Candle Recycling

Recycling candles has always been central to what we do. At Recycled Wax, we collect and recycle used candles so the wax can be cleaned, refined, and reused rather than sent to landfill. Our candle recycling scheme is currently running as a pilot while we expand capacity, improve our processes, and learn how best to support different communities. It’s a work in progress, but every candle you send helps keep wax in circulation and moves us closer to a more practical, long-term recycling system.
Domestic Candle Recycling

If you have candles at home that you’d like to recycle, thank you. Every box we receive helps keep wax out of landfill and gives it a chance at a second life.

We’re happy to accept almost any type of candle or wax product, including:

  • Glassware candles
  • Wax melts
  • Tealights (metal or plastic cups included)
  • LED “fake” wax candles
  • Coloured or fragranced pillars

Mixed domestic waxes do take more processing to recycle because of dyes, fragrances, metals, and glass, but we’re still very happy to receive them. If you’re able to cover the cost of postage, you can send these to us at any time using the options listed below in the "Where do I send my Recycling" section.

What Can I Send?

You can send us almost any type of candle or wax product.

To help us recycle more efficiently, please:

  • Prioritise plain white unscented candles where possible.

  • Avoid sending broken glass or unsafe packaging.

  • Separate types of products (e.g. don’t mix wax melts with glass jars or tealights).

We recommend creating separate collection boxes at home (tealights / glass / wax melts / pillar or dinner candles). When one box is full, send that to us.

Candles of any colour and size are welcome, but check parcel dimensions with your courier to avoid excess charges.
Where Do I Send My Recycling?

How to Send Us Your Candle Recycling

We’re making it as simple as possible for anyone in the UK to recycle their old candles with us.
You can choose whichever option suits you best:

1. Local Drop-Off (Leyland, Lancashire)

If you are nearby, you are very welcome to arrange a drop-off directly at our studio in Leyland.

Just send us a quick email to organise a time, and we’ll make sure someone is here to meet you.

Location:
Leyland
Lancashire
PR25 3HN

2. Send Your Candles via InPost Lockers

InPost

InPost lockers are usually the most affordable and eco-friendly way to send recycling.
Because the system avoids the “final mile” home delivery, it’s often cheaper and reduces transport emissions.

You can find instructions on the InPost app or website here: InPost

Address your parcel to:

Name: Richard Candles
Phone: 07351 203156 (delivery tracking only)
Email: recycling@recycledwax.co.uk
Locker Delivery Address:
TESCO Leyland Station, Preston Road, Leyland, Preston, Lancashire, PR25 4NT

When filling out parcel details:

Set the value of the parcel to the shipping cost, and mark contents as ‘Candles’
This may help you claim postage back if anything goes wrong.

📌 Please pop a note inside the box with your name and email address.

This allows us to log where recycling has come from and helps us improve the service as it grows.

3. Send Directly to Our Studio Address

If you’d rather use your usual courier or a parcel comparison site like Parcel Monkey, you can post your candles straight to us at:

Recycled Wax
55 Princess Street
Leyland
Lancashire
PR25 3HN

📌 Please pop a note inside the box with your name and email address.

This allows us to log where recycling has come from and helps us improve the service as it grows.

4. Local Drop-Off at Our Early Recycling Points

We don’t have a full national network of recycling hubs just yet, but we’re building towards it.
In the meantime, a couple of our lovely family members are helping us by acting as early “holding points” for candle recycling.

If either location is convenient for you, you’re welcome to drop off your candles there, and we will collect them on our next visit.

West London (Chiswick – W4 2LT)
A convenient option for anyone in London or the surrounding area.
Email us first so we can share the exact drop-off details.

East Devon – Sid Valley Hotel, EX10 0QJ
Located between Honiton and Sidmouth, the hotel (Richard's Parents) kindly store recycling for us between visits.

As with all drop-offs, please include your name and email address inside the parcel or bag, as it really helps us track incoming recycling and understand the areas where support is growing.

We hope to expand this network over time, these are just our first stepping stones.
Commercial Candle Recycling

If you’re a Pub, Restaurant, Hotel, Church, or Tv/Film Studio and would like to recycle candles with us, we’d love to hear from you.

👉 Please contact us here and we’ll get in touch to arrange a collection or delivery option that works for you.
What Happens to My Recycling?

Once your candles reach us, we:

  • Sort and separate everything into process boxes.

  • Plain white unscented candles: melted, filtered, graded, blended, and re-poured into new candles.

  • Tealights: wax is removed from metal cups and recycled.

  • Glassware: cleaned and reused for testing or small projects. (Fun fact: candle glass is heat-treated, which makes it harder to recycle through normal channels — so we aim to keep it in circulation wherever safe and possible).

  • Fragranced or coloured waxes: kept separate. Removing fragrance is costly and energy-intensive, so these waxes are usually diverted into alternative uses such as firelighters or fuel.

Safety always comes first: if glass is damaged or unsuitable, we ensure it goes through the correct recycling channels.
Who Pays for Postage?

As a small business at an early stage, we can’t currently cover the cost of postage for domestic recycling.

We hope to develop logistics solutions in future, but for now, we ask that you cover postage yourself using the InPost system above, or get in touch to discuss alternative options.
Candle Recycling Points

Our long-term goal is to create a UK-wide network of candle recycling points. Once it’s ready, we’ll launch an interactive map to help you find your nearest location.

If you run a shop, church, or community space and would like to host a recycling point, please contact us here so we can talk logistics.