Can I CPOP the next day? Urgent question.

[KiwiMoose]

I made some soap in cavity molds and put it in the oven to CPOP. Within an hour hubby wanted to put a chicken in said oven to roast for dinner. SO I transported all four trays of cavity molds upstairs to the bedroom that gets all the afternoon sun and constantly sits around 30 degrees celsius (86f) , wrapped them in towels in the hot sun and left them to gel.
Today I find they haven't gelled! Grrrrr. They are all white and crumbly and soft. I took one out of the mold and some of the flower 'tips' broke off and stayed in the mold.
All others are still in the molds, so I have put them all back into the oven to have a go at CPOPing. Am I too late? Will they gel now? Or will I damage the soap? Let me know soon - because they're in the oven as we speak!

 

[KiwiMoose]

I found this thread:
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/oven-gel-after-cure.84687/#post-902253I trust Earlene's advice, so i won't panic. I will leave it in the oven over night. The oven is currently set at around 60 celsius (140f) and I feel I should leave it turned on for a while to get the soap 'up to temp' before turning off the oven. Thoughts?

 

[not_ally]

That's what I'd do. I normally turn the oven off before I put the soap in because it's already hot from the soaping process but starting cold as you are I'd want to give it a little bump, too. Let us know what happens, this is interesting.

 

[dibbles]

Oh That darn hubby interfering with critical soapy stuff for the sake of chickens and dinner.


I would also try what you are already doing. I hope it works. Maybe you can make a wish with the wishbone from that chicken.

 

[dmcgee5034]

I have no idea, but I’m sending good vibes your way and I hope the chicken was yummy

 

[AliOop]

May the gel be with you! It should work; I have gelled on a heating pad after cutting to get rid of a partial gel ring.

 

[KiwiMoose]

Check out the difference! I’m so glad I gelled. Top soap is ungelled. The others are the same soap front and back, showing the top surface (as it would have looked had I not CPOPPED) and the finished side after gel.

 

[KiwiMoose]

And here’s the one (bottom right) that I unmolded first when I realised they hadn’t gelled. You can see how it’s crumbly. I pushed it back into the mold to gel with the others but it hasn’t fully recovered.

 

[Elise]

I'm glad you shared this ! I've not CPOPed yet but consider it so my soaps harden faster (I tend to use a lot of liquid oils). I wonder how long after soaping it is still possible to OP.

 

[not_ally]

This is great guidance for some future soaper, @KiwiMoose, thanks for posting it. Big difference in the pre/post gel heart.

 

[Ephemerella]

I'm so glad you shared this experience! I had virtually the same here!

Thanksgiving morning, I needed to get a few batches done, and then turn the kitchen over for holiday cooking by 10am. I didn't want to pop the kids in the oven and risk the FO's lingering around the turkey I would be putting in an hour later, so I bundled them in towels and stuck them in a warm room.

I usually unmold and cut after 8 hours, so that evening I peeked on the kids and they were warmish, soft and squishy and had a dull chalky appearance on top so, I cleaned the oven, warmed it, popped them in and crossed my fingers. Next morning, they were perfect, except for the chalky appearance on top which hopefully I can steam into submission.

 

[The_Emerald_Chicken]

I'm terribly glad you asked this, @KiwiMoose. I recently wondered the same thing but didn't try to see if my loaf would still gel.

@AliOop, you mentioned gelling on a heating pad after cutting. Do you know how long after cutting this would work? I'm assuming several weeks might be too long?

 

[Mobjack Bay]

Do you know how long after cutting this would work? I'm assuming several weeks might be too long?

The water content of the soap matters. My soaps made at 40% lye concentration (and still relatively fresh) don’t start to soften up/go clear until at they reach at least 150 F.

 

[AliOop]

I'm terribly glad you asked this, @KiwiMoose. I recently wondered the same thing but didn't try to see if my loaf would still gel.

@AliOop, you mentioned gelling on a heating pad after cutting. Do you know how long after cutting this would work? I'm assuming several weeks might be too long?

I've done it as much as a week later, with very good success. I'd put a bar or two on the heating pad and give it a try!

Like @Mobjack Bay, I also use 40% lye concentration. I don't pay much attention to temps as I pretty much know that after three hours on high, it will be gelled. But I sometimes I still check to see that it has gelled to the edges before I turn off the heat.

 

[dmcgee5034]

This is super interesting, especially for an unintentional gel ring. I’ve gotten that twice but still have never CPOPd.

 

[Nona'sFarm]

This is super interesting, especially for an unintentional gel ring. I’ve gotten that twice but still have never CPOPd.

Definitely works for gel rings. I put 3 day old soap back in the loaf mold, set it in a cold oven, left oven on my lowest temp for 30 minutes, then turned off oven, but left the soap in the oven undisturbed for 3.5 more hours. Rings gone!
Please note that my oven does not have a preheat function, when set on BAKE, it only ever heats from the bottom.