Un-gelled soap doesn't last as long?

[jenneelk]

I love when I decide to peruse the crazenet late at night and find a bit of info by accident that makes me stop and say what??!

I've never heard of this and in my experience once fully cured, gel vs non gel have no difference in their lasting affect that I've noticed. Why would they?
Now I've never experimented it because I've not questioned it until now. Has anyone else?

 

[Dorymae]

I gel some soaps and keep others from gelling. There is no noticeable difference. Granted the recipes I use (gel and non gelled ) are different but they are both lard based with coconut and castor with the addition of different oils in smaller percentages. (One olive, one avocado and sunflower).

Both, once fully cured, last about the same amount of time.

 

[cmzaha]

I do not gel soaps often but I also find no difference. Most of mine include lard, tallow and/or palm

 

[jenneelk]

Yeah that's why I was surprised to hear her say it..
It was on Auntielclaras. Id never in the last few years heard something like this or thought to question it so it surprised me.

 

[IrishLass]

I've never noticed there being a difference in the longevity of mine. My un-gelled takes a few weeks longer to catch up to the overall hardness level of my gelled, but once caught up, there's really not much of any difference between them to write home about.

IrishLass

 

[not_ally]

That is surprising. Any other source I might dismiss it, but Auntie Clara .....

 

[lionprincess00]

I was just on her blog and didn't see this. Do you have the link??

 

[jenneelk]

It's in the comments in her glycerin rivers post.
I was looking for any new comments because she had retested.

Here is a screen shot.

 

[lionprincess00]

It's in the comments in her glycerin rivers post.
I was looking for any new comments because she had retested.

Here is a screen shot.

Thanks for the link! I never would've found it on my own!

 

[Obsidian]

I've seen that talked about on here and I believe deeanna chimed in about the reasoning behind this thought. I think it has something to do with all the soap molecules crystallizes. Its also the reason ungelled soap lathers faster/better, its more soluble.

I wish I could remember what thread that was in, maybe deeanna will see this post and help clear things up for us. I don't gel enough soap to notice if there is a difference but when I tried Carolyn's ungelled vs gelled lard samples, the ungelled lathered better and just felt nicer.

 

[Seawolfe]

You know I have to say I think Ive seen this. I have a lard soap that I always gel, but this one time the house was cold and it didnt. It is less smooth and seems more porus more porus, and does not seem to last as long as the gelled soaps of the same recipe. But its just in a soap dish by the sink, not part of any scientific tests. Its even more smooshy than the castile - which is funny. Maybe that batch just went weird.

 

[DeeAnna]

Kevin Dunn did some tests that showed if samples of soap are allowed to soak in water, ungelled soap will absorb more water and swell more than gelled soap. That's as far as Kevin took that experiment, at least in his written report, but I think it's reasonable to take that a step further -- If you leave ungelled soap in a wet soap dish, then it probably will mush more and won't last as long as the same soap that was gelled. If you let your soap dry properly between uses, gelled vs. no-gel is probably no big deal. Yes, I think it's all about the crystallization process that happens to soap when it is in gel.

 

[Soap Techniques]

The 'soak tests' done by Dr. Kevin Dunn show that gelled soap is slightly less water soluble than un-gelled soap. Usually this means a bar of gelled soap would last longer.

Here are some details about his experiments, pages 41-44:
http://cavemanchemistry.com/HsmgTemperature2009.pdf

P.S.
Oh, DeeAnna was faster than me!

 

[DeeAnna]

Oh, Fata, thanks a bunch for finding that reference!! I found the info in his Scientific Soapmaking book, but I was pretty sure it was also out on the 'net somewhere -- just couldn't remember where.

 

[jenneelk]

Interesting.. I love un-gelled soap but might think about changing it up a bit and gel more. The look of un-gelled does make it seem as if it would be softer and creamier like the pastel type colors often given and thus would be more soluble if it acted like it looked. lol

 

[IrishLass]

If you leave ungelled soap in a wet soap dish, then it probably will mush more and won't last as long as the same soap that was gelled. If you let your soap dry properly between uses, gelled vs. no-gel is probably no big deal.

That's exactly why I don't see much difference with my gelled vs. un-gelled, then (once the un-gelled has had time to cure well). I'm really persnickety about keeping my soaps out of the line of fire from direct water spray in the shower, and also keeping them high and dry between uses.


IrishLass