Heat and Hold

[Silver]

Dear Lotion Makers!
In my experience the heat and hold portion of lotion making, where you bring the water and the oils up to 70 Celcius and hold it for 20 minutes, is by far the hardest part of the entire procedure. I just cannot get the temperature to stay put at 70, so for the entire 20 minutes I fiddle around with the knobs of the electric element as the temperature keeps fluctuating. Do you guys have any suggestions, any tips or tricks, or possibly even another piece of equipment that would make the process a little easier and more on the dot, temperature wise?
Many thanks,
Silver

 

[Dahila]

mine is around 80 it is difficult to keep at 70, just do not keep lower than 70 and you are going to be fine. I use induction stove, when it reaches 70 c I set up the temps at 60 C and time 20 min, I do not think there are any magical tricks. I keep both beakers in the same pot I think you already know not to put into pot but on some kind of stand......

 

[IrishLass]

I'm like Dahila- it's difficult to keep things set exactly at 70C. My temps fluctuate between 80C and 85C, and I only need to fiddle with the knobs once or twice to keep things within that range or from going below the recommended lowest temp. I have my 2 beakers in the same pot, too (on a rack).


IrishLass

 

[BrewerGeorge]

The immersion heaters for sous vide cooking have really come down in price. They will hold two really well. I saw some as low as $50 around Christmas, though they seem to be a bit higher right now. I'm on the phone, but check Amazon for sous vide and you'll find them.

 

[Silver]

Thank you everyone for your input! I will try to keep the temperature in the range above 70 and in the same pot, that should make things a little simpler. (Cant believe it didn't occur to me before that they can share a pot). BrewerGeorge, thanks for letting me know about the immersion heaters! Ive never heard of them, but after looking them up it does seem like a sure way to keep the temperature steady. I will keep an eye out for them and see if the price drops.

 

[Saranac]

I heat both phases to 175F (80C) and then put the covered containers into a 180F oven (make sure your containers can withstand the temperature). I leave the oven on for the 20 minutes and always check the temperatures of the phases before proceeding; I've never had an issue with the temps dropping too far.