Tea Lights

[tony]

Hi there folks , ive been tasked to make some tea light holders for a school fundraising project , my question is can you put the tealights directly into the timber or do you need to buy the glass holders to fit them in , as in to stop the timber getting too hot & burning. I was told Ikea sell fairly cheap glass holders , thats if i need them , cheers for now , Tony

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

you should get the glass holders....and the IKEA ones are easily the best value and actually rather nice.

My brother nearly burnt his house down NOT observing that

 

[yorkshirepudding]

you should get the glass holders....and the IKEA ones are easily the best value and actually rather nice.

I second that.

 

[Dalboy]

I got some from Wilkinsons plain straight sided white one and these in the photo's below. They don't always have them on their website so it pays to go into their store if you have one local.

 

[Melinda_dd]

I got the ikea ones off e bay. Great value
Made lovely Christmas presents

 

[CHJ]

I've always used the basic glass Ikea ones, around Christmas time they often have red coloured versions which can add a little extra character.

 

[woodiedonald]

Definitely get the glass holders, not that expensive, it can only make your work look better!

 

[tony]

Thanks everyone for all the advice , my mind was made up after Bobs first reply. I will have a look at Wilkinsons & Ikeas & thank you all for taking the time to reply , cheers Tony

 

[M P Hales]

Got some Ikea tealights in workshop , if you PM you're address I'll send you a couple to try

M

 

[narrowboater]

Not sure I understand. are we saying that tealights in their metal holders are unsafe, or when put into wood without the metal. The reason I ask is that I have just bought a 40mm Forstner bit, in order to make some holders for a friend. I did think of using the Axminster glass spirit lights.

Regards
Rod

 

[Tazmaniandevil]

The metal cans containing the tea-light wax can become very hot. Somme woods may ignite if the candle becomes hot enough. It can also ignite the hot wax. Burning wax behaves much the same way as a burning chip pan.
The glass holders are cheap & cheerful and are much more heat resistant.

We had an incident at work a few years back where a student put a tea-light directly on top of her TV. The heat melted a hole in top of the plastic cabinet & set light to the liquid wax inside the television.
Poor kid almost died.

Weigh up a few pence against someone losing their life....

 

[tekno.mage]

Not sure I understand. are we saying that tealights in their metal holders are unsafe, or when put into wood without the metal. The reason I ask is that I have just bought a 40mm Forstner bit, in order to make some holders for a friend. I did think of using the Axminster glass spirit lights.

Regards
Rod

I use tealights direct in the wooden holders I make - but I only ever make them from oak (which will not ignite from contact with a hot metal tealight surround). If I was going to use a wood other than oak, I'd fit a glass insert.

Regarding the 40mm forstner bit - have you noticed that tealights come in a variety of slightly different diameters these days, depending on where you buy them? Some are a very loose fit ion a 40mm hole!

 

[Hitch]

I have seen some nice looking metal liners, think they are aluminium, with a rolled top edge.

Typically, i cant remember where i saw them, but think it was an online supplier, the likes of Turners Retreat/Rutlands etc.

 

[narrowboater]

Thanks for the replies folk, the friend for who I am making these gave me a link to a catalogue page. The light holders were simply square in various heights. with the tea lights directly mounted in the wood. I will have to think again.

Kym

I started off with tea lights that I already had, they fitted perfectly in a hole bored using a 38mm it, so I made a set in Yew and took them round. Her tea lights were from Ikea and would not fit, so hence the 40mm bit. I will have to pop to Ikea an look at tea light holders. These are getting more and more expensive for a quick pressie. Out of interest can any one post the dimensions of them.

Regards
Rod

 

[tekno.mage]

Tea light sizes are very annoying! I have 4 different ones at the moment and in the past used a 38mm drill (I supplied the tealights in the holder), but have now moved to using a 1 5/8" (41.3mm) drill to make sure other types will fit. I would use a 40mm Forstner, but don't have one. I might buy one in future, but I think the 1 5/8" drill is ok.

Tea lights also come in different heights to make the situation worse - as you woulnd't want to use a 10mm tealight in a 20mm deep hole :-(

I have 38mm, 38.7mm and 39mm diameter tealights, in heights of 20mm, 18mm, 14mm and 10mm. The largest one (39mm x 20mm) is a high quality coloured and scented "Prices" version and the others are all cheaper ones (Ikea (I think), market stalls, various local shops, etc). The high quality ones burn for a lot longer than the cheaper ones, BTW - but they cost a lot more as well!