Epsom salt bars

[Dragonfly Soaps]

Ok...i realize I'm a new soaper, but i really like the idea of Epsom salt bars. I watched a YouTube on mp Epsom salt bars and i gave it a shot. I poured them in a 4 bar mold...the 2 in the middle came out great. The 2 on the ends... no so much... after sitting for 3 days. Trying to figure out what i did wrong

 

[steffamarie]

Epsom salts are actually magnesium mostly, not sodium chloride as is table salt/sea salt. The magnesium can cause your bars to be weepy and slimy. Unfortunately I'm not aware of any way to make Epsom salts work in MP or CP soap, so it would probably be best for you to make either regular salt bars if that's the effect you're after, or your own bath salts using Epsom salts. That way you get the benefits of the Epsom salts but in a medium that actually works for them and produces reliable results. :/

 

[shunt2011]

Not a good thing to use in Salt Bars. They will weep and may eventually get slightly mushy and more prone to DOS. Epsom Salt and Dead Sea Salt are not good in salt bars at all.

 

[IrishLass]

I read a post on another soaping forum of epsom salts turning someone's MP salt bars into mush from the inside out after about 3 weeks. Up until then they looked great....until all of a sudden they didn't anymore. I can only imagine the ick-factor that customers (or any others one would give their soap to) would experience if they waited some weeks before using such a soap.

I wonder if the youtube video you watched using epsom salts in MP is the same one I just watched (by Koala soaps)? If so, if you look at all the replies in the comments section underneath the video, several folks tried it and reported that their soaps were turning to mush and were wondering why. So far, the author has not been able to provide an answer, but from what little I've been able to glean about epsom salts (which are magnesium-based) in comparison to table salt (which is sodium-based), epsom salts are said to be more hydrating than table salt. When combined with MP, which is naturally prone to drawing moisture from the air and sweating, it just seems like a recipe for mushiness developing in the MP salt bars sooner or later. The same thing happens when Dead Sea salts (mainly magnesium/potassium based) are used, i.e., they are also more hydrating than sodium based salt.

I would stick to using sodium-based salt, i.e., either regular table salt or sea salt in MP salt bars.


IrishLass

 

[Dragonfly Soaps]

Hi! Sorry I'm just getting back online and saw your message. Yeah, i only made a few to sample here at the house and they've been sitting on the shelf in my craft room for a while .Hubby picked one up yesterday and noticed it still feels very sticky, so i think that still be a no-go for that. We did watch the same video. I thought i wad doing something wrong till i went back through the comments. Thanks for your feedback.