So 4-6 weeks to cure - how do you know?

[kniquy]

I know most CP soap recipes recommend the soap cure for 4-6 weeks.

I am wondering - is there a way to tell if a soap is safe to use at the 4 week mark? Just an impatient newbe.

Are there any certain signs that you would look for to know? Does it have anything to do with how much water has evaporated from the bar? Does it depend on the oils you used or how much of each oil?

 

[Hendejm]

It’s safe to use after saponification is complete. That is usually 24-48 hours. After that - it cures and mellows and completes its chemical transformation. Most soaps are good to go and will be fairly long lasting and sudsy after 4 weeks. Soap is like a fine wine - it gets better with age.

Oils will affect how long a soap needs to cure. Soaps with high Olive Oil content - will take much longer to cure and harden - often 6 months or longer. Soaps with butters in them will harden quicker and be at their best after 4 weeks (approx - linger is usually better).

So soap away and feel free to test them out after they pass the zap test. Just know that older soaps will perform better than new (ish) soaps. Hope this helps. Other may want to add or contradict what I have stated here.

 

[shunt2011]

To me it’s personal choice, nothing is written in stone. I find most my soaps are good at 4 weeks, better at 6. Perfectly safe to use once there’s no zap but will last longer and be less harsh at 4 weeks. Salt soap and Castile soap 6-12 months or longer. I don’t like Castile so quit making it. Salt soap I personally prefer them at 12 months best.

Test your soap and see when you like them best. Enjoy the process of learning and seeing how they change.

 

[Meena]

I know most CP soap recipes recommend the soap cure for 4-6 weeks.

I am wondering - is there a way to tell if a soap is safe to use at the 4 week mark? Just an impatient newbe.

Are there any certain signs that you would look for to know? Does it have anything to do with how much water has evaporated from the bar? Does it depend on the oils you used or how much of each oil?

So happy you asked!!! (Since the response to my post yesterday has been DEAFENING (not).)

linking to avoid retyping
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/thr...ave-you-done-today.42556/page-500#post-743652

ETA: This is not addressing the safety issue, but the curing one. Soap is usually zap-free within 24 hours or so, in my experience so far. The linked post is for a suggestion of how to know when Curing is complete.

 

[Steve85569]

Wine and soap get better with aging/curing.
Wine is safe to drink when fermentation is complete.
Soap is safe to use when saponification is complete.
Neither is a good as it will be after proper aging/curing.

I do not confuse drying with curing. There are things going on inside the bars of soap that it takes a chemist ( like DeeAnna) to explain - way beyond my understanding.
Try a soap at two weeks. Put it back on the curing rack. remember which one it is.
Try it again in another week.
Repeat over a 6 month period.
TAKE NOTES!!

Then the next time this question comes up you'll have experience in knowing how long for your recipe.

 

[penelopejane]

So happy you asked!!! (Since the response to my post yesterday has been DEAFENING (not).)

linking to avoid retyping
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/thr...ave-you-done-today.42556/page-500#post-743652

ETA: This is not addressing the safety issue, but the curing one. Soap is usually zap-free within 24 hours or so, in my experience so far. The linked post is for a suggestion of how to know when Curing is complete.

If you want to ask a question start a new thread. Not many people read "what have you done today" unless they have lots of spare time. Glad you got your questions answered.

 

[Dahila]

I cure my regular soaps 8 weeks, and the high oleic ones even 6 months
my 5 years old soaps are so awesome I only use the old ones

 

[Donee']

I use mine at 3 weeks. Unless you do something wrong and they are soggy (looking at her bars of soggy tumeric soap in the cupboard....)

 

[Meena]

If you want to ask a question start a new thread. Not many people read "what have you done today" unless they have lots of spare time. Glad you got your questions answered.

Thanks for that advice! What i found humorous - as an aside - was that "what soapy thing have you done today?" is my first and favorite category to read!! ... although the 4-letter game is a close second!

 

[karon L adams]

you use a bit of the soap and wash your hands. if they feel slimy, that means you have free lye still in your soap. base solutions always feel slimy and very hard to rinse. if it rinses clean and you feel mo 'slime' your soap is ready. if, after your hands dry, you feel like you reALLY want some lotion, you need to add a bit more fat to your recipe.

 

[KimT2au]

If I am desperate to try the soap I use them at 6 weeks, but on the whole I try to cure my soap for 12 weeks before I use them.

 

[Meena]

If you want to ask a question start a new thread. Not many people read "what have you done today" unless they have lots of spare time. Glad you got your questions answered.

It wasn't a question, it was a tid-bit from Scientific Soaping about weighing your soaps every week to detect when the soap is cured, since it will stop losing water weight. I thought it was pretty ingenious and wanted to share.

 

[shunt2011]

It wasn't a question, it was a tid-bit from Scientific Soaping about weighing your soaps every week to detect when the soap is cured, since it will stop losing water weight. I thought it was pretty ingenious and wanted to share.

That’s not entirely true. There’s more going on than just water loss. Water loss is part of it but there is also structural change and the ph drops a bit worth good cure.

Once you settle on a recipe or two or three you’ll know it inside and out and know what works best. As you can see, some wait 4 weeks, some 6 and some even longer. For me it just depends on the recipe I’m using. [emoji3]

 

[Hendejm]

Once you settle on a recipe or two or three you’ll know it inside and out and know what works best. As you can see, some wait 4 weeks, some 6 and some even longer. For me it just depends on the recipe I’m using.

Couldn’t agree more!

 

[Dawni]

As a side note, and I just discovered this recently lol, if you somehow manage to keep yourself away from the soap for a week or two at a time, you'll notice the considerable changes that you might miss if you keep checking n testing every two days or so.

Found this out when I was out of the house for close to a month on an emergency. When I got back the soft soaps I left were nice n firm, and the lather and bubbles changed significantly.

 

[earlene]

I know most CP soap recipes recommend the soap cure for 4-6 weeks.

I am wondering - is there a way to tell if a soap is safe to use at the 4 week mark? Just an impatient newbe.

Are there any certain signs that you would look for to know? Does it have anything to do with how much water has evaporated from the bar? Does it depend on the oils you used or how much of each oil?

Safe to use: Zap test will tell you.

https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/how-to-properly-safely-conduct-the-zap-tongue-test.63199/

I need to point out that even though soap should be fully saponified long before 4 weeks, the odd error can cause a soap to be lye-heavy, so Zap testing to ensure there is no excess lye is the best way to determine safety.

 

[Cherrydene soapy]

i am very new to all of this and I will be making my 4th batch of soap today. What I have done is to cut 1 bar of soap into cubes so I can test them starting at week 4 of curing. I have taken all of the advice people are sharing I keep detailed notes of oils, FO, EO, colours, performance in batter etc. I plan to start recording how the soap performs, washing my hands with it from week 4. I am desperate to start using it but I want to give it the best start I can so I leave it alone, just look and smell it every day

 

[Zing]

You are a patient woman waiting for week 4! I "test" at week 3 on my little leftovers while the rest of the batch cures for 6.

 

[Rsapienza]

I have found that soap continues to lose water way beyond 4-6 weeks. The rate at which it loses slows down but I have checked weights at 12 months and still had loss.

 

[Loralei]

I'm still experimenting/learning, but I always find that when I grab s bar after a short cure, because I can't wait to try it, the next bar is always better.. more lather, creamier, whatever.. just better.. So, now I'm trying to use leftover bits first, and wait for the "good" bars to get a longer cure in..