Teach Soap

VERY new to cold process, and had a weird thing happen with my third batch. I used a Pringles can for a mold, and filled to about a half-inch to an inch from the top. Overnight under a towel, the soap expanded a little, and JUST overflowed the can. (I think it may have been held back by the can's cap, which I did put on. Not sure why I did...)

Is this normal? If it is, please reassure me that I'm not, indeed, doing it wrong. If it is not normal, what could I do to save face and look like I know what I'm doing?

Thanks for any words of wisdom!

Be well
-UF

I am too new myself to help, but in order for the experts to help, you need to list:

Your recipe
Temps you blended oils and lye; really important
Did you stick blend or hand mix?
What FO did you use, if any?

My newbie guess: you soaped too hot - the batter will "burp" over to release excess heat.

It got too hot or you soaped too hot or the fragrance made the soap heat up.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

I don't eat pringles, so don't know what their container is like. Is it lined with anything? I use drink mix containers all the time for guest soaps, but they are only hard plastic. As long as there is not metal or anything in the container, ditto what Soap Buddy said! This would also be why she often recommends placing your molds on newspaper.....just in case. No worries, live and learn!

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Remember, it's not just that we weather the storm, but how we dance in the rain.

Tammy

I used 80% olive , 15% coconut, 5% castor, and aimed for 3% superfat. If I remember the readings, I was at about 127 degrees on the lye, and about 115 on the oils when I combined. I put in the cedar and saffron FO from Brambleberry. I used a stick blender. Hours later, the Prinlges mold was still warm under the towel. I have not unmolded it yet to have a look at what's in the can.

Also, I poured some of the overage into a loaf mold. When I popped it out today, there was a dark band at the top (the bit closest to the air), and the bottom was a little more tan. It's not a drastic difference, though:



(BTW, welcome to my 'ugly soap'. Right now, I want to make something that isn't so pretty you can't bear to use it. I think I've mastered that!)

Wondering if the temperature could have caused this layer, as well?

As always, thanks for any advice/wisdom. I love that this is a learning experience. The day I stop learning, I don't want to even get out of bed.

Be well
-UF

That dark band is most likely where the soap went into a hot gel. That's only aesthetic.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

I kinda figured it must have been something of that ilk. I think it gives it a little character.

Be well
-UF

The difference in the soap and lye bath isn't enough that it would usually matter that much, but in a small container, like the pringles can, I am sure it did. The smaller the container, the greater the heat produced. Also, you mentioned that you had a blanket around it, and before you also mentioned that you put the lid on it. Doing both of those things would have also increased the heat generated. Usually, on such a small container, you only do one form of insulation, or watch it carefully and remove one or both if needed. Anyway, yep, overheating is likely what happened, so no worries.
As for the color variation, when soap only partially gels or has a hot gel in part of it and a less hot gel in the other parts this happens. Sometimes it looks like the rings of trees. It should be fine though, just allow it to cure and test it before you enjoy it!

_________________
Remember, it's not just that we weather the storm, but how we dance in the rain.

Tammy

Also, Cedar & Saffron does discolor, so you'll probably end up with tan colored bars.

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

I would bet this is from the Cedar & Saffron FO. Based on reviews, it can be a hard FO to work with - it accelerates and there is one report of oil separation after pour with it also. In addition to discoloring to a light tan.

The scent is amazing though, so I actually just bought 8 oz of this FO this week to play with. The reviews on it say that you just need to work quickly with it, but that it's manageable after you get used to how it behaves.

I'm looking forward to having it come out, because the scent is amazing, but not the learning process I'll undoubtedly go through with this FO to get it to work well in a batch.

If you're just starting, you may want to pick some fragrances that are extremely well behaved for a while so you take out this factor as you're learning. I've found that the fragrance oil I use is the #1 most important factor in how a batch of soap comes out.

Edit: oh - also column molds frequently have heating issues since you're really concentrating the heat with any vertical mold (heat rises, cold falls...). Using a horizontal mold with surface volume will help. So a shoe box or... where you aren't pouring as deep.

Thanks for the all the information and advice.

I knew about the discolouration from the cedar & saffron FO- which is why I didn't colour the batch in any other way. (I liked the idea of the earthtone imparted by the FO. I tend to like the more natural colours of things, instead of using strong dyes.)

I love the aroma it gives off, as well- so perhaps using a finicky FO like this one will be a good challenge and a good learning experience for me!

I guess the geometry of the mold is a big factor- being a thinner mold would suggest (by way of what I know of thermal mass and such...ah, physics!) that it would cool down faster...but the property of heat rising would most definitely make a difference! It will be interesting to see (when I unmold) whether the coloring is different from the bottom of the soap to the top.

Thanks again for all the info!

Be well
-UF

I've used Cedar & Saffron several times and never had a problem with it. It's a great scent and holds up really well.

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

I cant wait to see your pringle can soap. I have one and am planning to use it for my first batch of soap as well. So I will be watching this thread closely.

gabrielle: It's totally an experiment. I don't even know about the best way to unmold it yet. Not sure if it will contract enough to slide out, or if I need to cut the can and peel it off. I'd heard about using the cans as molds, and thought I'd give it a try- but neglected to post here to ask advice. Sort of short-sighted on my part, but it will be a good learning experience.

Worst case, I have to cut the can to get it off. Second worst-- I cut off the existing end, then trim away enough on the edge, that I have a disk I can use sort of as a plunger to push it out (like those 'push-up ice cream pops we knew-- and presumably loved-- during our childhood).

Be well
-UF

The great Pringles can experiment has revealed that......I probably shouldn't use Pringles cans again.

Seriously, though- I think heat was most definitely my issue, based on the following photo:



Starting from bottom up, you can see evidence of bubbling all along the interior of the can. From what I saw when I cut the can away, the plastic lining on the interior of the can separated from the rest of the can in a bubbling fashion. In about the top third, the soap appears to have drawn inward from the can. Not 100% sure of the cause, but I'd venture to say the outside cooled faster than the inside, and the expansion pushed lipid-like soap up the center, resulting in the crown on top, and sucking in the material in from the sides of the can near the top. (Think fluid dynamics here, for those of you close to the world of physics.)

I think I poured when it was still too warm. I'm still in the mode were I don't want to let it get too viscous (my first CP had to be stuffed into the molds like really sticky dough), and I over-compensated. Fortunately, this soap gone wrong only LOOKS ugly. It smells wonderful, and will most definitely be used around the house.

Be well
-UF