Guest guest Posted April 12, 2000 Report Share Posted April 12, 2000 in the thread on using up soap scraps someone mentioned that they had chucked out their soap trimmings because they had the " white fuzzies " on them...you DON'T need to do that! First, the 'white fuzzies' (sometimes just a thin film) ISN'T soda ash...soda ash presents as a more crystalline layer and is remarkably hard to achieve! What we get is just teeny weeny bits of soap that during the evaporation process were lifted away from the surface of the soap, but as they cooled (rapidly) dropped back to the surface of the soap. This is why putting mylar or plastic on the surface prevents the fuzz, and why beeswax reduces it (beeswax hardens on the surface of the soap very quickly, forming a barrier. A soaper friend, who is a chemist, analyzed some of the fuzz and said that it was indeed soap, not soda ash. If you do get the white fuzzies, it can be removed in a couple of ways. It can be washed off, although if it's fallen into nooks and crannies on an uneven surface, you might not get rid of it all. It can be buffed off when really really fresh with strong rubbing alcohol and a soft cloth (or even a nylon stocking). Or of course, it can be sliced, pared or scraped off. Since it's soap, it's not harmful or anything. Even if it was soda ash, it's not inherently dangerous and could be washed off. Hope that helps! ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 13, 2000 Report Share Posted April 13, 2000 Thanks! I think it was me that started that line. The stuff isn't really " fuzzy " , its more like powdery. I tried slicing it off one bar and washing it off another. On the " sliced off " bar, the powdery stuff grew back on the other it did not...? The batch has only been sitting 2 weeks...I think I'll let it sit for 2 more. I'm a bit leery after trying out a bar too soon!!! Thanks everyone, Hopeful in Ventura ---------- From: " Garden Goddess " <garden_goddess@...> onelist Subject: it's NOT soda ash! Date: Wed, Apr 12, 2000, 8:24 PM in the thread on using up soap scraps someone mentioned that they had chucked out their soap trimmings because they had the " white fuzzies " on them...you DON'T need to do that! First, the 'white fuzzies' (sometimes just a thin film) ISN'T soda ash...soda ash presents as a more crystalline layer and is remarkably hard to achieve! What we get is just teeny weeny bits of soap that during the evaporation process were lifted away from the surface of the soap, but as they cooled (rapidly) dropped back to the surface of the soap. This is why putting mylar or plastic on the surface prevents the fuzz, and why beeswax reduces it (beeswax hardens on the surface of the soap very quickly, forming a barrier. A soaper friend, who is a chemist, analyzed some of the fuzz and said that it was indeed soap, not soda ash. If you do get the white fuzzies, it can be removed in a couple of ways. It can be washed off, although if it's fallen into nooks and crannies on an uneven surface, you might not get rid of it all. It can be buffed off when really really fresh with strong rubbing alcohol and a soft cloth (or even a nylon stocking). Or of course, it can be sliced, pared or scraped off. Since it's soap, it's not harmful or anything. Even if it was soda ash, it's not inherently dangerous and could be washed off. Hope that helps! ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com <http://www.hotmail.com> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted April 13, 2000 Report Share Posted April 13, 2000 Thanks! I think it was me that started that line. The stuff isn't really " fuzzy " , its more like powdery. I tried slicing it off one bar and washing it off another. On the " sliced off " bar, the powdery stuff grew back on the other it did not...? The batch has only been sitting 2 weeks...I think I'll let it sit for 2 more. I'm a bit leery after trying out a bar too soon!!! Thanks everyone, Hopeful in Ventura ---------- From: " Garden Goddess " <garden_goddess@...> onelist Subject: it's NOT soda ash! Date: Wed, Apr 12, 2000, 8:24 PM in the thread on using up soap scraps someone mentioned that they had chucked out their soap trimmings because they had the " white fuzzies " on them...you DON'T need to do that! First, the 'white fuzzies' (sometimes just a thin film) ISN'T soda ash...soda ash presents as a more crystalline layer and is remarkably hard to achieve! What we get is just teeny weeny bits of soap that during the evaporation process were lifted away from the surface of the soap, but as they cooled (rapidly) dropped back to the surface of the soap. This is why putting mylar or plastic on the surface prevents the fuzz, and why beeswax reduces it (beeswax hardens on the surface of the soap very quickly, forming a barrier. A soaper friend, who is a chemist, analyzed some of the fuzz and said that it was indeed soap, not soda ash. If you do get the white fuzzies, it can be removed in a couple of ways. It can be washed off, although if it's fallen into nooks and crannies on an uneven surface, you might not get rid of it all. It can be buffed off when really really fresh with strong rubbing alcohol and a soft cloth (or even a nylon stocking). Or of course, it can be sliced, pared or scraped off. Since it's soap, it's not harmful or anything. Even if it was soda ash, it's not inherently dangerous and could be washed off. Hope that helps! ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com <http://www.hotmail.com> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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