Where do you cure your soaps?

[Hermanam]

Since FO/EO's should be stored out of direct sunlight, I would worry that sun drying soap would interfere with the fragrance, and possibly lighten the color. I don't know first hand, but this comes to mind right away as potential problems.

 

[houseofwool]

I'm curious if anyone has cured soap in their garage in a northern climate in the winter, like MN, Wisconsin, Canada, Alaska, etc?

Nope, too much temp fluctuation and I get mice in my garage.

 

[btz]

Since FO/EO's should be stored out of direct sunlight, I would worry that sun drying soap would interfere with the fragrance, and possibly lighten the color. I don't know first hand, but this comes to mind right away as potential problems.

Oh, I guess that makes sense. What about non fo/eo and non colored soap though, like pure castile soap. Has anyone tried?

 

[shunt2011]

Being in the sun can also cause them to sweat, discolor and perhaps warp. I keep mine out of the sun even at shows.

 

[Sagebrush]

I put a batch of cut soap outside in the sun last year for a few hours to speed up the drying process. It was a layered half uncolored goatmilk and half paprika-colored beer soap, and I used EOs. The sun did not seem to affect the color or scent. But it was also a very dry day and they didn't have prolonged exposure to the sun. I wouldn't make a habit of it, but it worked for what I needed to do.

 

[btz]

Thanks for the info guys.

SageontheMountain, that's good to hear. I have a small batch of 100% sweet almond oil that still soft and slightly wet to the touch after a week of cure time. I will try sun-drying 1 or 2 bars tomorrow if the weather is cooperating.

 

[Sagebrush]

btz, a little sun might be just what your bars need to take that bit of moisture out. Hope it works for you

 

[Happysoap]

The reason I started this thread was because one of my soaps ended up on a heating vent. I left it there just to compare. Its been two weeks now and it seems to be fully cured. It stopped loosing weight. Its hard as a rock. There is some FO lost. And it lathers like a dream. The others from the same batch are still curing slowly on the table. I am rethinking my curing environment.

 

[btz]

I sun-dried my sweet almond oil soap for about 4 hours now, hot sun and windy day. It does dries up way more than the non sun-dried one. I might need to do this for another day or two to completely dried up the soap. I also sun-dried another bar than contain honey in it, because I do this outdoor, they attracted ants. Not much, but there are there. Most of them are in the honey one, but some wondered around on the sweet almond oil too. I wonder if there are still sugar left in the honey one. But the sweet almond one does not have a single sugar molecule in it, yet, there are ants on both. Curious and curiouser.

 

[Sagebrush]

btz, my husband is Russian and reads a lot of anecdotes. He told me one about a tourist who goes to a nearby store where a couple different kinds of soaps are being sold. He asks the cashier which is the better soap. And she says "the local soap...because the mice will eat it." Basically, saying that the local soap is made with good ingredients, but the mice won't eat the other soap because it's full of chemicals.

All that to say, I think that any critter is going to be attracted to our soaps because of the natural ingredients that are "edible" even though they should not be eaten.

 

[btz]

btz, my husband is Russian and reads a lot of anecdotes. He told me one about a tourist who goes to a nearby store where a couple different kinds of soaps are being sold. He asks the cashier which is the better soap. And she says "the local soap...because the mice will eat it." Basically, saying that the local soap is made with good ingredients, but the mice won't eat the other soap because it's full of chemicals.

All that to say, I think that any critter is going to be attracted to our soaps because of the natural ingredients that are "edible" even though they should not be eaten.

LOL, that's true I guess. I have hate-hate relationship with ants in my house though. They crawl through the AC vent and make a nest inside the unit. My sister's and brother's rooms have this problem, so when they turn on the AC, ants are flying down. True story. Super gross, but true. Had to call the AC's service guys to clean them.

They use my room as 'highway' to wherever it is they were going. Had to disinfect the floor with dettol to get rid of them. Twice. I don't mind them outside in the garden, just not inside the house.

 

[Susie]

MFFESSALWAMOMC finally said I had to move them. Curing soaps now reside under the bed, in a closet and in a bedroom corner with shoeboxes.

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Any possibility you could define MFFESSALWAMOMC?

 

[Dennis]

Any possibility you could define MFFESSALWAMOMC?

Sure.
Mysterious Far Far Eastern Sometimes Soaping Assistant Loving Wife And Mother Of My Children. :mrgreen:

 

[Sagebrush]

LOL, that's true I guess. I have hate-hate relationship with ants in my house though. They crawl through the AC vent and make a nest inside the unit. My sister's and brother's rooms have this problem, so when they turn on the AC, ants are flying down. True story. Super gross, but true. Had to call the AC's service guys to clean them.

They use my room as 'highway' to wherever it is they were going. Had to disinfect the floor with dettol to get rid of them. Twice. I don't mind them outside in the garden, just not inside the house.

btz, I guess every region and every season has a pest to go along with it, eh? The squirrels have been getting curious about my lye water cooling outside lately, but they'll be in for a big surprise if they get into it :/

Oh, and Dennis: that is a great acronym

 

[SparkyM]

http://soapequipment.com/trays/

Awesome system with the dolly. Not the cheapest solution but certainly one of the best if you're serious about product.

 

[tkine]

I store mine on a bakery rack also. I got it on Craigslist. I use cut down plastic coated closet shelving for shelves so I get good air circulation. On the very top rack I put a small fan that lays down on the rack. I put a time on the fan so it only comes on every 2 or three hours, when I set it. I will be velcro-ing plastic sheeting around 3 sides of it, to keep off as much dust as i can. I really like the setup.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

I have to update to say that my Lavender/Sandalwood soaps always cure in the bedroom, as The Admirable Lady loves the smell