Soft Soap

[SPowers]

I have been having an issue with soft soap lately. We've discussed it a bit here but still I can't come to a proper conclusion as to the reason.

It's been hot and humid here but the A/C is on all the time so not sure that's the issue. I make a lye/water masterbatch amd recently (a couple of months, maybe more) I got a new and much larger container to mix a bigger batch. I'm not soaping nearly as much these days so not using up the mixture very fast.

Could evaporation or something to do with the masterbatch be an issue? I made a batch over a week ago... cut it after 3 days and it was still very soft and a week later it's still really tacky - so much so that I don't think I should be planing or bevelling yet.

I started using Tussah silk for the first time in the spring and wondered if that has something to do with it but I've not used it in the past 3 or 4 soaps and that doesn't seem to be it.

My normal recipe is high lard, co, po, castor and shea which I've been using for about a year. Usually I get a nice hard bar in 24 hrs. I'm really stumped!

 

[The_Phoenix]

This happened to me a few weeks ago. It was perplexing! It was while making another batch that I realized that when I made my large MB of lye solution that there was some undissolved lye at the bottom of my container. When I made the batch, I was distracted by something else (namely, helping my daughter get ready for prom) and didn't stir the solution enough and a lot of lye had settled to the bottom. Oopsie.

Is your MB container clear? Can you see if there is any lye settled on the bottom?

 

[SPowers]

Yes, it's clear and I mix it well before pouring. I was just looking at my OPW soap that I did for last month's challenge and it's still some what 'sticky'.

 

[The_Phoenix]

Yes, it's clear and I mix it well before pouring. I was just looking at my OPW soap that I did for last month's challenge and it's still some what 'sticky'.

Hmmm. Weird. Is the size of your batch the usual size? Same mold? Same superfat %? Same water:lye ratio?

 

[AliOop]

If this has been happening ever since you made the last masterbatch, my best guess is that your lye solution was not mixed at the strength you believed it to be. I've, ahem, heard of that happening to some OTHER soapers.

Another thought is that it may weakened due to having been exposed to air from time to time (e.g., you measured out some solution and didn't close it back up right away).

 

[ResolvableOwl]

You might test lye masterbatch strength by making a small HP soap batch at 0% SF, and perform the clarity test. If it stays turbid even after prolonged cooking (beyond 1 h, judging from your oil blend), then the lye is too weak (or some other math issue).

That said, maybe there is a curse over soapmaking-land atm. Two days ago, I have made & CPOP'd a recipe that had come out alright the last time after a few hours, but now I still don't dare unmould and cut it.

 

[SPowers]

Hmmm. Weird. Is the size of your batch the usual size? Same mold? Same superfat %? Same water:lye ratio?

I wondered about that, but different molds were used.

 

[The_Phoenix]

I wondered about that, but different molds were used.

Are you now using a smaller or larger mold?

 

[SPowers]

If this has been happening ever since you made the last masterbatch, my best guess is that your lye solution is was not mixed at the strength you believed it to be. I've, ahem, heard of that happening to some OTHER soapers.

Another thought is that it has been exposed to air from time to time (e.g., you measured out some solution and didn't close it back up right away).

I'm wondering abt that... You may be right! Think I will make a small new mb and see what happens.

 

[SPowers]

Are you now using a smaller or larger mold?

The last soap was a smallish slab - 6 bars. The opw was tall & skinny & another was a standard 10" loaf.

 

[SPowers]

You might test lye masterbatch strength by making a small HP soap batch at 0% SF, and perform the clarity test. If it stays turbid even after prolonged cooking (beyond 1 h, judging from your oil blend), then the lye is too weak (or some other math issue).

That said, maybe there is a curse over soapmaking-land atm. Two days ago, I have made & CPOP'd a recipe that had come out alright the last time after a few hours, but now I still don't dare unmould and cut it.

I'm thinking curse! LOL... Think I'll remake the lye solution and try that. Thanks for all your thoughts... It's a lot to ask on such a hot day!

 

[The_Phoenix]

What is the water:lye concentration in the mb lye solution?

If you can't tell, I love a good analytical problem to solve.

 

[SPowers]

My mb is 2:1 water/lye so 50% concentration but I add enough liquid to make it 35% overall.

 

[ResolvableOwl]

Umm – 2:1 like in 500 g NaOH per 500 mL of water, or 500 g NaOH per 1000 mL of water?

 

[The_Phoenix]

My mb is 2:1 water/lye so 50% concentration but I add enough liquid to make it 35% overall.

Hmm. A 50% mb concentration would mean 500g of lye and 500g of water. Meaning, 50% is water and 50% is lye. A 35% lye concentration would mean 35% is lye and 65% is water.

I make a 50% mb solution. A 1:1 ratio. But when I make soap it’s a 1.8:1 water:lye ratio.

Which means I plop my recipe into the SMF calculator, noting that I’ll be using a 50/50 mb solution, and note the final water:lye ratio that o will be using to make my batch of soap. I add the necessary liquid to my 50/50 solution that the calculator tells me to.

Is this your routine, for the most part?

 

[SPowers]

Sorry I was out when I responded. l My mb is 1:1 but I soap at 2:1 - the extra liquid depends on the soap I'm making.

 

[KiwiMoose]

The humidity certainly doesn't help I have found. We're in winter now, so only about 15 degrees, but it's been very damp with humidity between 75 -95% every day.

We're in the throes of installing a DVS system - ventilation system that moves the air around and prevents damp. I'm sure that will help me no end.