franu61 Posted November 15, 2022 Share Posted November 15, 2022 What is lye bloom? does it look like soda ash? I did a craft show this weekend. Another soaper came up and had to find fault with my soap (Yes a hater)..She said I had lye bloom...I said no it is soda ash. I'm not too concerned about soda ash, it is only on the tops of my bars and no one else has ever said a thing about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted November 15, 2022 Share Posted November 15, 2022 Do you have a pic of one the person had issue with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franu61 Posted November 15, 2022 Author Share Posted November 15, 2022 (edited) Edited November 15, 2022 by franu61 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franu61 Posted November 15, 2022 Author Share Posted November 15, 2022 the pink one has silver mica in the middle top, but I think the rest is soda ash? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted November 16, 2022 Share Posted November 16, 2022 Top looks like soda ash. the bottom one has white specs that look, from here, to be stearic spots on the cut side. If you lick the spots do they zap at all? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franu61 Posted November 16, 2022 Author Share Posted November 16, 2022 1 hour ago, TallTayl said: Top looks like soda ash. the bottom one has white specs that look, from here, to be stearic spots on the cut side. If you lick the spots do they zap at all? I figured they were stearic spots. Just licked, got a bit of a tingle on the spot. These spots did not show up until recently.... Do you think that is what she meant by lye bloom? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JessieJim Posted November 16, 2022 Share Posted November 16, 2022 Lye is sodium hydroxide, isn't it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted November 16, 2022 Share Posted November 16, 2022 2 hours ago, franu61 said: I figured they were stearic spots. Just licked, got a bit of a tingle on the spot. These spots did not show up until recently.... Do you think that is what she meant by lye bloom? If they just appeared, and now tingle there’s a chance that is what she meant. I’m guessing you have you run your formula through a lye calculator? And that your scale is calibrated? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted November 16, 2022 Share Posted November 16, 2022 1 hour ago, JessieJim said: Lye is sodium hydroxide, isn't it? Correct. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franu61 Posted November 16, 2022 Author Share Posted November 16, 2022 (edited) 10 hours ago, TallTayl said: If they just appeared, and now tingle there’s a chance that is what she meant. I’m guessing you have you run your formula through a lye calculator? And that your scale is calibrated? yes and yes. So I wont be selling any more of these bars... I wish I could find more information about lye bloom. I had never heard of it. Edited November 16, 2022 by franu61 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redquilt Posted November 16, 2022 Share Posted November 16, 2022 I've never heard the term lye bloom? However, many years back I recall once having a lye heavy soap get a very thick layer of ash on top. I had accidentally doubled the amount of lye. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted November 16, 2022 Share Posted November 16, 2022 Sometimes sodium salts can grow out of porous materials - called efflorescence. a lye heavy soap can grow those surface crystals with time as the water in the soap evaporates. The one and only visibly lye heavy soap I made was totally user error. I missed adding half of my oils. It got a powdery surface within days and a grainy surface within a few weeks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sponiebr Posted November 25, 2022 Share Posted November 25, 2022 On 11/16/2022 at 6:44 PM, TallTayl said: Sometimes sodium salts can grow out of porous materials - called efflorescence. a lye heavy soap can grow those surface crystals with time as the water in the soap evaporates. The one and only visibly lye heavy soap I made was totally user error. I missed adding half of my oils. It got a powdery surface within days and a grainy surface within a few weeks. And then there was that one time, at band camp, when your scales went Bahoobies up and you ended up having to use all that soap as weed killer... Sponiebr THE Executor of car repairs, no, wait... BAD IDEAS! (that's it!) Bad Ideas and Sundry Services.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sponiebr Posted November 25, 2022 Share Posted November 25, 2022 Yanno, I've got a LOT of soap that I never wrapped and it ALL has this powdery white coating on it. In MY opinion soda ash can only form when there is active lye exposed to air. So if your soap is cured when you cut it there's little chance that you will form soda ash on the bars. To keep the tops from ashing up I spray, nay... I SOAK the ever-love'n piss outta the tops of my soaps with IPA and then lay on a sheet of plastic wrap onto the top WHILE it's soaking wet. That seals the plastic wrap to the top of the soap and the soap mold and I leave the loaf set at least 24 hours before I unmold and cut. Anywho... That lovely white powder coating that I still get on my soaps after a year or so is stearic acid that's been brought to the surface as the FO kinda gasses off, or at least that's my working theory... Sponiebr The Executor of Bad Ideas and Sundry Services Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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