# Making paste vs bar, just use KOH?



## nsmar4211 (Mar 9, 2016)

So my little brain came up with an idea...if I have a bar soap recipe idea, can I just use KOH if I want to keep it in a softer paste form (think: something that can be used out of a tube/jar/packet maybe)? Obviously I'll have to do the lye calc and all... can't do it as straight liquid because it involves coffee grounds and clay. Would probably have to use a higher water amount so its not rock hard like my current paste is....


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## DeeAnna (Mar 9, 2016)

You can't just sub 100 grams of KOH for 100 grams of NaOH. It doesn't work that way -- you really do need to run the recipe through a recipe calculator. Some tips:

Learn what your KOH purity is and calculate accordingly. Soapcalc has the option of choosing KOH purity of 90% which works for a lot of the KOH people are using. 
Keep your superfat at 3% or less to avoid separation if you plan to dilute the soap paste. If you are going to use the soap only in paste form, you might be able to go a little higher.
Use a 25% lye concentration for a bit more water than is usual for CP soap.


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## Susie (Mar 9, 2016)

I am not sure what you want your end product to be, but if you ever intend to dilute it, you will not want coffee grounds or clay.

I make Soap2Go, which is liquid soap paste made with KOH that I then shove into a 1 oz twist type tube (think large lip balm tube).  I keep one in my purse all the time so I do not have to use commercial hand soap.


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## galaxyMLP (Mar 10, 2016)

I think you should be able to make a traditional recipe with KOH instead of NaOH (as long as you adjust the amounts via calculator). 

With clay and coffee grounds it sounds like you're trying to make a scrub with it. I don't see why you couldn't do that so long as you make sure to SF like a regular bar. My only worry would be that it would be more likely to grow mold than a typical bar because liquid soap is under more constant moisture. So I would test it to make sure it doesn't mold or put a preservative in it. 

This is a very interesting idea.


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## nsmar4211 (Mar 10, 2016)

The aim is for something that can be done in something similar to the soap 2 go where just what you need can be squeezed/etc....friends that don't like bar soap are requesting this and yep its for grubby paws . No dilution really .

I will try this next week and update you guys on how it goes. This week my brain is not up to the maths LOL.
Thanks for the help!


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