Speeding up curing

[MatthewDM]

I place my soap in a freezer over night right after pouring it into the mold then put it in the fridge for 48 hours. I like how my soap turns out but it takes forever to cure once it is taken out of the fridge. Would having a fan constantly blow on it speed up the curing process? Do you guys have any other tips to speed up curing?

 

[jules92207]

Putting it in the freezer/fridge slows the process so maybe you could just leave it in a cool room with a fan. It will likely set faster, but curing will likely be a good 4 weeks still.

 

[cmzaha]

I put almost all my soaps in the freezer and the only thing I notice is it will many times take 72 hrs for zap to disappear, other than that it takes the normal cure time. I do not worry about putting them in the fridge after removing from the freezer. The condensation can be gently absorbed with a soft paper towel or it will evaporate off the soap. I only leave mine in the freezer for a couple of hours to stop gel. Once in awhile I will leave one until morning if it is a known heater up fo or to tired to wait to remove it from the freezer. Cure time is still 4-8 weeks. I prefer 8 weeks with most soaps

 

[scotsman]

Perhaps sodium lactate combined with a steep water discount? I'm thinking it would address the issue of the soap taking longer to get firm and maybe speed up the evaporation of water from the soap(since there would be less water to be evaporated). I wouldn't, however, do anything towards the end of making the soap milder any faster. That, I'm afraid, can only be accomplished with a sufficient curing time. I usually cure all my soaps for six weeks, sometimes longer for certain recipes. Of course I always make extra bars that I can "evaluate" during the curing process. And by "evaluate" I mean I can satisfy my impatience and need for instant gratification. Yes, I was that kid who always knew what he was getting for Christmas ahead of time because I would find where my parents had hidden the wrapped presents, slice open the tape with an x-acto knife, examine the contents, and carefully re-tape the package so my transgression would never be discovered. I never did get caught, lmao!

 

[Susie]

CP and HP take 4-6 weeks to cure. Period. The chemical process does not care if you froze it, gelled it, cooked it, or anything else. The soap you have at 2 weeks is vastly different than the soap you have at 4 weeks and 6 weeks. Castile takes months.

 

[scotsman]

Or years, lol!