Cracks on the top of my loafs

[country gal]

My very first question... I am so excited. I have made 6 batches so far and they have all come out very well. (setting my expectations low!!!!) They are pretty basic. I haven't dealt much with fragrances, just wanted to get the feel of soap first before opening myself to mishaps. I made a batch of GM soap poured it in my mold, did a little "icing spread" back and forth for a fancy top and after the gel stage it had a nice crack on the top. Today I made my own recipe and did a cocoa swirl and this too after the gel stage has a little crack in the top. It acts like it is drying out but I don't understand! I used aloe juice instead of water with a 33% discount and 6 % lye discount. So......... how come?
Thanks,
Jeanette

 

[Soapmaker Man]

My very first question... I am so excited. I have made 6 batches so far and they have all come out very well. (setting my expectations low!!!!) They are pretty basic. I haven't dealt much with fragrances, just wanted to get the feel of soap first before opening myself to mishaps. I made a batch of GM soap poured it in my mold, did a little "icing spread" back and forth for a fancy top and after the gel stage it had a nice crack on the top. Today I made my own recipe and did a cocoa swirl and this too after the gel stage has a little crack in the top. It acts like it is drying out but I don't understand! I used aloe juice instead of water with a 33% discount and 6 % lye discount. So......... how come?
Thanks,
Jeanette

Hi Jeanette! With GM your soap during saponification can really heat up. Milk soaps, soap with honey, and a few other ingredients can overheat and "volcano" and crack down the center. Next time, Only put a lid on for a shorter time, and do not insulate. In my TOG Molds, I leave the lid on the mold about 1 to 1-1/2 hours, then when in full gel, I remove the top and turn the fan on to cool.

I have exclusively made goats milk soap for 3 years now1 I love GM based soaps!

Paul :wink:

"With enough soap, you can blow up just about anything." --Fight Club

 

[Guest]

I have a heck of a time with this too. I have to cool my molds before I pour by popping them into the freezer for a bit - and then pop them in the fridge after the pour. I get a full gel even in the fridge. Go figure.

ETA - I do this for my milk soaps or any with honey in it.

 

[country gal]

Well that makes sense. The GM soap did get very hot. My husband(lover of woodworking!!) made me a mold and I just use two layers of cardboard to cover the top, then wrapped it in a towel. Next time I won't wrap and once it hits gel I will take the top off.
Thanks guys!!!!

 

[mandolyn]

My TOG molds heat up, too. I've finally gotten the cracking to stop by watching like a hawk, when almost full gel & before cracking, I stick it in the fridge. When it cools way down, so I barely feel any heat on the bottonm I take it out & let it complete.

 

[LaurieH]

I have only had 1 batch get the crack in the middle. I used TD to color the top layer white. I think I used too much and that was the reason, but I'm not for sure. It was the only thing different that I can think of. I have made 2 batches with GM, one I didnt insulate and left on the counter and it turned a dark beige. The other one I put in the freezer as soon as I poured it and it stayed creamy looking in color. So I'm gonna do the freezer from now on when I use GM.

LaurieH