance, 10% – 12% max – Great container adhesion Cautions – Soft, but workable |
Melt Point 124 °F Pouring Temp 165 °F – 175 °F |
$1.80 per pound Comes in a slab |
| IGI 4625 – Parafflex 4625 | Pillars Votives Tarts |
Benefits – Holds up to 6% fragrance load – Good mold release – Good scent throw Cautions – VERY hard slabs – break up with a knife heated in boiling water – Only holds up to 6% fragrance load |
Melt Point 142 °F Pouring Temp 175 °F – 185 °F |
$1.56 – $1.66 per pound Generally comes in a VERY HARD SLAB |
| KY 143 – Rustic Escentuals | Pillars | Benefits – Holds up to 8% fragrance load – Lets costly than similar performing waxes Cautions – Multi-pour blend – Average scent throw – Primarily available through Rustic Escentuals |
Melt Point 144 °F Pouring Temp 175 °F – 180 °F |
$1.49 per pound Granulated |
| ProBlend 450 – The Flaming Candle | Pillar Votive |
Benefits – Holds up to 7% fragrance load – Holds color really well – Easy release from molds Cautions – Average scent throw – Primarily available through The Flaming Candle |
Melt Point 132 °F Pouring Temp 175 °F |
$1.75 per pound Granulated |
