What is this? Looks like mold or frost
- Thread starter ewhitake
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Looks like soda ash to me.
AliensrReal
Well-Known Member
Just a lot of soda ash to me. It’s harmless.
Soda ash... it's purely cosmetic. If it really bothers you, you can steam it off. I have a couple of soaps that get ash and it really adds to the look of the soap, as far as I'm concerned.
ewhitake
Active Member
I’m kind of surprised by the amount of ash that formed on the cut bars. How long did you wait to cut after the soap was made?
ewhitake
Active Member
These were the second loaf I made and I tried to force gel phase. Did it wrong by not turning off the oven until 20 minutes after adding loaf. Left it there 24 hours
With that recipe and lye concentration, it doesn’t sound like you cut too early. It’s possible that the charcoal played a role in the ash formation.
ewhitake
Active Member
Interesting! I say this because my first attempt didn’t “ash” but it also was a Bramble Berry recipe. I’ll try another with less water and let you know
I just noticed something when going back to the soap calc. The Lye ratio was set 2:1. If I set it to 33% is that closer to your suggestion?
2:1 is 33.33333% lye concentration, so very close to 33%. 1.7:1 is 37% lye concentration and 1.5:1 is 40% lye concentration. While it’s true that using a higher lye concentration can help to cut down on soda ash or even eliminate it, there are other considerations to using a higher lye concentration. I encourage you to read more before going that route.
I have to agree with @Mobjack Bay. While it is true that a 40% lye concentration can actually slow trace, if you are using a fragrance, you have to be very careful that it doesn't accelerate at all. A fragrance that is pretty well behaved at 33% LC can move very fast at a higher lye concentration. I have been playing around with increasing my lye concentration (I've used 33% for years) and I think anything up to 35% stays workable and does help prevent ash. I hate ash, but would rather deal with removing it than racing to get my soap in the mold. Here are a couple of videos from one of the early SMF challenges (high water/low water) that might help. I'm a visual learner, so I find something like this useful.
ewhitake
Active Member
Thank for the share but now I’m more confused than ever. 
When she started talking about ratios my eyes rolled back into my head!! Never did understand how to do them. Is there a calculator out there? Bueller? Anyone??
When she started talking about ratios my eyes rolled back into my head!! Never did understand how to do them. Is there a calculator out there? Bueller? Anyone??
This article and the linked table will help!
Simply change the ratio (I thin it is the line below the percentage) to 1.7:1. The percentage will change automatically.Interesting! I say this because my first attempt didn’t “ash” but it also was a Bramble Berry recipe. I’ll try another with less water and let you know
I just noticed something when going back to the soap calc. The Lye ratio was set 2:1. If I set it to 33% is that closer to your suggestion?
ewhitake
Active Member
These were so helpful!! Thanks!!
