new shop ...no oven for CPOP...tips making a heat box

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sunnyone

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so...I am opening a brick and mortar! I will be selling my cosmetics and bath and body ( soap:)

I usually CPOP...but I might be challenged to get 220V in the shop and I really dont want a bulky oven. I thought of making a box out of insulation foam and putting heat lamps or regular ones in the box to CPOP. anyone ever try this, have any links, advice? I looked at portable warming ovens for catering but they cost an arm and a leg:)

thank you:)
 
Funny that you should mention this. I just had a conversation with someone the other day - someone who was quite experienced with devising his own heating boxes. Your ideas sound good. He also mentioned that an electric throw wrapped around the mold, inside of an insulated box (styrofoam or insulation or whatever) is good. Heat lamps are also a good idea, of course). Good luck with your shop!! That's very exciting! :D
 
Hi Sunnyone-
I often use a heating pad on the bottom of a Styrofoam box. I got the box from a medicine cabinet that we installed in our remodeled bathroom. Nice and big, with a top and all. We got it at Lowe's. It could be that if they install, you might be able to get one- or when they get new displays, they would probably throw all of that styro away. When I can, I put a heating pad on top and one below my wooden mold to mimic the heat of an oven and make sure I get gel.

If you are handy, you could probably construct a box or two out of house foam insulation sheets, glued together with special glue. Just a simple box would do, and heating pads are only 120 volts. Just be careful not to get one that atomically turns off after 1 hour. Sometimes it takes RT batter 3 hours to gel!
 
sudsykat...does he do this for soap?

i love you guys:0 i wanted to bounce this off a few brains before buying the foam and playing:) i think i am going to search craigslist for heat lamps...or check home depot...and then just try a lightbulb and temp it first to see how hot it gets:) i will keep you all posted...i know when i CPOP i have to paln dinner around it or soap late...so it will be handy anyway:)

:)crystal

thanks on the congrats:) i am a little nervous:) i already have a huge website biz...so it isnt sooo scary:) hehe but still it is a lot of $ going out now and more $ i have to make:) i need to get the biz out of the house...i feel like i live at work:) i also have 2 employees..so having them underfoot all the time is a little obnoxious:) hehe
 
thanks bombus. i think i will experiment:) foam insulation should be pretty cheap. i was going to cheat and seal it with duct tape...you know ...for that extra cosmetic touch:) hehe i also thought of getting silver tape for vents. i used it for my hot glass work when rigged up my ventilation system...it looks like it might be reflective and help with heat:)

:)crystal
 
carebear a cooler is genius! do you just use lights? how hot does it get? i would need a few:) i usually do 16-32 lbs at a whack:)

:)crystal
 
I don't use lights - I can put a heating pad in there if necessary (and kinda cram the lid on) but the heating pad turns off after an hour. If you are soaping larger batches (or multiple molds full), though, you probably don't need additional heat since the large batches get hotter faster.

I can fit 4 15" Upland log molds in my cooler and that's 12# of oils.

What you WILL have to watch out for is condensation. I use wooden lids on my soaps and that helps. Maybe just toss a towel over everything before putting the lid on - you'll figure it out!

AND if it doesn't work out, the the cooler on a picnic!
 
i wrap my soaps in fleece blankets...seems to be the perfect amount of heat...never had overheating:) i bet in the cooler with fleece would be perfect. i will try one loaf first and make sure..but this may just be the solution:)

i love you guys:)
 
You asked if the guy I talked to used his heating boxes for soap - yes, he does. He also mentioned that you can buy that insulating foam at home depot (or buy styrofoam) and that a very hot knife slices right through it so you can customize the size. He also said that he used duct tape to construct the box. Good luck and let us know how it works for you! By the way, I'd love to check out your website (I'm always looking)! What the "www"?
 
darn..i like being anonymous:) hehe

here is the website:)

www.theallnaturalface.com

i have been a lurker for awhile:)

:)crystal

ps..there isnt any soap for sale there:) i cant keep up just yet and i have to rework my international shipping.

i have been making soap for 25 years though:)
 
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You can get a convection oven that will run on 110, it will depend on how long your mold is but mine is big enough for a long casarole dish. its about 8 inches worth of height and 1 1/2 ft. long and 8 inches wide. Look around they may have bigger ones. Looks like an over sized toaster oven.
 
i was going to suggest the convection oven too. mine was around $100 and i use it in the summer when i dont want to heat up my entire kitchen with the oven. i can fit 3 wsp green molds in it side by side at a time
 
Love my convection oven, works to warm up candle jars, reheat poured candles to remove frost, whatever I need (and doesn't ruin or take up my food oven)
 
You can buy a sheet of foam insulation fairly cheap at any Home Depot, Lowe's, Ace, etc. (less than ten bucks). I use it to stretch and pin my doilies on after crocheting. You could make numerous boxes out of one sheet. It's a pretty pink, too!! Seems it has numerous uses!

Jacki
 
hehe..well asked hubby about the cooler...seems we just have midget ones:) so i am going to try the foam insulation this weekend and a couple of hi watt lightbulbs..and monitor the temp:) i will keep ya all posted on the results.

the convection oven is the way i was looking before this post...but i am going to be back in production mode and i need something to cure a lot of soap:) hehe i would need several ovens:)

:)crystal
 
One more thought about a large foam box. I have had some trouble with getting a full gel if the heating pad is smaller than the mold itself. If you are making a large box, you might think about the heater mats that are made to go under tile floors. They should be able to be wired up to a timer. They would give you a large heating surface with no cold spots, so you could do several molds at a time, without worrying about cold spots.hey are relatively small, like 24" square, and if you are heating a bathroom floor, you install several. I haven't priced them, but it might be more energy efficient than several heating pads.
 

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