Short Answer: YES!
The longer answer, is still YES! but with a bunch of reasons why.
Leaving a candle wick too long can lead to several issues:
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Flame Height & Heat: An overly long wick can cause the flame to become too tall and unsafe, or it may burn unevenly, resulting in faster wax consumption and an overheated jar that could break.
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Wax Melting: A large flame can melt the wax too quickly, potentially causing tunneling and premature candle extinguishing.
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Fragrance: Excessive heat from an untrimmed wick may alter the fragrance, producing a smell reminiscent of hot fuel.
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Soot and Smoke: Too much fuel drawn into the wick can result in a sooty or smokey candle, affecting its appearance and air quality.
Additionally, leaving a wick untrimmed may allow debris to fall into the melt pool, posing a fire hazard.
Our recommendation: After the first burn, perform a "pinch and snip" before each subsequent burn. Gently pinch off the burned wood where it naturally breaks, then use wick clippers to carefully snip off the point at the center, leaving roughly 5mm.
Before lighting, use a damp cloth to remove any wood debris from the surface.
If the flame exceeds 1" after 5 minutes, flickers excessively, or produces smoke, it's likely that the wick needs further trimming. In such cases, extinguish the candle and trim the wick again.
So, for a longer-lasting, safer, and better smelling candle: TRIM YOUR WICK!