Teach Soap

Just curious ... I know BB says the ideal temp to pour M&P for layers and embeds and whatnot is 120-130, but I find that even at 120 degrees I still sometimes have problems with things melting a tiny bit. Sometimes I'll get those dreaded wispy, tendril-y melt lines that seep up into the overpour.

I'm obsessive about timing and temperature and constantly taking temps on my base. I find that pouring slightly cooler, like maybe 115, eliminates a lot of the meltiness. I always worry, though, that that's too cool, but it's not that much cooler. I haven't had a bar fall apart on me yet, knock on wood.

So, just wondering ... do you guys pour at 120-130, or a bit cooler? How cool can you go for layering and embedding? Am I doing something wrong? Is my thermometer off? Am I just a weirdo?

Thanks!

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- Jenny -
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I have poured at 115 before.... I have poured lower before too.... for certain projects...

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Deb.....


If you blow in a dogs face he gets mad....take him for a car ride ..and he sticks his head out the window....

i usually do pour at 120, but i have poured kewler for certain projects.

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~Shell

Jrose729 - you are just a weirdo - just kidding but you did ask

I have an old thermometer (and need to get a new one) that starts it's marks at 140 so I know that is in the danger zone -- I wait for it to cool and now I've make a tiny mark on it where I like it too be when pouring the next layer. Is it at 115? I don't know but I don't think it is 130 or even 125. I also feel the cup and sense if it is too warm along with the termomerter and wait it out a bit. Sometimes if I've waited too long the glycerin gets a little thick I just reburst for 5-10 seconds and it's good to go.

As you've described - I've gotten those tendril-y lines on occasion but I just think the more we do this the better we get at it without have to check the thermometer so much - maybe it also matters what the base ? veg, olive oil, shea butter, goats milk - maybe they all act differently even by 1 degree?

I say if it's working for you - then you are doing it just right. don't change your approach!
Hilary

p.s. I think I became your first blog follower - whoo hoo!

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http://www.asliceofdelight.etsy.com

Thanks, everybody, for the replies. Just something I've wondered about. I thought maybe I was just having this bizarre problem that nobody else has (it happens more often than you'd think ). Maybe everyone is happily pouring away at 130, and meanwhile I'm melting everything. Then I thought maybe my thermometer is wonky (and it may be). It's one of those instant-reads with the stick and the sundial face -- it's fairly new.

I experimented last week and actually tried pouring things at around 120, and it just didn't work out so great. Embeds were melty and layers were tendril-y. And I thought, "Well, I don't know." Pouring slightly cooler helped with the melties, but I worried about being out of the "ideal" range.

In the old days when I first started soaping, I didn't even have a thermometer. I just went by feel, like asliceofdelight says. And it was fine. Hmmm ... Funny how sometimes you can not obsess and the world doesn't implode.

And, yeah, for different bases, I've wondered, too if they set up at different rates. I usually stick to regular clear and regular white for layering for that reason, but I did a goat's milk double-pour yesterday and it seemed like the GM set up faster and got tacky and viscous-y very quickly. It's like it went from liquid to gel in no time flat. Maybe it's just me being a weirdo again (I do that).

And, thanks, asliceofdelight, for becoming my first blog follower! That's awesome. Wally the Wonder Turtle and I were so excited!

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- Jenny -
My soapy blog:
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