Thermal Transfer Method Failure!

[BeingBumble]

I tried the thermal transfer method yesterday and it failed. I thought it had reached trace so I poured but when I looked this morning I found it with alot of liquid on the top half. I did re-heat it twice when I was stirring. I just dont know what I did wrong and was hoping for some input.
I used 33% lye concentration. 42oz total wt oil. 10% superfat.
water:lye ratio: 2.03:1
I used 3 tsp Cedarwood EO
Here is my recipe:

40% Olive
6.66% Almond, sweet
15% coconut
15% Babassu
6.67% Castor
10% Shea
6.67% Rice Bran oil

Thank you for any and all input!

 

[Shannon_m]

Hmm... that's weird. I just tried it today and it worked like a dream. I have zero helpful input, I don't use even half of your oils in my recipe so I couldn't tell you anything about what could have gone wrong with them. My recipe was:

Extra Virgin Olive Oil 40.9%
Palm Oil 31.8%
Coconut Oil 76 degree 22.7%
Castor Oil 4.6%

In this recipe I did a water discount of 35% and superfat at 7%
I also added goats milk, buttermilk, and white clay.

Was going great until I added a crazy FO that went nuts on me lol.

In fact, my YouTube channel is in my signature below.. I just posted the video of me making that soap if you wanted to watch the first part where I'm doing the thermal transfer half. If you want a laugh, watch the whole thing where my soap goes crazy on me lol.

 

[Genny]

False trace is one of the drawbacks of the thermal transfer method.

How many regular batches of CP soap have you made before trying this method?

 

[judymoody]

Like Genny, I suspect false trace which can happen when you don't melt your solid oils. If your mixture got thick but grainy then it's probably false trace. I have had that happen to me and to fix it, I slowly stir until it liquefies again (as saponification progresses, it will heat up and smooth out). Once it's uniform in texture but thin in consistency then I SB again and bring it to a true trace. Hope this helps!

You can rebatch your soap by putting the ENTIRE contents in a crockpot or double boiler (this includes the oily mess on top) and cooking it at low temperature (170-200) until it achieves a uniform consistency (will look like taffy or vaseline) and put it back into your mold.

 

[houseofwool]

Thank you Judy for the clear explanation of what to look for to distinguish between false trace and true trace.

 

[BeingBumble]

Thank You all! It did look like it was at trace when I poured and I did notice some graininess toward the bottom of the pan when I was pouring. Thanks Shannon for the video-I watched it and it helped. The only thing I did different was add my oils to the lye mixture, very carefully. Im going to try again today! I got the idea from Homemade Soap from Martha's YouTube video. And to answer Genny, I have been making cold-process soap for a couple years now although I have to say that I in no way feel confident in my soap making. At first I was using PKO with CO (and found my bars were too drying) so I started using PO and CO-along with other oils, then I decided to try formulas without Palm (sustainability issues), using Coconut and Babassu as replacements. Honestly, I havent have a lot of success. But Im going to keep trying!

This is the first time I have posted. I have been shy but Im glad I finally took the chance. This is the forum I find I turn to most often. Thank you everyone for all the great and kind sharing

 

[judymoody]

Glad you feel comfortable to speak up!

Coconut, Babassu, and Palm Kernel oil are pretty much interchangeable. If you are looking to avoid palm, you could try using a mix of avocado oil and cocoa butter as a substitute. I played around in soapcalc and was able to mimic the fatty acid profile of palm pretty well with these two. More expensive than palm, of course, but it's an option.

 

[BeingBumble]

Thanks everyone! Im going to make another attempt today, and I did reheat the other batch. It doesnt look "normal" but at least I think I can use it for something and it wont go to waste. Going to try Judymoodys suggestion of avocado and cocoa butter also.

 

[Lotus]

Hey, Bumble. One thing also. In my experience, Cedarwood EO almost always messes up my batches. So, be careful with that. It's just a thought.