Scaling up

[Tenliv]

Hi there,
im new here. I just got a request for 20-30 bars of soap. So far the largest batch I have made is 8. Any advice for scaling up? What size soap molds, containers etc. and where to buy them. but also how do you pour that much soap without it getting too thick too fast? Any advice would be appreciated

 

[cmzaha]

I used 18" HDPE log molds that would make 14-18 bars at a time depending on how thick I cut them, I cut them into 1.25" bars resulting in 14 bars and two end cuts. So it would only take a double batch to pour what you need. For me, a double batch would be approx 118 oz of oils. It was easy to handle as long as I used a well-behaved fragrance. Investing in a couple of log molds is worth it in my opinion. If you want to make a smaller batch you can dam off the longer molds.

When I was selling, I retired during covid, I would usually pour 6 batches when I was soaping. I soaped in HDPE 1-gallon buckets for single batches, 2-gallon buckets for double batches, and had all the buckets of oils ready to go ahead of time. When measuring out my oils I would just fill up 10-12 buckets at a time so I would be ready to go when making soap. Remember to always label the bucket with your recipe.

 

[DeeAnna]

Have you considered just making two or three batches using your current recipe size and molds? If you don't expect to fill larger orders as a routine, this might be a reasonable strategy.

edit -- Most soap makers who scale up to a larger batch size learn the batter is slower to trace and sometimes even separates in the mold due to not enough mixing. The reason is they're seeing these issues is they're mixing more batter with the same size stick blender (or other mixing equipment).

You might not encounter these issues because you're not scaling up all that much. I make batches that produce 14 bars at 150 grams each, and can't say I have ever had problems with separation in the mold or unusually slow trace.

If you switch to a much larger loaf mold, you may find the center of the loaf may heat up to a higher temp and go into gel more easily than you're used to because a large mold has more volume per surface area than a smaller mold. Err on the cooler side for your temps until you get a sense of how the larger batches want to saponify.

 

[Tenliv]

Have you considered just making two or three batches using your current recipe size and molds? If you don't expect to fill larger orders as a routine, this might be a reasonable strategy.

edit -- Most soap makers who scale up to a larger batch size learn the batter is slower to trace and sometimes even separates in the mold due to not enough mixing. The reason is they're seeing these issues is they're mixing more batter with the same size stick blender (or other mixing equipment).

You might not encounter these issues because you're not scaling up all that much. I make batches that produce 14 bars at 150 grams each, and can't say I have ever had problems with separation in the mold or unusually slow trace.

If you switch to a much larger loaf mold, you may find the center of the loaf may heat up to a higher temp and go into gel more easily than you're used to because a large mold has more volume per surface area than a smaller mold. Err on the cooler side for your temps until you get a sense of how the larger batches want to saponify.

Thank you so much for the information. This may be a silly question but if you're using a 2 gallon bucket, what do you use to heat that much oil?

 

[DeeAnna]

...if you're using a 2 gallon bucket, what do you use to heat that much oil?...

A 14-bar recipe, as I do it, only requires 1600 grams of fat total. That's about 2 quarts of fat -- honestly not that much! The total volume of batter is shy of 1 gallon. You could certainly use a 2 gallon bucket to allow plenty of room, but that's a little larger than ideal for my preference. I want plenty of batter depth so my stick blender doesn't pull much air into the batter.

I don't heat all of the fats -- only the solid fats need to be heated to melt them. I use a metal pot in a hot water bath (bain marie) on the stove top or directly on a low flame if I'm willing to not leave the pot alone for even a moment. Or I use a plastic bowl in the microwave.

 

[Tenliv]

A 14-bar recipe, as I do it, only requires 1600 grams of fat total. That's about 2 quarts of fat -- honestly not that much! The total volume of batter is shy of 1 gallon. You could certainly use a 2 gallon bucket to allow plenty of room, but that's a little larger than ideal for my preference. I want plenty of batter depth so my stick blender doesn't pull much air into the batter.

I don't heat all of the fats -- only the solid fats need to be heated to melt them. I use a metal pot in a hot water bath (bain marie) on the stove top or directly on a low flame if I'm willing to not leave the pot alone for even a moment. Or I use a plastic bowl in the microwave.

What size bucket do yo use for this amount? Is a 1 gallon big enough to mix everything?

 

[DeeAnna]

No, a 1 gallon container isn't large enough for a scant 1 gallon of batter, at least for my preference. I prefer a container closer to 5 or 6 quarts (1 1/4 to 1 1/2 gallons). A little extra "freeboard" (extra space) will make it easier to mix the batter with a stick blender or spatula and will make it easier to pour without spilling.

 

[lucycat]

I soap in stainless 3 qt saucepan and 8qt stockpot. I like them because they have handles and I can heat up the oils in the pot. The 3 qt saucepan is my go to for one log of 11 bars (44 oz oils). My stockpot is my go to for a double batch pouring two logs at a time. I can pick up both to pour. A double log in my stock pot is about the maximum weight of batter (88 oz of oil) that I can easily lift up high enough to pour in my log mold with control.

 

[The_Phoenix]

My go-to mold is a slab mold that makes 30 x 1" bars. That is roughly 3,500 grams of fats and 11 pounds of soap. I use a large round 12-quart polypropylene bucket to emulsify my batter and a large stainless steel pot that I use to melt my hard fats. I'm not sure what you mean about pouring too thick too soon, though.

 

[amd]

My batches are typically 2400g oils, poured into a 24" long loaf mold (18 bars for the size I cut to). I mix in a 2 gallon bucket (? I think? It's the bucket that WSP coconut oil 8lb comes in and I repurposed it to a mixing container when I used up all the CO). I soap at room temperature, so all of my oils are melted together and poured into a large bucket and then I pour off what I need when I need it into my mixing container. My recipe is 65% hard oils and this has never been an issue for me. If it is too cold during the winter and my oils are quite thick, I will either adjust by using fresh lye solution to melt the oils, or I will thoroughly melt roughly half of the oils in the microwave and add those back into my mixing bowl. Although since my husband built the shelf by our boiler, this isn't a problem for me in the winter

My advice, as a seller, if scaling up is not something you plan to do and this is a one time opportunity, I would make multiple batches using the equipment you have. If this is an investment you plan to make to grow your business, then I would recommend making sure that you have consistency between your molds - whether that means that you purchase additional molds like the one you already have, or purchase larger molds. A few things to also consider if you're going to make larger batches - is your spatula long enough to reach to the bottom of the container that you're mixing in? [been there!] Is your stick blender long enough? If separating for colors, do you have large enough cups/pitchers to hold that portion of the batter?

My best tip for sizing up, especially when it comes to colors, is to premix your colors. It took me awhile to get the hang of working with separating and coloring larger soap batches, so this was the one thing that saved me from having difficult soap to work with. [although I have been known to be a slow learner] I think my biggest concern with mixing larger batch sizes was not getting false trace, so I was probably overzealous with the stick blender. Having my colors premixed helped me as I was able to hand stir my colors in thicker batter and get them thoroughly incorporated without applying additional stickblending.

Also, don't assume if you are doubling your recipe that you can just take it x2, run it through a soap calculator to make sure all of the measurements are correct.