cant make liquid soap for the life of me :(

[tinytreats]

I found this recipe from Voyageur Soap & Candle. I decided I would give it a try, but I downsized the recipe and ran everything through a lye calc before getting started.

Castor Oil 64.8g
Coconut Oil 202.3g
Palm Oil 20.1g

KOH 71.32g
Water 212.7g

So it took me literally an hour before the paste even came to a trace. I started it off by using a crock pot. When I took a temperature reading, it was only at 130, so I transferred it to a double boiler and reached trace in about 10 mins. I transferred it back to the crock pot and left it in that stupid thing for 3 hours. Then I turned it off and went to bed. This morning I turned the crock back on for another 7 hours. It has not gone thru a translucent stage. And when testing a small amount of paste with water, the water is practically white.

WHAT DID I DO WRONG? :cry:

 

[FGOriold]

If you are cooking it in a crock pot that only gets to 130 degrees F, then that would be your problem. Soap paste has to cook at a much higher temp than that. I usually cook mine at 180 - 200 degrees.

 

[tinytreats]

Darn it! Then that's my problem for sure. Am I able to cook the paste at a later date? I need to buy an actual double boiler system because my DIY double boiler required me to basically stand over it to make sure it wouldn't tip. haha.

 

[FGOriold]

You should be able to finish cooking the paste at a later date - in any case it cannot hurt to hold on to it and give it a try.

 

[lsg]

Have you tried using the glycerin method? It is much easier for me.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3VUGV_H7bZU[/ame]

 

[Bubbles Galore]

I make liquid soap in a slow cooker which has low/high settings but I cook (a small batch) on low with no problems. Making soap with glycerine as per the video is dead easy and makes a lovely soap. Just make sure that you use a metal stick blender otherwise a plastic one may melt.