Lux Mundi™ offers a wide variety of diameters and heights, and our handmade products can meet any of your requirements. We offer custom made candles, or candles custom made to fit existing sockets at no additional charge. Whether you desire refillable or disposable oil candles, Lux Mundi is the source for all liturgical ceremonies. We have been dedicated to servicing all liturgical needs for 15 years, and our pledge is to continue to provide products and services to meet the high standards of liturgical traditions.

Lux Mundi Refillable Oil Paschal Candle and Refillable Oil Altar Candles at
St John & St Paul's Church in Edmunston New Brunswick

Read Below for Answers to the Most Frequent Questions we get about Church Oil Candles
 

Whether you call them oil candles, liquid candles or fuel candles, they are the same thing-candles that burn a liquid.

 

The Two Basic Types of Church Oil Candles

Oil Candle Shells -"shells" use drop-in canisters. Canisters are available either prefilled (disposable)or with a screw- off top so they can be refilled.

Refillable Oil Candles- come with screw-off brass tops and oil is poured directly in the candle.


Oil Candle Shells

Here is our 2" diameter oil candle shell shown with the metal or clear pvc canister.         
The candle on the right has the optional follower (top) and socket. 

Below is a Refillable Oil Candle with the Screw off Brass Top

       

 

Oil Candle Shells

• Shells can be easily refilled when they are in the sanctuary, on the candlesticks. There's no need to remove the candles and take them back to the sacristy to fill them with the oil. Simply remove the empty canister from the candle, drop in a new one and you're ready to go.

Here is our 3-1/2"" diameter oil candle shell shown with the 70 hour metal or clear pvc canister.

About the Cannisters

• Refillable canisters are made of metal and have a screw off brass top with a replaceable wick.
• Prefilled disposable canisters are offered in either clear see-through PVC plastic, so you can see how much oil is left, or in metal disposable Canisters.

We have three sizes of canisters available: 25 hour, 45 hour, and 70 hour.

• 25 hour fits the 1-7/8 and 2 inch diameter shells
• 45 hour canister fits the 2 5/8 inch diameter shells
• 70 hour canister fits the 3 1/2 inch and larger diameter shells

Our standard canisters (25hr, 45hr, 70 hr, 80hr) are all the same height: (5-1/4")

 regardless of whether they are refillable or disposable
 regardless of the number of hours of burn time
 regardless of the candle height...

...because the chamber or reservoir in the top of the candle is the same depth, regardless of how tall the candle is.

We have TALL canisters available in the 30,60 and 90 hour sizes which are 6-1/2" tall. If you plan on using these with Lux Mundi Brand candles, please let us know as your candles will need to be drilled out an extra inch to accomodate the taller cartridge.

Oil Candle Appearance

• Our liquid paraffin oil candles are handcrafted of quality nylon, look just like real beeswax candles and are practically indestructible.
• Oil candle color is similar to a 51% Beeswax Candle
• Refillable candles come complete with a satin or high polish brass follower and wick.
• Candle Shells are just the nylon candle. You must get either disposable or refillable cannisters to work in the shells. Optional items include followers (decorative brass tops) and sockets (sockets attach to your candlestick and hold the candle, you probably already have sockets for your wax candles and they should work with the oil candles unless they are misformed, out of round or it takes effort to get your wax candles inserted.)

Beautiful Nylon Construction
Our candle shells are made of indestructible nylon. They can survive drops on concrete floors (we've skipped them across our warehouse floor) and look just like real beeswax candles.
The biggest difference is in the quality of the shell material (we use nylon which is super tough and looks exactly like a real 51% beeswax candle, this is not the cheap PVC look that some oil candles have) and the quality of the fuel (we use 99.96 percent liquid paraffin which is safe, clean, odorless and smokeless).

 

Followers & Sockets
Followers are not needed with candle shells (unlike refillable candles where the follower is an integral part of the candle), but they are offered as a decorative accessory. Followers simply slip over the top of the shell, just as with a wax candle.

If you do not wish to use followers, don't worry. The tops of the candle shells are finished off with a nylon ring or doughnut that rests on the canister to give the shell a finished appearance.


Attaching Oil Candles to your church's candlesticks.

Method 1 - Insert in Your Existing Sockets- just like a wax candle
You can often simply drop the new oil candle into your candlestick socket, just as you would with a wax candle. See below for information to help determine whether your existing sockets will work.

Method 2 - Direct Attach
All of our oil candle shells have a threaded hole in the bottom of them to enable them to screw directly to your candlestick. Several different size adapters are included to fit different size candlestick threaded rods/bolts. You simply unscrew the socket from your candlestick and screw the adaptor directly in its place. The oil candle then screws onto the adaptor for a semi-permanent yet easily removable attachment.

Method 3 - Replace Your Sockets
You can also replace your existing sockets with new Lux Mundi sockets This method is best if you want to use a different size oil candle than your existing sockets will accomodate, or if your existing wax candles are difficult to insert and remove from the sockets. (This typically means there is wax build-up or the socket may be slightly undersized.)

Method 4 - Custom Ends
Oil candles can be custom made to fit your existing sockets at no additional charge. This usually requires you to either measure your existing sockets with extreme precision using a micrometer or to send us your sockets to use as a guide (preferred). If you would like your oil candles to be custom fitted, place your order via our web site and in the Special Instructions section at checkout, put a note "We would like the candles to be custom fitted to our sockets", we will then email you instructions on where to send your sockets. Once your sockets are received, we will shave the bottom of the candles for a beat, professional fit and return the sockets along with the candles. (Please allow a few days in house turn around for this option)

Do you need NEW Sockets or can you use your existing ones?


Candle Sockets or cups as they are sometimes called, are the round tube-shaped fittings on church candlesticks that hold the candles. If you are switching from wax candles to oil or liquid paraffin candles, then you already have sockets on your existing candlestick. The questions is, "Will the old sockets hold our new oil candles?"

The answer depends. If you are purchasing the same diameter oil candle as you were buying in wax variety, (i.e. replacing 1-1/2" diameter wax candles with 1-1/2" oil candles) then check to see if your wax candles slide in and out of the socket easily or if they bind and take a little bit of work to insert into the socket. If they go in and out easily, then most likely the oil candles will too.

If the wax candles bind or are difficult to insert in the socket, then check to see if there is a build-up of wax on the inner walls. You may need to scrape away the old wax, or take the socket off and submerse the socket (never the candlestick) in a pot of warm to hot water to loosen the wax. (You can also use a hairdryer.) Once the wax is soft, wipe away as much as you can and dry everything thouroughly. Now, try to insert the wax candles. If they slide in easily, it should be okay to order your new oil candles without sockets.

If you still have difficulty or it requires the slightest bit if effort to insert the wax candle, then you probably need to order new sockets to hold your oil candles.

How the Sockets Attach

In the picture below, note the new brass socket next to the oil candle. The socket has a threaded hole and comes with 2 adaptors in the most common size threading (3 are shown but we typically send two: 1/4-20 and 5/16-18, while the socket itself has a 3/8-16 threaded hole, so you have 3 options). Find the correct size adaptor for your candlestick and then simply screw the adaptor into the bottom of the socket. Your new socket can now be screwed down on to your old candlestick.


You can also screw our candles directly to most candlesticks by unscrewing the socket and screwing one of our included oil candle adaptors in its place. Our oil candle then screws down over the oil candle adaptor.
See Below.






Do Oil Candles Help With Drafts?
Absolutely. If you are currently experiencing problems with your wax candles, switching to il candles should solve your problem. In extreme situations, such as with heavy HVAC currents blowing on candles, we have Draft followers available, but they are usually not needed with oil candles.




Replacement Wicks
Wicks come preset from the factory for optimal burn performance. You can increase the size of the flame by slightly pulling the wick out of the brass collar, but not too much as this can lead to smoking and soot deposits on the follower. Wicks are made of fiberglass and are replaceable. Most wicks should last six months to year and they are easily replaced.
Lux Mundi wicks are about 4-1/2" long and feature a small brass fitting on the top. This fitting is threaded on the outside and is used to screw the wick into the top of the canister or follower.
Lux Mundi wicks WILL NOT WORK with other brands of oil candles.

About our Oil

• Only use genuine, made in the USA LIQUID PARAFFIN with your Lux Mund oil candles.
• Liquid paraffin is not the same product as lamp oil found in many hadware or specialty stores.
• NEVER USE LAMP OIL OR KEROSENE with Church Oil Candles. You can cause respiratory problems for the congregation.
• Our Liquid Paraffin is designed to give clean, odorless and irritation free burning.

Refillable Oil Candle COMMON ANSWERS

• The follower serves as a top and unscrews so oil is added directly to the candle.
• The long lasting fiberglass wick is easily replaced and lasts for up to a year.
• Flame height can be adjusted by amount of wick pulled out of candle.
• Refillable candle burn time Varies by candle diameter not height
• All candles have the same depth oil resevoir regardless of the height of the actual candle

The most important question is, "Will the oil candles fit my candlesticks?"
The answer is "Yes, we can make the candles fit your candlestick". To ensure a proper fit follow these guidelines:

• Order the same size oil candle as your current wax candles, or slightly smaller.
• If your wax candles slide in and out of the sockets easily, then the oil candles should too.
• If your wax candles bind or are difficult to slide into the socket, then you will need to either order new sockets or have us peg the bottom of the candle. (You can send us your sockets and we will fit the candles at no charge or you can provide us exact measurements of the inside diameter and interior depth of your socket.

Burn Times

These are the approximate burn times for a full refillable oil candle. Note that candle height does not affect the burn time because the resevoir in the top of all candles is the same depth, regardless of the candle height.

Refillable Candle Burn Times (approximate)  All candles burn Burn 6 HRS/PER OZ. of oil. Burn time will thus be a function of the candle diameter.
  
CandleDiameter                    Burn time per fill (hrs)
7/8”                                            4.5
1.00”                                          4.5
1-1/8”                                         5.5
1-1/4”                                         7.5                             
1-1/2”                                         12.5
1-15/16”                                     18.5
2-1/4”                                         18.5
2-1/2”                                         22
3”                                               30

Burn Times for Candle Shells with Cannisters

• 25 hour- 1-7/8 and 2 inch diameter shells
• 45 hour - 2 5/8 inch diameter shells
• 70 hour -3 1/2 inch and larger diameter shells

Custom Liquid Paraffin Oil Candles

Lux Mundi™ offers a wide variety of candle diameters and heights. We can make candles to just about any size you require.

•  Refillable oil candles are Made in USA by Lux Mundi.
• You can order to fit your existing candlestick sockets or order our  exact-fit sockets, made to fit the candle you are purchasing.
• All candles are manufactured with a straight base. Tapered bases are available on request. 
• Custom modifcation is available to accomodate any size socket upon request.
• Custom heights and diameters also available. 
• Please email for information on custom ordering

Oil Candle Questions and Answers

Q. Can a  2.5" x 9"  refillable oil candle stand alone on the altar?

A. If it is sitting directly on a wood or marble altar or if the altar cloth is thin it should be fine. If the altar cloth is thick it may be a little unstable if someone were to bump the altar or move the cloth.
The 3 or 3-1/2" diameter candle is a better choice if the candle will be sitting directly on the altaar without a candlestick.


What type of oil candle do we need?

We have two types of oil candles

Refillable (where you unscrew the brass top and pour oil directly into the shell)
https://www.churchproducts.com/product.cgi?group=573400&product=573409


Shells (where you drop in a canister, either metal refillable or plastic disposable)
https://www.churchproducts.com/product.cgi?group=573477&product=573497

The bottom of both is going to be the same…nylon.

We have brass sockets they fit in that can be attached to your candlestick.



 

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