Thinking INSIDE the box, mold idea

[BugSoap]

I've been looking through lots of posts about what to use for molds. I came up with an idea I did not actually see mentioned yet. It's probably out there somewhere.

Yes, I know many people do line a cardboard box and it makes a nice mold.
How about using the Free USPS flat rate shipping boxes! I'm thinking a great idea to just mold right in those boxes (lined of course).
Cardboard is a good insulator so fold over the flap to close the box and hold the heat, also wrap in towel if needed.
Once the soap has set remove it and cut and cure as needed.
Now, when it's gift giving time you have the soap made in the exact size needed to totally fill the flat rate box to send it to all your friends, relatives, or the stinky guy down the road. LOL

Probably not all that new an idea, but planning to soap today and thinking about what I have for molds, and the fact I will probably send some of this batch out as gifts if it turns out good, I figure why not just mold it in the box it will ship in later!
No worries later how to fill a box or keep the soap from bouncing around and busting up etc.. with sizes that may not really fill the box well. If I make the loaf in the box it will ship in then it will be a perfect fit. Well, unless the soap shrinks allot.

Since I do sell some products I have to ship I do have many of the USPS boxes on hand in most of the sizes already.

Many people do not know the boxes can be ordered online free and USPS will deliver them right to you for free also!

I think nearly all of today's soap will mold into the small flat rate boxes here, and if it turns out well it will ship out May-June as gifts so I'll just save the boxes next to the soap. I could also label them now who they should ship too and be able to track who I still need to make more for later.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

So the boxes are the size of a bar of soap?

 

[shunt2011]

I have seen others post that they have used those. I've not done it myself.

 

[BugSoap]

UH, no, but I was thinking sending a box of soap not 1 bar of soap.

 

[shunt2011]

Oh, got ya! I don't think I would do that. You could try but it would likely be difficult to cut if left too long. Not sure. I've not heard of anyone doing that. Also, it may end up damaged from being thrown around now that I'm thinking about it. I don't ship soap without proper packaging, bubblewrap or peanuts etc.

 

[BugSoap]

Is soap bars that easy to damage? That is why I was thinking mold in the box it will be shipped in, that way no empty space for it to bounce around in and get banged up. Also shipping cost the same ( $5.20 online ) so might as well send a full box instead of part of a box.

Once set though it would be removed and cut then cured like using any other mold, just that it's the correct size for the box it was molded in when all the pieces go back together in the box again.

Well, it's finally daylight here now and starting to warm up some. Give it maybe another 30 minutes or so and I should be outside mixing up the lye and making soap! :mrgreen:

 

[boyago]

I had the same idea the last time I was at the PO. I think I would make one master mold with dividers (quarter it) though as the boxes need to be closed and taped to stay together. It's a great idea and I haven't seen it posted before.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

Are you sending someone a whole batch of one soap?

 

[BugSoap]

I had the same idea the last time I was at the PO. I think I would make one master mold with dividers (quarter it) though as the boxes need to be closed and taped to stay together. It's a great idea and I haven't seen it posted before.

One of the reasons I was thinking this would work well in just lining the boxes would be make as many molds as we'd want for any given day, provided we had that many boxes on hand which I do myself. So I could make plenty of soap slabs in one day if I wanted, all the same size, and all fit the box.

I'll see how the molding goes. I am heading out to make some soap now. I hope I have everything ready now and not forgot anything else!
I forgot to make the coffee! LOL
Going to do a coffee soap today, was ready to go out and start, NO COFFEE! :evil:
It should be done now.

 

[BugSoap]

Are you sending someone a whole batch of one soap?

Probably whatever the box will hold, maybe 1/2 batch?
Though with all same sized soap slabs to fit the boxes it should be easy to cut several types the same sizes and mix them.

I'll see how this works today, then probably make a cutter for this size of slab later.

 

[OliveOil2]

You know the brand new boxes are actually meant to be used for shipping. If everyone did what you want to do they wouldn't be free anymore. It would be better to use a box that was shipped to you. This really isn't a new idea, a member here has already posted a youtube video on the use of the Flat Rate Priority Boxes, but he wasn't using the new ones.

 

[shunt2011]

Wouldn't you really be limiting your customers choice on how many bars they want? I don't have a lot of customers that buy more than 8-10 bars at a time but want different fragrances not a slab of 1 or 2 scents. Maybe I don't really understand.

 

[OliveOil2]

OK I missed the idea of what you are doing, guess that wouldn't be a problem for the post office, but not sure if I would want to do it because of the limitations mentioned.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

While soap is fairly tough, the outer bars would likely take some damage in transit as there would only be what protection is offered by the box

 

[boyago]

Are you sending someone a whole batch of one soap?

The "small" flat rate boxes have an inside dimension of 8 5/8" x 5 3/8" x 1 5/8". This comes out to about 40oz of soap. 4 rather large bars at 2.5"x4.03"x1.625" ea around 10.25oz. With dividers it would be a little less. You could also do 3 up and two across for more like 2.875"x 5.375" for 6.6oz bars which seems pretty regular in the weight but kind of stubby.
To me the cool part is the ease of packing them and maxing out the colume of the boxes. The flat rate box is $6 to ship anywhere in the US(which I think has gone up from last year).

 

[Purplerain]

How would you make your cutter for this?

 

[Dorymae]

The USPS priority large shipping box will hold 64 wrapped bars of soap. (Well, my soap,approx 4oz each). I know this because I had to send 2 out for a recent order. You could make quite a bit of soap pouring in that box!

 

[BugSoap]

Well, that was a mess!
The box seemed to work well. My soap batter thickened too much too fast and by the time the box was full and smoothed I had a mess trying to fill some other plain molds.

Cleanup is going to be fun later. :-?
Hopefully the soap will turn out well. One thing for sure it should harden up!

Looks like the box holds about 1/2 or 2/3 of a 40oz fats/oil batch maybe.
Figuring batch size should I figure everything water, lye, oil/fat, or just the fat/oils for size of the batch? Actaully this time I used coffee not water.
If everything it would be about a 59oz batch.

It looked rather nice with the coffee soap in box. Like a giant chocolate bar with dark sprinkles in it. Those would be the grounds for an exfoliate, I used 1/2 cup grounds.

I had 3 boxes ready to use, but since things went messy soon as I got first box filled I just packed the rest in plastic food tubs for molds, then I put those into the boxes. I think the boxes will help hold heat. I put the 3 boxes into a plastic bag then and wrapped with towel then put in an oven we do not use to let them sit.

I try to get some pictures when I take them out to cut.

 

[BugSoap]

You know the brand new boxes are actually meant to be used for shipping. If everyone did what you want to do they wouldn't be free anymore. It would be better to use a box that was shipped to you. This really isn't a new idea, a member here has already posted a youtube video on the use of the Flat Rate Priority Boxes, but he wasn't using the new ones.

You missed the point, using the boxes to make the soap the correct size to fit/fill the box to ship the soap! This way the boxes ARE being used as intended, the soap will be shipped in the same boxes once it's ready to be shipped. So if I wanted to make soap to send to 8 family and friends I would not need 8 molds, just use the 8 boxes I will be shipping the soap in anyway.

Ya, I mentioned it may have been thought of before, I just haven't seen it yet. Nothing is ever really a new idea, just something we don't know someone else already thought of before us. LOL

 

[BugSoap]

Wouldn't you really be limiting your customers choice on how many bars they want? I don't have a lot of customers that buy more than 8-10 bars at a time but want different fragrances not a slab of 1 or 2 scents. Maybe I don't really understand.

Well I'm not selling soap, just going to be sending it out as gifts, so they get what they get. LOL
But my idea was the soap slab would be the exact fit for the size box used. I could make a cutter for that size so all the slabs cut the same and mix different soaps also.
I just hate paying full price for shipping and send only 1/2 a box. Since I won't be doing anything fancy or expensive for soaps the shipping probably costs
me more than the soap in the box!