The truth about the eternal battle for eco supremacy between mineral (paraffin) wax and soy wax
Hello. Black Phillip here. I am currently possessing my human avatar, in order to write this truthful document. The truth is something I am forever searching for and is something I will uphold at any cost. This document will shine the bright light of truth, onto a question I am asked a lot; “why do you use paraffin wax instead of soy wax?”
Paraffin has an unfortunate negative stigma attached to it. When people think of paraffin, they think of grubby street urchins in Victorian England, scuttling up and down lamp posts to light/extinguish the flame within. People who had the job of a lamplighter, were usually not very well paid and therefore didn’t have a very healthy lifestyle. I believe this is where the negative associations to the substance, and indeed the burning of it, originate.
I prefer to call paraffin wax “mineral wax”, because it is made of minerals. “Paraffin” is the name given to it by human beings. In fact, it was the German chemist Karl Von Reichenback who first coined the term in 1830. So “mineral wax” suits it better, as that is what it is actually made of.
A lot of people out in the world, think that mineral wax will make them sick if they burn it. But it simply isn’t true. The mineral wax we use is detoxified by the company which we buy it from. There are carcinogens involved, which are harmful, but these are created by the process of burning a candle in your home. It doesn’t matter at all which wax you are burning – it is the actual burning process that releases the carcinogens into the air. Sooting is the main cause of carcinogens being released into the air – but if you keep an eye on the wick and trim it regularly, sooting does not occur. This drastically reduces the chances of carcinogens being released into your home.
There are some people, some of whom are also candle makers, that believe soy wax to be better for the environment. However, mineral wax has a much lower carbon footprint; it is still just a by-product of making petroleum, that would usually be put into landfill. There are companies out there who buy this by-product, treat it to remove the toxic elements and set it into blocks. It is these companies we then buy the wax from. It takes something that would otherwise be thrown away and turns it into a useable product, which is mineral-rich and, molecularly speaking, is perfect for loading scent molecules into. Soy wax USED TO be a by-product, but it is now actually manufactured in large quantities, specifically for use by thousands of candle makers, who all think they are being “eco friendly” by using it. So mineral wax is still a by-product, but soy wax is being created in order to meet the demand for it. This means that mineral wax is by far the better option, for both the scented candle product and the world's carbon footprint.
Furthermore, there are people out there, who think that the molecules of mineral wax are harmful to the ozone layer when they are burnt, and that they contribute to global warming. If any of them genuinely believe this, then I hope that none of them drive a car that uses petrol, because that gives much more harmful gases to the ozone layer, than any scented candle could ever possibly do in it’s lifespan.
Finally, there are those that claim mineral wax is harmful to your skin, if you are unfortunate enough to touch it by accident. But paraffin has been used in skincare products for centuries, so this point of view doesn’t make any sense.
As I hope you now see, mineral wax, which is what we use, is no more harmful than soy wax and is actually better used for making candles, than just being put into landfill.
Be the thorn, not the flower. Challenge, disrupt and question everything.
This is Black Phillip, signing off and returning control to my human host.
Paraffin has an unfortunate negative stigma attached to it. When people think of paraffin, they think of grubby street urchins in Victorian England, scuttling up and down lamp posts to light/extinguish the flame within. People who had the job of a lamplighter, were usually not very well paid and therefore didn’t have a very healthy lifestyle. I believe this is where the negative associations to the substance, and indeed the burning of it, originate.
I prefer to call paraffin wax “mineral wax”, because it is made of minerals. “Paraffin” is the name given to it by human beings. In fact, it was the German chemist Karl Von Reichenback who first coined the term in 1830. So “mineral wax” suits it better, as that is what it is actually made of.
A lot of people out in the world, think that mineral wax will make them sick if they burn it. But it simply isn’t true. The mineral wax we use is detoxified by the company which we buy it from. There are carcinogens involved, which are harmful, but these are created by the process of burning a candle in your home. It doesn’t matter at all which wax you are burning – it is the actual burning process that releases the carcinogens into the air. Sooting is the main cause of carcinogens being released into the air – but if you keep an eye on the wick and trim it regularly, sooting does not occur. This drastically reduces the chances of carcinogens being released into your home.
There are some people, some of whom are also candle makers, that believe soy wax to be better for the environment. However, mineral wax has a much lower carbon footprint; it is still just a by-product of making petroleum, that would usually be put into landfill. There are companies out there who buy this by-product, treat it to remove the toxic elements and set it into blocks. It is these companies we then buy the wax from. It takes something that would otherwise be thrown away and turns it into a useable product, which is mineral-rich and, molecularly speaking, is perfect for loading scent molecules into. Soy wax USED TO be a by-product, but it is now actually manufactured in large quantities, specifically for use by thousands of candle makers, who all think they are being “eco friendly” by using it. So mineral wax is still a by-product, but soy wax is being created in order to meet the demand for it. This means that mineral wax is by far the better option, for both the scented candle product and the world's carbon footprint.
Furthermore, there are people out there, who think that the molecules of mineral wax are harmful to the ozone layer when they are burnt, and that they contribute to global warming. If any of them genuinely believe this, then I hope that none of them drive a car that uses petrol, because that gives much more harmful gases to the ozone layer, than any scented candle could ever possibly do in it’s lifespan.
Finally, there are those that claim mineral wax is harmful to your skin, if you are unfortunate enough to touch it by accident. But paraffin has been used in skincare products for centuries, so this point of view doesn’t make any sense.
As I hope you now see, mineral wax, which is what we use, is no more harmful than soy wax and is actually better used for making candles, than just being put into landfill.
Be the thorn, not the flower. Challenge, disrupt and question everything.
This is Black Phillip, signing off and returning control to my human host.