Press the wax out with your thumb or ease it with a wooden or plastic spatula. Let the glass come back to room temperature before washing, so it does not crack from the change.
Method 1: freeze it
Lift the glass cylinder out of the frame. Put it in the freezer for an hour or two. Wax shrinks more than glass when it is cold, so it lets go of the sides.
Method 2: warm water, not boiling
If the wax is a thin layer, stand the glass in a bowl of hand-hot water for a few minutes. The wax softens and wipes off with kitchen paper.
Do not pour boiling water into cold glass. The shock can crack it.
The film that stays
A greasy haze is normal after the wax is out. Wash the glass in warm water with washing-up liquid and dry it with a lint-free cloth. A drop of alcohol on a cloth clears what is left.
Avoid scouring pads. Fine scratches catch soot and show every time you light a candle.
Cleaning the steel frame
Wipe with a damp cloth. Wax on the powder coat comes off once it is cold: lift it with a fingernail or a plastic card.
Color marks on the tube, such as from a red candle, lift with an alcohol-based cleaner or hand sanitiser on a cloth. The powder coat will not wear from it.
How to keep wax out next time
Use a pillar candle that fits the glass with room around it. In Thomas that is up to ø3.5 in and 6 in tall inside the 7.9 in glass. Trim the wick to about 5 mm so it burns clean. Put a little water in the bottom of the glass before the candle, and the last of the wax lifts out.
Spare glass for Thomas and Tom is sold separately if one breaks.
Cold, then soap, never a knife
- Wick
- about 5 mm
- Thomas candle
- up to ø9 x 6 in
- Spare glass
- Thomas and Tom
