Bath Bombs crack upon packaging

[Lynusann]

*Sigh* I have spent months working on bath bomb recipes that would be just perfect and I finally thought I found one! They were beautiful looking, held together, were rock hard and were perfect in the bath. I packaged them last night (they were sitting out for 2 days) and came home tonight to all but 2 of them completely cracked everywhere!

Can someone give me some suggestions on what might need to be altered?

I live in Colorado and it's generally pretty dry here so I doubt humidity has ever really been a concern. I have never actually packaged/wrapped bath bombs before so I imagine that they weren't completely dry though but based on how they felt/looked/etc I had no indication that there was still that much moisture in them.

Recipe:
24oz citric acid
48 oz sodium bicarb
12 oz magnesium sulfate
6 tbs tapioca starch
4.5 oz sweet almond oil
1.3 oz shea butter
1.3 oz mango butter
1 oz coconut oil
1 tsp fragrance

I use BB's 7.5oz molds so they are fairly substantial in size. I've never had this issue leaving them out but I absolutely have to package and label these things so I need to figure out what needs to be adjusted so that they don't keep cracking once wrapped up. I'm wrapping in cellophane bags and tied off with ribbon.

Edit: I guess I have actually packaged bath bombs before - I wrapped some in tissue paper and I just found them in a box I had tucked away in my storage room. I wouldn't really call this packaging though, but these ones didn't crack.

 

[lsg]

I use silicone molds and make bath tabs instead of bath bombs. They are easier to get out of the mold and don't crack. The troubleshooting guides mention too much water can cause cracking, but I don't see any water in your recipe. Here is a hint from the Soap Queen Blog:

"Tips: Have you ever had your bath bombs crack? I’m raising my hand. Most cracking is caused by too much or too little moisture so try to find that happy medium, where it sticks together nicely in the palm of your hand. Check out my Bath Bomb Cupcake tutorial to see an example of a too dry and a just right mixture. Other times, cracking can mean that the bath bomb wasn’t packed tightly enough so use those muscles and pack it as tight as you can! Or try adding clays to your bath fizzy to improve the structural integrity of your bath fizzy and make it stronger."

Here is a link to a troubleshooting guide:
http://www.estheticals.com/bathbombdotcom/Guide to Making Bath Bombs.pdf

 

[Lynusann]

Sadly the bombs stay perfect for weeks on end as long as I don't package them.

I have been considering switching to tab form instead but I wonder how much this will impact their appeal to customers as opposed to those perfectly round, pretty looking "bomb" shapes?

 

[lsg]

There are some lovely decorative silicone molds on the market. I think that would give the bath tabs eye appeal.

If I use a silicone mold with several cavities, I leave the bath bombs in there until they harden and then push them out.

 

[Lynusann]

I love my round shape way too much so for now I just can't give it up (maybe in the future) but for the time being I've found a reasonable solution! I'm wrapping in toole and attaching my label with a ribbon. It's not ideal since you can still get product on your hand if you handle it too much but it looks pretty once wrapped up and since some of my bath bombs include loose herbs on the top this makes a nice way for someone to just be able to drop the entire packaged product in the tub and they don't have to clean up any floaties afterwards (just pick up the toole and toss it!)

 

[Lynusann]

SUCCESS!!!!!!!!! After making nearly 400 bombs with varying recipes, I finally have the PERFECT bath bomb that doesn't crack and dries hard!! If they weren't so big (8-9 oz) they would probably spin in the tub too. I finally got one that bobs nicely instead of sinking and just fizzing.

I will say though that my husband is not impressed that I had to take over part of his office and office closet to store them but bless his heart for tolerating my insanity.

These suckers are like the macaroons of the soap world!

 

[Twgehrig]

SUCCESS!!!!!!!!! After making nearly 400 bombs with varying recipes, I finally have the PERFECT bath bomb that doesn't crack and dries hard!! If they weren't so big (8-9 oz) they would probably spin in the tub too. I finally got one that bobs nicely instead of sinking and just fizzing.

I will say though that my husband is not impressed that I had to take over part of his office and office closet to store them but bless his heart for tolerating my insanity.

These suckers are like the macaroons of the soap world!

Can you share your secret?

 

[shunt2011]

Can you share your secret?

Welcome to the forum. This post is from 2015. The OP hasn't been here since 2015. You would be better to start a new thread to get answers from current members. Also, since you are new please be sure to visit the introduction forum and tell us a bit about yourself.