Talc
Well-Known Member
I'm making a 100% tallow soap recipe. I've read that the 1.7:1 ratio is good for any kind of soap making is this true? Thanks.
1.7:1 ratio
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AliensrReal
Well-Known Member
I’m sorry. I don’t understand. What is the ratio for? Is it for lye water?
Talc
Well-Known Member
It all depends on your soaping goals. I use a 40% lye solution, which is a 1.5:1 water:lye ratio. This works for me because:
1. I want to reduce soda ash, which is a risk because I soap at low temps (almost always under 100F). Less water helps with this.
2. I like to unmold sooner. Less water helps with this.
But if your goals are to create complex designs that need more working time, you may want to use more water (depending on the oils in your recipe). Or if you want to dissolve lots of additives, you may want to use more water. For instance, I make a gardener/mechanic scrubby soap that contains borax. The borax needs to be dissolved in more water (HOT water, to be exact), before adding it to the soap. Thus, my scrubby soap recipe uses a 33% lye concentration, or a 2:1 water:lye ratio.
HTH
EDIT: Thank you to @Mobjack Bay for pointing out the typo in my original post. A 40% lye solution is 1.5:1, not 1.8!!
1. I want to reduce soda ash, which is a risk because I soap at low temps (almost always under 100F). Less water helps with this.
2. I like to unmold sooner. Less water helps with this.
But if your goals are to create complex designs that need more working time, you may want to use more water (depending on the oils in your recipe). Or if you want to dissolve lots of additives, you may want to use more water. For instance, I make a gardener/mechanic scrubby soap that contains borax. The borax needs to be dissolved in more water (HOT water, to be exact), before adding it to the soap. Thus, my scrubby soap recipe uses a 33% lye concentration, or a 2:1 water:lye ratio.
HTH
EDIT: Thank you to @Mobjack Bay for pointing out the typo in my original post. A 40% lye solution is 1.5:1, not 1.8!!
Last edited:
Talc
Well-Known Member
Thank you!It all depends on your soaping goals. I use a 40% lye solution, which is a 1.8:1 water:lye ratio. This works for me because:
1. I want to reduce soda ash, which is a risk because I soap at low temps (almost always under 100F). Less water helps with this.
2. I like to unmold sooner. Less water helps with this.
But if your goals are to create complex designs that need more working time, you may want to use more water (depending on the oils in your recipe). Or if you want to dissolve lots of additives, you may want to use more water. For instance, I make a gardener/mechanic scrubby soap that contains borax. The borax needs to be dissolved in more water (HOT water, to be exact), before adding it to the soap. Thus, my scrubby soap recipe uses a 33% lye concentration, or a 2:1 water:lye ratio.
HTH
NewlyCreative
Well-Known Member
1.7:1 is my go to because I don’t typically get soda ash with it. However, I’ve been finding that lye percentage (~37%) difficult to use with having enough water left over to dissolve sodium citrate and clays or anything else I don’t want to put directly into the lye solution.
