to gel or not to gel and to heat or not to heat

[Purplerain]

OK. So I have to throw my first batch out. As a painter I know that everything is rehearsal so I'm ok with that. The next will be better.
I do like to study up though and in reading through post after post, I have two big questions that come up that I really can't figure out the answers to.

1. What is it with gel? Why would I choose to bundle up my soap loaf and keep it cozy v. stick it in the fridge or freezer to cool it down fast? What qualities will result in the soap from one or the other method?

2. Why would I heat my oils to mix with my hot lye instead of dealing with everything at room temperature? That just seems so much easier. And safer. And ditto, what qualities will result in the soap from one or the other method, if there is a difference?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Susie]

1. Gel is an aesthetic issue for the most part(if you want it). You may want to prevent it if you are using ingredients that heat the soap or will change the color of the soap if overheated. If you want to prevent it, you stick it into the freezer. Overheated soap may volcano out of the mold.

2. Some people soap at room temperatures if they want to slow trace and do fancy stuff. Some of us like to save time and get to trace fast, so soaping hotter gets you there faster. And don't forget that you have to wait for the lye to cool down. Also you have to melt the solid oils, so you will want to apply heat at some point if you are going to pour room temperature lye/water mixture into it.

You need to take the time to figure out what exactly went wrong with the first batch before making another batch. Change the batteries in the scale, test the scale, etc.

 

[Purplerain]

I (blush) think I measured the lye wrong. I remember briefly wondering if I looked at the right number on the recipe after I combined the water and lye. Then everything seemed ok so I blundered on. I will check the scale though, just to make sure.

 

[IrishLass]

1) Re: gel...... Simply put, gel is basically fast saponification. During gel, the chemical reaction is sped up, thereby turning the batter into neutral soap more speedily. Soaps that go through the gel stage harden quicker and are able to be unmolded and sliced into bars quicker than un-gelled soaps. The cure time is shorter, too....at least for me. My gelled soaps are good to go at 4 weeks, while my un-gelled batches (which are rare for me) take a little bit longer to catch up by about 2 weeks extra.

I'm one of those who likes her soap to gel, so I encourage it along by sticking it in a warm (not hot) oven and draping my mold with towels or old cloth diapers.

Whether to gel or not to gel is a personal preference based on certain variables that are important only to each individual soaper. For instance, some prevent gel because they like the way their colors come out more pastel-like, or maybe they want to prevent their fragrance from morphing or their soap from overheating, etc... It really all depends.

I personally like to gel because I like how brilliant and jewel-like my colors come out, and I also like being able to unmold and cut quicker.

Either way, the soap will still be great after a full cure, but it just takes un-gelled soaps a little longer to 'get there'.

2) I can't speak for anyone else, but the temp at which I soap is all dependent upon the melting points of the fats I'm using. If I'm just soaping an olive oil soap, I'll soap at room temp, but if I'm soaping a batch with lots of hydrogenated PKO and hard butters, I like to soap warmer, about 110F/43C to 120F/49C so that I don't get pseudo-trace. If I soap too cool with the hydrogenated PKO and the butters, I end up with unsightly stearic spots or streaks in my soap.

IrishLass

 

[Susie]

Something I learned to do is to weigh everything separately twice before adding the first ingredient to the next one. I know it seems redundant to do that, but more than once I have had a weight off on something(or figured out I did not have enough for the recipe). I check it off as I weigh it out the first time, then highlight it as I re-weigh it. Then, and only then, do I mix the solid oils together and the liquid oils together.

I just use repurposed plastic containers for the most part for my oil and lye weights. Cheap and cheerful, and they can be washed then tossed back into the soaping stuff.

 

[judymoody]

Why do you think your first batch failed? What went wrong? Never be in a hurry to pitch a batch - there are ways to save mishaps much of the time.

There is no hard and fast rule about oil and lye temperatures. If you want to gel, soap hotter; if you don't soap cooler. Some people use room temp oils with freshly mixed lye solution and that melts the oils. I prefer to soap around 110-120 for both because I prefer gelled soap and I like my hard oils to be thoroughly melted and blended.

Gelled soap produces more saturated colors and it gets harder quicker and can be cut sooner. Ungelled is more opaque and creamy looking (think pastel pink rather than magenta), takes slightly longer to firm up, cut, and cure. If you are using a delicate fragrance, some people believe that not gelling helps to preserve it.

 

[Purplerain]

Any ideas? I really think I measured the lye wrong. (Love the measure twice idea - will definitely be doing that!) all I can think of to do is add more oil but how much and what kind? I suspect I used the water number for the lye and for the water. So it's 50/50.

 

[snappyllama]

One trick that I use is to print out my recipe and mark off each item as I weigh it. Then I cross through it when it goes in the pot. I've written my soaping containers' weights on their sides, just in case I forget to tare or something else scatter-brained... I can always figure out what it should be.

 

[navigator9]

As stated above, gel is an esthetic issue, and a personal preference. I CPOP so that my soap will always gel, and the main reason I do this is that it forces the soap to go through the saponification process faster. When I don't gel, it can take days for the soap to release from the mold cleanly. But when I gel the soap, I can remove it and cut it the following day. I like the instant gratification.

I soap at room temp for the reason that it slows things down and I feel like I have more control. Also, it's easier not to have to worry about the temp of any of the ingredients. We all love making soap, but the way we soap is as different from one another as the soaps we make. The more you soap, the more you will realize what works for you, and what doesn't, what you like and what you don't. I think it's wonderful that the process can be so individualized. Good luck with the next batch!