# Grrr - soap ash



## eam (Aug 22, 2010)

I really don't like the ash that develops on my soap. I know some say not to worry about it but I made some small shaped soaps and the ash is just plain unsightly on those. Is there anything I can do about it? I've tried spritzing alcohol (just plain rubbing alcohol) and that seems to help at first but ultimately they still end up with ash.

Ideas?


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## MF-Alpines (Mar 29, 2010)

Usually, it will rub off.


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## Faye Farms (Sep 14, 2009)

Insulate and bring into gel. Make sure no outside cool air gets to the soap until it is done doing it's thing and has cooled off. Then uncover.


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## eam (Aug 22, 2010)

It doesn't rub off easily; I spend hours trying to clean up soap because of the ash. I need to scrape it with a knife and then all the fiddly details on the soap get marred.

I'll try the gelling; I usually just let it do it's own thing. I should pay more attention. I'll try to post a pic later on so you can see what I mean.

Thanks for the ideas!
Elizabeth


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## Kalne (Oct 25, 2007)

Use the stronger strength of alcohol....I think it's 91% while the reg. is 70%. Works most of the time for me though some will still get just a bit of ash...but at that point it's not so much to detract from the look I want while the other is plain ugly. Without it mine are like yours....I have to cut it off. Spritzing is easier. LOL


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## eam (Aug 22, 2010)

Thanks Kathy. My husband is running errands tomorrow and I'll have him pick some up. Fingers crossed that it's an easy solution!


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## NPgoats (Mar 18, 2010)

I've been using the 91% alcohol spritz and it seems to work.
Linda


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## Jo~* (Oct 26, 2007)

NPgoats said:


> I've been using the 91% alcohol spritz and it seems to work.
> Linda


Maybe I dont use enough alcohol because even with the 91% I still have ash grrrrrr.


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## NPgoats (Mar 18, 2010)

Faye Farms said:


> Insulate and bring into gel. Make sure no outside cool air gets to the soap until it is done doing it's thing and has cooled off. Then uncover.


Maybe it's a combination of both.
Linda


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Use another scent.....if it's all your soap ashing than it's your technique or recipe. There are some scents I simply won't use because they soap UGLY on the top, not even what I call ash but smut. Vicki


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## eam (Aug 22, 2010)

Thanks Vicki. It's not ALL my scents but most of them. What would it be in my technique that might cause ash to be more prominent? My recipe is pretty basic:

25% olive
25% coconut
25% lard
25% tallow
100% GM


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## Anita Martin (Dec 26, 2007)

You could always not gel them. Then at least the ash would be less noticeable.


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

After you pour your soap.....then what? ie., do you cover them, do they gell, are they overheating, is it really all your scents (florals, citrus and bakery products with vanilla in them)? I keep/kept copious notes, and quickly found that with anything that had vanilla in it in high percentage I would get ash so I put a fan on it, texture the top to keep the ash at the base of the bar and to embrace the ash with texture. I don't use scents that cause smut, brown ash that sort of rises like a crust on top of the soap, I think it's candle ingredients for throw that should not be in soap (guessing but when it's happened it is always candle scents). I rarely if ever have ash with citrus, floral, essential oil or fragrance. The culprit for me has always been scents with vanilla.


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## eam (Aug 22, 2010)

Of the scents I've made recently, all ash: Lavender FO (the worst), Global Garden, Lemon Meringue Pie (has vanilla), Sea Spice, Almond, BRV, Victorian Rose, .... even unscented confetti.

My shape soaps are flimsy plastic molds. (You can get them on Amazon for about 2bucks - CK products.) I just let them do what they do on the counter. They're too thin to do much with. For my bars, I use a homemade log mold. Sometimes I wrap a blanket around it, sometimes I just let them be. I don't notice a difference in ash. I do notice that those scents in which I used to get that horrible ungelled middle spot has gone away when I wrap with the blanket.


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