There are two main ways to melt wax for candle making and in this article we’ll show you a few examples of our favorite ones. There’s a choice on manual melting pots to go on your stove and electric melters.
Stove Melters
Electric Wax Melting Pot
Hot plate
Budget Wax Melter
For the serious Hobbyist
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Buyers Guide
Components of a Quality Wax Melter for Candle Making
If you’re in the market for a high-quality wax melter, there’s a decent chance you’re replacing either a chintzy pouring kettle or an old cooking pot.
Investing in a genuine wax melter means saying goodbye to the uneven heating and frustrating clean-up associated with those items.
When shopping for a wax melter, you can expect to find the following components:
- Pot with a non-stick surface
- Legs for elevation
- Power cable
- Lid
- For all but the least expensive models, a spigot for pouring
Common Materials for Wax Melters
Wax melters are similar in design to crock pots. High-quality models are composed of cast iron, brass, steel, or ceramic. Some models will have exterior molding and parts made from plastic or aluminum.
You should have a good non-stick coating like Teflon on your wax melter. The lid should be tempered glass with a heat-insulating handle.
As mentioned earlier, cleaning your melter will require less elbow grease than cleaning an old pot or cheap kettle.
Some candle makers just leave unused wax in the melter for their next session! However, you should consider the quality of pot lining and how awkward it may be to lift the melter into a sink for cleaning.
Size and type
A wax melter will also increase the volume of wax you can melt evenly. So, get ready to make a lot of awesome, inspiring candles.
Hobbyist wax melters start at eight pounds’ capacity. This will yield you up to sixteen candles. You can call it the Molly Ringwald size!
The upper limit of recreational wax melters is fifteen to seventeen pounds. If you plan to make thirty candles in one go, that’s the size for you.
If you have managed to turn your candle making hobby into a source of revenue, you may be in the market for a larger melter. You can find melters for twenty pounds or more.
They require more power and maintenance, and they are much pricier than table-top melters. These are manufacturing quality, though, and they’ll kick your at-home candle business to the next level.
Read our complete guide to candle making here in our complete guide
Power Source
Virtually all wax melters run on outlet power. Most cords plug directly into the melter’s temperature regulator. They are normally 120 volts.
Bear in mind when buying from an international source – for example, on Etsy – that power sources vary between countries.
Some countries have different-voltage outlets. Anyone who’s traveled abroad knows there are various prong configurations. If you’re purchasing internationally, you may need a voltage regulator and adapter.
Cost to Run
As with most electric heaters, the cost to run a wax melter is relatively low. These types of appliances use fewer kilowatt-hours, for example, than a standard light bulb. Depending on where you live in the country and how often you make candles at home, you might see some energy savings when you switch from gas stove heating to an electric melter.
On the East Coast, however, electricity costs are generally higher. Here, you might not notice any appreciable savings.
Regardless of your location, you are unlikely to see an uptick in your cost to melt wax.
Price Range
Pretty much all quality wax melters fall into a price range between $70, for low-volume home melters, and $100, for high-volume. If you’re on a budget and willing to forego a spigot, you can find an economical eight-pound model for around $40.
Those super high-volume models that professionals use are markedly pricier. If you’re looking for a semi-commercial wax melter with a capacity of over fifty pounds, look to spend closer to one thousand dollars.
Final Thoughts
Let’s face it. Many of us have spent the last year stuck indoors. Working remotely, monitoring kids, and figuring out how to pass the time – our daytime hours have changed dramatically. That hobby you picked up last spring to distract yourself might now be an important part of your life.
With any hobby, you want to have high-quality, reliable equipment. Needlepointers need decent stork scissors. Homebrewers need good carboys. Picklers need well-made mason jars.
So, if you have taken up at-home candle making, now might be the time to invest in a quality wax melter. Just remember to pay attention to the capacity, materials, and component parts of your potential melter.
Then, plug it in and enjoy the next step in your waxworking adventure!
