Soap is soft and zappy! --UPDATE--

[Guest]

Recipe:

75% Olive
15% Coconut
5% Shea
5% Castor
8% Lye discount

I attempted a patchouli & bergamot EO blend, and not wanting the bergamot to wither away I used a 2:1 blend totalling about 2.5 oz for 32 oz of oil. I know this is a high amount of EO (a good ounce more than I would normally use) but again I was overcompensating for the citrus oil.

Soaped at 100°, poured at medium trace, put in 170° oven (with door slightly open) for an hour, then took it out and kept the mold on a table, wrapped in a towel.

12 hours later -- a time when my soap is normally ready to unmold and cut -- it looked like it was still going thru gel phase, the core of the soap looked darker and wetter than the edges.

This morning (24 hours after originally pouring), I unmolded the soap. It was VERY soft and it zapped hard.

I'm going to give it a few days to see what it does, but does anyone know what might have happened here? Why it took so long to saponify and why it's so soft and zappy now?

Should I have given it more heat? Could the excess EO be the problem?

:?

 

[Vinca Leaf]

I'd say as long as you ran it through a lye calc and didn't forget anything, it's pretty normal to be softer w/that much olive oil, and so little hard oils. Give it another day and see what it does.

And 2.5 oz of FO? Eeeesh...that's a whole, whole lot! I'm not sure what the recommended max % is, but you're into the 7% range. Off the top of my head that's more than the max for most FO...if not it's very close!

 

[Guest]

I'd say as long as you ran it through a lye calc and didn't forget anything, it's pretty normal to be softer w/that much olive oil, and so little hard oils. Give it another day and see what it does.

And 2.5 oz of FO? Eeeesh...that's a whole, whole lot! I'm not sure what the recommended max % is, but you're into the 7% range. Off the top of my head that's more than the max for most FO...if not it's very close!

It is MUCH softer than other soaps I've made with olive oil. The whole process has been weird on this one.

I realize I used a lot of EO I'm wondering if that's what caused this weirdness.

 

[MikeInPdx]

You may have gotten a partial gel, Daniel. That would explain the excessive softeness and the zap today.

Give it about four or five days and zap test again.....if it doesn't, you're probably fine.

The olive and partial gel is what I'm suspecting. Did you use a different olive oil on this one? Why I ask is that there are some suppliers out there selling olive oil cut with other things.

 

[Guest]

You may have gotten a partial gel, Daniel. That would explain the excessive softeness and the zap today.

Give it about four or five days and zap test again.....if it doesn't, you're probably fine.

The olive and partial gel is what I'm suspecting. Did you use a different olive oil on this one? Why I ask is that there are some suppliers out there selling olive oil cut with other things.

It is pure olive oil, and I've gotten great results with it up to this point. I really don't think it's the olive oil... there's "olive oil soft" and then there's "warm playdough" soft! And that's what this is.

Could've been a partial gel. I'm hoping it will firm up in the next few days.

 

[7053joanne]

Yeah I would let it sit for a few days and check it again. I have had some batches with high OO concentrations that have taken a bit longer to set up.

 

[Guest]

Yeah I would let it sit for a few days and check it again. I have had some batches with high OO concentrations that have taken a bit longer to set up.

Thanks, I'll definitely be giving it some time to see what it does.

The thing is, I made this same recipe 2 weeks ago and the soap wasn't nearly as soft. I'm suspecting that the excess EO may have delayed gel, and since I took it out of the oven after an hour, I don't think it ever properly gelled. I had another soap awhile back that didn't gel and it too was soft. 5 weeks later it is much firmer, but not hard like my other soaps.

 

[7053joanne]

Was it the same batch of OO? I have also noticed that different batches from different suppliers can act a little different.

 

[Guest]

Was it the same batch of OO? I have also noticed that different batches from different suppliers can act a little different.

Yep, same brand, same bottle actually.

 

[SimplyE]

I am sure the zap will go away. I wonder if you accidentally used too much water, though, without realizing it.

 

[honor435]

i made almost all olive oil soap and it took forever to harden, i used eos lavender and cinnamon, smelled bad but is finally hard and smells ok. looking back at my notes it took 4 wks to harden!

 

[Guest]

I am sure the zap will go away. I wonder if you accidentally used too much water, though, without realizing it.

I actually think this is what happened. I somehow must have used WAY too much water actually. After I read your comment, I checked the size of the bars.... they're all 3/4" taller than they should be, and I think the excess water could have caused the long saponification time as well as the soap's super softness.

I wonder if the soap is salvageable. Aside from the fact that it will take forever to cure and harden while all that water evaporates out...

 

[IrishLass]

Yep- sounds like too much water. I remember my very first Castile-type (80% OO, 10% Babassu, 10% Castor, 7% s/f)... I used the full MMS water amount, and it was just as you described yours to be (partial gel, warm PlayDough-like consistency). If I remember rightly, mine took a full week to even be able to unmold it, and then another week or so more on top of that to even feel safe enough to cut it. It finally hardened up nice in about 2 months.

IrishLass