To Gel or Not to Gel?
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Here is an example of different processes using the same exact recipe:
Top left is HP in the crockpot. Top right is forced gel, and bottom left is ungelled. The ungelled, though very pretty, is very light in color. It will need to cure for several weeks before it's ready. The forced gel is beautiful and the swirls are nice. It was easy to swirl. The top left HP soap was a little difficult to swirl in that it was a thick applesauce consistency and the swirls aren't smooth. I didn't like that one at first. But now that I've cut a sliver and tried it out I LOVE it! (See the bottom right photo). I think it looks like stone and it's now my very favorite! I can't wait to try other colors.
Top left is HP in the crockpot. Top right is forced gel, and bottom left is ungelled. The ungelled, though very pretty, is very light in color. It will need to cure for several weeks before it's ready. The forced gel is beautiful and the swirls are nice. It was easy to swirl. The top left HP soap was a little difficult to swirl in that it was a thick applesauce consistency and the swirls aren't smooth. I didn't like that one at first. But now that I've cut a sliver and tried it out I LOVE it! (See the bottom right photo). I think it looks like stone and it's now my very favorite! I can't wait to try other colors.
soapbuddy
Well-Known Member
I prefer not to gel. My recipe doesn't get ash. I can use less fragrance and less color and my soaps come out lighter then if I gelled. It's a personal preference.
Sibi
Well-Known Member
I don't gel either because this way I don't have to worry about ash which I absolutely hate. My colors come out pretty nicely even though I did not gel, here's an example:
DottieF.
Well-Known Member
It's just a matter of preference. I gel all my soaps. Don't want to risk getting a partial gel and my soap never has any zap when I take it out of the mold like ungelled soap can. I also tend to get ash when I don't gel (in individual molds). Gel can screw with scent and cause some to morph or disappear. I just try to avoild scents that can't take the heat 
If you use a thick mold and do not wrap with blankets and let it get very warm, only the inside, where it's very warm, will gel. The outer surrounding layer may not gel because it's closer t the cool air. This can even happen in the refrigerator!
If you pour into smaller molds (like 4 oz bar sizes) and then keep it cool, like in the refrigerator or on a tile floor in the winter months, it most likely will not gel. The look is creamier and not translucent.
So - keep it cool to NOT gel, and keep it warm and wrapped in an insulating blanket to force gel.
If you pour into smaller molds (like 4 oz bar sizes) and then keep it cool, like in the refrigerator or on a tile floor in the winter months, it most likely will not gel. The look is creamier and not translucent.
So - keep it cool to NOT gel, and keep it warm and wrapped in an insulating blanket to force gel.
G
Guest
i went for a soap making class, and the lady teaching told me that if i didn't insulate it and let it gel, my soap wouldn't be soap.. I'm thinking she doesn't know what she's talking about since all of u have gorgeous ungelled soaps!
soapbuddy
Well-Known Member
Just send her to me. I don't gel and haven't for years. They go in the fridge or the freezer every time and not insulated and my customers love my soaps. I make damn good soap!glassdoll said:
FloridaSoaper
Well-Known Member
soapbuddy said:
Love it!
Ungelled soap does not take longer to cure. It is strictly a personal preference. It is all soap.
To make sure you do not gel, you pour and do whatever fancy stuff, then you put it in the freezer for 24 hours. The refrigerator will not ensure lack of gel, it must be the freezer.
To make sure you do not gel, you pour and do whatever fancy stuff, then you put it in the freezer for 24 hours. The refrigerator will not ensure lack of gel, it must be the freezer.
ngian
Well-Known Member
It depends on which mold I am using, my wood molds would never fit in the freezer, and they tend to encourage heat, so I gel. The silicone I don't usually gel, and those go in the freezer, or I freeze the mold and then put in the fridge as soon as it is poured. I've never gotten partial gel this way, but I can see where it could happen. My current freezer is just so small. I have never soaped with HDPE but wouldn't gel those.
lillybella
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What are the advantages - disadvantages in gelling?
What are the advantages - disadvantages in not-gelling?
What are the advantages - disadvantages in not-gelling?
It's strictly a personal preference.
Many don't gel their soaps with milk as it tends to create a beige soap as opposed to a lighter one. They also remain creamy looking but will take a bit longer for the saponification process to complete. However, you don't have to worry about overheating in most cases.
Gelling soaps make them saponify quicker, can make colors brighter and can be unmolded a bit sooner in a lot of cases. You can also get overheating and partial gel.
They both require 4-6 weeks cure.
I personally gel all my soaps. I just add a bit of TD to my soap batter to make it a bit lighter as I do use some kind of milk in all my recipes
seven
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I'm with shunt, i gel all my soaps simply coz it's easier for me. no more space in the freezer, lol! i too, love milk soaps and use them in almost all my formulations, adding a bit of td helps a lot.
no right or wrong regarding this. simply personal preference. no difference in qualities either.
no right or wrong regarding this. simply personal preference. no difference in qualities either.
lillybella
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Thank you shunt :razz:
Is a partial gel bad?
Is a partial gel bad?
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