Rebatching questions

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Kittish

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So my very first batch of soap is probably going to get grated up and rebatched. As soap, it's fine. But it looks pretty bleh.

First question: how long can I wait before rebatching? Can I let the soap cure completely or wait even longer? Or should the rebatch be as soon as possible? I'd like to wait 3-4 months until I can manage another order of EOs. I've only got six to work with right now.

Second question: would adding a bit of ethyl alcohol help dissolve the soap and let me get smoother looking bars? Not looking to go the full MP route with it, just want a smoother final appearance.
 
Thanks! So... if I want to wait, I should grate the soap now, and just have it in, say, a cloth bag so it can continue to cure?

What I have in mind for the rebatch is add activated charcoal and make the soap black. It'll still have lighter speckles because of the ground orange peel, I think. Re-scent with something floral that will go well with whatever orange manages to stick.

I am kind of tempted to take part of it and experiment with using ethyl alcohol instead of water or milk.
 
First point -- ethyl alcohol will evaporate quickly in heated soap unless you take steps to contain it. Second point -- because the alcohol is highly volatile and has low viscosity, you are not likely to get the fluidity you are looking for. Third point -- consider carefully the very real hazard of working with a highly flammable ingredient. The risk is high, especially since you are a very new soaper.

Do you have some perspective or background information about rebatching with alcohol that you haven't mentioned so far? Or is this just a seat-of-the-pants experiment? The reason why I'm asking is that milk is a tried-and-true additive for rebatched soap and alcohol is most definitely not. It may be wise to try what works well for other soapers, at least the first time, and then you will have gained the perspective and experience from which to branch out and try other things.
 
DeeAnna- It was mostly a seat of the pants thought, since alcohol is one of the solvents used to make the MP type soaps.

I found this thread (which I'm linking here to make it easier for me to find again): http://www.soapmakingforum.com/showthread.php?t=61165&page=2

What I'm seeing is that yogurt is probably the way to go. Or even just plain water.
 
And dry milk powder works fine too, as lsg mentioned and I can confirm.

The thread you linked is about hot process, not about rebatching. But regardless, a soap made with a high water content, whether rebatch or HP, may look nice right after it is cut, but it will shrink and warp a lot during cure. In my experience, most rebatched soap is not any nicer looking than the original. Confetti soap is a better and easier way to recycle less-than-perfect soap.

I'd suggest you use this batch as-is if the only problem is the looks. Rather than fuss with a rebatch, make a new batch of soap to build your soaping skills. You'll learn more by evaluating the first soap during its cure and making new soap than you will gain by rebatching.
 
I'd suggest you use this batch as-is if the only problem is the looks. Rather than fuss with a rebatch, make a new batch of soap to build your soaping skills. You'll learn more by evaluating the first soap during its cure and making new soap than you will gain by rebatching.

I had a brainwave, and realize I can do it both ways. Let it cure as is, hold on to a bar or two to observe long term and use, and use my food processor to shred the rest after it's fully cured. That'll make short work of it even if the bars get really hard. That also makes it easy to watch for any development of DOS. I really don't like the color the batch has turned, and based on you folks' experience I don't expect the scent to hold is why I'm contemplating the rebatch. I dislike the color enough that I'm highly reluctant to use it as confetti.

As far as making new soap... oh I shall! I've got two recipes all planned out to try, already run through a lye calculator and printed out. My biggest problem is not going overboard and filling my curing rack too quickly. If I make a batch a week (or two to three smaller batches), then just about when the rack fills I'll be pulling the oldest soaps off to package and store.
 
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