Wicks-Home Made for Candles & Oil Lamps

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Readymom
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Wicks-Home Made for Candles & Oil Lamps

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Homemade Wicks-Salt Them First!
* Link Unavailable. This site is no longer active and available to view on line. But the info was good and we wanted to keep sharing it!

Image Hat Tip: Muzik @ American Preppers Network

If you're making your own wick out of old cotton, you should salt the wick before using, to keep the amount of smoke down. Soak the wick in salt water, then put it on a tray and heavily coat both sides with salt. Let it dry and shake the excess off, then use.

(Some sources say to mix some borax in with the salt water, and to use some borax with the salt when you're drying the wick.)

I made an oil lamp out of a medium-sized squat glass salsa jar (14 oz. Taco Bell). First, I cut the bottom off an aluminum can and poked a hole in the bottom. You're going to use this to hold the wick while floating on top of the oil. The rounded part will be facing up.

I then poured oil in the jar and let the salted wick soak in the oil for about half an hour. Next, I stuffed the wick through the hole in the can bottom. I left about one-quarter inch above the rounded part of the can (the longer the wick the brighter the flame, but also the greater chance of smoking) and set the assembly floating on top of the oil.
Readymom
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Re: Home Made Wicks for Candles & Oil Lamps

Post by Readymom »

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A couple of other notes about making wicks:
* Link Unavailable. This site is no longer active and available to view on line. But the info was good and we wanted to keep sharing it!

Image Hat Tip: Muzik @ American Preppers Network

Don't use TOO much string! When I first started making candles, I wanted to make my own wicks. I did the soaking in borax (boric acid), etc. Two problems there: the first was that I had cut off three strips of string three feet long, thinking to braid it now and cut off what I needed later. BIG mistake! The ends of the string kept getting tangled as the braiding progressed.

The second was that the salt, etc. crystallized in the string. Whenever I ran my fingers over the string while braiding it "flaked" off onto the floor as well as my hands. One possible solution is to soak the string in the solution; then, when saturated, tie one end of the string to something strong and the other end to something heavy. This will stretch out the string and squeeze out the excess while it dries.


Also, find something strong to tie the string to before braiding. You'll want to keep the tension strong on the braid as you're making it.

For the end result, the string rated at 2lbs made wicks that were too thick for all but the pillar candles larger than 3.5 inches across. The string rated at 1lb was still a little thick, but that may be because I didn't keep enough tension on it while braiding.
Readymom
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Re: Home Made Wicks for Candles & Oil Lamps

Post by Readymom »

Image Hat Tip: Muzik @ American Preppers Network

Image

More from Muzik about Salting Wicks:
* Link Unavailable. This site is no longer active and available to view on line. But the info was good and we wanted to keep sharing it!

One thing to do: Make a solution of half a cup of water, two tablespoons salt and one teaspoon borax. Heat the water until the salt and borax dissolve.

Next, put your wick material in there for a few minutes until it's saturated. Pull the material out of the water and let it dry overnight (or you can heat it in the oven if you're impatient.

After that, use your wick as usual. The salt and borax will help reduce the smoking of the wick.

I made mine a while back, putting the oil in an old salsa bottle. This way I can put a lid on the bottle when I'm done with it, and keep from spilling the oil.

This helps you appreciate the biblical admonition to keep your wicks trimmed and your lamps full of oil!
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Re: Home Made Wicks for Candles & Oil Lamps

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SmoothCandles.com

How to make a candle wick – Homemade candle wick
https://www.smoothcandles.com/how-to-make-a-candle-wick-homemade/

Have you ever wonder, while reading the article of DIYs on how to make different types of candles, about the candle wick? If yes, then you are at right page!!! I am that kind of person who loves to try out different DIYs at my spare time but always avoid the candle making stuff as candle wicks are always missing from my head.

So today we have come up with DIYs project cum solution to this problem of how to make a candle wicks. ---CONTINUED---
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Re: Home Made Wicks for Candles & Oil Lamps

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Sew Historically

How To Make DIY Candle Wicks With Cotton String
http://www.sewhistorically.com/how-to-make-diy-candle-wicks-with-cotton-string/

Did you know that you can make your own candle wicks with things you already have at home? In this short tutorial I’ll show you how to make DIY candle wicks with cotton string! ---CONTINUED---

You’ll need:

100% cotton string
scissor
optional: vegetable oil or salt
Readymom
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Re: Home Made Wicks for Candles & Oil Lamps

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How to Make Candle Wicks
https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Candle-Wicks

You can buy candle wicks to use in homemade candles, but you can just as easily make your own wicks. Borax-treated candle wicks are the most conventional, but you can also make wooden wicks or moveable wicks with a few basic materials. ---CONTINUED---
Readymom
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Re: Wicks-Home Made for Candles & Oil Lamps

Post by Readymom »

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Permanent Oil Lamp Wick
https://www.instructables.com/Permanent-Oil-Lamp-Wick/

How to make a permanent wick for your flat wick or central draft oil lamp.

it is a bit costly but it is the kind of wick it is set up and forget, with no fear to let it burn,and no trimming. ---CONTINUED---
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