Different consistency in same batch

[Michos]

I made my third batch of soap a few weeks ago and poured most of it into a tall rectangular mold. I had a little bit left over and poured it into a second mold that ended up only being about 2" deep. The next day, the soap in the tall mold had set well, was pretty firm and slightly translucent as I would expect it to be. The soap in the leftover mold, however, was still cloudy looking and softer. Is this because it didn't stay warm enough? And is it safe to use? At this point, after a few weeks, its still cloudy and not as hard as the rest of the soap but is hard enough to use as a bar.

 

[Susie]

The soap in the mold gelled. The soap in the individual mold did not. The soap in the individual mold has not saponified yet. If you want it to gel, put it in the oven with it set on warm or as low as you can get it. It should gel within an hour. Or you can just appreciate the difference between the gelled and ungelled and wait for the ungelled to get hard enough to unmold.

 

[Michos]

Thanks for the response! So it is safe to use even though it didn't fully saponify? And also, what is the reason that it did not gel? Is it because it didn't stay warm long enough? I can't think of any other reason given that it was from the same batch.

 

[Dawni]

Thanks for the response! So it is safe to use even though it didn't fully saponify? And also, what is the reason that it did not gel? Is it because it didn't stay warm long enough? I can't think of any other reason given that it was from the same batch.

It will saponify in a couple of days, and get better after several weeks of cure. It should catch up to the other one in terms of hardness in those weeks, too. The only main difference will be the look of it.

And yes, individual cavity molds don't retain as much as heat as loaf molds so it's harder to get gel with them. Water plays a role in gelling too, but that's an entirely different discussion since your soaps were just one batch.

Search gel on the forum and you'll get a ton of results.

Now show us the soap! Lol

 

[Alfa_Lazcares]

Thanks for the response! So it is safe to use even though it didn't fully saponify? And also, what is the reason that it did not gel? Is it because it didn't stay warm long enough? I can't think of any other reason given that it was from the same batch.

It will saponify too, it just takes longer. Yes, its because of the heat. To gel or not to gel the soap comes down to personal preference, both ways are fine. On the plus side now you have a two soaps from the same batch/same ingredients and one gelled and not so you can compare them and see what you like best!