Help please.

[Sudsandfoam]

Thank you for having me. I log into SoapmakingFriend.com on occasions but I am learning to use the software. I have made a batch of goat milk soap with peppermint EO, titanium dioxide and sodium lactate. I split the total water into 2 and use a portion to dissolve the milk powder and the other to dissolve the sodium hydroxide. The milk solution was added at trace the lye was at about 70deg F and the oils at about 80deg F. I used coconut solid oil, olive oil, Castor oil and sun flower oil. I stuck the pour into fridge immediately fir 24hrs. The batch still went through partial gel but I am worried that the centre of the cut blocks show a different texture to the periphery. Please see attached photos. What caused this and is it safe to use?

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[Ekuzo]

I wanted to say partial gel is the cause of the texture difference, but the partial gel here spreads almost to the edges of the soap while the funny texture is only in the middle, so that shouldn't be the case. I'm curious what someone more experienced would say, funny how nobody responded for more than a week

 

[Sudsandfoam]

Hi Ekuzo,
Thank you so much for your reply. I was getting rather dejected that there was no response at all till your msg. The abnormal area is not lye heavy either as I tried the Zap test and did not get a positive zap on my tongue. I too am eager for any other thoughts. Will patiently wait for other inputs.
Regards,
Raymond.

 

[Ekuzo]

Hi Raymond!

If there's no zap, it should be safe to use and the issue is only cosmetic. After a cure, you can try it and see how it behaves.

My guess would be that the batter overheated - sometimes that leads to differences in texture. You mentioned goat milk - which can cause it. Even in the fridge. After all there was partial gel - so the temperature drop wasn't enough to prevent that.

High water content can also help with overheating - what lye concentration did you use?

What was the CO percentage? Soap high in CO tend to overheat as well.

I'm sure there's a reason for that and we'll find it, probably a combination of the factors mentioned above.

You said you use SoapmakingFriend's calculator, how do you like it?

 

[AliOop]

Sorry, sometimes a post gets missed. If that happens, it’s ok after a few days to post a reply to say something like, “I think my post was missed and am bumping it up now.”

The multiple rings are areas of partial gel that heated to different temps. The whiter spots of the inside ring are probably a combo of TD specks and glycerine rivers, which are just cosmetic. A low lye concentration (high water) and heat (gelling) are the usual cause of glycerine rivers; TD and other pigments can make them appear more prominent.

Rather than using the freezer, try elevating your soap molds on some soup cans, and than setting a fan to blow on them. Circulating room-temp air around all sides of the mold will cool it more efficiently than the colder but static air of the fridge or freezer.

Hope that helps. FWIW, your soap looks pretty cool!

 

[Sudsandfoam]

Hi Ekuzo,
Thank you for your further input, much appreciated. I used full water amount without any discount. The lye was at 33% and the Coconut oil was at 40% of total oil weight with olive oil at 40% and Sunflower and Castor oil at 10% each.
Regards,
Raymond.

Hi AliOop,

Thank you for your feedback. You maybe right wrt the central abnormal texture being possibly due to TD. I recall the TD was clumped just before adding to the batter and I had to do a quick and likely incomplete stir/mix of the TD. Also, I wonder if the Sodium Lactate I added was incompletely incorporated into the batter too. I did not see any glycerine rivers though.I will try the fan cooling method suggested next time. Thank you.
Regards,
Raymond.

Sorry, sometimes a post gets missed. If that happens, it’s ok after a few days to post a reply to say something like, “I think my post was missed and am bumping it up now.”

The multiple rings are areas of partial gel that heated to different temps. The whiter spots of the inside ring are probably a combo of TD specks and glycerine rivers, which are just cosmetic. A low lye concentration (high water) and heat (gelling) are the usual cause of glycerine rivers; TD and other pigments can make them appear more prominent.

Rather than using the freezer, try elevating your soap molds on some soup cans, and than setting a fan to blow on them. Circulating room-temp air around all sides of the mold will cool it more efficiently than the colder but static air of the fridge or freezer.

Hope that helps. FWIW, your soap looks pretty cool!

 

[Ekuzo]

Hi Ekuzo,
Thank you for your further input, much appreciated. I used full water amount without any discount. The lye was at 33% and the Coconut oil was at 40% of total oil weight with olive oil at 40% and Sunflower and Castor oil at 10% each.
Regards,
Raymond.

No worries!

If your additives were clumped and not incorporated properly, it plays a huge role - next time stir more until it's homogeneous.

Also, you can try with 40% lye concentration and to drop the CO to 25% (the rest can be substituted with palm or something else if you don't like palm) and try what AliOop suggested, with the elevated setting and the fan - to avoid partial gel.

Or, you can incourage full gel by insulating the loaf (overheating and drastic color change shouldn't be a problem with a water discount) and see how that turns out for you

 

[Sudsandfoam]

Thank you Ekuzo. Will try with the next batch. Have a great time soaping!

 

[Ekuzo]

Thanks, you too!