I have ash not only on top of the soap, but swirled inside the soap as well. I have checked the PH--it is 8. So I don't think they are lye pockets. Wish I could post a pic, but I am new to forums. The soap is so ugly, even though I have tested it I'm afraid to use it. Any opinions from this brief description if it is OK to use?
Excessive ash on and in soap
- Thread starter BlueSky
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christellita
Well-Known Member
Hmm, i think soda ash happens when the soap comes in contact with air, so i don't know why it'd be inside. Did you do a zap test? Is it shiny?
zeoplum
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Does it really look like a swirl on the inside or is it more of a crackling kind of look (not to be confused with cracking!) and only certain spots? I've had this happen to a couple of my batches and I'm stumped as to what it could be.
zeo
zeo
christellita
Well-Known Member
what's the recipe? did you use a FO or EO that colored the bar?
This is defintely a swirl. I used the first recipe from Cavitch's book "The Soapmaker's Companion".
201 g sodium hydroxide
1lb 3 oz distilled water
1lb 5 oz olive oil
1 lb coconut oil
14 oz palm oil
No fragrance or color.
I am working on uploading a photo and posting it here but no guarnatee.
201 g sodium hydroxide
1lb 3 oz distilled water
1lb 5 oz olive oil
1 lb coconut oil
14 oz palm oil
No fragrance or color.
I am working on uploading a photo and posting it here but no guarnatee.
G
Guest
It almost looks like those bits are super dry , I don't know what to say. Did you try washing your hands with it ?
Kitn
Kitn
I've had severe ash like that before (always seems to happen on my soaps that don't gel). Sometimes it's so deep that no matter how much I scrape or plane, the ash just seems to go on forever. Other than that, my soaps that come out ashy are always perfectly fine to use (no zap or anything). As long as there's no zap in your soap, your good to go, too.
Ash does not = bad soap, it's just a bit aesthetically unsightly. Some soapers don't even try to scrape or plane it off. They just embrace the ash as it comes because it looks kinda cool to them. 8)
IrishLass
Ash does not = bad soap, it's just a bit aesthetically unsightly. Some soapers don't even try to scrape or plane it off. They just embrace the ash as it comes because it looks kinda cool to them. 8)
IrishLass
zeoplum
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Hey, thanks for the picture, that is the same stuff I have but mine is not quite that much. But definitely the same animal.
Hey IrishLass...do you remember the pics I posted on another forum with Mango Butter that did that? We were thinking it was the Stearic Acid but I went back and looked at the recipe and my Stearic level was only a 6 in SoapCalc. Do you think that is enough? The second batch it happened on had the same exact rating. Both batches gelled.
zeo
Hey IrishLass...do you remember the pics I posted on another forum with Mango Butter that did that? We were thinking it was the Stearic Acid but I went back and looked at the recipe and my Stearic level was only a 6 in SoapCalc. Do you think that is enough? The second batch it happened on had the same exact rating. Both batches gelled.
zeo
MsBien
Well-Known Member
Wow, that's some serious ash!
Dont know if this helps - but I had the stupid idea to use my heat gun to try and soften/melt the the top of my 2nd last batch (thinking that if it melted I would get a smoother finish (NOTE - MP trix do not necessarily work on CP). It didnt melt but it did sure get the ash!!!!!
Also I am sure that this is a process that is practised but I have never heard of it and think that I have hit on a brilliant method this last week. I didnt have any reliable insulation left that was clean (Yes I am that anal-retentive) so I decided to create "air" insulation. I set my oven on 180 degrees celsius/centigrade - left it on for about 5 to 10 minutes. Turned it off and left the oven door slightly open so that the super heat would escape - I then finished up all the regular soap making procedure, poured in mould - and bunged the whole thing in the nice warm oven - I left it overnight, and unmould soap after about 15 hours. For me the soap seemed to set faster and released better - and maybe I'm seeing/feeling things that arent really happening but I reckon, the soap got harder faster and was usable quicker, no zap on the tongue - no itch or burn on hands.
Anyone else tried anything similar? I post here - cos I'm thinking if exposure to air is causing soda ash - keeping it well sealed and warm in an oven, might be a way to keep it warm and airtight kinda.....
Also I am sure that this is a process that is practised but I have never heard of it and think that I have hit on a brilliant method this last week. I didnt have any reliable insulation left that was clean (Yes I am that anal-retentive) so I decided to create "air" insulation. I set my oven on 180 degrees celsius/centigrade - left it on for about 5 to 10 minutes. Turned it off and left the oven door slightly open so that the super heat would escape - I then finished up all the regular soap making procedure, poured in mould - and bunged the whole thing in the nice warm oven - I left it overnight, and unmould soap after about 15 hours. For me the soap seemed to set faster and released better - and maybe I'm seeing/feeling things that arent really happening but I reckon, the soap got harder faster and was usable quicker, no zap on the tongue - no itch or burn on hands.
Anyone else tried anything similar? I post here - cos I'm thinking if exposure to air is causing soda ash - keeping it well sealed and warm in an oven, might be a way to keep it warm and airtight kinda.....
Yes that is similar to CPOP (cold process oven process). Some leave it on at 170 degrees Farenheight for an hour or so to force gel. And then others turn the oven off when they put the mold in. Some even just use the light to make it warm in there.
Val
Val
My orange spots are lavender buds. I got them as a sample when I ordered my first batch of soap supplies. I didn't know how to use them, so I just threw a few in and hoped for the best. The soap does not smell like lavender and they are somewhat unsightly. So, I guess I'll never do that again.
And, I am thinking that my ash problem was because my molded soap cooled too quickly. One of my books claims that the idea that soap must be incubated is a fallacy, so I did not cover the molds. I will be incubating from now on, and I think I may warm the molds before I pour the soap so that the mixture is not instantly cooled by hitting a cold mold.
As for the heat gun, did you have ash on your soap after it cooled? Did the heat melt the ash back into the soap?
And, I am thinking that my ash problem was because my molded soap cooled too quickly. One of my books claims that the idea that soap must be incubated is a fallacy, so I did not cover the molds. I will be incubating from now on, and I think I may warm the molds before I pour the soap so that the mixture is not instantly cooled by hitting a cold mold.
As for the heat gun, did you have ash on your soap after it cooled? Did the heat melt the ash back into the soap?
Pug Mom
Well-Known Member
My friend's mom gets ash like that. I have used the soap though and it is perfectly fine! I think it makes it look more rustic... It's pretty!
Pug Mom
Well-Known Member
BlueSky said:Thanks Pug Mom--I'm feeling better now
I actually asked her how she got it to do that, because I liked the look.... She couldn't tell me though...she had no idea!
to answer the thing about the heat gun -
The soap got hot like it was about to melt and then within a blink of an eye, while I was still heat-gunning turned ashy - It didnt reabasorb - I sliced the ashy bits away - ( I use that soap for myself, no burny/itchy problems) but I just wouldnt feel comfortable about palming it off on me mum!!!
I also read somewhere that soap doesnt have to gel to be soap - however from everything that I have read about CP soap - the heat is needed for it to saponify the oils. I also read that the more heat, the quicker you can use it......dont know how true this is though.
I try to incubate as much as I can. Infact I am thinking of cutting up one of those reflective windscreen shield thingies and sewing together an insulation blanket - I could ofcourse just pop it a reflective cooler/heat bag. But little insulation blankets with beads and crocheted flowers would be so pretty!!! (I'm a girl - I cant help it)
The soap got hot like it was about to melt and then within a blink of an eye, while I was still heat-gunning turned ashy - It didnt reabasorb - I sliced the ashy bits away - ( I use that soap for myself, no burny/itchy problems) but I just wouldnt feel comfortable about palming it off on me mum!!!
I also read somewhere that soap doesnt have to gel to be soap - however from everything that I have read about CP soap - the heat is needed for it to saponify the oils. I also read that the more heat, the quicker you can use it......dont know how true this is though.
I try to incubate as much as I can. Infact I am thinking of cutting up one of those reflective windscreen shield thingies and sewing together an insulation blanket - I could ofcourse just pop it a reflective cooler/heat bag. But little insulation blankets with beads and crocheted flowers would be so pretty!!! (I'm a girl - I cant help it)
