Has this ever happened...?

[emilaid]

Last night I decided to try and make some whipped soap for the first time. I opened a new bottle of lye and when I added it to my water it took ages to dissolve and didn't really heat up. I checked the packaging and it's the same as the stuff I normally use.

I persevered anyway coz I was desperate to try and make whipped soap so I got my oils ready ( 570g lard, 80g olive oil - I didn't want to waste any good oils incase it didn't turn out! ).

My soap still feels like it did last night - soft and fluffy, so I was wondering if this is normal for whipped soap to take longer to harden up, or if there was something wrong with the lye.

I've never had lye NOT heat up before!!

I've piped the soap onto little cupcakes so it's not in a log mold or anything. I also checked my amounts on soapcalc.

I'm wondering if somethings went wrong!! :?

 

[southernheartsoaps]

A few years ago I purchased a huge quantity of lye (50 lb. bag) and put some in containers to keep in the house, stored the remainder in a shed... it got damp, when I began using it, it did the same thing, didn't heat up. After 2 or 3 batches, I noticed the soap was somehow not right so pitched the lot and stopped using it. I think maybe when it got damp it lost some of its "power" or something... it still made soap, but not so good.

 

[soapsmurf]

It does sound like the lye may have absorbed moisture from the environment. When I worked in a lab, we used to keep the NaOH tightly sealed because it's extremely water-loving. It is possible to dessicate NaOH, but probably not in a home setting. The simplest solution may be to just throw it out and get a fresher batch. If you just bought the lye, perhaps you can try to secure an exchange/refund.

 

[ChrissyB]

It may be the lye, but yes whipped soap will stay quite soft for quite some time.