What temperature range prevents gel?

[SequimSoaper]

I'm a newbie at making soap.

What temperature should I aim for if I want to prevent gel? Or is that even the right way to go about it? :?

 

[honor435]

to prevent gel you put soap in fridge or freezer, i like the look of gelled soap, so i wrap my soap on put in oven(cures faster) or on heating pad. good luck, newbie!

 

[Jody63]

I love how translucent the gelled soap looks, not sure why you would want to prevent it? I get mad if mine doesn't gel!

 

[SequimSoaper]

The soap looked so beautiful and creamy when I put it in the mold. The gelled look took the creamy look away...

 

[Guest]

I like that creamy look , I gel some and others I don't .It is really just a personal preference.

 

[MikeInPdx]

I used to gel, and then I found that my fragrances hold up better if I don't, particularly Eucalyptus EO. Fragrance oils also don't morph as much for me....they smell much more like they did out of bottle.

I also like the softer look of ungelled soap, so again, personal preference.

 

[amanda131]

Isn't the gel phase when it "cooks" out the lye?

 

[ycartf]

Isn't the gel phase when it "cooks" out the lye?

Saponification (chemical reaction where a fatty acid is converted to a sodium salt by the addition of an alkali) is when the lye is "eliminated" or "used-up" so that really happens whether you gel or not. A gel seems to be a "jump-started" saponification. With all the heat produced, the chemical reaction has to be happening faster or more-pronounced. But it happens either way.

 

[xyxoxy]

Isn't the gel phase when it "cooks" out the lye?

Ditto what ycartf said.
Gel or non-gel is just a personal preference.
Though it does affect the color and scent strength of your soaps.
Either way it is soap.

I prefer the creamy non-gelled soap too. I almost always put my molds in the fridge while I'm blending etc to pre-chill them. Then after I pour I pop them right back in the fridge for about 48 hours. Could probably unmold sooner but this insures any possible heat is gone and... well it works for me.

I also soap at close to room temperature so as long as they go right in the fridge they don't get much of a chance to heat up.

 

[amanda131]

interesting......

 

[wendybyrd]

This has been very helpful. My understanding on gelling has been a bit fuzzy, and this clears it up considerably. I guess my next project will have to be a couple of comparison batches... Thankee for the information!

 

[CookieChan]

Does anybody have pics comparing gelled and ungelled soap? Newbie here too.

 

[gekko62]

Does anybody have pics comparing gelled and ungelled soap? Newbie here too.

The best way to see the difference is,next time you make a batch,pour one soap into an individual mould and whack it in the fridge.Leave the rest to gel.Next day voila!

 

[gekko62]

Saponification (chemical reaction where a fatty acid is converted to a sodium salt by the addition of an alkali) is when the lye is "eliminated" or "used-up" so that really happens whether you gel or not.

Small pedantic correction here...fatty acid plus alkali equals salt.The type of salt depends on the alkali used. Sodium Hydroxide produces a sodium salt(bar soap).Pottassium hydroxide produces a pottassium salt(liquid soap). Hey,just my 2c

 

[fireweed]

Here is a pic of a partially gelled soap, I think it should give an idea of the difference:

http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgur ... 8%26um%3D1

 

[CookieChan]

Here is a pic of a partially gelled soap, I think it should give an idea of the difference:

http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgur ... 8%26um%3D1

But doesn't the soap turn back to opaque after gelling?

 

[SoapieCP]

Heres a link to a post I just made relating to the same issue. The gelled batch didnt change back BTW. http://soapmakingforum.com/forum/posting.php?mode=quote&p=127800

I agree with the 98 degree temp for no gel.

I made up a batch at 100 deg back in Aug and it came out even and creamy in colour.
Last week I made a second batch which I blended at 120 deg. This batch is near perfect but the gel has not quite reached right to the edges making it appear not quite as even as the first batch.

That said it still looks great and the soap itself is wonderful.

I will be using the 98-100 degree mark as a rule for the next batch and expect to be using it every time from now on.

CP Soap making is such an interesting experience with so much to learn along the way I LOVE IT

Example of dodgy gelling from the very first soap batch I made back in Jan09.

This was the batch made at 100deg. The darker areas is just shadow, not partial gelling.

These are the little lovelies all wrapped up as samples.

X

 

[awi]

I like to prevent a gel on my soap also, but have noticed that it doesn't seem to come out of the mold as easily. Maybe what I should say is that it seems to take longer to "firm up". I just always seem to mess up a bar trying to unmold it because it is soft on the side facing the mold.....is this just me or has anyone else had this same issue. Should I just keep it in the mold an extra day or so before unmolding if I choose to keep the soap from going through the gel stage?

 

[xyxoxy]

Should I just keep it in the mold an extra day or so before unmolding if I choose to keep the soap from going through the gel stage?

48 hours seems to work well for me.

 

[Woodi]

I find that if I let my soaps gel, they become much harder in time than un-gelled soaps.
A partially-gelled soap looks 'unfinished' to me....never quite made gel out to the edges. Customers don't seem to mind though.