Silicone vs acrylic mold

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Ugeauxgirl

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I went to Hobby Lobby today and on the soap aisle I saw an acrylic mold that appeared to come apart- it had wing nuts and rods holding it together. I was about to buy another mold, but had been looking at silicone molds. Does anybody use this type mod, and do you prefer silicone?
 
I went to Hobby Lobby today and on the soap aisle
Hobby Lobby has a SOAP aisle?!?!?! I had no idea! Another reason I can not go to Hobby Lobby!

I've never used acrylic, but If I had to choose... My personal preference is wood molds. Only because it seems like they insulate better and I don't have to add anything if I want to fully gel, which I usually do!
 
I agree with @violets2217 in that I find my wooden molds will gel soap with no problem, but I've found my "new to me" hdpe molds, just like the ones you describe, require CPOP to gel. However, I do like that I don't have to line my hdpe molds and that they are very easy to clean.
 
However, I do like that I don't have to line my hdpe molds and that they are very easy to clean.
I made my own wood mold... lol and they work just fine. But would love to try some of the hdpe one out. No liner would be lovely! The acrylic don't require liners either do they? and they are clear so you can see what's going on inside sorta. Maybe I wouldn't be so impatient to touch my soap!
 
I made my own wood mold... lol and they work just fine. But would love to try some of the hdpe one out. No liner would be lovely! The acrylic don't require liners either do they? and they are clear so you can see what's going on inside sorta. Maybe I wouldn't be so impatient to touch my soap!
I can only guess that, yes, acrylic would be much the same as hdpe. AND, my homemade molds work just fine and dandy too - love that. It would be pretty cool to see the sides of my soaps, but I don't think it would stop me from touching them too soon. 🤣
 
I should have mentioned that I do hot process, so it's already done when I put it in the mold. I thought the acrylic would be an advantage for smacking it on the counter to get the bubbles out, and it certainly wouldn't now in the middle. But you can't get much easier to clean than silicone.

I should have said the soap section at Hobby Lobby. It's only a quarter of an aisle maybe, but it has micas and clays, fragraces.... Yes, dangerous. Michaels has some stuff too.
 
I have both kinds. My favorite is a wood mold with a silicone liner. No lining and easy to clean, easy to unmold and has the wood for insulating. And they are very smackable :) I do like the acrylic mold I have as well, but it can be a bit harder to get the soap out. I don't know how hard I would bang it either - I had an acrylic planer that I accidentally dropped and a corner broke off of it. My acrylic mold is certainly strong enough for some pounding to get the air bubbles out, and I don't have to line it. I also insulate everything on a heating pad wrapped in a blanket to make sure it gels.
 
I went to Hobby Lobby today and on the soap aisle I saw an acrylic mold that appeared to come apart- it had wing nuts and rods holding it together. I was about to buy another mold, but had been looking at silicone molds. Does anybody use this type mod, and do you prefer silicone?

I have that mold, you will want to line it with freezer paper. How do I know...I made soap in it without bad we had to chip a third of it out.
 
I have that mold, you will want to line it with freezer paper. How do I know...I made soap in it without bad we had to chip a third of it out.
Well you just talked me out of that mold. I appreciate you sharing your experience and saving me $30!
 
Well you just talked me out of that mold. I appreciate you sharing your experience and saving me $30!
Since you HP it should come out just fine, and I find these molds just need to be "seasoned" (aka - used a few times) and once they are, no mold liners are needed, and they unmold smoothly then. At least that has been my experience with these type of molds.
 
In the end, I just got my husband to make me one in his shop. Should be ready tomorrow.
 
Yes, I think this one will be especially nice as he had some melamine left over from a concrete countertop pour. Melamine is plastic coated plywood, so it ought to be nice and smooth.
 

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