hello all. i have my first cold process soap batch in my wooden mold. here is my question. how long do i wait to demold. it seems like i read somewhere that if using silicone molds, wait 4 to 5 days, if wooden you can do it in 2, any thoughts. i made a simple baby buttermilk bastelle in a 10 inch loaf., lined with parchment paper.
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- Thread starter tomrip
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12-24 hours seems to be pretty common, especially with a bastile recipe. What I do it gently press down on the top of the soap, if it feels like a block of cheese, its ready to unmold. I usually start checking mine around 8 hours but I have a hard recipe that sets up quickly.
Wine, cheese and soap need to rest before use. Someone posted that the p in soap stands for patience - seems to fit. 4 to 6 weeks are typical wait times for soap curing.
A lot of soapers ( self included ) cheat and after I'm sure it doesn't zap I will sneak an end cut into the shower just for "test purposes".
Welcome to the forum!
You really need to wait 4 weeks. You can use it sooner but it won't be as nice and it won't last as long. It needs to dry and go through the chemical change that happens as it cures. Congrats on your first soap and welcome
I just made a bastille soap (80% OO, 12% Shea, 8% Castor). I tried to unmold at probably around 26 hours, and it's not coming out. It's half water substituted with milk, and SF at 8%. Hard plastic loaf mold. It's sticking!! :think: I could force it (at risk of breaking the loaf), but I was thinking of waiting until the morning and seeing how it did then.
You cant do as much harm by waiting as you can by unmolding too soon. I had one batch that didn't gel and took almost 5 days to be ready to cut!
You want to aim for cheddar cheese kinda texture - not feta or fresh mozzarella, and parmesan is too hard.
You want to aim for cheddar cheese kinda texture - not feta or fresh mozzarella, and parmesan is too hard.
It's pretty hard to the touch. I'm thinking it's done with gel (I let this one gel, just to see what would happen, had the barest, tiniest hint of a crack down the middle on the top). When I pull on the side of the mold, I have to use a lot of force, like getting in with some muscle, bracing, and prying it apart. But the soap started to crack on the edge I was pulling on so I stopped. It's sticking pretty well. I could slide a knife down the edge of the mold and ease it off that way, but I'll wait and see for that one, maybe tomorrow if it doesn't ease off.
I would strongly suggest that you go ahead and test a piece once a week for those 4-6 weeks you are waiting for true cure. That tester will teach you more about why soap needs the cure than anything we can tell you, or articles we can link.
And, congratulations!
And, congratulations!
