Glycerin vs Vegetable Glycerin

[rosche]

Hello everyone. I want to share something about glycerin.

Sometimes ago I make liquid soap with vegetable glycerin and it turn out well.

A week ago, I buy glycerin (not vegetable glycerin, just glycerin). It's cheaper than VG.

I start using it to make liquid soap and it's messy. Still get soap paste but the paste is.. Weird. Super sticky like glue, opaque, and melting...

I CP the soap paste. When I get the opaque color, sticky and melted soap paste, I think I should HP it. It turn out uglier, opaque and crumbly although quite firm.

From this experience, I wonder if glycerin in soap making is always have to use the vegetable one instead of the 'just' glycerin.

 

[Susie]

I don't think the glycerin had much to do with it. Could you post your entire recipe in weights? (including the KOH, water, and all additives) That would help us troubleshoot it.

 

[rosche]

My recipe (100gr oil):

castor 12gr
coconut 25gr
olive 28 gr
palm 35

KOH 23 gr
water 23gr
glicerine 46gr

I used the 'more glycerine' method by DeeAnna.
When I use the vegetable glycerin, it turn out well. And when I try with the 'just' glicerine, it's a mess.

Both still can be diluted but the 'just' glycerin will no be able to be soap2go...

 

[Seawolfe]

Im curious - where did you get this glycerin? Does it say 100% glycerin on the ingredients?

I only ask because it makes me crazy that some "make your own soap without lye" sites on the web use "glycerin" in their ingredients, but they actually mean "glycerin based melt and pour soap", which makes me absolutely insane! I know that would be a solid and you have a liquid, but Im wondering what else might be out there. I guess there are glycerin liquid soap bases out there.

 

[Susie]

Palm oil will make a difference in the appearance of paste and liquid soap. Have you used this exact recipe before?

And that is an awfully small batch size, small differences in weighing will have a really big impact.

 

[rosche]

@seawolfe I got it from local chemical store. This is glycerin and not to be confuse with glycerin mp soap

It's just there are 3 types of glycerin as far as I know. Vegetable, animal and petrochemical

It is in used plastic bottle. I guess the store have glicerin in bulk (maybe in barrel) and because I only buy 1L, so they packed it in a used plastic bottle.

As far as I know, this is maybe glycerin derived from petrochemical. It's cheaper than vegetable glycerin. The storekeeper say this glycerin is foodgrade.

@Susie yes. At first I made some batches using the exact recipe but with vegetable glycerin. It turn out well. I even made smaller batches. 50gr and 30 gr of oil. And it's fine so far. But when I use the 'just' glycerin, it's ugly. Even when I only use 15% of total water, still a mess.

I don't know if this 'just' glicerin only behave badly in soap paste or it is so in cp soap. Maybe tomorrow I'll get some NaOH and hope the glycerine will do ok so it won't be sitting in vain X)