Teach Soap

I do not think this is soda ash because it only starts the second I spray with alcohol. It starts with little white flecks and then spreads over the top and looks almost like a scale, within minutes. It doesn't do it all the time. Its happened 3 times so far and I'm sick of it. What is it? Is the soap too hot or wet to spray it? It also doesn't seem to come off with a steamer. I use the same recipe time after time so I'm not sure its that. What is causing this reaction? C ould it be certain fragrance oils? Thank you!!!

Which oils/butters did you use? Did you run the recipe through a lye calc? Did you superfat? Did you use a stick blender and reached a true trace? What type of alcohol are you using?

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

my recipe is 16 oz each of olive, coconut, palm oil. 2oz castor oil, 7.4 oz lye and 16 oz water. I used the stick blender and brought it to trace. I think the issue might be my alcohol which is 70%???

7.4 oz of lye is only a 3% superfat. You need to superfat more. I would do 7.1 ozs. of lye for a 7% superfat. 3% is not very skin friendly. I don't use alcohol on top of my soaps at all. Try it without and see.

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

Thank you soapbuddy! I found that recipe somewhere and it came highly recommended. I have gone back to the version in the everything soap book and brushed up on superfatting. I made a nice 2lb loaf today and did not spray the top, I was under the impression the alcohol would stop soda ash, but at this point I'd rather have that than the crust!!!!

Good luck on your next batch!

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