# There MUST be a better way to clean up after CP making ??



## Lin19687 (Apr 17, 2018)

I am wasting a TON of hot water washing the stuff after making CP in the kitchen sink.  And sometimes they are still Oily !  I use a BUNCH of soap too.  It is usually just the melting pot I use  but still.

Tell me there is a better way of doing this ??  

Maybe someone has a Trick ?  Please ?

I only have a kitchen sink, no basement one or outside one.  Was told NOT to use the dishwasher...


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## dixiedragon (Apr 17, 2018)

Yup!

Wait 24 hrs. The soap batter will be more saponified/more soap and less oily.


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## amd (Apr 17, 2018)

I wipe everything out with old bed sheets that I cut into rags. I throw the rags in a box under my work table and when the box is full I throw in the washer with a tablespoon of detergent. My dishes then go into the sink in hot water and lots of Dawn blue. Occasionally I might have a oily residue after that, so I spritz it with rubbing alcohol and wipe off. Seems to work.


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## dixiedragon (Apr 17, 2018)

I use my silicone spoon to squeegee out every last drop of soap. After 24 hrs, I hand wash, then sometimes run the dishwasher.


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## jcandleattic (Apr 17, 2018)

First, I use my silicone spatulas to scrape as much batter as humanly possible into the soap mold. My equipment is usually very clean by this time. 
Then I do what amd does - 


amd said:


> I wipe everything out with old bed sheets that I cut into rags. I throw the rags in a box under my work table and when the box is full I throw in the washer



I also then wait at least a day (usually it's a week since I only soap on weekends and have a dedicated area) then wash by hand. If they are still a little oily (which is rare) I throw them in the dishwasher. Works great. 
Never thought about using rubbing alcohol. I will try that next time!


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## Kari (Apr 17, 2018)

I wipe everything out with a microfiber cloth, let it sit for a day (or multiple), and then run everything through the dishwasher set to hot. I also use a Lemi Shine to get all the film off everything.

I just chuck the cloth into the laundry with the next load of towels.


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## cmzaha (Apr 17, 2018)

I am ocd about anything pertaining to dirty dishes in my kitchen, I even wash all soaping utensils including my soaping buckets between batches. I also squeegie out every bit I can then wipe out with rags. I use dish detergent mixed with degreaser to wash everything. My buckets always feel a bit oily but they are for soaping so I do not stress it


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## Lin19687 (Apr 17, 2018)

OMG TY !  I thought i was doing something Highly wrong since i still had some slip on the stuff... oil.
I have a tiny kitchen and no counter space. 

I do squeegie out most of the batter and sometimes wipe it out. But i hate to waste the paper towels.  I am going to go cut up an old sheet set 

Wait, 2 things.... I can do more then one batch in the mix bucket?  I guess I could if I wipe it out, didn't think of that !  And I have 2 Stick blenders !!
AND... can I really put them in the dishwasher ?  I thought I read somewhere that you shouldn't do that ?

I am so used to doing HP and the clean up is a breeze.

TY all , I thought I was going to get all sorts of Eye rolls for this question


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## jcandleattic (Apr 17, 2018)

Lin19687 said:


> I thought I read somewhere that you shouldn't do that ?


You shouldn't do that if there is a lot of unsaponified soap or soap residue on the equipment. As long as it's wiped down to where there is not a lot of residue it should be fine.


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## amd (Apr 17, 2018)

Lin19687 said:


> AND... can I really put them in the dishwasher ?  I thought I read somewhere that you shouldn't do that ?



It might depend on how picky your husband is too... mine won't let soapy stuff in the dishwasher, even if I've handwashed it first.


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## dixiedragon (Apr 17, 2018)

You shouldn't put soap in the dishwasher b/c it bubbles and your dishwasher isn't meant to handle that. One time, I made peppermint soap and swirled it white and red. I got lazy with wipe down and put everything in the dishwasher. 20 minutes later, pink peppermint foam is spewing from the bottom of the dishwasher. It looked like my dishwasher had rabies. I figured since the dishwasher was already full of suds, might as well let it finish. I just mopped the kitchen every 10 minutes or so until it was done. My kitchen smelled AMAZING and it got rid of my sugar ant problem!

But I don't recommend it.


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## Lin19687 (Apr 17, 2018)

No Hubby here so I can do as I please (except I have a teenager here   )

I may just try to wipe it all out and do it that way.  Off to the Linen closet


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## Obsidian (Apr 17, 2018)

I don't really have room in the kitchen for soapy dishes to sit around either so I put them outside in a big Rubbermaid tub. 
Gets them out of the way and keeps them safely away from stray animals.

I don't mind my bowls or buckets being slightly oily but I like my spatulas and silicone molds clean so they go in the dishwasher every few uses.


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## SoapAddict415 (Apr 17, 2018)

It seems that I do a combo of everything listed. I wipe everything down with paper towels or  rags, wait 24-48 hours (I have a tote that I can store my utensils & such in until I'm ready) and then wash everything. When possible, I use Dawn or, if my soaping rags are particularly soapy, I'll use them to wash my equipment.
Almost forgot, I spritz everything with rubbing alcohol & allow it to air dry before soaping.


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## cmzaha (Apr 17, 2018)

I would not put oils utensils in a dishwasher, but that is just me. There is residue that will get in the dishwasher


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## Lin19687 (Apr 17, 2018)

OMG so much better then piling in the sink.
Scraped then wiped with a rag, put in a box, did another batch, repeat, another batch, repeat.  Stacked them all together since they all match, 3pitchers, 3 smaller measure cups, 6 glass small bowls for scent.
Looks all nice and neat and tucked in a box. 
5 batches today so I should be good for a bit and wash tomorrow night.

TY all.  And the Spray with Alcohol is a nice trick !
I spilled OO on the table, paper towel to get it up then spray with Alcohol, GONE !  sweet


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## earlene (Apr 17, 2018)

I do all of the above, plus a bit more.  I squeegee to get as much as possible out.  I wipe with leftover paper, to get any oily residue out, when super oily after a few wipe downs, I spray with 70% rubbing alcohol because it effectively cuts grease, I wipe it again.  Then I add dishwashing liquid (I use a cheap brand I buy from Sam's Club) and start adding the smaller items into it as I do the same with them.  When the bowl is as efficiently full of soaping items, I fill it all with hot tap water before carefully carrying all that to the shower down the hall.  I place the full bowls of soapy soaping dishes on the floor of the shower and close the shower door.  They stay there overnight, or even a few days when I have forgotten about them once or twice.  Then I wash them in the sink and let them air dry in the dish rack.

I know not everyone has a spare shower that they can store their soapy dishes in.  My brother keeps a dishpan under his kitchen sink and stores dirty dishes there until it is full and then he washed the dishes. (But he doesn't make soap.) Both of us apparently have a 'thing' about dirty dishes in the sink.   We don't tolerate them sitting in the sink for long.  My other brothers, I am not so sure how they respond to sinksful of dirty dishes, but when I visit they know I will wash dirty dishes if they are in the sink.  It's just the way I am.  It's a good thing my husband feels the same way because otherwise, we'd probably fight over dirty dishes.  

I toss my soapy towels and cloths into a small bucket, where they sit for only a day or two before I wash them with a load of laundry such as towels, sheets, socks or whatever (not with our good clothes, though).  Since I try to do a load of laundry at least once every day, none of it sits around for long.


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## shunt2011 (Apr 18, 2018)

I do like may others, I don't have extra space so I wash everything after each batch or two. As I soap in my kitchen.   I scrape and wipe as much out as possible then use blue dawn and hot water, let it soak for a few then wash and start over.


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## artemis (Apr 18, 2018)

cmzaha said:


> I would not put oils utensils in a dishwasher, but that is just me. There is residue that will get in the dishwasher


This is my experience. If I just wipe down and toss in the washer, I end up with cloudy dishes.


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## Kari (Apr 18, 2018)

cmzaha said:


> I would not put oils utensils in a dishwasher, but that is just me. There is residue that will get in the dishwasher





artemis said:


> This is my experience. If I just wipe down and toss in the washer, I end up with cloudy dishes.



This is why I use the Lemi Shine.

Granted I also only do 'soaping' loads in the dishwasher too. I try not to wash them with pots I cook in or dishes that I eat off of.


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## Lin19687 (Apr 18, 2018)

A bit of Citric Acid in the dishwasher made ALL my stuff SUPER clean.  My glasses looked like someone polished them 
This is was Soaping stuff, just regular dishes.  
We sometimes get that "wet dog" smell on stuff so I tried the CA.  I think it is the eggs and Milk but DD says no... I think she is wrong


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## jules92207 (Apr 18, 2018)

shunt2011 said:


> I do like may others, I don't have extra space so I wash everything after each batch or two. As I soap in my kitchen.   I scrape and wipe as much out as possible then use blue dawn and hot water, let it soak for a few then wash and start over.



Same here. I typically do 5-6 batches at a time as I only get to soap on the weekends. I wash after each batch and start again. I do use dawn which seems to do a pretty good job cutting the grease but I think I’ll start using the alcohol trick, that sounds like it would really help.


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## cjisler (Apr 18, 2018)

Let me give you my recipe that gets that stubborn film off after you’ve washed. In a quart container combine 1/2 cup blue Dawn, 1/2 cup isopropyl alcohol, and one level teaspoon trisodium phosphate, TSP. Fill the rest of the container with water. Put that in a spray bottle and use it on surfaces with a greasy film. I it to clean all my Tallow rendering equipment.


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## dixiedragon (Apr 18, 2018)

Where do you get the TSP?


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## Lin19687 (Apr 18, 2018)

I also don't have a sink plug.

I'm gonna try the dishwasher tomorrow with the CA and see how it goes.

I may go buy the big plastic measure cups so I can do  up to 5, (2#) batches at a time, then it will be easier and all cleaning them at once. I was washing then doing another batch but was taking all day to do 2 batches


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## zanzalawi (Apr 18, 2018)

some awesome ideas, will really make my cleanup process more smooth
especially just chilling out and leaving it for 24 hours


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## soapmaker (Apr 18, 2018)

Two questions: what's wrong with a little film on a ss soaping pot? And why "blue" Dawn? I have Dawn that works wonders but it's pink and has a lovely scent.


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## jcandleattic (Apr 18, 2018)

soapmaker said:


> what's wrong with a little film on a ss soaping pot?


Nothing is really "wrong" with it, but if it's what you mix your lye solution with, that little bit of residue can start to saponify. And most people just like working with super clean dishes. 
Oh and I think blue dawn maybe because that's the original formula and has the best grease cutting? IDK - I've only ever used blue dawn, and only knew of green being a different color for it. :shrugs: I don't think it matters...


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## cjisler (Apr 18, 2018)

soapmaker said:


> Two questions: what's wrong with a little film on a ss soaping pot? And why "blue" Dawn? I have Dawn that works wonders but it's pink and has a lovely scent.



Use any Dawn you want. That’s just what we call it around here. Other brands don’t work as well.


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## Lin19687 (Apr 18, 2018)

I HATE the green and other scents.  I am not even thrilled with  the Blue but it DOES cut the grease better then the Green colored one.

My Lye/Water mix container is ONLY for that just for that reason of no other residue .


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## [email protected] (Apr 18, 2018)

I scrape off all the batter I can, then stack my dishes in a dedicated bucket and wait a day or two.  
I then hand wash everything in dedicated soft tubs with scalding water and detergent until no greasiness or smell remains, double rinse and dry on the dedicated rack. 
I have made my Laundry Tub my dedicated wash up area. The hand laundry gets done in the bathtub 
I am a bit strict on the hygiene.


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## DeeAnna (Apr 18, 2018)

soapmaker said:


> ...what's wrong with a little film on a ss soaping pot?....



There are anecdotes reported by reputable soap makers that residues left on the surfaces of silicone molds can trigger rancidity. So it's plausible that residues in the soap pot might do the same. I can't absolutely say this is true, but cleaning a soap pot is a simple task, so why take chances?


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## soapmaker (Apr 18, 2018)

DeeAnna said:


> There are anecdotes reported by reputable soap makers that residues left on the surfaces of silicone molds can trigger rancidity. So it's plausible that residues in the soap pot might do the same. I can't absolutely say this is true, but cleaning a soap pot is a simple task, so why take chances?


I wash mine with Dawn (pink) and they are sparkling clean. My niece who also makes soap never washes hers with anything but plain water so I was just wondering if there was something that might happen because of that.

My DIL hates the smell of blue Dawn. She says it smells like a hedgehog! (Because that's what they use to wash hedgehogs at the shelter where she volunteers.)


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## earlene (Apr 18, 2018)

TSP is sold in hardware stores and places where you can buy paint.   My parents always used it when cleaning the walls before painting.  My mom was a heavy smoker, and the TSP got the nicotine off the walls quite well.  After dry, they painted.  They did this yearly when I was growing up.


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## snappyllama (Apr 18, 2018)

I'm in the lazy, er efficient crowd. I wipe out what I can, chunk dirty dishes in a big orange multi-gallon container from Home Depot, put a lid on it, and forget about it for a few days. Then I tetris-stack the dishes in my sink, squirt with a little dawn, spray with really hot water, and walk away for 30 minutes or so. The soap dishes practically clean themselves.

Balms on the other hand.... Oh how I loathe cleaning balm dishes...


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## cmzaha (Apr 18, 2018)

dixiedragon said:


> Where do you get the TSP?


Home depot carries it.


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## cjisler (Apr 18, 2018)

snappyllama said:


> I'm in the lazy, er efficient crowd. I wipe out what I can, chunk dirty dishes in a big orange multi-gallon container from Home Depot, put a lid on it, and forget about it for a few days. Then I tetris-stack the dishes in my sink, squirt with a little dawn, spray with really hot water, and walk away for 30 minutes or so. The soap dishes practically clean themselves.
> 
> Balms on the other hand.... Oh how I loathe cleaning balm dishes...



Tetris-stack is a good way to describe it.


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## cjisler (Apr 18, 2018)

dixiedragon said:


> Where do you get the TSP?



Any hardware store or big box home store, in the paint department. Get the kind with the red label. The blue one is fake TSP, it’s only sodium carbonate, mostly.


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## cmzaha (Apr 18, 2018)

I love it when I learn something new, not sure why I never spritzed oily buckets with alcohol. I am certainly going to try it when I return home and see it the oil goes away. We are never to old to learn.^^^ yes, the red label

Does anyone know if OxiClean will help? I know we used to use it on the boat to cut fish blood and slime. It worked well for that, not do not know if it would help with oil. It took all the blood out of the carpet from my step dads bad fall a few weeks ago. It was there for 2 weeks since my sister did not clean it up. OxiClean took it all out.


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## BattleGnome (Apr 19, 2018)

OxiClean is peroxide based which interacts with blood (and cat urine). 

I keep a ton of peroxide around because of the cats (thankfully don’t have to use it often), it’s be nice to be able to us extra cleaning products for the extra oily soaping stuff. I’ll probably start using the alcohol trick soon. I use Ajax because it’s the only dish soap scent that doesn’t smell like perfume to me. (I find it’s a very weird trend to put gain flower scents in everything now)


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## Lin19687 (Apr 19, 2018)

I am a bit scent sensitive so most things I hate because it smells like perfume .  Tried the Earth Friendly dish soaps because it was the only one that came unscented.  But Dawn works better.
I don't do much dishes by hand, I even put my pot/pans in there and you are not suppose to 

So far the CA in the dishwasher made my Glasses look like BRAND NEW ! and no wet dog smell so far.

I want to try the soap pots next but I need to make more soap to dirty up more pots to make a full load 
Any excuse to soap, no ?


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## soapmaker (Apr 19, 2018)

Dawn works wonders for me with hot water but that's just soap and lotion. Glad it's not beeswax candles! I've never seen any dawn that is green. And since no one ever mentions anything about pink, which I use, I'm assuming pink must only be available in Canada.


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## Lin19687 (Apr 19, 2018)

@soapmaker  Well I just guess you get Pink because Canada is so cute   To me at least it is cute, and cold


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## soapmaker (Apr 19, 2018)

Yes, I am originally from PA but I do like Canada. And I can assure you that this spring is _cold!  _But it's cold in PA too.
Pink Dawn is called Fuji Cherry Blossom and it smells lovely. If I could find it for soap, I'd buy it. But you never know if it would be the same or not.


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## amd (Apr 20, 2018)

soapmaker said:


> Two questions: what's wrong with a little film on a ss soaping pot? And why "blue" Dawn? I have Dawn that works wonders but it's pink and has a lovely scent.



For me the film on my bowls/buckets is a safety concern. I'm 100% naturally clumsy to begin with, so give me a slightly oily bowl filled with caustic soap batter while I'm wearing gloves is just guaranteeing the disaster.

I like blue Dawn. I've never used anything else. I don't even know what the other colors are for.


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## jcandleattic (Apr 20, 2018)

amd said:


> I don't even know what the other colors are for.


I think the other colors are formulated exactly the same, but they differentiate the scents by the color.


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## penelopejane (Apr 20, 2018)

amd said:


> For me the film on my bowls/buckets is a safety concern. I'm 100% naturally clumsy to begin with, so give me a slightly oily bowl filled with caustic soap batter while I'm wearing gloves is just guaranteeing the disaster.
> 
> I like blue Dawn. I've never used anything else. I don't even know what the other colors are for.



I find if I wash everything then put in new water and new detergent and wash everything again the film goes. 
The second wash it very quick but it seems to work well.


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## amd (Apr 20, 2018)

I dry my dishes, check for film, then spray with iso alcohol and wipe dry again. The film removal isn't a problem for me, I was just explaining the problem I would have if I left the film on.


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## penelopejane (Apr 20, 2018)

amd said:


> I dry my dishes, check for film, then spray with iso alcohol and wipe dry again. The film removal isn't a problem for me, I was just explaining the problem I would have if I left the film on.



Isopropyl alcohol costs a fortune here so I save it for preventing soda ash.  I just drip dry my pots - lazy 

Glad you’ve worked out a system that works for you. I agree about the slippery pots!


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## dixiedragon (Apr 20, 2018)

I have a dedicated melting pot for my candles, so I just do the "dirty clean" somebody mentioned above - wipe with paper towels, then I put the put into a ziplock bag so it doesn't collect dust. I use soy wax for my candles.

For lip balm, which uses beeswax, I squeegee out as much as possible with a silicone spatula, then I microwave the container (glass measuring cup) so it is hot and wipe thoroughly with a paper towel. After that, I put some water a bit of cooking oil and microwave again. The oil will break down the wax. Then I wash it in the dishwasher. if that sounds like a hassle - I usually make 4-5 batches of lip balm before I clean the container. Which is why I am out of tubes!


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## Lin19687 (Apr 20, 2018)

Ok they sat out for over 3 days but the ones I did tonight I wiped out extra........ they are in the dishwasher now with a sprinkle of Citric acid .


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## Soapprentice (Apr 21, 2018)

I usually scape everything humanly possible out of the utensil into the mould.. let it sit till the soap saponifies. Soak them in water for half a day.. at this almost all the soap gets soft and off the utensils and finish off with dish soap.


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## snappyllama (Apr 21, 2018)

dixiedragon said:


> I have a dedicated melting pot for my candles, so I just do the "dirty clean" somebody mentioned above - wipe with paper towels, then I put the put into a ziplock bag so it doesn't collect dust. I use soy wax for my candles.
> 
> For lip balm, which uses beeswax, I squeegee out as much as possible with a silicone spatula, then I microwave the container (glass measuring cup) so it is hot and wipe thoroughly with a paper towel. After that, I put some water a bit of cooking oil and microwave again. The oil will break down the wax. Then I wash it in the dishwasher. if that sounds like a hassle - I usually make 4-5 batches of lip balm before I clean the container. Which is why I am out of tubes!




I'm going to try this. Thanks for the tip!


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## Lin19687 (Apr 21, 2018)

Dishwasher worked GREAT !  I highly recommend a tsp of citric acid, makes it all shiny.
I was able to fit a 3qt pitcher, 8 cup glass pyrex, 5 -28oz plastic measure cups, 2-1/2 paint mix tub, a bunch of glass dressing serving bowls, 4 -  64oz plastic measure cups and 7 rubber spatulas.  They all had a good amount of room around them all, no not crammed in.

Way easier  FYI they were all wiped out very well, all but a few were 3 days sitting.  No difference between the 2 (sitting and just used) stuff.


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## servin (Apr 21, 2018)

I am so glad you asked this! I've been making CP for awhile and wondered how everyone else cleaned up. It takes so long if you don't wait 24 hours, which I just figured out, lol.


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## Lin19687 (May 2, 2018)

I'm really liking the dishwasher .............. just sayin'


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## Soapmaker123 (May 9, 2018)

Just like with other activities, cleaning up and putting things away is a big part of the job.

I have a tub filled with lots of white terry cloth rags, and I use these to wipe out my soap making pots, immediately after I pour and fill the mold blocks.  Utensils get washed in the sink.  The mold block components and liners are simply scraped clean with plastic putty knives.  The soap dries on the terry rags and can be washed out later in a washing machine.

Edit:

With a bit of practice you can scrape-clean the soap film from your block liners and create wafer thin soap "leaves", which you can dry into quick-disolving units for hand-washing of fine clothing in the sink.

For a while I would put 5 or 7 of these leaves into a cellophane bag with a fold over top, and one each of these bags was issued by a high-end local sweater creator, with each sweater sale, as an approved and recommended sweater-soap, an alternative to Woolite.


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## Kari (May 10, 2018)

Lin19687 said:


> I'm really liking the dishwasher .............. just sayin'



I'm so glad the dishwasher+critic acid worked for you!

Also happy to know the CA worked on regular dishes. I've been using Lemi Shine since it's what I bought for food dishes, but it's expensive for the container size. I've got a big ass bag of CA for making bath bombs - so now I can just use some of that!

and I too put my pots in the dishwasher. 

...but then I also don't buy expensive pots, lol. IKEA ftw.


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## Lin19687 (May 10, 2018)

HAHA, I bought semi expensive black outter all clad (but the Kirkalnd Costco brand).  After a bit it takes the outter black off. oh well.

What started on the CA is I was having issues with 'wet dog' smell on the glasses.  I really think it comes from the Eggs we eat.  Anyway after reading on line for about a year, someone said that CA was in the Lemonshine and it's basically the same thing.

Why not, I got a pail full


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## Lin19687 (May 29, 2018)

FYI, Just watned to let you know that if you only add a Little bit of dish soap (powder) and CA works better if you don't want to totally wipe out the bowls.
They are 'scraped' clean and I rub off most on the spatulas but then just stick it in the washer.  Add about a Teaspoon of powder soap and a bit less CA it comes out great.  Regualr amount of powder and not totally wiped out pots make for bubbles coming out the bottom of washer 

Also, if you use Mica WIPE out the mixing dish.  Sometimes it drops on the plastic bowls and sits there.


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