FOs in HP soap compared to rebatching

[Darbla]

I know that hot process is gentler on FOs than cold process, but is it safe to say that most FOs do well in HP? Or is there still a large percentage that don't survive it? I'm trying to decide whether to try HP, or make my CP and then rebatch to make sure the scents are kept since they would've be going through the saponification with the lye.

Do any of you prefer rebatching over HP for reasons of maintaining scent integrity?

[Kitn]

I have only had one scent fail in a thousand or more batches, cp or hp doesn't really matter ime. The scent was nG cuc melon it went way south after 6 months.

[TallTayl]

Some do better, some do not. It's not an easy answer. FO's with delicate and volatile top notes, such as citrus will still require an anchor to hold the scent. I've not found a coconut to survive long using either HP or CP.

The big bonus point of HP is with those that move fast or that seize such as spices and florals are easy as pie with that method. The icing on the cake is that you can usually use less fragrance an it usually often remain truer than when forced through the CP process.

Given the choice between HP and rebatching I'd choose HP. It's easier to work with the hot soap in one step than it is to shred CP and heat it back up in two steps. But that's just me.

[soulshine]

So will the north face down survive the HP process better than rebatching? I couldn't help myself...

I can't comment on the FO HP vs rebatch , cuz I've never done HP. Hope you get the answers you are looking for!

[lovemylabs]

We only HP and we've been pleasantly surprised at how well most of the fragrances do for us. We rebatched when we were learning CP, but with HP we never have. Personally I prefer HP...I find it easier on the oils, we can use less oil and we get to use our soap much sooner. (Just wish we had the beautiful swirls like the gals here have with their CP) I agree with kitn on NG's Cucumber Melon...the scent seemed to fade quite a bit...I love this fragrance, but it just didn't hold up that well for us. I may give it another shot in the spring.

[Chefmom]

I'm a HP girl. I will do some CP, mostly unscented bars that I want on hand. I have found that in my soaps that I use Essential Oils hold the scent for a very long time, and they stay very true to scent.

However, with my journey into candles I am branching out to using fragrance oils in my hot process soap, and some scents stay, and smell as I remember them and others just seem to fade as the soap is used.

So far two are standing out in my mind. NG Georgia Peach was very peachy going into the soap, all during the set up, slicing, trimming and curing it was Peachy. Not outstanding, but peachy. However, just this week I pulled a sample from the box and I had to check the name on the box. It doesn't just smell different, it doesn't smell ANYTHING like peaches at all. I still have the sample FO bottle, so I pulled it out, and they are different. The new scent isn't bad, it's quite nice. A soapy floral scent, but not peaches.

The other one was Beach Daisies from Peaks. It smells the same, but as soon as I start using the soap it quickly fades to the point that after about a week I can hardly smell anything at all.

After making this batch of soaps (I made master mega batches and cut them into four separate for scents and additions) I read that with HP soap you need to be sure it is cool to 180* or under so you don't lose the scent. I have never tested the temp of my soap at the point I add scent, so I'll have to do it the next time I make soap.

And, I really don't like the quality of bars that are re-batched. I can't see the point to make soap, cut the bars and then just grate it and melt it back down again. I like the HP because the finished bars have a depth and life to them, they all look different, like a slice of granite. I like the ease of making HP soap and the process fits with my life very well. I can pull small amounts from the main batch and have different scents etc, similar to re-batching I guess. Instead of 40 bars of one kind of soap, I have 10 bars of 4 kinds of soap.

I don't sell soap en mass, but small amounts here and there, so I don't need the large amounts, and this system works for me. I'm never searching for a gift, I always have something on hand.

[Darbla]

I may do this one time to experiment, because I also want to see if this prevents discoloring (like how vanillas turn tan/brown).

If I make an olive oil batch one weekend, will it be finished with saponifying enough in 24 hours to cut up and melt down? Or does it need at least 2 weeks? I know it has to be past the zapping stage, but I want it still fresh and not dried like it is after it cures awhile.

[TallTayl]

I may do this one time to experiment, because I also want to see if this prevents discoloring (like how vanillas turn tan/brown).

If I make an olive oil batch one weekend, will it be finished with saponifying enough in 24 hours to cut up and melt down? Or does it need at least 2 weeks? I know it has to be past the zapping stage, but I want it still fresh and not dried like it is after it cures awhile.

Vanillas and fragrances with discoloring components will still discolor in rebatch. It's a factor of the oxidation of the aroma chemicals and other components in the fragrance blend, not temps or lye activity - though higher temps do increase the rate of chemical reaction. If a rebatch was all that was needed to prevent browning, the M&P would not discolor and CP soapers world wide would be rebatching like fiends to have non-brown soaps that contain vanilla components. It's not just vanilla that discolors, though it is a more common cause.

I see no reason why you couldn't rebatch an OO batch in 24 hours. Depending on your methods, temps, etc. the Sap could be pretty well complete. Even if it's not, the heat required to adequately melt it during the rebatch process will hasten the SAP process along quickly. If your OO is pure (unadulterated with other oils), then a 100% OO batch will get pretty hard and difficult to cut up after too long. My own Castile bars are rock hard after 24 hours.

[Darbla]

Thanks, TallTayl! Then I could make a batch on Saturday and finish it up on Sunday.