Curing process

[Azoraa]

Hello -

I have just placed my newly de-molded cut soap onto a wire rack above my table with a small fan and have a couple of thoughts which I would like some input by experienced soapers. My base oils is 3/10 coconut, 4/10 palm, 3/10 EV olive; water was 28% weight of oils; EOs only for scent. I was wondering how much the room temperature could affect the curing process after the first few weeks as the room is very warm, and it is not unusual for it to be in the 82-86°F range and humid during the summer. I keep my essential oils in a refrigerator that is kept around 62°F (±5°) -- which environment would be better? I have some older soap (2-3 yr) that I made from different oils that are sweating quite a bit and feel sticky. Once we get into the fall season here, the temp will cool down a bit, and I will have to decide on a low-end to keep the warm room eventually. What results have you all had in places of moderate humidity where the range fluctuates widely versus staying about the same at either high (80+) or low (under 68) settings?

-Azoraa

 

[ucmj22]

It doesn't sound like temperature is your problem, rather humidity. You could try keeping your soaps in a room with a dehumidifier.

 

[Azoraa]

It may very well be - I would still like to hear about others' experience in different climates.

 

[judymoody]

I live in the mountain southwest - very hot temperatures about 6 months of the year, into the 90s or more. Low humidity. I've never had problems with stickiness or DOS. I also don't have 2-3 year old soap stored in the house.

 

[Azoraa]

As a side note, I only had DOS in a few early batches I made using a lot of soy and canola ("vegetable") oils. Once I cut those out, the result was much better! I do have soap that is 2-3 yrs and stored in wide range of temps which is NOT sweating oil. If I can find a good balance of soft vs. hard oils that I can use with a tolerance for storage in a seasonally variable environment, it would be helpful. Or I could store the soap it in the refrigerator at some point after or at the end of the curing period (?)

 

[Kansas Farm Girl]

I live in Kansas and store my soaps in cabinets in the garage where it gets into the upper 90s this summer. I have not had any problems with my soaps. I do have soaps up to 2 yrs old still stored there. If anything I think the heat helps the water evaporate out faster and it seems to harden well.

 

[Pepsi Girl]

I live in Kansas and store my soaps in cabinets in the garage where it gets into the upper 90s this summer. I have not had any problems with my soaps. I do have soaps up to 2 yrs old still stored there. If anything I think the heat helps the water evaporate out faster and it seems to harden well.

Once again I got to agree with the Kansas Farn girl : I store my soap in the attic/ craft room of my two story gargage where it's over 100 in the summer, no problem. And I too think it helps!

 

[IrishLass]

I live in the desert southwest where it's very hot for about half the year, and very arid all year round except for a few brief rainy periods about twice a year. I have certain soaps socked away inside my house that are up to 6 years old and they are still doing great. The ambiant temp in my house during the hottest months of the year is 78F (with AC). I have only ever gotten DOS once. It was back in 2007 in a canola oil soap with a high superfat. Oils that are high in linoleic acid (canola, soy, grapeseed, hemp, etc..., basically oils with a short shelf life) are more prone to causing DOS/rancidity in your soap. For this reason, most soapers that like to use these oils keep their amounts on the modest side so that their total linoleic content for their batches never exceeds 15%.

Superfat level is also of great importance, especially if you live in a humid climate. It's good to keep the superfat modest if you like to use more of the fragile oils.

I personally like to use oils and fats in my formulas that are known to have long shelf lives, which means I don't use canola or soy or any of the other more fragile oils such as grapeseed, hemp, etc... I pretty much stick to coconut, PKO, castor, olive, cocoa butter, tallow, lard, kokum butter, mango butter, illipe butter, and small amounts of rice bran oil and avocado oil.


IrishLass