Soap very soft, not sure why?

[SoapBird]

Hi! I'm new to this forum! I make soap for my family and as gifts from time to time. I recently made a batch and it is so soft that I can't remove it from the molds (been about three days now). I don't know why it came out so soft, normally it's not like this. I added the lye to the water a few days before I made soap, so that it cooled down to room temperature (I used distilled water). Then I added the oils and lye water, mixed to early trace, poured into molds, and now it's so soft I can't remove from the molds. I've made this batch before and never had this happen, but I also never allowed the lye water to cool first, normally I make the lye water while I mix the oils and then I mix everything (this always caused soap to trace faster than I wanted so I switched to making the lye water a few days early so it would be fully cooled).

Here is my recipe (all oz are by weight):

Olive Oil: 18.04 oz
Coconut Oil: 10.21 oz
Laurel Oil: 5.78 oz
Lemongrass Essential Oil: 0.96 oz
NaOH: 4.73 oz
KOH: .39 oz
Water: 7.67 oz

I mixed the NaOH, KOH, and Water a few days early, then I put them away. However I made a big batch of the lye water, and when I measured it out, I poured 12.79 oz by weight (I thought this should be correct because the lye is dissolved in the water, so the weight of adding all three ingredients should have the correct percent of NaOH and KOH in it? -- but I never did it this way before, normally I just mix the amount for the batch).

Also I ended up with a lot more soap than usual. Normally it fills just one mold but this time I had to grab a second mold and fill some of it. I've never had this happen either, normally the total amount of soap at the end matches the mold, which also has me confused.

I'm worried that by pre-mixing a large batch of lye water I did something wrong to the recipe, but I don't know what it could have been. I wanted to see what the soap calculator here said about the batch, but it doesn't allow you to simply put ingredients in by ounce (including lyes and water) and it doesn't have lemongrass, so I couldn't check it.

Does anyone know why my batch is so soft? I'm not sure if it's going to be usable, if it will harden or not. I've done this recipe before and never had this problem, so I'm very confused.

 

[AliOop]

First, are you sure you mixed the MB dual-lye solution at the exact same ratio called for in the recipe you posted? If so, then measuring out the combined weights for your MB solution should work. However, I personally would have used the dual-lye, MB lye options in SoapmakingFriend to ensure that I didn't make an error.

Second, did you cover your lye solution very tightly after making it? If not, when the NaOH and KOH come in contact with air, they become sodium carbonate and potassium carbonate, respectively. This makes your solution weaker, which could definitely leave you with softer soap (due to higher superfat).

 

[SoapBird]

First, are you sure you mixed the MB dual-lye solution at the exact same ratio called for in the recipe you posted? If so, then measuring out the combined weights for your MB solution should work. However, I personally would have used the dual-lye, MB lye options in SoapmakingFriend to ensure that I didn't make an error.

Second, did you cover your lye solution very tightly after making it? If not, when the NaOH and KOH come in contact with air, they become sodium carbonate and potassium carbonate, respectively. This makes your solution weaker, which could definitely leave you with softer soap (due to higher superfat).

I thought that I measured the solution out carefully, but I guess it's possible that I messed it up. It's frustrating that I can't really be sure one way or the other.

For the container, I put it in an airtight container, but the container was only about 1/3 full (it was a big plastic jug) so I don't know if it could have reacted with the air in the jug? I don't see any signed of reaction but I also wouldn't know what to look for, this was my first time pre-mixing the lye water and I'm not sure I'll ever do it again.

 

[AliOop]

Honestly, I only use premixed (masterbatched) lye solution, and I don't have any trouble with it at all, even after it has been sitting for several months. Since yours was in an airtight jug, that doesn't sound like the problem.

Given that you also ended up needing to fill a second container, it sounds like you mis-measured one of the oils and ended up with more oil than you should have. If your scale has batteries, that can cause false measurements when the batteries get weak or start to fail.

One more possibility: sometimes high-OO soaps can take a long time to firm up, too. Try covering the molds and putting them on a heating pad, turned on high, for a couple of hours. As they cool off, see if they harden up a bit.

 

[SoapBird]

Honestly, I only use premixed (masterbatched) lye solution, and I don't have any trouble with it at all, even after it has been sitting for several months. Since yours was in an airtight jug, that doesn't sound like the problem.

Given that you also ended up needing to fill a second container, it sounds like you mis-measured one of the oils and ended up with more oil than you should have. If your scale has batteries, that can cause false measurements when the batteries get weak or start to fail.

One more possibility: sometimes high-OO soaps can take a long time to firm up, too. Try covering the molds and putting them on a heating pad, turned on high, for a couple of hours. As they cool off, see if they harden up a bit.

Thank you for this advice. Is this because the saponification is sped up by the heat, or because the water is evaporated out more quickly? I don't have a heating pad but I could stick them in the oven on low heat (the mold is silicone).

 

[AliOop]

Thank you for this advice. Is this because the saponification is sped up by the heat, or because the water is evaporated out more quickly? I don't have a heating pad but I could stick them in the oven on low heat (the mold is silicone).

Yes, heat speeds up saponification, so the soap will generally firm up faster, especially if it goes through gel phase. Of course, that won't help much if the problem is too many oils, but if it is just moving slowly, then the Cold Process Oven Process (CPOP) method will help.

If you decide to use the oven, turn it on to its lowest setting, but don't put the soap in it yet. When it reaches the lowest temp, usually 175ºF in the US, TURN THE OVEN OFF. This is very important! You don't want to cook your soap or ruin your mold.

Now you can put the soap into the pre-warmed-but-turned-off oven. You can leave the oven light on for extra warmth. Put a note on the stove so no one turns it on accidentally while your soap is in there. Give it a good 12 hours and then see whether it has firmed up.

 

[SoapBird]

Yes, heat speeds up saponification, so the soap will generally firm up faster, especially if it goes through gel phase. Of course, that won't help much if the problem is too many oils, but if it is just moving slowly, then the Cold Process Oven Process (CPOP) method will help.

If you decide to use the oven, turn it on to its lowest setting, but don't put the soap in it yet. When it reaches the lowest temp, usually 175ºF in the US, TURN THE OVEN OFF. This is very important! You don't want to cook your soap or ruin your mold.

Now you can put the soap into the pre-warmed-but-turned-off oven. You can leave the oven light on for extra warmth. Put a note on the stove so no one turns it on accidentally while your soap is in there. Give it a good 12 hours and then see whether it has firmed up.

I will try this now. Thank you for the advice!

 

[GracieRose]

Let us know if this worked for you.