lye tank effect on soap?

Soapmaking Forum

Help Support Soapmaking Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

jkleiner

Member
Joined
Mar 8, 2016
Messages
5
Reaction score
0
hey everyone.. So I went and got myself a new lye tank and some oil melters. It was all VERY exciting.. except I am finding my end soap result 'off' from what it used to be! I am using all of the same recipes, oils and additives that I did before.. mixing at relatively the same temp (I have never been overly picky about temps, as long as the were between 85-115F and both were around the same). The soap is taking FOREVER to reach a heavy trace.. which I need because I like doing whipped up tops.. the colour of the soap is different (a bit darker, and murkier) AND Im finding the edges of the soap a bit crumbly after it's been cut. It is driving me CRAZY!! I was so excited about all my new equipment..I am thinking it must be Lye related.. could my lye tank be too lye heavy? Im thinking maybe too much water evaporated while I was making my lye solution?
OH and I used to cut my soap after 24 hours, but my new soap cutter is having a hard time cutting it when it is hard so I have been cutting it a lot earlier (like 8 hours after pouring) could this also be effecting something? it's hard enough, but still warm when cutting.
SORRY THIS IS SO LONG!! but if anyone has any ideas, or experience I would GREATLY appreciate it!!
 
If you think your lye is more concentrated than you expect, have you zap tested your soap to see if it's lye heavy? That would be a good thing to know.
 
hey everyone.. So I went and got myself a new lye tank and some oil melters. It was all VERY exciting.. except I am finding my end soap result 'off' from what it used to be! I am using all of the same recipes, oils and additives that I did before.. mixing at relatively the same temp (I have never been overly picky about temps, as long as the were between 85-115F and both were around the same). The soap is taking FOREVER to reach a heavy trace.. which I need because I like doing whipped up tops.. the colour of the soap is different (a bit darker, and murkier) AND Im finding the edges of the soap a bit crumbly after it's been cut. It is driving me CRAZY!! I was so excited about all my new equipment..I am thinking it must be Lye related.. could my lye tank be too lye heavy? Im thinking maybe too much water evaporated while I was making my lye solution?
OH and I used to cut my soap after 24 hours, but my new soap cutter is having a hard time cutting it when it is hard so I have been cutting it a lot earlier (like 8 hours after pouring) could this also be effecting something? it's hard enough, but still warm when cutting.
SORRY THIS IS SO LONG!! but if anyone has any ideas, or experience I would GREATLY appreciate it!!

You may be overestimating our powers of clairvoyance. Best bet would be to throw more details at us. When you say the same oils and additives, what are they? Especially the additives. Did you start using ROE by any chance? Are you using sodium lactate? Measuring either of those incorrectly could contribute to the symptoms you describe. What equipment are you using and what is your old process / new process?
 
Back
Top