Did I do something wrong?

[Ron-tha-mon]

Did I do something wrong?

So, it has a white, almost chalky outside and once cut, the inside is a bit sticky. Is this normal?
I did add the honey that could perhaps account for this, but what about the white stuff on the outside?

I lowered the Coconut oil and raised the EVOO from the last batch that was great. I wanted to make it less cleansing and a bit more moisturizing as someone suggests I try so it could be more suitable for daily use.

I just ran this batch last night so maybe it just needs to cure? I hope.

It looks funny though…

I adjusted my recipe a bit from my last batch, and I also added sugar to the lye water before the lye and a tbsp of honey at the end with the EO’s.

• Beef Tallow: 47.62% = 408.68g
• Olive Oil: 28.57% = 245.15 g
• Coconut Oil: 14.29% = 122.65 g
• Castor Oil: 4.76% = 40.88 g
• Shea Butter: 4.76% = 40.88g

EO
• Frankincenses 60%
• Ylang Ylang 40%

 

[Ford]

Hi, soda ash is your white chalky substance. And fresh cut soap. Will be a bit tacky at first. Spritz with rubbing alcohol and cover. When first poured. Helps with soda ash.

 

[MelissaG]

Just soda ash. It's just an appearance thing. You can steam it off, rub it off with a damp cloth, live with it or, as Ford said, spray rubbing alcohol right after you make it to try to make sure it doesn't form in the first place (it doesn't always work). You can also experiment with the amount of water content you make your recipe with. The less water added to the lye, the less likely you are to get soda ash but I've found that also speeds up trace which can effect how much time you have to work with the design. I'm currently using 1.7:1 water:lye. I've tried 1.2:1 but it moved way too fast for me.

 

[AliOop]

Like @MelissaG, I also use a higher lye concentration. You can also soap at higher temperatures to reduce the likelihood of soda ash, but that causes faster tracing of batter - not something you want if you are planning designs or want really smooth bars. Heavier trace can cut down on ash, too.

Because l soap at room temp, and pour at emulsion or light trace, I do cover and gel my soaps on a heating pad. But even with the higher lye concentration and gelling, I still got soda ash until I started covering my soap for a few days after cutting it. That sounds counterintuitive, but it works! Covering it allows the NaOH to finish reacting with the oils (to make soap) instead of reacting with the air (to make soda ash). Of course, after 3-4 days, or when I remember I do uncover it and let it cure in the open air as usual.

This post-cutting coverage was the final step for me that eliminated all soda ash, except my charcoal bars. Those seem to ash no matter what. But it actually looks kind of cool on them, so I don't worry about it.

 

[Ron-tha-mon]

Thank you all for your responses! I really appreciate it.

I was reading about Ylang Ylang last night and started to worry that it might be a bit overpowering. I used a 3% concentration, and it’s certainly filled the room with a strong aroma—so much so that I can’t smell the frankincense at all.

Still, I’m glad I didn’t do anything to mess it up!