HP is crumbly

[Southern Bell]

:? I've been makin CP for 5 months now & made my 1st batch of HP today. The soap is still in the mold, but the top looks all crumbly. What did I do wrong? I tried to allow it to cool some, as my FO's flashpoint was 162 degrees. Did I let it cool too much?

 

[nursenancy]

Crumbly usually means it overheated, I think.

 

[Southern Bell]

I'm tryin to post a pic of my 'crumbly' HP soap...

 

[meadowyck]

It might also mean no enough liquid.

May folks who go from cp to hp don't take into account that while hping you need to not reduce the liquid. hp soap needs all the liquid and in my case I have found that I add more liquid than called for.... but that is because I like my hp soap to pour like cp....

 

[Maria]

You don't need to wait for it to cool. If you are concerned that some of the scent will burn off from the heat, just add a little more. I have a couple of citrus scents that smoke a little when they hit 200 degree soap.
Waiting too long may have caused that but also cooking too long may be the reason. I find cooking it fast at a higher heat works better than slow cooking at a lower heat. This way the soap is fluid enough to easily flattened in the tray mold without needing too much water which will increase the drying time and possibly cause unattractive shrinkage.

 

[naturesphilosophy]

wow. i haven't posted in forever on here! i was using my bf's laptop for the longest time and just lurked around in here, but didn't post anything. so hi, i'm back. i haven't had the crumbly problem with my HP soaps, but I've been using 38% water. I just wanted to know if anyone does less than that with success. I've done 4 HP batches so far and they seem to take a loooong time to firm up with 38% and I want to try 33, but I don't want to do it if people have had mostly bad experiences with it.

 

[xyxoxy]

I use a 33% lye solution which is 2 parts liquid to 1 part lye. I wonder if you really mean 38% water?

Still 33% lye solution is less water than some people use. And I do this with CP and HP successfully. In fact I just did an HP batch this way last night. I included 1% Sodium Lactate, kept the temp under 200 degrees, and it stayed pretty smooth and went into the mold easily.

I'm sure it is possible to overcook HP but crumbly soap to me also suggests the possibility of a recipe issue. Too much TD? Miscalculated lye?

 

[naturesphilosophy]

I'm sorry. It was late. I did mean 38% water as part of oils, not 38% lye solution. I haven't ever figured it by lye solution. Maybe I should start.

 

[xyxoxy]

I use a pre-mixed 50/50 lye solution and then add one more part liquid when I make the soap. The result is a 33% solution.

In almost every case this works out very well for me. But if I'm being totally honest I do it this way mostly because the math is just SO much easier and I only have to mix fresh lye a few times per year instead of with each batch.

I think some people use an even higher lye concentration (less liquid) hoping for a faster cure time. I've personally never seen the need for that.

 

[nursenancy]

I use a pre-mixed 50/50 lye solution and then add one more part liquid when I make the soap. The result is a 33% solution

I love this idea. I am going to try it.

 

[krissy]

HP tops almost always look crumbly and lumpy. your soap is probably ok and you may make it worse by trying to rebatch it. simply cut the tops off once your soap has cooled.

 

[Southern Bell]

No, I'm afraid it was crumbly throughout & I was unable to cut it because it fell apart. I am tryin to rebatch it now...keepin my fingers crossed!
And, I know the recipe was fine. I made it several times in CP.

 

[Southern Bell]

here's a pic of my 'crumbly' HP...
http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/4766/hpsoap.jpg