Difference between false trace and true one?

[mechanolatry]

Hi, I was wondering if someone could help me figure out the difference between a false trace and when soap really comes to trace?
I'm sorry if this has been covered before, I tried to search but maybe my search-skills are lacking the proper wording? Someone in the forum said when they get a false trace, it looks grainy, but mine didn't. That was all I could really find about the difference.

I believe I had a false trace when I poured the soap, which is why there's such a difference in the top vs. the bottom. After I let it sit for a few hours, I noticed the top was still very oily. I popped it in the oven, and did the CPOP thing, and the next morning it looked like this. It was very, very soft when I unmolded it, but it's firmed up in the past week. Maybe I could shred it up for my personal laundry detergent? There is no lye reaction, so I believe it fully saponified? The soap photos are below. The red on top was colored soap, BTW. And the white and yellowish parts are supposed to be the same soap, no added color or anything. The soap ingredients: distilled water, the same lye I always use, no added fragrance. Just olive, coconut and palm oil. 5% superfatting. No issues with the oils, they are still fresh, and I've used them before. I soaped at a bit higher than room temp. so my oils would fully melt. Maybe I didn't soap at a high enough temperature.

A bit of background- I still consider myself very much a newbie but I have made over a dozen successful CP batches so far. I've never had a false trace before, but I have dealt with ricing, and accelerating FO's. This was my first irreversible disaster. :? I hate wasting soap materials!

 

[lsg]

False trace is when the reaction temperature drops low enough to let the solid fats to solidify before they saponify. If you are stick blending the mixture may look thick but the mixture may separate or turn back into liquid when hand stirred.

 

[mechanolatry]

Is there anything else that would tip me off as to if my soap is actually at trace or not?

 

[AlchemyandAshes]

Your pictures don't look like false trace to me...are you sure it isn't lye heavy? It looks crumbly on the bottom and looks like it may have overheated. Could you share your recipe to give us a better idea as to what may have happened? Some fragrance oils and quick temperature changes can cause oiliness and a weird texture on soap. I have one recipe that always seems to be oily on top (not a layer of oil, just oily looking) when I unmold, but it reabsorbs during cure and is fine.

To avoid false trace, I like to alternate between stick blending and hand whisking. The only time I've gotten false trace, it separated in the mold. Sometimes lots of stick blending will make your emulsion thicken up quickly, but if you leave it for a few seconds, it will start to thin back down. Soaping at cooler temps can be a little tricky too if you aren't experienced with it because hard oils and butters may start resolidifying and cause a false trace. How heavy of a trace you want depends on how you want you soap to look and your mold. If you want smooth tops or swirls, I'd suggest pouring at a thinner trace. If you want textured tops, you want a thicker trace. Make sure you're tamping your mold after pour to release air bubbles. That could possibly cause the cratered look on the bottom of your soap.

Try making a small, simple, plain recipe (like 50% Olive, 25% Coconut, 25% Palm-38% Water-5% Superfat-Soap at 110 degrees) and alternate your stick blending and whisking. When it looks like thin pudding, let it sit for a few minutes. If it doesn't separate, pour it. I wouldn't suggest this experiment with a fragrance oil just in case it starts to accelerate/seize while you're waiting to see if it separates.

 

[lsg]

Or your soap could have been so thick when you put it in the mold that it didn't pack down and left air bubbles.

 

[AlchemyandAshes]

Or your soap could have been so thick when you put it in the mold that it didn't pack down and left air bubbles.

Make sure you're tamping your mold after pour to release air bubbles. That could possibly cause the cratered look on the bottom of your soap.

Great minds think alike! :wink:

 

[Hazel]

Since you already got advice, I'm just going to say the skull soap is really cool! Where did you get the mold?

 

[mechanolatry]

Thanks Hazel! I found it at the Dollar Tree.

 

[Hazel]

Thank you! I'll have to look for one.