Being St. Patrick’s Day we just couldn’t resist the temptation to bring you this article.
What do you think about when you make a candle purchase? Do you consider the scent? The shape? The color? All of these are common considerations when choosing a candle to bring into your home. But when was the last time you considered environmental impact when you thought about a candle purchase?
If being environmentally friendly is towards to top of your to-do list, you may like to know there is a type of candle that can help you in this endeavor - soy candles.
Here’s a look at the difference between soy candles and regular candles.
Smoke
Normal candles are made of paraffin wax. There have been some studies that say these candles can leave behind a small amount of soot when they are burned. While it seems a little bit of this wouldn’t be a big deal, it all adds up, with millions of candles being burned around the world.
Soy candles on the other hand are made of soybeans and they burn clean, leaving no black soot in the air as they are used.
Burn Time
If you are the kind of person who likes to get more for your money, soy candles may be the better way to go. Studies have shown that soy candles burn up to 50% longer than their paraffin brethren. The key to this is that soy burns cooler than other candle waxes. That means it also burns slower, giving you more burn for your buck. This also means you won’t be going through candles as quickly, using less of a resource for the same job.
Clean Up
Even if you have jar candles, someone is going to manage to knock one over, at least once, and then you are stuck cleaning up all that wax. While regular candle wax may be a disaster to clean out of your carpet or furniture, a spilled soy jar candle is nothing to worry about. Unlike paraffin, which is essentially waterproof, soy candle wax can be wiped up with a hot soap and water mixture.
Environmental Impact
Paraffin candles are made of petroleum. Petroleum is a limited resource. Soy candles, on the other hand are made from soybeans. Soybeans are a completely renewable resource, most of which are grown in the heartland of America. This has a double impact. Not only are they a renewable resource, that supports American farmers, but since they are grown in the United States, they are not traveling all over the world to get to your home. The less traveling the ingredients do, the lower emissions from trains, trucks and other transport vessels.
What do you do when a candle is near its end? At some point you toss out the old and bring in a new candle. Soy candles are even better for the landfill as they are made of a biodegradable material. Petroleum candles are not.
Finally, if you purchase soy jar candles, you are going to get one more added environmentally friendly bonus - the glass jar. Once you have burned your candle, you have a reusable jar that can be put to work in your home. Since the item inside was a natural item, there is no need to be worried if it’s safe to put candy or other snacks inside the jar. Just rinse it out with hot soapy water, to get any final soy candle residue out, and it’s ready to go.
Soy candles are often understated in today’s sales market. They’re available in various styles and scents, but they are not going around bragging all their benefits. They just share the shelves with other candles hoping to find a new home. But now that you know, you can make your candle selection not only based on scents, shapes and colors, but your environmental feelings as well.