Individual bar molds

[Ruthiemae]

Does soap set faster in individual bar molds?

 

[Kiti Williams]

I would tend to say yes, but you need to insulate it very well to keep the heat in. I have no problems with soap setting and ready to cure at 12 to 36 hours. My molds sit on a 1" piece of foam board under a towel, and I made a box of foam board that goes over them. I guess I have happy soap from this, because mine set up quickly and are nice and solid.

 

[IrishLass]

It depends.....if you don't insulate to keep the heat in as Kiti mentioned above (which will encourage the soap to go through the gel stage, which in turn makes your soap harden faster), the soap in an individual bar mold will be more fragile at first and be difficult to unmold (because it's in an un-gelled state). The same is true of soap in a log or a slab mold. Gelling or not gelling is they key to making a soap set up faster. Gelling in a slab or log mold takes less insulation than an individual mold because larger masses of soap are able to retain heat better, while soap in an individual mold will need more insulation because the mass is so small that it looses heat pretty fast, which discourages gel.


IrishLass

 

[Ruthiemae]

Thanks. Do you have to get yoir soaps? Or is that just something that makes your soap harden faster?

 

[IrishLass]

You don't have to gel your soaps if you don't want to. Your soap will harden and cure just as nicely as gelled soap, but it will take longer to do so.


IrishLass

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

I would tend to say yes, but you need to insulate it very well to keep the heat in. I have no problems with soap setting and ready to cure at 12 to 36 hours. My molds sit on a 1" piece of foam board under a towel, and I made a box of foam board that goes over them. I guess I have happy soap from this, because mine set up quickly and are nice and solid.

my individual molds don't gel--I need to try this. but do you use silicone individuals or plastic? I have both but I am wondering how the plastic ones stand up to the temps from gelling? I know my plastics that I have put top shelf dishwasher have all warped

 

[Kiti Williams]

my individual molds don't gel--I need to try this. but do you use silicone individuals or plastic? I have both but I am wondering how the plastic ones stand up to the temps from gelling? I know my plastics that I have put top shelf dishwasher have all warped

I use silicone, it pops the soap out much easier that the plastic ones. I bought most of mine on Amazon.

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

yes I agree silicone ones pop out but I still have some special shaped plastics and if I throw them in the freezer for a bit them come out real easy too.

 

[Kiti Williams]

yes I agree silicone ones pop out but I still have some special shaped plastics and if I throw them in the freezer for a bit them come out real easy too.

Ohh! That is a great idea!

 

[Obsidian]

I don't gel my individual mold either. They do take a bit longer to set up but I'm ok with that.
If I was consistently pressed for time, I would just get more molds.