Best practices or tips/tricks for HP?

[GMM]

I'm going to embark on an experiment, in the interest of not having to wait so daggoned long for soap to cure. Right now I've got drying/curing CP soap tucked into every conceivable nook and cranny around the house. We've reached critical mass, and something's got to give. Since that "something" is not going to be my beloved soap habit, I guess I'll just have to learn a new way to make it so it doesn't take weeks upon weeks to dry out and cure.

That said, I don't think my crock pot is large enough to do CPHP, so I'm thinking I might try regular old stovetop HP. Anybody here do this? If so, what are the things I should look for? Are the stages pretty much the same as in CPHP, or will the soap do different things when it's heated directly on the burner?

Any lessons learned or tips will be MUCH appreciated!

Thanks in advance,

Gina

[Crafty1_AJ]

1. Use 1 TBL. sugar ppo in your water. Dissolve the sugar into the water before you add your lye. This will increase fluidity of the batter at pouring time.

2. Don't short your water.

3. I've done CPHP, but I now prefer OHP since I can do more than one batch at a time. I bring soap to trace, pop into a warm (175 degree) oven, and cook until it's all translucent and "loose." Stir, add goodies, and pour into mold. Sometimes I even check for zap, but I've never been zapped yet.

HTH

[GMM]

Do you have to stir frequently with OHP? One tutorial I read mentions pulling it out every 10-15 minutes and stirring for several minutes. I figured that's almost more disruptive than having to stir constantly with on-the-burner HP. Call my crazy, but I'd rather stir my arms off than have to interrupt whatever I'm doing multiple times to stir the soap!

Now, if the OHP doesn't have to be continually checked on and stirred, then count me in! Do you know of any good tutorials on OHP?

[Crafty1_AJ]

You don't have to stir OHP, but I usually do. Just once, about halfway through, to redistribute the "cooked" portions with the "uncooked." (You'll see an outer "ring" of translucent soap with an inner middle of creamy off-white opaque soap batter just before it's finished cooking. I mix the two up to speed things along. Shortly after stirring, it's done cooking.)

HTH

[Crafty1_AJ]

I don't know of a tutorial, but the steps are these.

1. Dissolve the sugar in your water. Add lye as usual.

2. Measure out your hard oils and melt. Heck, make it easy on yourself; measure out all your oils and pop them into the oven to melt. Use low temps (150-175).

3. Add lye water and sb to trace. No need to wait for everything to cool down because you're just going to heat it all up anyway. lol

4. When the batter's fairly thickly traced, pop into a 175 degree oven.

5. When the batter has an outer ring of translucent soap and an inner circle of opaque soap, give it a good stir.

6. When the entire batch looks opaque and has a loose texture (super easy to stir), then remove from oven.

7. Add scent & mold. Bang the mold several times to distribute the batter evenly.

8. Let cool thoroughly and firm up a touch before cutting. If it's still super sticky in the mold, it's too early to cut. I can usually cut in 24 hours in humid weather; 12 hours in dry (low humidity) weather.

HTH

[jwahlton]

AJ, if you've got several pots going in the oven and they are all done at one time, can you take one out and do your thing leaving the others in the oven? I'd love to have a couple going at once

[Crafty1_AJ]

Well I try to time it so they won't all be done at the same time. If I'm only doing 2 batches, they can go it at the same time and one just waits a bit while I mold the other. If I'm doing multiple batches, it helps to stagger the "into the oven" time by 10-15 minutes.

[soapari]

Not sure if it helps but here are some HP links I have in my favorites:

http://www.teachsoap.com/ohp.html

http://www.candletech.com/hpsoap/index.htm

http://www.soapdelicatessen.com/soapmaking/instructions/hotprocess/hotprocesstutorial

http://lovenaonline.com/soapmaking/OHPswirl1.html

[Michi]

Hey AJ, thanks for those directions, tips etc. on OHP, I've never heard of that, but it sounds like something I'd like to try.

Couple of questions-

1. How much of a trace do you bring it to initially?

2. So, when you cook it, it "loosens" up again? And then when you add your FO and/or other goodies, it RE-traces??

3. How big of batches are you doing? And what are you using as a container in the oven?

TIA

[Crafty1_AJ]

1. I go ahead and bring it to a somewhat thick trace, but medium will do too.

2. Yes, it goes to a gel-like stage where it's all translucent and loose. That's when I take it out of the oven. No, it doesn't "re-trace" -- it's done after you add the goodies. Quickly stir in your fo, color, whatever ... then plop in the mold. Work somewhat quickly because it firms up quickly as it cools.

3. I use oven-safe glass pots (Visions) or my stainless steel pots.