A candle is an open flame in a closed room, often for hours, often right next to the sofa. With cosmetics, many people now look at the ingredient list. With candles there usually is not one. And yet the difference between the common types of wax is greater than the difference between two face creams.
What candles are made of
Four raw materials share the market, and they could hardly be more different.
- Paraffin is a by-product of oil refining. It is by far the cheapest wax, easy to process, odour-neutral and it takes up fragrance oils readily. By far the largest share of all candles in the shops is made of it.
- Stearin is obtained from plant or animal fats, frequently from palm oil. Plant-based does not automatically mean unproblematic here; the question is where the oil comes from.
- Soy wax is hardened soybean oil. It burns cleanly, but it is soft, often blended with other waxes and as a rule a product of intensive agriculture.
- Beeswax is built by the bees themselves to shape their combs. It is melted down and filtered, and that is all that happens to it. It is the oldest candle wax there is, and the most expensive.
What happens as it burns
Honesty matters more here than marketing: every candle burns something, and every candle releases soot and fine particles in the process. A beeswax one too. Anyone selling you a candle that “does not soot” is promising too much.
How much there is depends less on the wax than on three other things: the length of the wick, draughts in the room, and whether the flame stands still or flickers. A flickering flame burns incompletely, and incomplete combustion is exactly what produces soot.
What can be said: paraffin is a petroleum product, and burning it produces the corresponding by-products. Beeswax is a single, unblended natural material. Anyone who has the choice chooses what they know. Airing the room is advisable with both.
The myth of negative ions
You will often read that beeswax candles release negative ions and thereby purify the air, bind dust or relieve allergies. This claim appears on countless shop pages. It is not proven. There are no reliable measurements demonstrating it for candles.
We are writing this down even though it would be a selling point. Beeswax has real advantages; it does not need invented ones.
What beeswax actually does better
The decisive difference is physical and easy to work out: beeswax only melts at around 62 to 65 degrees, while ordinary candle paraffin, depending on the grade, melts at around 50 to 57 degrees. On top of that, beeswax is denser.
The rest follows from that:
- Longer burn time. A beeswax candle works its way more slowly through the same amount of wax. At the same weight it burns noticeably longer.
- More stable in warmth. In summer or next to a radiator it warps less.
- Warm light. Beeswax is naturally golden yellow, and the light looks warmer than with white paraffin.
- A scent of its own. Unfiltered beeswax smells faintly of honey, entirely without added fragrance. With paraffin, every smell comes out of a bottle.
How to recognise a good candle
- “100 per cent beeswax” or just “with beeswax”? The difference is enormous. “With” can mean that five per cent is in there and the rest is paraffin.
- The wick. Pure cotton is the right choice. Metal cores are no longer usual in Europe, but with very cheap imported goods it is still worth a look.
- The fragrance. If it says “parfum”, it is a fragrance oil. There is nothing wrong with that, but it should be stated.
- The container. Glass can be rinsed out after burning and used again, aluminium dishes rarely can.
- Burn time in relation to weight. It is the most honest price comparison. 200 grams of beeswax give around 40 hours.
Burning it properly
Most candles do not go bad, they are used wrongly. Four points are enough:
- The first time, let it burn long enough for the surface of the wax to be liquid right to the edge. Depending on the diameter that takes one to two hours. Put it out too early and you get a tunnel the candle never recovers from.
- Trim the wick to about five millimetres before every lighting. A long wick is the most common source of soot.
- No draughts. Not beside a tilted window, not in the draught from a door.
- Four hours at a time at most. After that the pool of wax becomes too deep and the wick tips over.
Our beeswax candle is made of pure beeswax, has a cotton wick and comes in black glass with a gold lid. 200 grams, around 40 hours, in two fragrances.
Frequently asked questions
Is paraffin harmful to health?
For a candle burning occasionally in an aired room there is no cause for concern. The question is more one of attitude: does it have to be a petroleum product where a natural material can do the same?
Why is beeswax so much more expensive?
Because it is scarce. Bees produce many times as much honey before enough wax accumulates. Paraffin, by contrast, arises in the refinery anyway.
Is beeswax vegan?
No. It is an animal product, like honey.
What is the white coating on beeswax?
That is what is known as bloom, a natural film that forms over time. It is a sign of genuine beeswax and can be polished away with a soft cloth.
Can I reuse the glass?
Yes. Loosen the wax residue in a warm water bath, pour it out and wash the glass with a little washing-up liquid. Do not pour it down the drain.
Conclusion
The difference between paraffin and beeswax is not a matter of belief but of origin and physics: a petroleum by-product against a natural material, and a higher melting point that pays off in burn time. Added to that is a scent of its own that does not have to be added. What beeswax cannot do is purify the air. Nor does it need to.