Candle Safety Tips

  • Never leave a burning candle unattended. Always keep a burning candle within sight. Extinguish them before leaving or going to sleep. Make sure the candle is completely extinguished and the wick ember is no longer glowing before leaving the room.
  • Keep candles out of the reach of children and pets.
  • Keep candles well away from flammable items that can easily catch fire, such as curtains, lampshades, decorative items, clothing, books, magazines, or plants.
  • Keep all open flame, including candles, away from flammable liquids.
  • Keep candles out of drafty locations.
  • Always burn candles on a heat/fire resistant surface.
  • Use sturdy candle holders that will not tip or burn and are large enough to collect dripping wax. Also, be sure that the candle holder itself is placed on a safe stable heat-resistant surface.
  • Always burn candles in a well-ventilated room.
  • Never move a lighted candle.
  • Always read and follow the manufacturer’s use and safety instructions carefully.
  • Place burning candles at least three inches apart from one another. This is to make sure they don’t melt one another, or create their own drafts that will cause the candles to burn improperly.
  • Keep your wicks trimmed. This is essential for the candle to burn cleanly, safely and without smoking. Trim your wick to about 1/4″ every time you burn them.
  • Keep wick trimmings and other debris out of the pool of melted wax.
  • Don’t burn a candle longer than 1 hour for each inch of its diameter.
  • Don’t burn candles all the way down. Extinguish pillar and taper candles when they get within two inches of the holder. Extinguish votives and container candles before the last half-inch of wax is melted.
  • Extinguish the candle properly. Using a candle snuffer is by far the best way to put out a candle. Never extinguish candles with water. The water can cause the hot wax to splatter and might cause a glass container to break.
  • Never touch a burning candle or move a votive or container candle when the wax is liquid.
  • Never use a knife or sharp object to remove wax drippings from a glass holder.
  • Be very careful if using candles during a power outage. Flashlights are safer sources of light during a power failure. Never use a candle during a power outage to look for things in a closet or when fueling equipment.
  • Extinguish a candle if it smokes, flickers repeatedly, or the flame becomes too high. The candle isn’t burning properly and the flame isn’t controlled. Let the candle cool, trim the wick, then check for drafts before re-lighting.
  • Don’t burn a defective candle. If it’s not burning properly – if it’s sputtering or smoking or the flame is burning too high – don’t burn it.