Possible fake trace

[Cari]

Hello, thank you for reading....
I have made my first batch of soap (7 days ago) but am now wondering if I actually had a fake trace, due to the presence of beeswax/cocoa butter and low temp at which I combined my oils/lye water (38C/100F). It was stick blended for about 20-30 seconds before I got what I thought was a light trace. My fragrance oil was added and further stirring/ blending for another 10-15 sec. I was still able to pour it into moulds as a smooth thick custard consistency. There was no separation or clumping at any point. It was unmoulded and cut 36hrs after processing and has been curing the last 7 days.
Have I had a risk of fake trace?
Is this soap safe to use?
Can it be salvaged?
Thanks in advance for any advice.

 

[Obsidian]

It doesn't sound like you had false trace. False trace generally ends in soap that doesn't set up properly. The only way to know if its safe is to do a zap test. Wet your fingertip, rub it across the soap and touch the soapy finger to the end of your tongue. If it zaps like a 9v battery, then it still has active lye.
I usually wait until soap is cured for 3-4 weeks before trying the zap test, no need to do it overly early.

 

[Kittish]

If you share your recipe, as well as posting pics of your soap the folks here will be able to do a better job of answering your questions.

Right off the bat, it sounds like your soap traced just fine, especially if it set up and you were able to cut it. Gonna guess you've spotted white flecks in your soap now that it's been cut?

Read this thread about how to conduct a zap test to see if your soap is safe to use- http://www.soapmakingforum.com/showthread.php?t=63199

Rebatching does seem to be an available option for all but the most catastrophic soaping failures. If it's simply a matter of your soap not being pretty, don't fret too much. Even ugly soap is still soap, and almost certainly far superior to any commercially produced bar.

 

[DeeAnna]

So ... what is the problem, really? I'm not sure from reading your post what you are concerned about. Did the soap separate in the mold? Are there issues with the appearance that make you think there are problems?

Post a photo and your recipe (ALL ingredients in weights) if you would like useful advice. At this point, all we're doing is guessing.

I will say that the large amount of stick blending you are doing is fine as a beginner, but it will give you problems as you continue to make more soap and want more time to work with the soap batter before you pour it into the mold. I'm not saying to change anything at this point in your soaping career, but you will want to keep this in mind for the future.

Hello, thank you for reading....
I have made my first batch of soap (7 days ago) but am now wondering if I actually had a fake trace, due to the presence of beeswax/cocoa butter and low temp at which I combined my oils/lye water (38C/100F). It was stick blended for about 20-30 seconds before I got what I thought was a light trace. My fragrance oil was added and further stirring/ blending for another 10-15 sec. I was still able to pour it into moulds as a smooth thick custard consistency. There was no separation or clumping at any point. It was unmoulded and cut 36hrs after processing and has been curing the last 7 days.
Have I had a risk of fake trace?
Is this soap safe to use?
Can it be salvaged?
Thanks in advance for any advice.

 

[artemis]

I don't think that with false trace you would get as far as a "thick custard consistency." False trace usually happens when someone is aiming for a lighter, looser consistency and stops stick bending a little too soon. I think proof that you did not have false trace would be the fact that you had no separation, so the batter was fully mixed. It is soap, and as long as it passes a zap test, it's not in need of being salvaged.

 

[DeeAnna]

It can happen. I've had false trace once or twice where it looked like pudding. That was when I was starting to use a high % of lard in my recipes and still used my stick blender with a heavy hand. When I SB'ed a lot, I learned the batter can cool down more than a person might think, and soap batter can get pretty thick when 60% lard starts to solidify. As I kept stirring the batter, it heated back up and got runny again.

If the recipe has only a small % of solid fats, however, I doubt the soap did a false trace even though the temps were on the cool side. But we don't know the OP's recipe nor the reason why she is concerned, so it's a total guess at this point.