Lard brand is Lundy, it's the only brand my walmart carries, my local grocery stores don't carry lard, I can smell it stinking the minute it started melting, and the more it melted the more it stunk, ifor all brands smell this bad then I won't be using lard bc my hubby didn't appreciate the God awful smell it made my whole house. This morning the smell was finally gone. The lard melted to about 125 degrees and I even took it off the stove when it was about 90% melted and just let the heat of the stove melt the rest
Fats/butters supplementing have question
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Lard brand is Lundy, it's the only brand my walmart carries, my local grocery stores don't carry lard, I can smell it stinking the minute it started melting, and the more it melted the more it stunk, ifor all brands smell this bad then I won't be using lard bc my hubby didn't appreciate the God awful smell it made my whole house. This morning the smell was finally gone. The lard melted to about 125 degrees and I even took it off the stove when it was about 90% melted and just let the heat of the stove melt the rest
BrewerGeorge
Well-Known Member
Don't Throw Away Soap!
Even if the smell never goes away (It will.) and you don't want to use it, you still have a soap to use for testing purposes. In a real way, a soap you don't like is probably more useful than one you love because you put those bars away for age testing, and see how properties change over time.
That said, the smell WILL go away. The smell is an organic compound too, and it will get eaten by the lye as the soap ages.
Susie: 1.) I don't use lard for cooking, I didn't know what lard was till you told me, another person on here had said they used it for cooking . 2.) Lesson learned I won't use vanilla extract again, thank you for telling me not to 3.) I didn't unmold my bars this morning they were still too soft so they're still sitting there there mold. 4) you said you have me % you set it up for weights, I'm a little lost on that one. When I put in the percentages of each of those about half way down the page it listed those same oils listed in grams, was that wrong? Did I do it wrong? I didn't change anything on the calculator all I did was add the oils I left everything else the way it was.
Ok that's a good thing to know, thank you
Ok that's a good thing to know, thank you
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dixiedragon
Well-Known Member
*waves from Alabama* Most of us are in the US, actually! Welcome! You can get Lard at walmart. It's in a green and white bucket in the baking section.
Are you very sensitive to the scent of pork? When I melt lard for my soaps it does smell just a bit porky/bacony, but that smell is not present in the final soap, to my nose. Some people can pick it up and dislike it.
Are you very sensitive to the scent of pork? When I melt lard for my soaps it does smell just a bit porky/bacony, but that smell is not present in the final soap, to my nose. Some people can pick it up and dislike it.
I am finding that every state carries different products at there walmart I have 2 within 20 min of me and both carry the same brand, Lundy, this is the ONLY brand of lard they carry and is in a red and white container, it was located in the spice area, I did go look at the mexican/foreign section, no lard, so unless I order a different brand online (which I've been doing alot of lately bc most of things I want, I can't find in store, like silicone molds, yup my walmart doesn't carry anything silicone molds related)
I'm not usually sensitive to the smell of pork, I cook and eat it at least 1-2x week and never had a bad smell, but this stuff made my whole 2 story house stink, I melted it on low til it was about 90% melted then turned the stove off and let the heat of the stove melt the rest, same with my CO
Sorry reading through the beginner forums I cam across 1 persons question and it peaked my curiosity on something you had said, it was a newbie with few ingredients, you had told her that since she didn't have castor oil she can use a teaspoon of sugar instead and for hardness a teaspoon of ionized salt, if castor oil does both of those, wouldn't it be more cost effective to just use that instead of the castor oil?
Sugar helps create bubbles. Saponified Castor Oil helps to keep the bubbles/lather created stable. Completely different purposes.
Salt will help harden your soap. That recipe should not require it. It needs time as it is individual molds rather than a loaf. Loaves hold the heat, so the soap gels. That helps harden it faster than ungelled soap.
Salt has to be mixed with water before the NaOH. I mix sugar with 1 oz of water pulled from the total, dissolve it, then add that to my oils. Best to stick to a basic recipe without additives until you get the hang of this, though.
Where did you get your scents? And are you positive they are CP soap safe?
Salt will help harden your soap. That recipe should not require it. It needs time as it is individual molds rather than a loaf. Loaves hold the heat, so the soap gels. That helps harden it faster than ungelled soap.
Salt has to be mixed with water before the NaOH. I mix sugar with 1 oz of water pulled from the total, dissolve it, then add that to my oils. Best to stick to a basic recipe without additives until you get the hang of this, though.
Where did you get your scents? And are you positive they are CP soap safe?
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dixiedragon
Well-Known Member
Castor does not cause soap to harden. I personally haven't tried using sugar instead of castor.
The lard being THAT stinky is really weird. maybe it was an off batch?
I would say don't give up on lard just yet. It really makes wonderful soap. I have to use a microwave to melt/heat my oils and will get a piggy smell, especially when I don't keep a close enough eye on it. Only once, using a very high lard recipe, did I notice the smell after the soap came out of the mold. I have found that if I keep lard to 50% or lower I never have a trace of lard smell past cure. Are you using enough FO/EO? I don't have an issue with higher coconut oil soaps, so my usual is 20% CO, 35-40% lard, 10% avocado, sweet almond, high oleic sunflower, 3-5% castor and the rest OO. Even though I can smell the lard when it is heating up, when I walk into my soaping space (in the basement), I never smell lard after the soap has been poured into the mold.
I use Armor brand, because that is what is available to me locally. My walmart has the single pounds and the plastic buckets and they are found by the oils and shortening. My grocery store has it by the oils and shortening, and also has some single pounds in the refrigerated meat section near the bacon.
Sugar is added as a bubble booster, salt is added for hardness. Castor oil is used for stabilizing lather and a little oomph.
I use Armor brand, because that is what is available to me locally. My walmart has the single pounds and the plastic buckets and they are found by the oils and shortening. My grocery store has it by the oils and shortening, and also has some single pounds in the refrigerated meat section near the bacon.
Sugar is added as a bubble booster, salt is added for hardness. Castor oil is used for stabilizing lather and a little oomph.
BrewerGeorge
Well-Known Member
Susie mostly answered as I would have, but if I guessing right about which thread you're talking about I was discouraging the poster from paying the high price of castor oil as a laxative and go ahead without it. It certainly helps, but is not required. The sugar does not replace the castor, but serves the purpose Susie said. As for sugar and salt, since they are ubiquitous and helpful there is little reason not to use them. BTW, the usage rate I prefer is 1 teaspoon per pound of oils for both salt and sugar. I typically use all three in an average bar.
I bought my FO from natures garden and did check each one before buying that they were cp/ body safe. My EO which I use only in my body butter and sugar scrubs are from doTerra and plant therapy.
I don't plan to use the sugar, if it doesn't keep bubbles no sense in using it right.
I did read up on the whole to gel or not to gel, and I did cover up my molds with a hand towel, I used butcher paper to cover mold directly then covered that with my towel. Was that alright to do, since I don't own a heating pad to lay it on? Which is what I read to do if you want to gel
Nature's Garden is a reputable soaping supply company so you are good there.
Sugar does help with bubbles. I use 1 tsp PPO.
Gelling isn't necessary, it just takes longer to unmold and the possiblity of partial gel which is no problem either just cosmetic. I gel all my soaps, if using individual molds it's harder to do so will likely need to place in a preheated oven (lowest temp). Turn off when you place soap in there. Leave 24 hours.
A heating pad isn't necessary, I didn't have very good luck the time or two I tried that. Didn't seem to permeate through my wood molds.
If using a loaf mold, if wood you can just cover and wrap in towels, it should gel (depending on watern discount). Higher water the quicker to gel. I use 29-30% lately and have no problem getting gel with a doubled over towel. I use silicone lined wood molds.
Sugar does help with bubbles. I use 1 tsp PPO.
Gelling isn't necessary, it just takes longer to unmold and the possiblity of partial gel which is no problem either just cosmetic. I gel all my soaps, if using individual molds it's harder to do so will likely need to place in a preheated oven (lowest temp). Turn off when you place soap in there. Leave 24 hours.
A heating pad isn't necessary, I didn't have very good luck the time or two I tried that. Didn't seem to permeate through my wood molds.
If using a loaf mold, if wood you can just cover and wrap in towels, it should gel (depending on watern discount). Higher water the quicker to gel. I use 29-30% lately and have no problem getting gel with a doubled over towel. I use silicone lined wood molds.
BrewerGeorge
Well-Known Member
Plus One
Especially since individual molds are often going to be silicone, which is super-easy to overheat and get that pock-marked surface effect if you use the oven.
One thing that I've been looking all over the forum doing a general search and maybe I'm just looking it up wrong, I understand you can't use or is a bad idea I should say to use tap/spring/mineral water to mix with the lye and is only a good idea to use distilled, however I own 2 reef aquariums so we have to run an RO system for our tanks otherwise the nitrate/nitrite/phosphate will kill all our coral, so since my 4 stage RO system is specifically designed to pull all impurities out of the tap water, wouldn't it be safe to use that? Rather then running to the store every time I need a gallon of distilled water? Lack of space not to mention to house gallons of water, and is not going to cost me anything to use the water from my RO unit since I have to run it anyways for my reef tanks.
Ok to use 4 stage RO unit or must it be distilled water?
Ok to use 4 stage RO unit or must it be distilled water?
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BrewerGeorge
Well-Known Member
I use RO water for mine. It's pure enough.
Ok good, thanks for letting me know
We have a 100 gal reef aquarium, not quite big enough to justify a RO/DI system, but I would use that water.
I never melt down my entire bucket of palm, when it liquefies due to weather I stir when solid I just scoop out from different areas of the bucket and have never had a problem
Welcome to the forum, Desirae. How does your soap look and smell now?
I was away on vacation and missed your thread when you were posting, but just began reviewing some I have missed and found yours quite interesting.
Re: the odor of lard, I have a pretty sensitive nose myself, so I can empathize with your husband (and you, too of course) in regards to the odor in the house the day you made that soap. As a vegetarian, I don't normally keep lard in the house at all, even though I did used to use it for making tortillas and especially for making refried beans, but that was in my youth. I stopped using lard for cooking decades ago and had not purchased any until a three months ago to try out in some soap for my brother.
The first one I made for him is now 3 months old, and the odor is almost completely gone now. But when I first made it my nose was not happy with the odor at all. Then while in Texas at my son's house I made a pumice bar using lard and let me tell you, I was not the only one who hated the odor of the lard. My DIL said it made her feel nauseated, and my granddaughter also disliked the smell. This was after I had begun to cut the soap into bars. The soap is now 7 weeks old and the odor is not at all as offensive to me as it was when freshly made, but it surely does not smell as nice to my nose as an all vegetable oil soap. But that's just me and my nose, I am sure. I am confident the lard was not rancid. I can ID rancidity with this sensitive nose of mine quite easily. Anyway, I now have 2 soaps of different ages to compare against each other regarding the lard odor, made about a month apart and both without added fragrance.
I intend to try IrishLass' lard mimicking recipe and see how it compares against actual lard. I'll do it as a 100% lard versus the 100% lard 'dupe'. Seems like it will be a fun project. I'll make them both fragrance-free and without any other additives to skew the results.
IrishLass also mentioned Spectrum Brand Palm Oil, but I did not see mention of where to purchase that so I thought I'd tell you if you are interested. Target sells it in their food aisles. It looks like this:
It is 100% palm oil. Here is more information about it if you are interested in sustainability.
If you don't have a Target Store nearby, you can also order it on Amazon, and I have seen it in other grocery stores in my travels, but don't really recall if I saw it in your state or not.
I was away on vacation and missed your thread when you were posting, but just began reviewing some I have missed and found yours quite interesting.
Re: the odor of lard, I have a pretty sensitive nose myself, so I can empathize with your husband (and you, too of course) in regards to the odor in the house the day you made that soap. As a vegetarian, I don't normally keep lard in the house at all, even though I did used to use it for making tortillas and especially for making refried beans, but that was in my youth. I stopped using lard for cooking decades ago and had not purchased any until a three months ago to try out in some soap for my brother.
The first one I made for him is now 3 months old, and the odor is almost completely gone now. But when I first made it my nose was not happy with the odor at all. Then while in Texas at my son's house I made a pumice bar using lard and let me tell you, I was not the only one who hated the odor of the lard. My DIL said it made her feel nauseated, and my granddaughter also disliked the smell. This was after I had begun to cut the soap into bars. The soap is now 7 weeks old and the odor is not at all as offensive to me as it was when freshly made, but it surely does not smell as nice to my nose as an all vegetable oil soap. But that's just me and my nose, I am sure. I am confident the lard was not rancid. I can ID rancidity with this sensitive nose of mine quite easily. Anyway, I now have 2 soaps of different ages to compare against each other regarding the lard odor, made about a month apart and both without added fragrance.
I intend to try IrishLass' lard mimicking recipe and see how it compares against actual lard. I'll do it as a 100% lard versus the 100% lard 'dupe'. Seems like it will be a fun project. I'll make them both fragrance-free and without any other additives to skew the results.
IrishLass also mentioned Spectrum Brand Palm Oil, but I did not see mention of where to purchase that so I thought I'd tell you if you are interested. Target sells it in their food aisles. It looks like this:
It is 100% palm oil. Here is more information about it if you are interested in sustainability.
If you don't have a Target Store nearby, you can also order it on Amazon, and I have seen it in other grocery stores in my travels, but don't really recall if I saw it in your state or not.
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