FAQ - updated February 16th, 2022
1. Purpose of the molds
Q: What kind of soap can be made using your molds?
A: Soap molds are intended to be used for making soap bars usingexclusively the cold method. The soap mass which will be poured into them must not be over 40 degs Centigrade (Celcius).
Higher temperatures may be used exclusively at buyer's risk.
Q: Can the molds be used for glycerin (melt & pour) soap?
A: Due to the higher temperatures needed, I strongly advise against it. You can do it exclusively at your own risk. Yet some clients of mine reported that they did it successfuly.
Q: Can I put the soap filled mold in the freezer in order to speedup the process?
A: ABSOLUTELY NOT. Acrylic is not fond of sudden temperature changes. Freezing the mold so that the soap loaf comes easier out of it will probably lead to cracks in the acrylic parts. It is strictly prohibited and damages caused by freezing it is not covered by guarantee.
Q: What about NaOH / KOH ?
A:
a. Recipes with more than 10% (per weight) of NaOh must NOT be used without lining. If the soap mass is too alcaline, it may cause cracks to the acrylic or even brake it to pieces.
The recipes I have personaly used - and do not damage the acrylics - have maximum 9.3% (per weight) NaOH.
Damages due to the use the use of more than 10% NaOH without lining are not covered by guarantee.
b. KOH must NOT be used. The soapification process using KOH raises the temperature significantly and may damage the mold.
Damages to acrylics due to the use of KOH are not covered by guarantee.
c. The above do not apply to HDPE molds which have absolutely no problem with the percentage of NaOH/KOH.
Q: Do the molds leak?
A: Due to the way the molds are made, they are NOT watertight. The ease of assembling - dissasembling is preffered over a very tight and difficult to use mold.
Droplets of soapmass may leak when pouring the soapmass into the mold. Yet, due to the thickness of the soapmass (usually kind like of honey) they are minor and totally acceptable and since the soapification reaction starts and proceeds relatively quickly the soap by itself seals those probable leaks.
Q: What about HDPE molds?
A: Since today (Sep 18th, 2020) I also have HDPE modls among my ETSY listings.
HDPE is a thermoplastic (as acrylic is too) but it is more resistant to chemicals, high temperatures and accidental freefalls (!)... Therefore, KOH can also be used (whereas it can't on acrylic molds), along with higher NaOH ratios and higher pouring temperatures.
HDPE made molds can also be used for Hot Method and for Melt-and-Pour Glycerin soaps.
Yet, they have a major disadvantage... They are white, not clear, so they lack the beauty of the acryic ones...
All the other FAQs (lining, leaking etc) apply to HDPE molds too, although, due to its matte surface, it has a looooot better antisticking properties.
2. Dimensions:
a. All dimensions mentioned are the interior ones
b. All dimensions mentioned are in cm
c. All dimensions mentioned are in the form : Length x Width x Height. (Exception: The vertical molds where the dims are in the form Height x Length x Width). Eg. the 35X7X8 mold will be 35cm Long x 7 cm Wide x 8 cm Tall
Q: Do you make custom sized/shaped molds?
A: Yes, I do - That answer kind of reminding me of something... :) :) :)
3. Shipping - The shop owner's nightmare!!!
Q: How do you ship your products?
A: Depending on the destination country, I use TnT/Fedex or Greek Post Services.
Q: Aren't the shipping rates a bit expensive?
A: Please have in mind that the molds are quite heavy. In most cases the packet weight is over 1.5 kgs. So I always try to use the most affordable carrier depending on the destination country and the packet weight.
Q: Are the shipping rates flat?
A: Yes, up to 1 kg, 1.001 to 2.000, 2.001 to 3.000 etc
Q: What about combined shipping?
A: Surely combined shipping of mutiple items is cheaper. Unfortunqately, ETSY does not calculate the shipping according to weight but according to the number of pieces ordered.
That works well for 1-2 pieces but for more the shipping cost is often overcalculated. So I would, please, ask you to contact me if you want to buy 3 or more items so that I can calculate the exact shipping cost and create a custom order for you. Especially when it come to mold lids which are not heavy.
Q. How is an order tracked after it has been shipped?
A. As soon as an order is shipped, the customer recieves two messages. An automatically generated one sent by ETSY and a manually created one sent by me. Both contain the tracking number and the url where the customer can track the course of his/her order. It is on the customer's SOLE responsibility to track his/her order and inform me for any unusual behaviour (e.g. delay at a parcel center, wrong destination, delay in delivery etc) so that I can contact the carrier and investigate the its wherabouts.
Exceptions:
1. Greek Post Services doesn't always track a shipment upon its departure from Greek soil (!!!). The tracking data are usually not updated until delivery (!!!!).
2. Canada and Australia National Post Services do not support tracking for shipments of less than 2 kgs of weight.
Q. What happens in case of a failed delivery?
A. All orders are sent to the address the customer has given to ETSY (copied - pasted onto the shipping slip). The customer's telephone number is ABSOLUTELY required. Without it, the orders are put on hold and are not shipped until the customer send its it. The carrier's tracking data is the ONLY acceptable proof of a failed delivery.
1. If, according to the carrier's tracking data, the recipient, for any reason, cannot be reached and the ordered is returned, a refund is NOT accepted. In this case, and if the customer still wants to receive his/her order, he/she has to repay the shiping fees as well as the undelivered order's returning fees. In order for an order to be reshipped, it has first to be delivered to me. It will not, in any case, be remanufactured and shipped prior to the non-delivered one's return.
2. If, according to TnT's tracking data, an order is lost (e.g. it has left a parcel center but has failed to reach the next one, or it was out for delivery but it has not been delivered etc), the customer is OBLIGATED to inform me about it (as mentioned before, tracking an order is the customer's SOLE responsibility) so that I can contact the carrier and make a claim for a lost shipment. This has to be done within 15 days from the day of the shipping. As soon as TNT accepts the loss (usually about a week) a full refund is issued or the order is remanufactured and resent according to the customer's wish. After this period has expired, the carrier does not accept the loss of the shipment and a claim cannot be made, therefore neither a refund nor remanufacturing and resending of the order is possible .
3. When TnT/Fedex is used (99% of the cases), a signature is asked from the receipient to which I have access to. Since the recipient's identity cannot be verified by the carrier, if an order is delivered and a recipient signature is acquired, the order is considered as well delivered despite the identity of the person who collected it. The same applies if the customer asked the carrier to leave the packet at a specific place for him to pick it up. In such cases refunding is NOT possible.
4. Unfortunately, ETSY does not calculate the shipping fees according to the customer's address/postal code but only according to his country. The shipping fees, indicated to the customer during checkout, are valid for a maximum distance of 5-7 kms from the nearest TnT/Fedex point of presence (or affiliated Company). If the delivery address is described by TnT as "Remote" or "Very Remote" (e.g. far away from point of presence, island etc), additional shipping fees will apply. The shipping cost is always calculated using tnt's online application upon an order is placed and the customer is informed if any additional shipping fees have to be applied. If the customer refuses to pay them, the order is cancelled and a refund is issued.
5. TnT/Fedex delivers literaly everywhere. They offer very good shippping fees for most of the countries. Yet there are countries (e.g. Australia) for which shipping fees are pretty expensive. For those countries Greek post Service can be used instead.
6. If Greek Post Services has been used (until having fully been replaced by FEDEX-TNT) and although a tracking number is issued, a claim for a lost/damaged item takes for ever. So in this case, refunding/remaking of a lost/damaged item IS NOT, IN ANY CASE, possible. If an order has to be shipped using this carrier, the customer is informed about it via a message on the ETSY messaging system prior to its manufacturing and his/her concent is asked for.
8. Canadian and Australian national post services do not offer tracking service for shipments of less than 2 kgs of weight.
Q: Shipping safety
A: We try to packet our molds as good as possible in order to insure a safe delivery. In fact we are spending a significant ammount of money and time every month on packaging materials and procedures. Unfortunately, there is always a small possibility that the carier mishandles a packet and the item arives damaged.
That's why, from now on (Feb 16, 2022) insurance policy is offered to all customers as follows:
1. Insurance policy is valid ONLY if TnT/Fedex is used.
2. Insurance policy is valid for BOTH damage and loss
3. If insurance fees have been paid we take full responsibility for the damage and the damaged parts are remade and resent free of charge. Yet, proof of damage will be asked for (photos of the damaged parts and damage on the packaging itself). So if an obviously damaged packet is received, kindly take photos of it BEFORE opening it!! Those photos will be forwarded to TnT's insurance division without asking ofr the customer's concent to do so.
4. If insurance fees have not been paid the damaged parts can be remade and resent but the customer has to pay for both them and for their shipping fees.
5. If free or discounted shipping fee offer is running, ETSY's system doesn't offer the ability to aquire only the Insurance Policy but instead it adds it along with shipping fees. In such a case, kindly contact me for directions.
CAUTION: For customers located outside the EU:
In such a case, the packet may be opened by destination country's customs for checking. Since there can be no guarantee that the officers will repack the contents the way we had originally done (it is proven so far that they do not), I would strongly suggest to purchase the insurance option.
Insurance fee is 1% of the order's total. Yet the minimum fee is 10.00€. It is available as an optional purchase on checkout.
In both customer location cases (EU and non EU), a claim for a damaged item has to be made to us within 2 days from delivery. AFTER THIS PERIOD, NO recompansation and/or free replacement will be accepted.
4. Lids
a. The kind of lids I have on ETSY do not seal the molds in an air tight way. Their use is just to keep dust, insects etc away of the soap's surface. If you check the photo of the lid on my ETSY, you will see that when the lids sits on top of the mold, there are gaps left around it.
b. If you want a lid that closes all theese gaps, I have to make it in a different way but it will be more expensive and still will not be air tight.
5. Cleaning
Q: How do I clean the molds?
A: With warm (not hot) water and mild liquid soap
Q: Can the molds be put in a dish washing machine?
A: Only the acrylic parts, NOT the screws NOR the nuts. Do not use temps over 40oC. Use mild soap/tablets
Q: Can I use alcohol to sanitize the molds?
A: ABSOLUTELY NOT. Food grade acrylic is sensitive to alcohol and strong chemicals. If it is cleaned with them, cracks will surely appear. This damage is not covered by
guarantee.
6. Durability
Q: How much time do your molds last?
A: All of my molds are made of acrylic and they have to be treated as such. The acrylic sheets I use have a guarantee of 10 years by their manufacturer not to be polymerised.
Yet, due to their nature, they have to be treated with some care in order to avoid scratches on their surface. Also if they are dropped and strongly hit a solid surface they will probably brake. I have clients who use the same molds for 3-4 years now. I still have the first one I made back in 2011.
7. Sticking - Lining
Q. Does the soap sticks to the acrylic?
A. The use of acrylic does NOT guarantees antisticking molds like TEFLON does. Yet it is a looooooot cheaper. Speaking for myself, I never had notable sticking problems when not having used lining.
Q: Is lining necessary?
A: Depends on the oils/recipe you use. Most clients of mine do not use lining. Please check the photos in the review section. Personally I only use olive oil and I don't line the molds.
Q: What kinds of lining can I use?
A: oven paper, oil, silicon spray etc
Q: How should I know if I have to use lining?
A: I suggest trying a small portion of your soap mass against an acrylic part and let it cure in order to see how it behaves, before filling the whole mold.
8. Safety
Q: Are the materials used food safe?
A: The acrylic parts of the molds are made of food grade acrylic sheets. Nevertheless they are NOT, in any case, intended to be used in conjunction with food (storage,
displaying etc). Certificates by the acrylic and hdpe sheet manufacturers are available to customers upon their request. The screws are made from galvanised iron but they do not come in contact with the soap during mold's use, so there is no reason worrying about them.
Q: Is acrylic safe to handle?
A: Acrylic pieces may, in some cases, have sharp edges. Serious attention must be shown when dealing with them in order to avoid injuring. The seller cannot, in any case, be
held responsible for injuries and/or damage deriving from their use.
Q: Is soapmaking safe?
A: Soap making process deals with dangerous chemicals, so serious attention must be shown during it. Soap making success doesn't depend exclusively on the mold and thus the seller does not guaratee it nor does he provide information on soap making process.The seller cannot, in any case, be held responsible for injuries and/or damage deriving from the use of the molds.
Q: Can I buy a mold for my kid?
A: All products are to be sold to and used by adults. The seller cannot verify if the buyer or the user of his products is an adult and he will not ask about it. If the buyer is a minor and he/she informs the seller about it, the order will be cancelled and a refund will be issued during the following 30 days. If he/she doesn not inform or lie to the seller about it, the order will be processed and shipped as if he/she was an adult and the seller cannot, in any case be held responsible. His/her supervising adult is responsible. In this case returns are not accepted and refunds are NOT issued
9. Paypents / Invoicing
Q: How do I pay?
A:
a. Retail customers can pay using ETSY Payments or Paypal. b. Professionals can also pay through bank wire transfer using the option "OTHER" when choosing method of payment.
Q: Do I get an anvoice?
A:.
a. For retail customers, a retail cashier machine receipt is issued and sent with their order.
b. For professional customers an invoice can be issued instead of the retail receipt. In this case, contacting me prior to ordering is OBLIGTORY. For an EU customer, a valid Vat Id must be provided which has to be registered for intra-EU trqansactions. For non-EU customers, proof of being a professional may be asked for.
