hmlove1218
Well-Known Member
Thank you! Just wanted to make sure it wouldn't do something funky like it would with soap.
Lotion Bar Size
- Thread starter The Efficacious Gentleman
- Start date
Help Support Soapmaking Forum:
Saponista
Well-Known Member
I considered trying the push up or roll up sticks that you can get, but I searched everywhere and couldn't find empty ones in the uk to take metric weights. I could have shipped some over from the us but I didn't want to measure them in ounces.
The only thing that I put directly in to the tin is the leather oil that I make - since it is rubbed on with a cloth, it makes a lot of sense to do it that way. For the lotion bars, being able to hold it in the hand seems to work well.
"...couldn't find empty ones in the uk to take metric weights. I could have shipped some over from the us but I didn't want to measure them in ounces. ..."
Maybe I'm missing your point -- please forgive, if so -- but I work exclusively in grams for my recipes and don't find it difficult to convert. For example, 1 ounce weight = 28 grams, so a lip balm tube sized for 0.15 oz will contain about 4.2 grams. I just list the weight as 4 grams.
Maybe I'm missing your point -- please forgive, if so -- but I work exclusively in grams for my recipes and don't find it difficult to convert. For example, 1 ounce weight = 28 grams, so a lip balm tube sized for 0.15 oz will contain about 4.2 grams. I just list the weight as 4 grams.
Saponista
Well-Known Member
It wasn't a conversion issue, I wanted tubes that would hold a round 50g or a standard weight rather than an obscure converted from ounces number. I know that makes me a little crazy OCD but I just can't help it!
I don't worry about listing an "obscure" number -- I just round it down to the nearest weight in grams that makes sense. Pouring lip balm, salve, or lotion into a tube is never a precise business even under ideal circumstances, so weights are going to vary by a bit anyway. Just like cutting soap. 
But hey, YMMV and all that.
But hey, YMMV and all that.
Saponista
Well-Known Member
I've been having another look and found an eu supplier that makes 30ml ones. I won't be saddled with a huge import duty charge then either so I'm going to give the twist up lotion bars a go. Any tips please Deanna? I am concerned it may all run out of the sides like a badly sealed mold.
I haven't had any problems filling twist-up tubes for lotion bar or lip balm products. I've filled typical small lip balm tubes (0.15 oz, 4 g) to medium sized cylinders (0.5 oz, 15 g) to large deodorant ovals (2.65 oz, 75 g). I have heard of people who do have troubles with leaks and the plastic tubes distorting, but I've gathered the most common reason why that happens is they are filling the tubes when their product is smokin' hot.
I use a hot water bath (bain marie) and keep the water bath just warm enough to melt my ingredients. That amounts to a water bath temp of 170-180 deg F (75-85 C) for a beeswax based recipe. If you use veg wax, you can probably go cooler yet. When I pour the balm/lotion into a tube, the cool plastic causes the product to congeal pretty quickly on the walls of the tube.
I buy the small and medium sized tubes from Majestic Mountain Sage and I use their filling trays to fill these tubes. Works a treat. MMS is based in Utah, USA, so that won't be helpful to you, but they do offer these tips on their website:
"...We have a couple of hints for users.
"1) Pour the lip balm mixture as cool as possible. The tubes can become mis-shapen if the lip balm mix is super hot. Use our quick test to determine if your lip mixture is ready: stir the mixture with a pipette, hold the pipette horizontal after stirring, if the pipette bends downward then the mixture is WAY too hot. If the pipette holds it's rigid form and the mixture is still clear then the mixture is at perfect pouring temperature.
"2) Load the tray with tubes just before filling. Long term storage of tubes held in the tray can cause temporary distortion of the tubes. To return tubes to their original shape, remove them from the tray and allow them to sit without their caps for a few days.
"3) Allow the filled tubes to fully cool before removing from the tray. This may take a hour depending on the temperatures of the lip balm mixture and the room where you are working. Then, when the tubes are cool, give the tube a twist just before pulling straight out. The lip balm mixture at the top of the tube (the glorious crown!) can be damaged if the lip balm is too soft when removed from the tray. Patience is certainly an asset in this case...."
Source: https://www.thesage.com/catalog/LipBalmContainers.html
I hope this helps!
I use a hot water bath (bain marie) and keep the water bath just warm enough to melt my ingredients. That amounts to a water bath temp of 170-180 deg F (75-85 C) for a beeswax based recipe. If you use veg wax, you can probably go cooler yet. When I pour the balm/lotion into a tube, the cool plastic causes the product to congeal pretty quickly on the walls of the tube.
I buy the small and medium sized tubes from Majestic Mountain Sage and I use their filling trays to fill these tubes. Works a treat. MMS is based in Utah, USA, so that won't be helpful to you, but they do offer these tips on their website:
"...We have a couple of hints for users.
"1) Pour the lip balm mixture as cool as possible. The tubes can become mis-shapen if the lip balm mix is super hot. Use our quick test to determine if your lip mixture is ready: stir the mixture with a pipette, hold the pipette horizontal after stirring, if the pipette bends downward then the mixture is WAY too hot. If the pipette holds it's rigid form and the mixture is still clear then the mixture is at perfect pouring temperature.
"2) Load the tray with tubes just before filling. Long term storage of tubes held in the tray can cause temporary distortion of the tubes. To return tubes to their original shape, remove them from the tray and allow them to sit without their caps for a few days.
"3) Allow the filled tubes to fully cool before removing from the tray. This may take a hour depending on the temperatures of the lip balm mixture and the room where you are working. Then, when the tubes are cool, give the tube a twist just before pulling straight out. The lip balm mixture at the top of the tube (the glorious crown!) can be damaged if the lip balm is too soft when removed from the tray. Patience is certainly an asset in this case...."
Source: https://www.thesage.com/catalog/LipBalmContainers.html
I hope this helps!
paillo
Well-Known Member
Like DeeAnna, I make lotion bars in roughly 1-oz size in a pretty dragonfly mini mold. I wrap them in circles of nonbleeding colored foil, and place them in a 2-oz tin. They're a really popular item, and last a very long time even at the small size. I love being able to keep a small one in my bag.
That is an awesome idea Paillo! Is the idea that people pick it up in the foil?
Not Paillo, but I could see people doing that -- keep the bar in the foil and use it that way. I like the idea of a brightly colored foil -- a pretty touch!
I wrap my lotion bars in a circle cut from deli wrap paper (an extra heavy waxed paper) and then put the wrapped bar in my tin. I do that to keep the tin clean and keep the bar itself as nice as possible. Just looks nicer that way whether giving or selling the product.
I wrap my lotion bars in a circle cut from deli wrap paper (an extra heavy waxed paper) and then put the wrapped bar in my tin. I do that to keep the tin clean and keep the bar itself as nice as possible. Just looks nicer that way whether giving or selling the product.
