Lye Pockets in Only Two Bars?

[lpstephy85]

Two bars from my St. Pattys Day batch seem to have weeping lye pockets I checked all of the other bars and no other pockets appear in them. These two zap like the dickens and it has been 3-4 days since cutting. So, is it possible to only have this in two bars out of a batch? The two wholes match right up so they must have been cut one after the other.

 

[cm4bleenmb]

Those are not very large holes, I would say it is possible that there are holes in some of the other bars but you don't see them because you didn't happen to cut through them like you did with these.

 

[ca_soap]

I had that exact same thing happen not too long ago with a batch. I had two pockets exactly the same as you have and they were only in two bars. I cut the rest of the batch in thin slices attempting to find more at the expense of the batch but never found any more. The only thing I did different on that batch that I had never done before and haven't done since was to use one of my plastic pitchers that had lye/water in it without rinsing it first to mix colors into one part of the batch. I simply assumed that if there were any traces of lye it would be mixed in and wouldn't be a problem. The pockets were only in one color and was the color that I mixed in that pitcher. I can't say for certain that this was the cause but it is suspect as I have not had that happen before or since that incident.

 

[pamielynn]

I would test the remaining bars very carefully; the lye might be unevenly distributed.

 

[shunt2011]

It also may have been cause by some undissolved lye. I always strain my lye when pouring just to be on the safe side.

 

[lpstephy85]

So depressing I love the swirls on this batch and just can't understand what went wrong. Full water and chilled my liquid oils the night before so I could keep the temps low to have time to play. I always look in my lye water to make sure everything is dissolved. Do you think if I plane my other bars down that can tell me if others have pockets?

 

[ca_soap]

Do you think if I plane my other bars down that can tell me if others have pockets?

My personal thought is this, it depends upon what you plan to use them for. The batch I had that did this I will not use for my customers. I will keep it for personal use but it simply isn't worth the risk of ruining my reputation or name over a batch of soap. Not only would a pocket such as this ruin my reputation it would also make someone question every person that makes handcrafted soaps. We as handcrafters that sell to the public need to have the highest standards to not only protect ourselves, but the handcrafted soap industry as a whole. The pockets are so small that by the time you cut the batch into sizes where you can say with absolute certainty there are no other problems in that batch there are no usable size bars left.

 

[lpstephy85]

My personal thought is this, it depends upon what you plan to use them for. The batch I had that did this I will not use for my customers. I will keep it for personal use but it simply isn't worth the risk of ruining my reputation or name over a batch of soap. Not only would a pocket such as this ruin my reputation it would also make someone question every person that makes handcrafted soaps. We as handcrafters that sell to the public need to have the highest standards to not only protect ourselves, but the handcrafted soap industry as a whole. The pockets are so small that by the time you cut the batch into sizes where you can say with absolute certainty there are no other problems in that batch there are no usable size bars left.

No, I totally understand and agree with you on this. I would never want to risk anything with customer's (my reputation, their health, and the community reputations). Ugh, ya live and ya learn. Could I just rebatch the whole batch and add some extra oil?

 

[MzMolly65]

Two bars from my St. Pattys Day batch seem to have weeping lye pockets

I can't tell from the picture but let me ask .. how do you know the difference between a lye pocket and an air pocket? Can you see lye? (sorry I can't see any in the photo so I'm not sure)

 

[ca_soap]

I can't tell from the picture but let me ask .. how do you know the difference between a lye pocket and an air pocket? Can you see lye? (sorry I can't see any in the photo so I'm not sure)

These were described as weeping pockets. The batch I had also oozed liquid out when I cut through the pocket. As it dries you will also see a discoloration like crystalization around the pockets and of course when you zap test the liquid that oozed out of it there is zero doubt that it has some zap. Actually it is like sticking a live wire to your tongue. If you have seen air pockets before you will immediately know this isn't an air pocket when you cut into it.

 

[ca_soap]

Could I just rebatch the whole batch and add some extra oil?

I don't know why not and to be honest I don't see why you would even need extra oil unless you just wanted to superfat it some more. I would cut the pockets out, they are minimal and won't be missed, so they are completely removed from the equation. Also if you cut it up for rebatch cut it well to ensure there are no other pockets. If yours is like my batch that did this, the rest of it has no zap to it so it isn't a lye heavy batch.