Failed batch of soap

[Guest guest]

>>>>I left your soap formula below....

 

Couple things ring a bell here...nothing bad, just factors...

 

First, what temps are you mixing at? <<<<

 

I normally mix when both lye/water and fats are at around 100-125 F. This

time, though, I believe my fats were a bit warmer, and I'm starting to think

the lye was goofy, because it didn't get as hot as it usually does, I didn't

even have to ice bath it, which I always have to do (because I don't want to

wait for it to cool on its own) I believe my fats were probably around

30 degrees warmer than the lye mix, normally I have them pretty much the

same temp. I had put my pot in the sink with ice water, trying to cool it

quicker, maybe I was in too much of a rush.

 

>>>>Second, you mention percents for

the oils and amounts for the lye. Are you sure on your weights?<<<<

 

Yeah, I think I got that right, but maybe I did make a mistake, now I'll

never know!! It was a larger recipe than I normally do, so when I was

weighing the lye, it did go up higher in the container, and I was vaguely

aware of that but brushed it off realizing my recipe was larger.

 

 

>>>Please don't take offence at the question, <<<

 

Not at all!!!! I need the feedback!!

 

>>>>but lye heavy soap traces way

fast sometimes. Then, you have 65% solid oils in there. Not a problem,

I've done more...but, you have to know that this will affect how fast

trace can come, especially since you have a bit of a water discount for

the amount of lye you are using. Again, might not be a problem if you

are used to soaping that way, but combined with the amount of solid oils

in the recipe, it is gonna accelerate trace a little all by itself right

there.<<<<

 

I'm still a beginner at soap-making, just did my first batch about 5 months

ago, and I'm addicted in a MAJOR way, now!! I've not used that much

solid oil before. This was a new recipe for me. And I do use a bit less

water, because I've heard that can reduce the cure time by a week, or two.

I live in the Dallas area, and it's so *moist* here, not like Phoenix where

I came from, and I wonder if that slows down the water evaporation during

the cure?

 

>>>I don't know why your soap smelled of ammonia if you weren't using milk,

unless your temps were high to begin with...<<<

 

Well, now I've thought about this, and originally I did say I didn't use

milk, because I didn't. But as part of the water weight, I used a

" Hydrolyzed Milk Protein " product, which is a liquid. I didn't mention

that at first, because I weighed that out separate, and didn't mix the lye

into that, just the straight distilled water for the lye mix. When I use

the milk protein, that's how I do it. I add the water/lye to the fats

first, stir that in, then add the separate milk protein.

 

Thinking back to my procedure that day and what happened....I started slowly

adding the water/lye, before I even finished with that it started to thicken

really REALLY fast, before I added the milk protein. So then I started

adding the milk protein, hoping that would thin it a bit so I could at least

work with it. That must have been when the ammonia smell came. That,

combined with the super-fast trace freaked me out, and I figured I must have

done something terribly wrong. I wasn't aware of the connection between

milk product and ammonia smell, so thanks, everyone, who pointed that out to

me!

 

So I think you guys have solved the ammonia smell issue. And, now,

possibly the quick trace, as well. And maybe I incorrectly weighed the

lye. But let me tell you, it traced like immediately! I didn't know it

could do that. And it wasn't just a trace, it was like smooth mashed

potatoes. I would not have been able to pour it into the mold, rather I

would have had to scoop it.

 

>>>The good news, should be a nice soap, what little you saved ) And no,

7.25% shea is not too much IMO....<<<

 

Thank you, for this tremendously helpful feedback. I'm sad because I

threw it out, and wasted product, but this is the first one I've trashed, so

I guess that's not so bad. It was bound to happen, right? I've had a

couple completed batches that I wasn't too happy with the end product, so I

just grated those up and threw them in the washing machine. What I " ve

learned from this is invaluable!

Christy

 

 

 

 

Christy

 

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