Structural
Candle sweats fragrance oil
FO sweating means the wax could not bind to the fragrance at the rate you added it. It looks unprofessional and the oil itself is a fire risk: it lowers the candle's effective flash point.
Written by Maya Holloway
Likely causes
- Fragrance load above wax maximum.
- FO added below 70°C, so it did not emulsify.
- Storage in a warm room (>25°C).
How to diagnose
- Confirm load is within wax spec.
- Check FO addition temperature.
What to change next batch
- 01
Reduce FO load by 1 percentage point.
- 02
Add FO at 80°C and stir for two full minutes.
- 03
Store candles below 22°C.
Read deeper
- Fragrance load and IFRA: why your max load varies
IFRA category 12 caps candle fragrance load. Here's what the standard says, and why exceeding wax max backfires.