My soap’s are turning out gritty.

[tblonde1]

hi There! I’m pretty new to soap making but have a good year and many good batches, until lately. I am wondering if anyone has come across this problem.-My soap appears to cure nicely, cut and cured! Yay, ready to use... but then to discover the bar feels gritty- like it has grains of sand in it. What the heck? It is happening with different recipes too. I tend to soap at lower temps 80 to 90 f. I never had this happen before. :-(

 

[BattleGnome]

What basic ingredients are you using? Are they all the same with different proportions or everything different? How big are your batches?

It sounds to me like you’re soaping too cool and some of the fatty acids are solidifying before others. I’d say try soaping a bit hotter, around 100F to make sure your oils are completely liquid.

 

[lsg]

I agree with BattleGnome, we need to know the basic ingredients that you are using in each batch. Are you including titanium dioxide or any ingredient that is not completely dissolved before being added to the soap?

 

[earlene]

Yes to the above. Some hard oils get gritty when overheated. But really more information is needed.

 

[tblonde1]

The recipes are 2.5lb batches- include the following:1. Olive,Palm,Shea,Coconut,castor, 1tspclay(for color) & 1TBS Kaolin clay,sodium lactate& FO (2.2:1 ratio)
2.Palm,coconut,olive,almond, shea,meadowfoam,clay &kaolin clay,mica&FO

Coincidentally, I recently purchased a bar of apple soap while visiting Julian,CA and that bar too was grainy -like sand. I am certain that it was not suppose to be.LOL. It did not have the ingredients listed ( just a barrel full of soaps) but I am wondering if they used clay? That is the only thing I can think...or maybe the water that is being sold as distilled actually is not? Something is calcifying. it is strange though since I have used clay before, as well as soaped at room temp. and not had this issue. hmmmmm? I just made another batch last night but have to wait it out to see if this too will be the dreaded non-intentional exfoliating bar of soap.

I should also mention that the clay was dissolved prior to adding in one batch but not dissolved in the second batch, I just added it to the oils...I was feeling lazy that day. ;-/

What basic ingredients are you using? Are they all the same with different proportions or everything different? How big are your batches?

It sounds to me like you’re soaping too cool and some of the fatty acids are solidifying before others. I’d say try soaping a bit hotter, around 100F to make sure your oils are completely liquid.

I replied on the thread...sorry did not realize there was a reply button on each comment. When you have time I would appreciate your thoughts. Thank you so much for your time.

 

[Relle]

Percentages of your oils would be a good idea if you want people to trouble shoot.

 

[msunnerstood]

Ive found some green clay to be gritty in soap even when making a slip before adding it in. The shea might also be the culprit.

 

[lenarenee]

The recipes are 2.5lb batches- include the following:1. Olive,Palm,Shea,Coconut,castor, 1tspclay(for color) & 1TBS Kaolin clay,sodium lactate& FO (2.2:1 ratio)
2.Palm,coconut,olive,almond, shea,meadowfoam,clay &kaolin clay,mica&FO

Coincidentally, I recently purchased a bar of apple soap while visiting Julian,CA and that bar too was grainy -like sand. I am certain that it was not suppose to be.LOL. It did not have the ingredients listed ( just a barrel full of soaps) but I am wondering if they used clay? That is the only thing I can think...or maybe the water that is being sold as distilled actually is not? Something is calcifying. it is strange though since I have used clay before, as well as soaped at room temp. and not had this issue. hmmmmm? I just made another batch last night but have to wait it out to see if this too will be the dreaded non-intentional exfoliating bar of soap.

I should also mention that the clay was dissolved prior to adding in one batch but not dissolved in the second batch, I just added it to the oils...I was feeling lazy that day. ;-/


I replied on the thread...sorry did not realize there was a reply button on each comment. When you have time I would appreciate your thoughts. Thank you so much for your time.

Hi Neighbor! You're in my neck of the woods! The soap you bought in Julian, was it from the Julian Soap Shop, or was it from a general tourist type store?

 

[tblonde1]

Hi Neighbor! You're in my neck of the woods! The soap you bought in Julian, was it from the Julian Soap Shop, or was it from a general tourist type store?

I do not remember the name of the store. It is on the road leading into the town. It’s on the left side. They have a sign out front telling people the name of the cat. They sell antiques and also have cookies and muffins. Sorry, I cannot remember the store name... but i know how to get there! Ha ha!

 

[lenarenee]

Okay - that's not the Julian Soap Shop. Michelin's shop is in town on the main street and filled with only soap, pot pourri, salves, candles. I would have been shocked had that been her bar of soap and she would have wanted you to report any problem you had with her product.

It's so odd that your soap, and the one you bought have the same issue, but it doesn't mean it's caused by the same thing. (but it almost made me want to blame your water!) Does the grit show up in pictures?

 

[tblonde1]

Ive found some green clay to be gritty in soap even when making a slip before adding it in. The shea might also be the culprit.

Thank you, I will definitely keep clear notes! Maybe I will try the same recipes without clay. I will let you know.

Ive found some green clay to be gritty in soap even when making a slip before adding it in. The shea might also be the culprit.

thank you for your comment.

 

[tblonde1]

Okay - that's not the Julian Soap Shop. Michelin's shop is in town on the main street and filled with only soap, pot pourri, salves, candles. I would have been shocked had that been her bar of soap and she would have wanted you to report any problem you had with her product.

It's so odd that your soap, and the one you bought have the same issue, but it doesn't mean it's caused by the same thing. (but it almost made me want to blame your water!) Does the grit show up in pictures?

I will take a picture and post - if it shows... it is not like a bar full of sand but more like sprinkles of sand. The bar I bought in Julian was very sandy. I no longer have that bar however. The grains look simular to table salt. Also simular to the lye grains, But my lye solution was mixed thourally and super clear.

 

[earlene]

Shea butter can become gritty, too.

https://www.fromnaturewithlove.com/library/sheabutter.asp

https://bettersheabutter.com/grainy-shea-butter-heres-fix/

 

[DeeAnna]

You say you soap at 80-90 F. Lower temps while soaping can cause grittiness. It's not the only reason for soap being gritty, but it's certainly something to think about. My preference is to have my starting batter temp about 95-105 F when soaping with solid fats, especially ones high in stearic and palmitic acids. I want the fats to be just warm enough to be fully melted and clear. I don't think you're going to see that if your soap batter is at 80-90 F.

My soap has also been gritty when I didn't properly hydrate dry milk powder before adding it to the soap batter.