Max cure time?

[federalist]

Hi, can you cure soap for too long? Is there a point where the lather quality starts getting worse with age? I made CP coconut soap last night (20% superfat, 3:1 water-to-lye ratio), and I'm trying to figure out how long to cure it for. I know it will be okay after 4 weeks, but I want it to be excellent.

 

[shunt2011]

I would cure it at least 8 weeks as you used quite a bit of water. I have soaps several years old and they are still awesome. You may get some scent fading but they will last a long time.

I make salt bars that are very similar to your recipe but I add 25-30% salt and they become way better with a good long cure. I like 4-6 months or longer. High olive recipes do better with a Long cure as well.

I would try it at 4 weeks and then every week so you can see how it changes with time

 

[federalist]

shunt, thanks for the advice! I will have to try it with the 25%-30% salt.

 

[Dahila]

my 8 months old soaps are incredible)

 

[Luv2Soap]

I agree with Dahila. The longer my soaps cure, the better they get!

 

[pamielynn]

Yep - the older they are, the better they get!

 

[IrishLass]

Is there a point where the lather quality starts getting worse with age?

Just the opposite, actually! The longer you cure, the better the lather. Of course, the soap will eventually reach the point where the improvements level off, but they thankfully never reverse themselves.


IrishLass

 

[fuzz-juzz]

Most of my soaps are 3-4 months and older. I rarely use anything that has less than 8 weeks of cure.
After a while soaps might lose scent a little bit, but their performance will just improve with age