Lye Crystal's in Hot process soap

[Kiajera]

Hi guys! I'm new here, but I have been making soap for roughly 6 years and I have encountered crystals of lye in my hot processed soap, which I also put in the oven to make a compound hp/ cpop soap with an embed.
I have pics here for you to see.
I'm going to re-batch it with a little more water and oil( just in case) in my crockpot, but do you guys have any clue why this could have happened?

 

[Kiajera]

...

 

[Aleka]

Hi! I'm new here too ) In another topic here on the forum was a link to the article "What's Hot and What's Not – a Study in Overheating" - https://auntieclaras.com/2015/06/overheating-soap/ , maybe it will be useful to you too )

 

[shunt2011]

Hello and welcome! Are you sure it's undissolved lye? If so then it likely wasn't mixed well enough before adding to the oils. That's the only reason I can say for why you would have lye chunks in the soap. Could it be hard oils that didn't melt? If you post your recipe and process we may be able to help more.

 

[cmzaha]

First question, does it zap, if not I would guess it is hard dry soap from the sides of the crockpot.

 

[DeeAnna]

This looks like cold process soap with a partial gel. Maybe I'm missing the point since you mention it's HP and CP. In any case, the bullseye look is something I see on CP soap, not HP. The center of the bullseye is very likely not undissolved alkali. It looks more like the soap was overheated. If so, it's just soap.

edit -- Or if it's HP, I agree with what Carolyn said about a chunk of dried out soap.

 

[cmzaha]

DeeAnna she mentioned an embed so I was assuming the circle was a round embedded in a cp soap. But one should never assume

 

[DeeAnna]

I believe you're right, Carolyn. But it sure looks like a partial gel on a quick glance!

In either case, the odd center bit is very likely just soap.

 

[cmzaha]

Partial gel was my first thought too. I still think chunk of dry soap

 

[Kiajera]

It is lye. When I liked it it zapped furiously. The circle part is hot process and the weird red color is cold processed.
I put the hot processed circle into the freezer after gel phase to cool for an hour or so.
Then I made the cold processed red soap , put the hot processed circle soap into a rectangular mold, then poured the red soap on top/sides.
Then into the over for 2 hours.
I have made soap this way before and it has turned out perfect, maybe I rushed and didnt realise the lye was not completely dissolved. So thanks for that clearity, guys.

 

[shunt2011]

Then you didn't get all your lye dissolved well before adding it to your oils in your HP. If that indeed is pockets of lye. So important to make sure lye is fully dissolved.

 

[Kiajera]

First question, does it zap, if not I would guess it is hard dry soap from the sides of the crockpot.

Every pic with the white spots on the bulls eye piece zaps

 

[Aleka]

Kiajera, tell please, how you prepared hot process soap, directly in a circle form? Not in the oven?

 

[cmzaha]

You should have seen the undissolved lye in the solution when you poured it into the oils. Next time strain your lye solution then you will know you have no lye crystals

 

[Kiajera]

Kiajera, tell please, how you prepared hot process soap, directly in a circle form? Not in the oven?

I had a mix of coconut oil, shea butter, grapeseed oil, castor oil, and corn oil melted in my crock pot. Once they lye solution cooled I poured it into the crock pot with the fats and immediately started blending. The sight of the fats were opaque immediately because I used a lot of shea butter, so it speeded the trace. I let it cook. It started bubbling and folding in. I kept stirring because with the percentage of she butterI knew it would get hot really fast and could boil over. After I let it sit then kept stiring until it was done. I placed the soap in the circle mold then the freezer. Once frozen I placed it in a rectangular mould and poured the red soap over it. Then the oven for two hours. The circular shaped soap heated again and the red soap gel phased.

 

[Kiajera]

You should have seen the undissolved lye in the solution when you poured it into the oils. Next time strain your lye solution then you will know you have no lye crystals

I couldn't because of the percentage of shea butter I used turned the caustic soap immediately opaque, but you're right. I'll strain the lye solution for now on. Thanks

 

[jcandleattic]

I couldn't because of the percentage of shea butter I used turned the caustic soap immediately opaque, but you're right. I'll strain the lye solution for now on. Thanks

She means you should have seen the undissolved lye before you even put it in the oils.

However, this is sounding more and more like a soap that didnt' get to emulsification or trace (possibly you got false trace) before you stopped blending, that is why you have the lye pockets.

At this point, if it were me, I'd trash it and start over. But that's just me.

 

[Aleka]

Kiajera, thanks for the detailed description!

 

[Kiajera]

She means you should have seen the undissolved lye before you even put it in the oils.

However, this is sounding more and more like a soap that didnt' get to emulsification or trace (possibly you got false trace) before you stopped blending, that is why you have the lye pockets.

At this point, if it were me, I'd trash it and start over. But that's just me.

Darn. False trace makes sense. Thanks. I was wondering how I would rebatch it anyways being that's there's so much all through the soap. What a waste...