What went wrong here and how to fix it?

[JulesF]

Hey everyone. I'm brand new here and just had my first soap catastrphe and was hoping for some help. I've made about 8 batches of soap thus far and they've all turned out great except this last one had some issues. It is 67% olive oil and 33% coconut oil, 5% superfat. I made it with green tea and patchouli oil. I've made a batch very similar to this before and it came out really dark and perfect, but this one was really light and had this weird spot in the middle that's oozing. My only immediate thought is that when I added the lye to the oil it was hotter than I wanted it to be, would that have caused this or something else? And what exactly is happening here if that was it? I'd also like to know if there is anything I can do with this. I've read a little bit about resoaping but not a lot, is it safe to cut up and add to other soaps? can I resoap the whole batch. Still very new to this. Thank you.

 

[cmzaha]

Welcome to the forum. The weird spot in the middle oozing is from your soap overheating. Is the darker area also leaking oil? I cannot really tell if this it is a cavern or if just the small hole leaking. If the Patchouli Green tea was a fragrance oil, it could have caused the overheating. When this happens take notes so you have a record of the fragrance. If only the small hole is leaking and it is not a lot of oil, you can let it sit and see if it re-absorbs. It may very well stay soft in the center area for several months. If it does not zap it will be safe to use. Try soaping with oils and lye at room temp unless you use a recipe with a lot of solid oils. I make high tallow/lard soaps so I microwave my oils until they are just clear, and use room temp lye. Key words "Soap Cooler."

Can I ask why the 33% Coconut Oil? You can make a much more balanced recipe than the recipe you listed. Also you are going to need at least a 3 month cure with that much olive oil to have a good soap. If you are looking for bubbles you can accomplish it with sugar added and around 20% CO. I usually do not go over 15% Coconut Oil. Adding some Palm, Lard or Tallow and lowering the OO would make a much nicer soap.

 

[JulesF]

Yes, that entire dark strip at the top is leaking. And as far as the recipe, I've just been experimenting with recipes I'm finding online. I made one that was the same balance of oils before and I thought it seemed to work ok after just a few weeks of curing. IDK, I'm still learning so I'm willing to take advice.

 

[BrewerGeorge]

Hey everyone. I'm brand new here and just had my first soap catastrphe and was hoping for some help. I've made about 8 batches of soap thus far and they've all turned out great except this last one had some issues. It is 67% olive oil and 33% coconut oil, 5% superfat. I made it with green tea and patchouli oil. I've made a batch very similar to this before and it came out really dark and perfect, but this one was really light and had this weird spot in the middle that's oozing. My only immediate thought is that when I added the lye to the oil it was hotter than I wanted it to be, would that have caused this or something else? And what exactly is happening here if that was it? I'd also like to know if there is anything I can do with this. I've read a little bit about resoaping but not a lot, is it safe to cut up and add to other soaps? can I resoap the whole batch. Still very new to this. Thank you.

What are we looking at? Which surface is the top and which is the cut?

 

[JulesF]

The surface at the front is where I cut it in half at. Thats the inside.

 

[natrldsastr]

Please be sure to use a soap calculator when using recipes from the internet, not all of them are well tested. And yes, try to wait until your lye is cooled, I set my lye container in another container of cold water to help speed the process. Stir lye until it clarifies before waiting for it to cool. Be thorough with your stick blender to make sure all oils are blended. Good luck.