Ricing question

[Todd Ziegler]

My lard, coconut and castor oil started ricing right after I started pouring because of the FO, I think.

I checked the website where I bought the FO and it said no ricing but I got to thinking, could it have been the vanilla stabilizer that I used? I know it could still be the FO but I wanted to hear another thought.

The soap itself seems to be ok other than a little oil separation and it is absorbing back in.

 

[shunt2011]

I’ve had soap rice from FO that said it didnt rice. I’ve never experience VS ricing so can’t speak to that. Generally mine will rice while mixing before pouring and can best it into submission.

 

[Todd Ziegler]

I’ve had soap rice from FO that said it didnt rice. I’ve never experience VS ricing so can’t speak to that. Generally mine will rice while mixing before pouring and can best it into submission.

Thanks, mine actually looks pretty good. The top has a kind of velcro look to it and I peeled the sides back a little and they look good. I am putting it through a gel phase right now, so we will see tomorrow morning how it looks, if it can be unmolded by then.

 

[shunt2011]

It’ll probably be just fine.

 

[Todd Ziegler]

Yeah I think it will. I wasn't really worried about it, I was just curious about what was happening

 

[cmzaha]

Make sure your mold is in a container to catch any leaking just in case it decides to separate and leak. This can happen with ricing.

 

[Todd Ziegler]

Make sure your mold is in a container to catch any leaking just in case it decides to separate and leak. This can happen with ricing.

I did but thanks for the reminder. I think it is going to be ok. It is progressing as normal and the gel phase, which I kept at 120F seems to have fixed everything. I will keep an eye on it until I go to bed. The colors got so bright during this gelling.

 

[cmzaha]

I did but thanks for the reminder. I think it is going to be ok. It is progressing as normal and the gel phase, which I kept at 120F seems to have fixed everything. I will keep an eye on it until I go to bed. The colors got so bright during this gelling.

Yeah.

 

[andralynn62]

As a novice I am wondering what you all are talking about. What is the gel faze? I can get a pretty good picture of ricing.

 

[Todd Ziegler]

As a novice I am wondering what you all are talking about. What is the gel faze? I can get a pretty good picture of ricing.

When the soap is gets hot after you pour it, that's the gel phase. I maintain a temperature between 100°F to 120°F for about 1-2 hours by covering the soap with towels. It helps the soap harden and makes your colors a lot brighter. However you have to keep an eye on your soap and make sure it doesn't get to hot and create volcanos and cracking. You can get a lot more information by Googling it and learn the different ways to gel your soap. Because certain ingredients can generate a lot of heat. Read a lot about the gel phase first.

 

[andralynn62]

Ok, thanks. Have you ever had a batch NOT harden? If so, were you able to save it? I re-melted my batch and stirred it like crazy. It is now in the molds for the second time. If it doesn’t harden this time I’m going to melt it again and add some more lye

 

[Todd Ziegler]

Ok, thanks. Have you ever had a batch NOT harden? If so, were you able to save it? I re-melted my batch and stirred it like crazy. It is now in the molds for the second time. If it doesn’t harden this time I’m going to melt it again and add some more lye

I have not had that happen yet but I forgot to add sodium Lactate to a batch today, so we will see tomorrow.

 

[andralynn62]

Keep me posted, ok?

 

[TheGecko]

If it doesn’t harden this time I’m going to melt it again and add some more lye

NO! Just cut your losses and post your recipe and process for help.

 

[andralynn62]

Why not re-melt and add more lye

 

[BattleGnome]

Why not re-melt and add more lye

if you add too much lye you could end up giving someone chemical burns.

if you haven’t already, run your recipe through a soap calculator. Soapee, brambleberry, soapcalc, there’s even a SMF calculator. Whichever one you choose will let you know how much lye you should have used. If you used the incorrect amount of lye start a new thread with the exact amounts you used and the amounts your calculator said to use. Someone can help you work through the process to safely add more lye (just double checking the process).

as for soap not hardening, I’ve had soap in a mold for a week before I could unmold it. It was another 2 days before I could think about cutting it. Sometimes soap is gonna do what soap is gonna do. I fixed that issue by letting my soap hang out in the oven for a bit to keep warm (gel). Everyone’s method is a little different and may depend on your actual recipe/scent (certain ingredients do cause overheating which give the ricing issue).

another troubleshoot would be to make sure you have the right lye. Sodium hydroxide (NaOH) for bar soap, potassium hydroxide (KOH) for liquid soap. Lots of first timers accidentally order the wrong lye on accident and more than one veteran soap maker has grabbed the wrong bottle when not paying attention. If you happened to grab the wrong lye, start a thread and let us know. We can help walk you through saving what you have.

 

[andralynn62]

After giving this process a lot of thought, I think I messed up on my measurements of oil and ended up with too much oil. I will let it sit for a week or so before I try to do anything with it.
My molds are silicone so I don’t know if they would be ok in the oven.

 

[BattleGnome]

My molds are also silicone. As far as I know, most silicone is heat rated to over 200 if not 450, I’ve pursued the cooking aisle for fun shapes. If you have a crafter’s choice mold, oven processing isn’t an issue.

My method is to use my “heat and hold” button which heats the oven to 170F but you can heat to whatever the lowest setting your oven has. Preheat while you make your batter. Place your molds on a cookie sheet and when everything is poured, out it all in the oven. Turn off the oven and let everything cool naturally - I usually just head to bed and deal with it when I wake up. (Note: this is my method. Others use towels and a heating pad, a styrofoam cooler, or just a lid. It really depends on your recipe and ambient temperature where you live)

One possibility now is to leave it and see what happens. Another is to use my method to get the soap to gel after the fact. If it takes longer than a week you probably mismeasured and can always start a thread to see if there’s anything that can be done. (always good to take notes just in case you have questions. We can give you specific help if we know exactly what you’ve done)

a good rule of thumb is to look at cheese textures for describing your soap. Is it like room temperature Brie, or another soft cheese? Then you definitely need to wait. Cheddar is close to perfect. Anything harder than that will get you crumbly soap but you’ll have learned that your recipe needs a bit less time before cutting.

 

[andralynn62]

Thank you for your suggestions and experience. This forum is a wealth of information for all us newbies. Soap making is not as easy as one might think but it is fun. I’m going to stick with SMALL batches for a while until I get more experience. I use all organic ingredients so this venture can get expensive quickly.
My soap has been sitting in molds now for several days. Is it too late to try putting it into the oven for a day?

 

[cmzaha]

If it is not mushy soft I would freeze it so I could get it out of the silicone mold put in on a rack and just forget about it. It can be dealt with in months, not just days or weeks. You will be surprised what a few months can do. I never "Just cut my losses," without trying. Even to much oil, unless you are considerably over will only give you a high superfatted soap, and the soap will still harden. If the soap does not zap it can be chopped into confetti at a later date. I still bet if you sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and not potassium hydroxide (KOH) your soap will harden over time.

To answer your question about too late too put it in the oven, no it is not too late.