Soap Making 101
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savingdogs
Queen Filksinger
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It doesn't fully set up for about a day or two, maybe it isn't as bad as you think. Are you weighing your water?
savingdogs
Queen Filksinger
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Well it stays kind of pudding like for a day or so, and gradually hardens. It doesn't necessarily turn solid on the day you pour it. Don't despair yet, it takes awhile to set up and cure.
savingdogs
Queen Filksinger
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Well keep it in the mold until at least tomorrow. Usually after one day I can unmold it and cut it if necessary. But it is still kind of soft. You need to cure it two to three weeks. The longer you cure it, the harder it becomes. That recipe is on the soft side so it becomes better if you cure it four weeks or more, it will last longer. But at this point, my batches would be setting up but still my finger would leave an imprint until about 24 hours later.
Bettacreek
Almost Self-Reliant
If it isn't working, we're trying to help you out to figure out soaping... You've gotta get the basics down before moving into more complicated soaps. It's not an insult. Try to make a batch that will be easier so that you can understand how everything is supposed to be, because simply put, you can't gain the experience to know unless you do it. Even the guidelines on soaping don't show it like what you'll experience IRL. Once you can make a basic batch, it goes much faster from there and you can make a second batch with goatmilk soap and start tinkering around with it. I know our nursing school doesn't just flop us into the hospital and tell you "there ya go we told you what to expect, now do it", they walk us through it and let us do basic nursing before we move onto the more advanced stuff. If you were that advanced in your nursing class, then think how quickly it will go once you get your basic batch down and correct.
As for the batch that you just made, the "oatmeal" consistency, is that with well defined clumps of stuff, or is it just thick and "sticky"? That's a later stage of trace, and you could actually put it into the molds if it's at that stage. If it has the clumps, you may have lye patches in the soap and then oily junk after it sets for awhile.
Don't get upset, you probably have it right, just wait a day or two depending on your mold and how it's setting up. If it's a pop out mold, freeze it thoroughly before popping it out of the mold because the soap on the bottom of the mold won't be as hardened as the soap on top and it could mess up your bars and leave junk on the bottom. Then cure time is 4 weeks +. I'm not sure the exact cure time on a crisco soap. Mine I let cure for eight weeks, but it has a high OO percentage.
As for the batch that you just made, the "oatmeal" consistency, is that with well defined clumps of stuff, or is it just thick and "sticky"? That's a later stage of trace, and you could actually put it into the molds if it's at that stage. If it has the clumps, you may have lye patches in the soap and then oily junk after it sets for awhile.
Don't get upset, you probably have it right, just wait a day or two depending on your mold and how it's setting up. If it's a pop out mold, freeze it thoroughly before popping it out of the mold because the soap on the bottom of the mold won't be as hardened as the soap on top and it could mess up your bars and leave junk on the bottom. Then cure time is 4 weeks +. I'm not sure the exact cure time on a crisco soap. Mine I let cure for eight weeks, but it has a high OO percentage.
