Help.....My soap is still cracking!

[country gal]

I am watching it like a hawk. As soon as the temps started to rise I took the covering off. Also put it on a cooling rack.
It still kept cracking so I took the mold apart to get more air around it.

Is it my mold. Maybe not enough area on top. It is made of a type of mdf wood not a pine. It is 3 1/2" W x 10" L x 2 1/2" D and holds two pounds.

This is my third batch of trying to get it to not crack, I have now run out of supplies! : (

I just don't get it, what do you think is going wrong? do I need a new mold?
I will try to post a pic. I have no clue how to do that!!!

Thanks,
Jeanette

 

[Val]

Sorry your having such issues Country gal. Can you tell us your recipe and how warm it is when you combine the oil and Lye, pour into mold etc. I can't imagine it being the mold but I could be wrong.


Edit: I just found your other thread..... seems it is getting too hot and from what I think of the wood used it may be possible that is it. Is it multi-layered, glued together and somewhat varnished looking? If so you need to go to untreated pine.

Val

 

[country gal]

I tried posting a pic, but still didn't get it to work.

The temps were 90 -95 for both when I mixed the lye and oils.
my recipe is

co
crisco
shea
olive
canola
castor
33% , 5% superfat
I use aloe juice instead of water.

 

[Val]

To post a pic you have to have it hosted on the internet somewhere like photo-bucket or Image shack. Do you have it uploaded to an image host? If not try that first.

Val

 

[country gal]

Phew!! There it is. You can also see the back side of the mold. It is about 1/2" thick.

If you think it is the mold, I will get my DH right on a new one out of pine!!

 

[heyjude]

Just wanted to add...I love your swirls on the top!!

Jude

 

[heartsong]

x

imho, it's definitely a heat issue.

sorry you are having so much drama making soap! :roll:

btw, that's really pretty soap.

 

[krissy]

in a book i was reading it says the cracking can be caused by stirring to much. i havent had this problem *yet* so i don't know.

the book was called soap making for fun and proffit or something similar to that.

 

[country gal]

Krissy,
This is my first swirl of the entire soap, but I have been swirling or icing the very top since I got this mold.

How then do you swirl the top and not crack and still gel? UGH!!

Or don't you!!!!!

Edit: I thought you said swirling too much, but you said stirring too much. Stirring too much at what point, when it is in the mold?

 

[soapbuddy]

As soon as you pour, I would put the soap in the fridge. Soap does not need to gel to become good soap.

 

[heartsong]

x

i make some room temp c/p and i chill my lye and oils. in my 18 " hdpe log molds the soap barely gets to bathwater temp. (i cover with a towel)

the soap is a little softer, so it has to sit a few days before cutting. i soap 40% (lye x 1.5 = water)

i do this for delicate fragrances that i don't want burned off because of high temp of gelling.

 

[Guest]

I would think it was a heat issue too . It looks orange in places like GM or CM does when the lye cooks it , does aloe turn colors in the lye , I haven't tried aloe out yet.

Kitn

 

[country gal]

kitn,

I used turmeric to color some of the batter. I was making sunflower scented soap, and thought I would try the spice to color and try swirling!!
Aloe doesn't look any different then when I use water. My aloe is clear.

Thanks

 

[soapbuddy]

Here's a thought...some spice oils tend to heat up the soap batch, making it more likely to overheat.