If you’ve ever looked at a wax datasheet and scratched your head wondering why the recommended pour temperature is higher than the melt temperature, you’re not alone. It sounds backwards — surely once something melts, you can just pour it, right? But wax doesn’t work that way, and here’s why.

1. Melt Temperature ≠ Ready-to-Use Temperature

The melt temperature is simply the point at which the wax transitions from solid to liquid. That’s it. At this stage, it may technically be “melted,” but the wax is still thick, cloudy, and full of uneven crystal structures. Imagine butter that’s just started softening — it’s soft, but not exactly pourable.

2. Why We Heat Beyond the Melt Point

To get wax into a pourable state, you need it to be fully melted and fluid enough to flow evenly into your container. Heating beyond the melt point accomplishes three important things:

• Viscosity (thickness): Higher heat lowers the viscosity of the wax, making it thin enough to fill molds and containers smoothly.

• Crystal structure reset: Heating clears out the “memory” of the wax crystals, helping it cool into a more even structure and preventing sinkholes, cracks, or frosting.

• Additive integration: If you’re adding fragrance oils, dyes, or other additives, they simply mix better at a higher temperature.

3. Pour Temperature Is About Performance, Not Physics

The pour temperature is recommended not because the wax can’t melt lower, but because pouring too cool can cause problems:

• Trapped air bubbles and poor glass adhesion.

• Rough or uneven tops.

• Wax setting too quickly, leading to frosting or tunneling.

By pouring at the recommended higher temperature, you give the wax the best chance to cool gradually, bond with the container, and set with a professional finish.

4. Think of It Like Chocolate or Tea

A simple analogy:

• Melt temperature: Chocolate just starting to soften in your hand.

• Pour temperature: Chocolate gently melted down in a saucepan until it’s glossy and pourable.

Or, if you prefer tea: the water technically boils at 100°C, but you wouldn’t steep green tea at that temperature unless you wanted it bitter. You wait until the water is at the right working temperature for the best result. Same principle with wax.

5. The Bottom Line

Melt temperature is a basic physical property — the point where wax starts to liquefy.
Pour temperature is a practical guideline — the temperature at which the wax behaves best for candle making.

So yes, the pour temperature is supposed to be higher than the melt temperature. It’s not a mistake, it’s just the way wax works.