# What does Aloe Vera do in soap?



## sofietje (Dec 10, 2007)

Hi, 

I read somewhere that Paul uses aloe vera to mix his lye. That makes me curious. What is the benefit of aloe vera in soap? 

I know aloe vera juice comes in different qualities. And most are very expensive. So I guess the aloe vera has a benefit otherwise it would be a very expensive soap. 

How does the aloe react in the lye?


----------



## Guest (Dec 10, 2007)

bump. I dont use it. I tried it once.. couldnt really tell a difference.. 

So.. PAUL! YOU HOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


----------



## sofietje (Dec 12, 2007)

Thank you for your answer. 
I hope Paul will have time to share his experience as well.


----------



## WhiteLyeSoapCo (Dec 13, 2007)

I made an aloe vera and vitamin e bar and i think the texture is very smooth. When bathing with it it leaves a smoothness on your skin. I added it in a rebatch to preserve the benefits of aloe vera. It is reputed to eliminate free radicals in the skin and help heal acne and repair the scars left behind. I've read that several places.


----------



## Guest (Dec 13, 2007)

WhiteLyeSoapCo said:
			
		

> I made an aloe vera and vitamin e bar and i think the texture is very smooth. When bathing with it it leaves a smoothness on your skin. I added it in a rebatch to preserve the benefits of aloe vera. It is reputed to eliminate free radicals in the skin and help heal acne and repair the scars left behind. I've read that several places.




What kind of "aloe vera" did you use?


----------



## WhiteLyeSoapCo (Dec 13, 2007)

Aloe Vera Gel from Camden Grey.


----------



## Guest (Dec 13, 2007)

Awesome, I might have to try and play with that a little bit.

I use regular aloe gel in my baby barrier cream for the diaper area.
My niece is a couple of months old which is what prompted me to make it.
But it's got unrefined shea butter, mango butter, coconut oil, and aloe gel in it.   Sure beats desitin....... LOL


----------



## Soapmaker Man (Dec 13, 2007)

Isa here!  I use aloe vera juice I buy at Sam's or if I have to Wal-Mart!  Sam's is less expensive per gallon, about $5.00.  Aloe vera is a well known skin healer for burns or wounds.  I don't buy or use aloe vera gel or powder, just the aloe vera juice at Sams.  I also use this as a good portion of water in my  lotions and body creams for the same above mentioned reason.  I have been at forums where some say the benefits of the aloe vera juice does not survive the lye process, but I disagree wholeheartedly!  I mix my lye solution at a 50% rate, meaning equal weights of aloe vera juice and lye together.  I add silk to the hot solution, mixing thoroughly, and let it cool.  I then store it in bleach bottles with a dispenser spigot.  Love using room temperature lye solution with my room temperature master batched oils/fats/butters in my favorite recipe!  I store this master-batched recipe in the large "Gain" detergent bottles with the push spigot.  
Anyway I do think the benefits of using aloe vera juice to mix my lye with is noticeable!  The very least affect is great label appeal!   8) 

Paul....  :wink:


----------



## Guest (Dec 13, 2007)

Thanks for the heads up, I think i'm gonna pick up some aloe juice, i've seen it in walmart in the health and beauty, with the health stuff.   Since my nearest walmart is only 45 miles away VS sam club which is 130 miles away.   

And try making my creams/lotions with it.


----------



## leotavali (Dec 21, 2007)

> I mix my lye solution at a 50% rate, meaning equal weights of aloe vera juice and lye together.  I add silk to the hot solution, mixing thoroughly, and let it cool.  I then store it in bleach bottles with a dispenser spigot.  Love using room temperature lye solution with my room temperature master batched oils/fats/butters in my favorite recipe!



Hi Paul,

I'm just getting started in soap making and trying to learn about temperatures and such.  When you say you use room temperature lye solution with room temperature oils, are you saying you make CP soap without adding any heat?


----------



## Soapmaker Man (Dec 22, 2007)

leotavali said:
			
		

> > I mix my lye solution at a 50% rate, meaning equal weights of aloe vera juice and lye together.  I add silk to the hot solution, mixing thoroughly, and let it cool.  I then store it in bleach bottles with a dispenser spigot.  Love using room temperature lye solution with my room temperature master batched oils/fats/butters in my favorite recipe!
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Yup!  I master batch my recipe in big detergent containers and pour out enough every time to make what the mold I'm using holds!  The master batch is at whatever temperature the room is, say, 70 degrees.  
I also master batch my lye solution.  I weigh out say 50 ounces of aloe vera juice and add 50 ounces of lye to that.  I also add my silk threads to the hot solution to melt them.  After cooling, I store in a bleach container that has a built in pour spout..  When ready to soap, I just use both the room temperature solution and oils/butters in my master batched recipe.  I add my goat milk at emulsification.  I usually soap at a 30 to 33% lye solution rate.  Works fabulously!

Paul.... :wink:


----------



## sofietje (Dec 22, 2007)

Thank you very much for sharing your experience Paul. 
I still have one question: what do you mean by emulsification (when you add the goatmilk)? English is not my native language, so I'm trying to think when in the soapprocess it's called emulsification.  

Thank you for your patience. I hope you have a very merry christmas.


----------



## sassylady (Dec 22, 2007)

I know I'm not Paul and can't read his mind 8)  

That said, I believe he uses the word emulsification for what we generally call trace.  I'll be interested to know if I'm right :?:


----------



## sofietje (Dec 22, 2007)

Aha, trace is something I do know.


----------



## Soapmaker Man (Dec 22, 2007)

Actually, what I call emulsification is a fancy word for "thoroughly mixed together"and _just_ mixed together.  Trace is long after emulsification.  I stick blend to thoroughly mix everything together (emulsification) then start doing other things by hand, including whisking to light to medium trace.  Sorry I have not clarified that before now, guys!  

Paul...  :wink: [/i]


----------



## leotavali (Dec 23, 2007)

> I stick blend to thoroughly mix everything together (emulsification) then start doing other things by hand, including whisking to light to medium trace.



Please excuse me for being so "dense" here Paul, but am I correct in understanding that you still do not add any heat?  Even after emulsification?

It's funny that everything I have read so far (and I have read a lot!) says the ingredients should be heated in order for saponification to occur using the Cold Process method.  This is why I'm so surprised to learn that you can make CP soap with room temperature ingredients and no added heat.  But now that I think about it, your technique seems to make a lot of sense ...

After all, if saponification begins without adding heat from an external source and without pre-heating the ingredients, the chemical reaction will likely produce its own heat, and this self-generated heat may be enough to carry the rest of the reaction through to completion.  

My guess is that thorough emulsification via stick blender is the key to your success with room temperature ingredients.  A stick blender seems like a very effective (and very rapid) way to put a large number of fat molecules "in close contact" with all those alkali molecules in the lye solution.  The more these two molecules contact each other, the more heat will be generated, thus reducing or eliminating the need to add heat externally.

If this is what's going on here, I can see why you do not have to heat your fats yet you still achieve trace!

What about gel stage, do you typically see this in your molds?  I built a mold out of wood which should retain the heat and possibly encourage gel, but it would be nice to hear from an expert so I might know whether or not to expect to see a gel stage when using a technique similar to yours ... 

Before I read your post about room temperature CP I was going to try using coconut oil at room temperature (about 80 degrees Farenheit in my location so it is already liquid here) with the hot lye solution that is created after stirring crystalline NaOH into the water.  But now I think I'm going to mix the lye solution the day before so it will cool off to room temperature, then use a stick blender to mix both ingredients at my 80 degree room temperature -- and follow up with a slower whisk mixing method until I see trace.

By the way Paul, how far in advance have you ever mixed your lye solutions?  From my high school chemistry (assuming I recall correctly) it seems this solution could be mixed weeks or months in advance yet still be every bit as good then as the day it was first mixed, assuming it is stored in air tight containers.  Is this correct?


----------



## leotavali (Dec 23, 2007)

Hi sofietje,

Please accept my sincere apology for hijacking your thread!  

I was interested in Aloe Vera as well which is why I came here, but then I forgot all about it when I read Paul's info about room temperature CP.  Next time I will try to ask my off-topic questions in my own thread ...


----------



## sofietje (Dec 23, 2007)

Paul, thank you for clearing that up. I'm glad I asked. 

Leo, don't worry. I don't see this as "my" thread. It's everyone's so we can share and learn from eachother. Just like I learn from your questions.


----------

