First batch of soap gone wrong

[adou4527]

Hi,

Does anyone know why when stick blending, half my batter was so thick whilst the other half was still liquid? As such, I had to stick blend further, however it became too thick for pouring in the mold. My soap also started to crack. Can anyone tell me what went wrong?

Thanks.

 

[GemstonePony]

What was your recipe? Please include oils, all liquids, lye amount and type, colorants, and the fragrance oil and if possible it's source.

 

[adou4527]

Sorry, here it my recipe. I have also added 2 tsp sodium lactate.

 

[GemstonePony]

Thank you! Can you tell us anything about the fragrance oil and what liquids you used?

 

[KimW]

The picture of your batter while you are blending, looks like something has been added that accelerates trace. What is the Fragrance Oil or Essential Oil you used - AND, what brand? Also, what colorant did you use? The color is pretty, by the way.

 

[adou4527]

I didn't use any fragrance oil. I only used pure lavender essential oil. All the liquids and oils I've used are listed in my soapcalc recipe.

The brand of the essential oil is Aroma Australia

 

[KimW]

The brand of the essential oil is Aroma Australia

What did you use to color the soap?

 

[adou4527]

2 TSP of purple mica

 

[KimW]

I've never had Lavender EO give me problems. I did a search on the forum and it looks like the only problems with Lavender EO are if the Lavender EO is not actually pure EO, or if it is rancid/spoiled. I can't find a company called "Aroma Australia", so I can't search for reviews or information on their products.

The picture really looks like an accelerated trace right after an ingredient was added to the batter. I'd be curious to know at what point did it start doing this? Right after adding the lye, after adding something other than lye, after mixing the batter for a couple of pulses, etc?

I'm not seeing anything in your ingredients that would cause what you experienced, unless the EO wasn't actually pure EO... Be patient - I'm sure others with more knowledge will reply soon enough.

 

[Marsi]

The cracking is overheating

This thread has pictures of soap cracking A picture of ricing, volcanos, separating, overheating

unsolicited comments
Lye solution and soap batter etches glass
the danger with mixing soap in a glass bowl is that at some seemingly random moment the glass will abruptly break
A better choice is heat and chemical resistant plastic (polypropylene plastic code #5) or a good quality stainless steel pot or bowl

lavender buds turn brown as the soap cures
brown lavender buds look poopy

your ingredients look normal
i would guess the purple mica or having the oil and lye too hot might have triggered the odd curdled look (but that is just a guess)

the EO could be Auroma (they are reputable)

 

[GemstonePony]

The first picture looked like severe acceleration to me as well, and the second picture is clearly cracking caused by overheating. Lavender EO adulterated with alcohol could easily cause the acceleration. I've not heard of alcohol itself causing overheating if used at cool temps though, that's usually what sugar does, which was why I was wondering how hot you were soaping and if there was any sugary liquid unaccounted for.

 

[KimW]

The cracking is overheating

This thread has pictures of soap cracking A picture of ricing, volcanos, separating, overheating

unsolicited comments
Lye solution and soap batter etches glass
the danger with mixing soap in a glass bowl is that at some seemingly random moment the glass will abruptly break
A better choice is heat and chemical resistant plastic (polypropylene plastic code #5) or a good quality stainless steel pot or bowl

lavender buds turn brown as the soap cures
brown lavender buds look poopy

your ingredients look normal
i would guess the purple mica or having the oil and lye too hot might have triggered the odd curdled look (but that is just a guess)

the EO could be Auroma (they are reputable)

Good catch and advice on the glass container! I didn't even notice...

 

[adou4527]

Thanks for the info, however the glass bowl that I am using is Pyrex. I thought that would be ok as seen on Bramble Berry.

I didn't mix in any lavender buds, just sprinkled a few on the top.

I soaped at around 110F, is that still too hot? I'm guessing it might have something to do with the EO as well, however as mentioned by Marsi, they are quite reputable.

 

[GemstonePony]

Thanks for the info, however the glass bowl that I am using is Pyrex. I thought that would be ok as seen on Bramble Berry.

I didn't mix in any lavender buds, just sprinkled a few on the top.

I soaped at around 110F, is that still too hot? I'm guessing it might have something to do with the EO as well, however as mentioned by Marsi, they are quite reputable.

Pyrex changed their formula and now it's not safe, a lot of people have learned the hard way.
Is the EO brand reputable in the soaping community, or for other uses? EOs adulterated with a little bit of alcohol might make them work/act/smell better for a lot of different purposes, potentially including melt and pour soap, but that little bit could still wreak havoc with cold process soap.

 

[KimW]

Good info. I see now that Brambleberry's beginner guides and many articles show mixing soap batter in a glass pyrex container. I'm not sure why Brambleberry would encourage this, but please heed Marsi's advice and do not make soap in glass of any kind, including pyrex.

 

[Obsidian]

Have you used this recipe before? I have pretty bad acceleration with palm, bad enough I no longer use it. Combined with a butter and soaped hot, it might just be the recipe acting up. I would soap cooler, maybe around 90-95F.

Could you link the EO you used please?

Good info. I see now that Brambleberry's beginner guides and many articles show mixing soap batter in a glass pyrex container. I'm not sure why Brambleberry would encourage this, but please heed Marsi's advice and do not make soap in glass of any kind, including pyrex.

Because brambleberry is a supply business, not a soaper. She might make soap but its only to peddle her wares.

 

[adou4527]

Thanks for the heads up. I'll soap with stainless steel next time No I've never tried this recipe before, I'm a newbie

Sorry just realized that my lavender is from ABP Australia instead of Auroma Australia (mixed up with my sweet orange EO).

Haha I guess ill have to find a different source to learn from as Bramble Berry adviced to soap at 120-130F. I've already soaped slightly lower than recommended.

I bought them from a local soap making shop that is why they are packaged differently.

 

[GemstonePony]

I frequently use 29% Palm with 15+% butters, but I also basically consider my stick-blender to be little more than a shiny $70 hand whisk if I use it at all.

 

[earlene]

Lye DOES etch glass, even Pyrex eventually. Besides the fact that it can crack and then just fall apart while you are using it, it's also susceptible to breakage just in regular use. I have accidentally broken, dropped, knocked over, hit against the edge of the sink, etc. all kinds of things made of glass. None of them have ever been impervious to breakage. If they were, I would still have the original Pyrex of the old formula from when I was a young woman.

Here is a good reference post with several links that support the glass vs lye warnings: Dealing with Glass Advocates

 

[Catscankim]

Please dont take this as expert advice, but i had a thread last week that i started because my batter was accelerating. This is what i learned after making numerous batches, heeding everybodys advice....

I really did not think it was my stickblending. But since that was what ppl told me...i reduced my sb to “barely” stickblending the main batter. Just until i no longer saw any oil separated at the top. Its still quite thin. I put the blender in the sink and forgot about it.

Added the dispersed color and mixed with a wisk...sometimes a little with the spatula to get the bottoms and sides.

Fragrance last. Mixing it in.

My batter stayed so fluid that i had to wait a little while for it to get to the right consistancy. Which...i would rather wait and grab a drink or do some cleanup, than to frantically plop another thick batch into the mold. I even experimented with a known accelerating FO and it still worked beautifully.

I know we watch a lot of you tube videos that shows them stick blending for a really long time...thats why i was so bent on the “fact” that i wasnt stick blending too much. But i took everybodys advice here, and i couldnt say it wasnt that if i didnt at least use their advice first.

The other thing i learned from that thread, was to soap cooler.

I love the color of your soap.