do rebatch soap need cure?
- Thread starter umeali
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From what I've read, if your soap is fresh, it will still need to cure but if you're rebatching an already cured soap (older than 6 weeks), you only need to wait for it to get hard enough to use.
I would think it does need a cure. After all, you're taking a well rested/structured bar, destroying it essentially, adding liquid and reforming it. That's got to have some impact.
It depends on the age of the soap you are rebatching. But even if you are rebatching 6 week old soap, it will still need additional time to lose moisture. There is just no escaping cure time.
Curing is for two things, is it not? One, to give time for complete saponification and, two, for the moisture to evaporate and all the chemical stuff to happen. If you're rebatching an already cured soap, yes, you need time to allow all the added moisture (in my case, about two oz. of goat milk soap) to evaporate but the soap itself is already soap.
My husband is so not for rebatching. His attitude is that if I do it right the first time, there should be no need for rebatching. Thanks dear, that's so helpful when you have two batches out of 40+ that didn't quite turn out the way you expected.
My husband is so not for rebatching. His attitude is that if I do it right the first time, there should be no need for rebatching. Thanks dear, that's so helpful when you have two batches out of 40+ that didn't quite turn out the way you expected.
I refuse to do another rebatch. I just can't stand the appearance or the whole process. If I have a batch that has only cosmetic issues, I use it as confetti for another batch. If it has a lye issue, I toss it. Life is too short to rebatch.
Curing is not about saponification. It might still be happening after the soap is cut and left to cure, but not always. That is what HP also needs a cure.
Curing is for the structure to settle and the moisture to drop. But a good example is a Castile - saponification and water evaporation is finished after a couple of months, but the difference between a 2 month old and a 12 month old Castile is striking
Curing is for the structure to settle and the moisture to drop. But a good example is a Castile - saponification and water evaporation is finished after a couple of months, but the difference between a 2 month old and a 12 month old Castile is striking
I realize that, TEG, (I have some 4 month old Castile that I'm starting to like very much) but in my case, the soap has cured, there was nothing wrong with it. It's actually a lovely soap, my first attempt at the hidden feather swirl, made in the beginning of October. It just thickened far too quickly to do the swirl. It is fully cured, just ugly. During the rebatch, I added a little goat milk. After three hours, it was hard enough to unmold (individual silicone molds). I'll leave it for a couple of weeks before using it but now, 12 hours later, it's pretty hard. I can't believe I would have to let it cure for another 4-6 weeks. After all, I'm not making it from scratch.
If the soap was cured 4-6 weeks previously, then it is cured. However, I would never have added GM to a rebatch. You don't have exposure to lye to prevent spoilage. I would have just used water. You will still need time for the moisture to evaporate, however long that takes.
Didn't think of that, Susie. We'll see what happens. If it turns out that the soap becomes unusable, that's fine. We probably wouldn't have used it anyway, except as confetti in a different base.
As it is, it will most likely be used as a kitchen soap, which means it will be used up fairly quickly.
As it is, it will most likely be used as a kitchen soap, which means it will be used up fairly quickly.
