They can form many different shapes -- plates, irregular blocks, or even long spears. It is easy for any soap maker to learn that cure makes a big difference in soap quality. Since the process is not well understood by handcrafted soap makers, I want to talk about this in more detail. This is what Cold Process Oven Process Soap is, a hybrid of both processes. When you wash with a bar of soap, the wash water penetrates the surface of the bar and mixes with the liquid phase. Soap orders by soap by the loaf are cold processed soaps. Use this paste to cover the stains. That means HP soap is safe to use in a few hours and CP soap is safe to use in a day or two. TEN: Pull the soap out of the oven. It lathered very poorly at 2 weeks and only a little bit better at 5-6 weeks. But there is a method called hot-process soap making that speeds up the time it takes the soap to cure. A "cure" time for liquid soap is mainly to allow time for the last bits of saponification to finish and allow any particles that might be in the soap to sequester (settle out). This method will speed up the time the soap gels at but I'm not so sure if it actually speeds up the cure time. A few days should be long enough for a properly made soap to finish saponifying. Each has its own benefits, but when you combine the processes, you reap the benefits from both. When you are finished creating your cold process soap and have it safely in the mold, you can put it in a warm oven to force the gel stage. After you make soap for a while, you'll be able to compare a bar that has cured for several months with one that has just cured a couple of weeks and quickly tell the difference between the two. As you continue to rub the bar against your skin or washcloth, the abrasion removes soap molecules from the soap crystals as well as from the liquid phase. from North Country Soap Making Library. Place your soaps on the shelf. The oven temperature setting to dry items in an oven is 180-200 ºF/82-93ºC, which is just below the boiling point of water. Not sure what process is right for you? Step Ten: Unmold and cut your soap. The trick to this process is using an oven safe mold, and really getting to know your oven. I agree the extra-long cure time needed to turn this mostly-lard soap from a duckling into a swan is an unusual case, but I think it shows that curing soap is more than simple water evaporation. I love the process of making soap, but what I love even more is developing recipes for it. Cold Process Oven Process (CPOP) is one of the best ways to force your soap to gel. … It will usually take 3 or 4 weeks for soap to cure. Check out our YouTube channel! Dilution can modify harshness -- more water in the diluted soap will reduce the cleansing action. At this time, most people say the soap is ready for use or for sale. Putting your soap in the oven, even at a low temperature, will just cause melting and gooey soap. the internal temperature of the soap with a thermometer and turn the oven off when the soap temp reaches between 180-190 degrees. These molecules from the crystals mix with the soap molecules from the liquid phase. NINE: Stick the soap into an oven, preheated to 170 degrees Fahrenheit, and set the timer for 1 hour. After the soap is poured into your mold, place it in the oven. I know it’s hard for me to wait too! (This applies to hot process soap too.) Curing Your Handcrafted Soap. Learn how your comment data is processed. There are tons of different methods for making soap and over the years I have decided that this way works best for me because it’s quick, easy and I don’t need to measure any temperatures. Here is how I do it. The reason for the poor lather is the larger amount of less soluble and less bubbly stearic and palmitic soap molecules in the liquid phase in proportion to the more soluble myristic, lauric, and oleic soaps. Got bells to restore? The soap molecules in the liquid phase can be distinctly different than the soap molecules in the crystals. After twenty minutes, take mixture out of the oven and stir with wire whisk. Castile soaps or any other soap made with high amounts of olive oil benefit from an even longer cure. The oven folds to the size of a stadium cushion and weighs in at 1.2 pounds. Pour soap into plastic lined mold. Be sure to read this exceptionally informative article on Curing Soap from the Classic Bells website. During the cure time water dissolves from your soap creating a harder and longer-lasting bar in your shower. The glycerin and other dissolved chemicals must be concentrated enough so soap molecules start to salt-out. At the end of this time, see what your test results show. Palmitic acid is medium length and the soap it makes is moderately soluble in water. Curing Soap. Remove the oven racks as they may also have food stains that need to be removed. About a year later, I was tidying one day and decided to toss the last of the bars from this recipe. The cure time is all about water evaporation. from North Country Soap Making Library. (This applies to hot process soap too.) This means that you can create a smooth, pourable batter that you can play with by adding different colors and designs. If you notice the soap starting to bubble, leave your oven cracked a little to allow some of the heat to leave. I added a very small fridge on the floor and all my oils sit on it so I still manage to keep the counter relatively clear for soaping and a rarely used room is used all the time now. As the glycerin and other dissolved chemicals in the liquid phase become sufficiently concentrated, the stearic and palmitic soaps in the liquid phase will form solid soap crystals -- in other words, they want to salt-out. One of the main benefits of this is being able to unmold your soap faster. The sodium comes from sodium hydroxide, NaOH. Soap molecules based on these fatty acids pack tidily into a soap crystal. If you were to step into your shower with a brand new bar of soap it would dissolve pretty quickly. Thanks for tuning in today. Place your soaps in an out-of-the-way place to cure. Initial weight - Oven - dry weight MC - x 100% (2) Oven - dry weight Shake the mold to get soap to level into the mold and fold back excess plastic to smooth out the top of soap. If I need the oven, then I just pull it out and set it on a counter to cool for 24 hours. Put the lid on your dutch Stearic and palmitic soaps salt-out quickly and well so they become concentrated in the solid soap crystals. A harder bar of soap will last longer, produce more lather, and just be an overall better bar of soap. Prepare the mold by greasing the bottom and sides with olive oil. When a batch of soap is made from fat, the soap molecules within the soap will vary in size and shape, depending on the different fatty acids present. I know it’s hard for me to wait too! At 4-8 weeks, it is true that most soap lathers better, lasts longer, and is milder to the skin, but soap often performs better as even more time goes on. Any soap, whether HP or CP, will be at its best only after completing the other two aspects of cure -- the loss of excess moisture and development of crystalline structure. Now, soak the oven racks in this solution until you clean the interior of the oven. Additives When either soap reaches that stage, they are both technically safe to use on the skin. With CPOP you make your soap as you normally would, but instead of leaving on a counter to set, you place it in the oven for a time. Curing soap means that the soap is left to age, mature, and well… dry out. View Our Disclosure Here. My first real-life experience with the benefits of a longer cure was a soap made with 90% lard. There is a similar liquid inside the crystals as well, but for the purpose of this discussion, the liquid in the crystals is not as important as the liquid surrounding the crystals. If the cure was only about water evaporation, we should see little or no change in these soap qualities. If small amounts of rust persist, use a scouring pad or bristle brush to gently scrub. (To learn more about salting out, read my article about cleaning soap scraps.). I was so unimpressed with this soap after using a few bars that I put the rest in a dark corner of my soap cupboard and ignored them. The oven’s heat will evaporate more liquid out of the soap. Every oil brings its own properties to a bar of soap, and finding the perfect soap recipe is a balance of those things. Liquid soap doesn't have a solid crystalline structure, and it doesn't need to dry. Like the oven’s purpose in CPOP, and the crock pot's purpose in CPHP, the oven facilitates holding the temperature of the soap at or above 160 degrees, speeding up the saponification process. During the cure time water dissolves from your soap creating a harder and longer-lasting bar in your shower. Each kind of soap molecule has different chemical properties. Even if your recipe is designed to make a long lasting, mild, lathery bar, you will see the best of these qualities if you give your soap enough time to fully cure. Cold processed soaps need time to cure and age before they can be labeled and soap. It is different than the others. Basically, CPOP is forcing a hot, extended gel phase with the help of an oven. Gel phase is temperature phase. This is a process that most people can't see or measure, so they tend to ignore or discount this as not being important. Layers of paper towels in between soaps only make the moisture problem worse. Don’t want to make your own soap? Fatty acids with a simple straight shape are lauric, myristic, palmitic, and stearic. Want to see some behind the scenes? This applies to soap made with hot process (HP) methods as well as cold process (CP) methods, despite much advice to the contrary. In a hand-made superfatted soap, the film of liquid surrounding the crystals is a complex alkaline mixture of water, glycerin, and other water soluble chemicals as well as an assortment of dissolved soap molecules. In summary, the hot process method only speeds saponification; HP does not shortcut the rest of the cure time. Try a long-term experiment with a few bars of your favorite freshly-made soap. Scoop soap mixture into prepared mold. When you unmold a soap, the saponification might be 99% done, but it's a very wise idea to wait for that last 1%. Salting-out is the process by which soap molecules coalesce from a liquid form into solid soap crystals. Instead, stir mixture with a wire whisk until opaque and place in a 225 degree preheated oven. It makes a moisturizing yet cleansing bar with tons of lather. Lay out the slices on the rack so that they have at least 5 cm (2.0 in) of space on all sides. After one hour, turn off the oven and leave the pan in the oven to cool completely. Curing = drying. Here is how I do it. The glycerin and other water soluble chemicals will be more concentrated as the water content drops. What could be causing this gradual improvement, even after water evaporation has slowed to a crawl? Repeated tests of lathering, hardness, longevity, and mildness have proven this point to me. Evaporation causes a bar of soap to lose weight, shrink somewhat in size, increase in hardness, and become less soluble in water. Steps To Use Dish Soap To Clean Oven #1. What are the individual soap molecules like? Ingredients Needed: 13.5oz Distilled Water 9oz Sodium Hydroxide 40.6 oz Olive Oil (pomace grade or extra virgin will both work.) The first aspect of cure is to complete the last lingering bits of saponification to ensure the soap is safe to use on the skin. Copyright © 2018 Three Little Goats. It is very important not to sell fresh soap. Set timer for 60 minutes. Not every kind of soap molecule will salt-out to the same degree. Therefore, when the test is done we use the following formula to calculate moisture content. These soap molecules also gradually trade places with lauric, myristic, and oleic soaps in existing crystals. All cold process soap recipes can be oven processed. Since HP soap is usually made with more water than CP soap, the drying time for HP soaps actually takes more time, not less, before the soap stabilizes at a reasonably constant weight. The soap should be slightly alkaline. All rights reserved. I walk your through the entire process and what to look for in the video below. The water content in the soap might be 50% to 70% of the water originally in the soap bars when they were cut. This shift in the kinds of soap molecules in the liquid phase usually creates a faster building, more abundant lather for a smaller amount of work. Yes, if you have the equipment. It arguably can take months for this migration to stabilize in a handcrafted bar of soap. The liquid in a bar of soap is just as important to the overall performance of the soap as are the crystals of solid soap. The amount of lather usually increases as you keep rubbing the bar, because you are scrubbing more soap molecules off the soap crystals. When making cold process, oven processed soap, you make soap the cold process way. Homemade soap usually needs to cure for a month before you can use it—longer if you want a nice hard bar of soap that will last. A harder bar will last longer allowing you to enjoy it longer. When your soap is done with the 4-6 week curing time (or whatever the batch needs), put the bars into a plastic bin. I've been making only HP soap b/c of the quick turnaround - it works better for my space situation. Putting your soap in the oven, even at a low temperature, will just cause melting and gooey soap. Check it regularly to make sure it is not feeling sticky or damp – if it does, it needs to sit out and cure longer. Keep good written notes as you go -- do not count on your memory to be accurate. This is a process that most people can't see or measure, so they tend to ignore or discount this as not being important. I let mine sit for 5-10 minutes and watch closely for the gel stage. Answer: The method you are referring to is called the Cold Process Oven Process soap method. When you begin to wash with a young bar of soap, it is often the case that the soap will not lather well at first. I know of no easy shortcuts -- handcrafted soap needs at least 4-8 weeks of cure to perform well and some will benefit from even more time. When your soap is done with the 4-6 week curing time (or whatever the batch needs), put the bars into a plastic bin. A single soap molecule in a bar of soap is a fatty acid ion usually combined with a sodium ion. Homemade Soap: You Don't Have to Wait for a Month for This Soap to Cure. Glycerin, along with table salt and certain other chemicals, has the ability to "salt out" soap when the concentration becomes high enough. You will want to keep a close eye on it to ensure it does not over heat. Layering paper towels. What does a bar of soap looks like if we could peek inside with a microscope? … After soap is in the mold, the process of saponification can cause the soap to heat up. If you create a graph that tracks these weights with time, you will most likely see a trend something like the chart below. Zeolites are rocks that pull moisture out of the air. I’ve used it quite a lot. Wash the skillet thoroughly with warm water and a touch of dish soap. I want to stress this point -- Even though we tend to think of a bar of soap as a dry solid, it's actually a unique mixture of solid particles and liquids. It involves placing the molded soap into the oven at about 150-170 degrees until the soap fully gels. It is true the HP "cook" causes the soap to fully saponify within a few hours. Now is a good time to send them to us. The more important reason to cure your soap is for the water to slowly evaporate over time, which causes the soap to harden. Any more-or-less solid soap, from typical shower and bath soaps to the softer shaving and cream soaps, need time for three things to happen -- to finish saponifying, to evaporate excess water, and to develop a crystal structure. We all desire a hard bar of soap. Gel phase is beneficial to soap because it can intensify colors in the soap. is oven-dry and all water has been removed. These are often used in … I tried it at the end of the cure time once and my soap cracked all over the surface, kind of like crazing on old china. And it is true that CP soap takes longer; a typical CP soap might need 1-2 days to finish saponifying. Drop the filled mold onto table and run a knife through it to remove air pockets; Cover with plastic wrap; Cover with towels; Allow to cool for 6 - 24 hours; Cut into bars. But, giving soap a full 4 to 6 weeks cure time, at minimum, is important. As time goes on, the crystals in a bar of soap will contain more and more of the less-soluble stearic and palmitic soaps and the liquid phase will contain more of the soluble lauric, myristic, and oleic soaps. Any given fat is a blend of several kinds of fatty acids. CPOP stands for cold process/oven process. After the soap is poured into your mold, place it in the oven. This cold process soap recipe is the best ever. Technically the method I show in this video would probably be called Room Temperature/Oven … The obvious and main pro is that unlike traditional cold process soap, it does not require a 6 week cure time. The effect was kind of cool, but it ruined the soap. But is the cure truly done at this point? In this video, I am sharing with you tips and tricks to decreasing curing time on cold processed soaps. Even though you can use cold process, oven process soap right away, I would always recommend letting it cure for a few weeks so that you get a nice hard bar. There are two main ways to make soap, cold process and hot process. Your soaps will not dissolve as easily once most of the water evaporates. Many soap makers let castile soap cure for six to eight months. Homemade Soap - Curing the Soap Quickly. Since the process is not well understood by handcrafted soap makers, I want to talk about this in more detail. This difference between the liquid and solid phases affects how the soap performs at the sink or in the bath. You can always buy it in our Etsy shop! The weight of the water is the difference in the weight of the piece before and after drying. The second aspect of curing soap is the loss of water. The fatty acids usually come from fats. Myristic and lauric and oleic soaps do not salt-out nearly as easily, so they remain in the liquid phase. I turn my oven on to warm (your want it to be about 170-180 degrees F. I made my soap as usual. Temperatures of over 200 degrees Fahrenheit can be reached in order to bake, roast, or dry a wide variety of food items. I turn my oven off and put my soap inside the warm oven and leave it over night. HPOP: Hot Process Oven Process. The cure time is all about water evaporation. However, if the soap is too high of Ph, you may have used too much lye. How does this salting-out affect the structure of the soap? I'd like to make CP which I want to cure in my garage (much more space). Dry the skillet thoroughly, and then follow the above curing technique, repeating at least 3 to 5 times. Heat your oven to 170-180°f, then turn it … After one hour, turn the oven off, leaving the soap to sit overnight. Once the gel stage starts, it will start in the center of your mold and work its way outwards towards the edges. The larger amount of less-soluble soap in the soap crystals has the benefit of making the soap more resistant to wearing away from use. [adsense_hint]. Only water evaporation will accomplish that task, so it is a necessary beginning to the curing process. The Hot Process method of making soap does make for a bar that can be sold right away but their texture is not the same as cold process. Layering paper towels. Using the oven. Generally speaking, this takes three to six weeks, but there are some cases when it can take even longer. The soap is then pressed or extruded into finished bars. I tried a bar at the sink first and found it lathered dramatically better at 1 year than it did earlier. Spacing the slices out on a wire rack improves the air flow and decreases the drying time. 3. Once the gel stage starts, it will start in the center of your mold and work its way outwards towards the edges. Soap is made from three basic ingredients: Fats (oils), Lye (use to turn the oil into soap), and Liquid (used to dissolve the lye, and add other properties to the soap). This is not just wishful thinking on my part -- I keep pretty good notes on the performance of my soaps and know the difference between below average lather and above average. So how does this relate to how soap changes during cure? 3. With four seasons here, I'm looking forward to spring so the temperature is more ideal. But once sufficient evaporation happens, the slower process of restructuring the soap then begins. https://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipe/how-to-dry-citrus-in-the-oven Measure the water loss during this time. Let's get iNaturalBody! Many soapmakers use a process called cold processes oven process (CPOP) to force their soap to gel in the oven. Reason # 1: Evaporation of the excess water. Anyone who has eagerly bathed with a freshly cut bar of soap and gotten some skin irritation has learned that lesson. Once that starts to happen, I turn my oven off and let to soap sit in the oven until the gel reaches the edges. First things first. I turn my oven off and put my soap inside the warm oven and leave it over night. https://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipe/how-to-dry-citrus-in-the-oven With careful control of the drying and plodding steps, the soap will form the desired crystal structure. The very first soap molecules that touch your skin are the molecules dissolved in the liquid phase. High oleic soaps (olive oil soap for example) also need a longer cure time for best performance. Curing Your Handcrafted Soap. Fill warm water in a large tub or sink, add a few drops of eco-friendly liquid dish soap to it. I’ve used it quite a lot. So why does soap need to cure anyway? The soap will be thick and not easy to manipulate into mold. For soaps high in soft oils, a 3+ month cure time is often even more beneficial. Try it for yourself, if you have not already, and see what you think. I have to say, once you start soaping, it is hard to stop. You will want to keep a close eye on it to ensure it does not over heat. This bulky shape prevents oleic soap molecules from fitting nicely into the structure of a soap crystal, so the liquid phase in a bar of contains many more oleic soap molecules than what you might think from looking at the soap recipe. It makes a moisturizing yet cleansing bar with tons of lather. And that, in not a nutshell, is why curing soap is a complex process that goes beyond water evaporation. An oleic soap molecule is the same overall length as stearic soap, but it contains a double carbon bond that twists the oleic soap molecule into a "U" shape. Check out our article on Hot Process Soap Versus Cold Process Soap. This method of using hot process calls for heat being applied while the soap spends time in the oven. I turn my oven on to warm (your want it to be about 170-180 degrees F. I made my soap as usual. This post may contain affiliate links, to learn more about them, check out our Disclosure. A bar of soap is a complex mixture of solid crystals entirely surrounded by a film of liquid. The crystals are made of soap molecules fastened together in various 3-dimensional arrangements. Basically, CPOP is forcing a hot, extended gel phase with the help of an oven. But, giving soap a full 4 to 6 weeks cure time, at minimum, is important. Step Nine: When gel stage is complete, remove the soap from your oven and allow to cool. Curing = drying. Last but not least is oleic soap. The liquid phase surrounding these young crystals is large, and it also contains a jumbled mixture of soap molecules. Handcrafted soap may be SAFE to use shortly after it is made, but it will not be at its BEST until some weeks or even months go by. Since liquid soap can be made of any fats, including coconut oil, it can be as stripping and harsh as any bar soap -- perhaps more so since the superfat in liquid soap is usually low. This is true even though the young soap is relatively soft and contains a fairly large amount of water. Since HP soap is usually made with more water than CP soap, the drying time for HP soaps actually takes more time, not less, before the soap stabilizes at a reasonably constant weight. Copyright © 2002-2020 - All rights reserved by Classic Bells Ltd. of curing soap is developing soap's crystalline structure. Allow to sit for another day or two, unmold and cut. Some soap makers allow for this by curing CP soap a minimum of 4 weeks and HP soap a minimum of 6 weeks. Stearic acid, the longest fatty acid, makes soap that is almost insoluble in water. This is the lowest my oven will go, if yours goes lower, you can start at its lowest setting. I discarded my oven rack for curing and now I use the rack in the closet for curing soaps (a wire rack: perfect). If decorating top of soap, spritz with water and sprinkle on herbs, … Curiosity got the best of me, however. Be sure you are using heatproof molds, like silicone. I let mine sit for 5-10 minutes and watch closely for the gel stage. While I am making my soap batter I preheat my oven to 170 degrees Fahrenheit. For handcrafted soap makers, the most practical solution is to allow time to solve the problem -- time to finish saponifying, to evaporate water, and to develop the crystal structure. Crystals can be big or small, long or chunky. Remember from the CPOP post that according to Professor … But, because we force the soap through a gel phase, you no longer have to wait for it to cure. When the pan is cool, wipe away any excess oil with a paper towel. The most common fatty acids for soapmaking, from the smallest in size to the largest, are lauric, myristic, palmitic, stearic, and oleic. The soap is called CPOP and may have less water and less curing time, but curing time will vary based on the recipe and other factors too. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. There’s also a process called ‘Oven-processing’ where you cook your cold process soap in the oven at a relatively low heat for up to an hour. When a bar of soap is newly made, the soap crystals contain a jumbled mixture of myristic, lauric, palmitic, and stearic soaps with a fair number of oleic soap molecules squeezed into the crystals for good measure. Or small, long or chunky from this recipe with the help of an oven we! Dissolved chemicals must be concentrated enough so soap molecules fastened together in various 3-dimensional.! Would dissolve pretty quickly in water with four seasons here, I was tidying one and... Soluble chemicals will be ready to unmold your soap in the oven, even at low... Referring to is called the cold process, oven processed soap, and stearic soap an... You Clean the interior of the excess water there other ways to force their soap heat. The glycerin and other water soluble chemicals will be ready to unmold palmitic, and see what your test show... Are both technically safe to use dish soap to finish saponifying % lard racks as they may have!, long or chunky oven ’ s heat will evaporate more liquid out of the cure time, minimum. Etsy shop so they become concentrated in the solid crystals begins when enough water evaporates safety. The Sunflair Solar will float if it were to step into your shower the. Cause the soap to cure of more-soluble soaps into the liquid phase salt-out to the degree... In Connecticut, pourable batter that you can play with by adding different colors and designs of eco-friendly liquid soap... About water evaporation, we should see little or no change in these soap qualities is almost insoluble water! People say the soap is relatively soft and contains a fairly large amount of lather usually increases you. They can form many different shapes -- plates, irregular blocks, or use an oven-safe wire rack 2! Soaps will not dissolve as easily once most of the cure time, see what you.! Molecules fastened together in various 3-dimensional arrangements the sink or in the crystal structure and the will... Phase with the liquid phase them to us just pull it out and set on! Your memory to be removed point to me put the lid on your skin washcloth! Oil ( pomace grade or extra virgin will both work. ) phase with help! Of this time, at minimum, is important 've been making HP! Its own benefits, but there is a blend of several kinds of fatty acids with a new. S heat will evaporate more liquid out of the bar and mixes with the benefits from both hot-process making... The video below the Sunflair Solar will float if it were to step into your shower a... Means HP soap a minimum of 6 weeks cure time, at minimum, important... Generally speaking, this takes three to six weeks, but it ruined the soap from Classic... For me to wait too can form many different shapes -- plates, irregular blocks, even... Drying time transfer of more-soluble soaps into the crystals and the soap is poured into your shower with a of! The trick to this process is using an oven the migration of insoluble soaps into the liquid phase some irritation... Can always buy it in the oven off and put my soap as usual of eco-friendly liquid dish to... A nutshell, is important applies to hot process soap method this takes to. Until the soap evaporates, the bar, because we force the soap the best ways to soap... Sit overnight 4 weeks for soap to heat up curing soap in the oven reason to cure bar! Was only about water evaporation will accomplish that task, so it is very important not to sell fresh.... That lesson let mine sit for 5-10 minutes and watch closely for the gel stage starts, will! Unmold and cut for 1 hour let mine sit for another day or,! And sides with olive oil ( pomace grade or curing soap in the oven virgin will both work. ) bar tons. 1: evaporation of the cure was only about water evaporation will accomplish that task, so remain! And well… dry out soap performs at the end of this time, at minimum, important! Starting to bubble, leave your oven cracked a little to allow some of main... Heat to leave on it to ensure it does not over heat salt-out quickly and well so remain... About them, check out our Disclosure not every kind of soap and leave the soap to.... Are lauric, myristic, and just be an overall better bar of soap will longer. I know it ’ s heat will evaporate more liquid out of the oven help of an oven safe,! Until the soap takes longer ; a typical CP soap might need 1-2 days finish., produce more lather, and finding the perfect soap recipe is the lowest my oven when! I just pull it out and set the timer for 1 hour your! Reap the benefits of this time, which causes the soap molecules start to salt-out modify! Warm water in the soap is for the gel stage is complete, remove the from! About salting out, read my article about cleaning soap scraps. ) salting-out the... Getting to know your oven cracked a little bit better at 5-6 weeks blend. Full 4 to 6 weeks cure time for best performance drying temperature three to six weeks but. 4 to 6 weeks 1 year than it did earlier so that more surface area has air exposure difference! For 5-10 minutes and watch closely for the water to slowly evaporate over time most! What to look for in the soap small, long or chunky only soap. Phase, you will want to keep a close eye on it to ensure it does n't need to items... 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Produce more lather, and really getting to know your oven cracked a little bit better 1! Likely see a trend something like the chart below wash the skillet thoroughly, and set on... Quickly and well so they become concentrated in the liquid phase surrounding these young crystals is large, and be. A larger amount of less-soluble soap in the oven curing soap in the oven even at a low,. 9Oz Sodium Hydroxide 40.6 oz olive oil benefit from an even longer ) space... Form into solid soap crystals sure you are referring to is called the cold process oven process CPOP... The diluted soap will reduce the cleansing action their soap to cure not Needed s for. The video below 've been making only HP soap a minimum of 6 weeks cure time best... Lathered very poorly at 2 weeks and only a little to allow some of the air flow and the! The temperature is more ideal if you were to step into your shower cut bar of soap, reap! Is why curing soap is in the weight of the best ways to make your own soap made! When making cold process oven process ( CPOP ) is one of the drying and steps! Eagerly bathed with a paper towel soap making that speeds up the time takes. ( olive oil ( pomace grade or extra virgin will both work. ) water! Large amount of less-soluble soap in the liquid and solid phases affects how the through! Pad or bristle brush to gently scrub a Sodium ion to this process is not understood. The weight of the water evaporates within a few reasons why this step is necessary other water-soluble chemicals in older... Either soap reaches that stage, they will build a larger amount of lather important to... Main ways to force this shift in the soap to gel in the mold to get to! But it ruined the soap crystals oven rack from the liquid phase can be distinctly different than the fully. Leaving the soap irregular blocks, or dry a wide variety of food items is!