What are these tiny spots
- Thread starter Debby
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They are probably air bubbles or what people call "stearic spots". Or both.
Blow the photo so you can see the spots up close. If there are tiny cavities, those are bubbles. Usually caused by your stick blender incorporating air into the batter.
If they're solid white bits, probably stearic spots. These tend to be created by not fully melting the sold fats such as butters or lard. Or if you're making a milk soap and you use fluid milk to make the lye solution, these spots can be flecks of soap from the milkfat.
It's always best to provide the recipe and method to get the best advice.
Blow the photo so you can see the spots up close. If there are tiny cavities, those are bubbles. Usually caused by your stick blender incorporating air into the batter.
If they're solid white bits, probably stearic spots. These tend to be created by not fully melting the sold fats such as butters or lard. Or if you're making a milk soap and you use fluid milk to make the lye solution, these spots can be flecks of soap from the milkfat.
It's always best to provide the recipe and method to get the best advice.
Hi Debby! They could one of a few different things, either TD spots from not mixing TD thoroughly enough; stearic spots from soaping too cool; or if your soap had tiny air bubbles in it, they could be soap flakes that form when the soap is cut (the wire or blade cuts through the air bubbles and drags little bits of soap into the air bubble holes, which appear as white spots).
IrishLass
Edited to add: looks like DeeAnna and posted at the same time. lol
IrishLass
Edited to add: looks like DeeAnna and posted at the same time. lol
Hi Debby! They could one of a few different things, either TD spots from not mixing TD thoroughly enough; stearic spots from soaping too cool; or if your soap had tiny air bubbles in it, they could be soap flakes that form when the soap is cut (the wire or blade cuts through the air bubbles and drags little bits of soap into the air bubble holes, which appear as white spots).
IrishLass
Edited to add: looks like DeeAnna and posted at the same time. lol
Hi Both
Thankyou for your replies
I’m attaching another photo.
I do also have some air bubbles - the trace got thick quite quickly, I did hit the loaf on the counter a few times but evidently not hard enough!
If it were stearic spots would it mean the soap won’t be good to use?
My recipe didn’t have any milk and the fats were fully melted, I added the lye water when both were at 100F
The recipe 45% olive oil, 25% coconut oil, 5% castor oil and 25% shea butter. Thanks DeeAnna and IrishLass
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PS oh and pink grapefruit essential oil !Hi Both
Thankyou for your replies
I’m attaching another photo.
I do also have some air bubbles - the trace got thick quite quickly, I did hit the loaf on the counter a few times but evidently not hard enough!
If it were stearic spots would it mean the soap won’t be good to use?
My recipe didn’t have any milk and the fats were fully melted, I added the lye water when both were at 100F
The recipe 45% olive oil, 25% coconut oil, 5% castor oil and 25% shea butter. Thanks DeeAnna and IrishLass
The 25% shea is most likely the culprit for the stearic spots. I want to warm my fats so they are clear all the way through. At 100F, the shea might have been almost but not quite warm enough.
On a related note, @Mobjack Bay also mentioned in another thread a few months back that they found their fats might have to be held at temperature for awhile to ensure the fats are fully melted. So it's possible the 100F is fine if given more time. Maybe MB will share some advice on this point.
I think banging the mold can help settle larger air pockets, but banging won't remove small bubbles like these. It's better to keep air bubbles from happening rather than try to fix them in the mold. Maybe other people will chime in with ways to use your stick blender so it doesn't whip air into the batter.
Both problems are visual issues, not safety or soap quality problems. Soap with bubbles and/or stearic spots is fine to use. If they bother you, you can work to eliminate them. If they don't bother you, that's okay too.
On a related note, @Mobjack Bay also mentioned in another thread a few months back that they found their fats might have to be held at temperature for awhile to ensure the fats are fully melted. So it's possible the 100F is fine if given more time. Maybe MB will share some advice on this point.
I think banging the mold can help settle larger air pockets, but banging won't remove small bubbles like these. It's better to keep air bubbles from happening rather than try to fix them in the mold. Maybe other people will chime in with ways to use your stick blender so it doesn't whip air into the batter.
Both problems are visual issues, not safety or soap quality problems. Soap with bubbles and/or stearic spots is fine to use. If they bother you, you can work to eliminate them. If they don't bother you, that's okay too.
Thankyou so much for your advice. It’s good to know these problems will not affect using the soap. I’ll give everything another go. One of these days I’ll find my perfect recipe! Definitely isn’t this one though!
Thanks again
Thanks again
Pretty soap!
I have been able to reduce stearic spots significantly by making sure that my melted fats are absolutely crystal clear before I add the lye. I can’t give you an exact temperature because I’ve found that some fats are more stubborn than others. My soy wax melts crystal clear at exactly 125F, but I’ve used lard that wouldn’t melt clear until >140F.
I have been able to reduce stearic spots significantly by making sure that my melted fats are absolutely crystal clear before I add the lye. I can’t give you an exact temperature because I’ve found that some fats are more stubborn than others. My soy wax melts crystal clear at exactly 125F, but I’ve used lard that wouldn’t melt clear until >140F.
Thank you!
I’ve just cut another soap with the same problem, this time I only used coconut oil, castor oil and olive oil. I mixed in the lye water when both were at 110F
I’ve never mixed at a higher temperature....
I’ve just cut another soap with the same problem, this time I only used coconut oil, castor oil and olive oil. I mixed in the lye water when both were at 110F
I’ve never mixed at a higher temperature....
Oh, sorry for the confusion. I don’t soap at the temperature I use for melting the oil. Once the hard fats are clear, I add the liquid oils and bring the temp down to my working temp. That could be as low as 90F for a lard-based soap, or as high as 115-120F for soy wax.
Obsidian
Well-Known Member
I don't see any stearic spots, those look like just air bubbles to me.
Do you burp your stick blender bell? It will help but depending on the sb, might not eliminate the bubbles altogether.
Try blending just your oils, are there a lot of bubbles in it?
My sb makes quite a lot of bubbles, it helps to pour at thinner trace or stop using the sb after thin trace and stir by hand until you get to the trace you want.
Do you burp your stick blender bell? It will help but depending on the sb, might not eliminate the bubbles altogether.
Try blending just your oils, are there a lot of bubbles in it?
My sb makes quite a lot of bubbles, it helps to pour at thinner trace or stop using the sb after thin trace and stir by hand until you get to the trace you want.
Okay
so maybe I should heat my oils to a higher temperature to begin with. I think they are at 130F before cooling down.Thanks for your reply. As I thought it could be air bubbles I actually did a soap two days ago at a very thin trace, I didn’t use shea butter as I thought it could be a culprit. This is what I have - spots again
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Like Obsidian, I'm not completely convinced they're stearic spots either. It really looks like at least some of them are air bubbles, but the photo isn't crisp enough to show clear detail when blown up.
Obsidian had a good suggestion -- if you stick blend just the melted, transparent fats, do you see little bubbles in the fat after blending? If you do, then your SB is also blending air into your soap batter.
And here's yet another idea to try --
Did you cut this soap with a wire cutter or did you use a solid cutter such as a knife or kitchen bench scraper?
You'll see stearic spots with either kind of cutter. Air bubbles are more noticeable with a wire cutter and much less noticeable with a solid cutter. Don't use a planer after cutting -- just look at the raw cut surface.
Obsidian had a good suggestion -- if you stick blend just the melted, transparent fats, do you see little bubbles in the fat after blending? If you do, then your SB is also blending air into your soap batter.
And here's yet another idea to try --
Did you cut this soap with a wire cutter or did you use a solid cutter such as a knife or kitchen bench scraper?
You'll see stearic spots with either kind of cutter. Air bubbles are more noticeable with a wire cutter and much less noticeable with a solid cutter. Don't use a planer after cutting -- just look at the raw cut surface.
Adobehead
Well-Known Member
what helpful information lard at 140. Thank you! I will watch this aspect more carefully, though I have never had a problem and as a freckle-face myself, I never worry if my soap has extra interest.
Adobehead
Well-Known Member
Since I have recently made smaller batches, I have found that I get bubbles from the stick blender even if i burp it, so I poured through a tea strainer and it cleared them. I think I commented the soap was like 7-up.
Yes, it is a good suggestion to blend the oils beforehand to see if there are air bubbles.
I use a wire cutter, I’ll try and send a clearer photo.
After all this help my next trial will be without this problem!
thankyouAttachments
I think it was @jcandleattic who shared a tip with me a month or two ago about waiting a bit longer to cut with a wire cutter if I’m seeing bubble bumps. I haven’t made much soap since then, but my limited results are promising.
jcandleattic
Well-Known Member
Not sure if it was me, but yep, if the bumps are being caused by the wire cutter, a little patience, and waiting a few hours to a day will help eliminate them.
I will definitely try that and let you know! Thank you
