Cake Decorating Community - Cakes We Bake

Hi everyone

so last night I baked and stacked my 14 inch vanilla sponge base only to realise that the middle barrel, had a cake in 2 places causing it to bulge outward slightly.

The cake is 10.5cm high. I need to add another 10.5 cm high 11 inch base on top of the 14 inch base - how can I support the cake to ensure it dsoesnt crack and collapse?

My first though was to remove that barrel of cake, but it was too "set" in place by the buttercream so I chose not to move it.

Do I need to add a long dowel through both tiers? Perhaps 8/9 plastic dowels in the 14inch cake?

Hope someone can help ;) Am going to start baking the 11inch later today - the cake is being collected tomorrow ....sigh

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Lynette - I feel for you, how stressful.  I'm not an expert on stacking and I'm sure you will get more positive answers from better cakers than I.  However, if I were in your situation, I would most definitely use dowels to support the weak part, but I would think only through the bottom tier, just to give the 11 inch a firm grounding.  About 8 maybe?

Thanks so much Katy!! It's going to be a playground of dowels in the bottom tier ;)

Oh yeh - give a prize for every dowel found lol!

Yes Lynette

Most defintely, dowel the cake.  This answer maybe to late, but If I had time, I would first dowel, then place cake in the freezer for a 30 min or so. Cake doesn't have to be frozen, just cold & set. This way you can take cake out and carve off the "bulge". Have done this and it works. Even if I just stack two cakes, I dowel. Min 2 dowels in a 10"/8" tier.  Only time I don't is if I am setting the cake up at where it is going. Not transporting the finished cake.  Hope this helps.  :o)

this does help thank you June becau eI will bear that in mindfor the next big cake. this was so stressful I dont think I want to accept another large order anytime soon (especially when I am swamped at work)

But all in all I think it turned out pretty fine! :) I added 8 dowels to the 14inch base in the centre of the cake. I made then 3mms higher than the cake (in hindsight this might actually be too high?)

Thw top tier - 10inch - received 3 dowels in the centre.


I stacked the cake and only realised now that I should have probably let it go in 1 parts as they are travelling pretty far with the cake (a 4 hour commute) I just hope they drive carefully and safely as the top tier was resting only on the dowels.

Hve attached a pic ;)

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Another angle

In the other image I noticed that you can actually see the gap between the 1 cakes meaning that the dowels might be too high...oi vay...hope it gets to its destination safely

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Ah... everything will be fine. On my latest cake, the engagement cake I just posted. The 2nd tier of my chocolate cake, after it reached room temperature.... shrunk. That has never happened before. So, just piped extra icing all around the "gap".  Let it harden.... and wal la.... cakes were even. On with the fondant.   :o)

just had a look at it now June and would never say you had shrinkage!

AHhhhh

The tricks we use to make our cakes look good!!!!!

I know!! haha always amazing

As long as the customer is happy, they don't know from nothin!!!!

Very pretty Lynette - you would never know anything had happened!  Stressful yes, but you will have learnt from this and it probably won't happen again.  If it does, you'll know exactly what to do and won't be phased by it.

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