The temperature and degree of melting in an upwelling diapir in the mantle may be considerably less than that anticipated from an adiabatic cooling curve. Several geological and thermodynamic parameters may be incorporated to produce a more realistic melting model in diapirs. The latent heat of fusion of mantle material is the greatest buffer on degrees of melting. Models are presented which suggest that an uprising diapir intersecting the anhydrous solidus of mantle material at 50 kbars may be only 29% melted on reaching the surface. A diapir initiated at 100 kbars may be 69% melted. These are maximum values. These calculations imply that the generation of komatiitic liquids by diapiric uprise alone demands that the diapir originate at depths in excess of 300 km. Melting of mantle with an irregular geotherm is preferred for the origin of these liquids.