How do you save time in the soapmaking process (survey) ??

[Gaspar Navarrete]

Hello everyone,

Many of you have been making soap for a while, and I imagine that you have come up with ways to save time during the HP or CP processes.

For everyone's benefit, perhaps you would like to share some of what you have come up with ?

I can start. You know those wax-lined square cartons that the milk comes in ? Wash them out and measure your oils (not the lye of course) in that. Afterwards, you can recycle them. You don't have to wash them.

 

[toxikon]

- Dixie cups for dividing batter for colouring.

- Doing things in the right order to avoid waiting around. I prepare my lye solution first because I know it needs time to cool down. So while it's cooling, I can prepare my micas, start melting oils, etc.

- Wipe out bowls and spatulas with paper towel to remove remaining batter and make washing easier.

And of course, masterbatching your oils and your lye solution makes things MUCH quicker - I just don't make quite enough soap to bother with that yet.

 

[Steve85569]

Nada here.
I am a hobby soap maker and like to take my time playing.
I have tried master batching oils and lye but then it's just one more thing to keep track of.
I still make way more than I need especially for the monthly challenges...

 

[beardguy]

Like toxicon, I make my lye solution before starting anything else. I also put away every item once it is no longer necessary and have a 5 gallon bucket full of water where I toss the utensils once they are used. Saves time on cleanup.

Planning the soap in advance (printing the recipe, knowing what colours you want, ec.) also helps so you're not running around like a headless chicken.

 

[Viore]

I print my recipe and plan my colors in advance, then make my lye solution. While that's cooling, I melt oils, get out all necessary containers, measure out FO, and whatever else needs to be done. By the time I'm finished, the lye water is usually within 20 or 30 degrees of the oils so I only have to wait about 10 minutes for it to cool down to where I can soap with it.

Not a time saver, but a mind saver: I put the FO bottle and additives in the mold while I melt the oils so I remember to use them in the batch!

 

[Seawolfe]

Not a time saver, but a mind saver: I put the FO bottle and additives in the mold while I melt the oils so I remember to use them in the batch!

This is genius!

When I'm done, I put my bowls and stuff in a plastic bag out of the way and just leave them until the batter is soap. Makes clean up SO much easier, and I don't waste a ton of paper towels.

 

[dixiedragon]

Lye solution first. Ideally, the night before.

My stuff is in the basement so I have to carry stuff upstairs. So I have a box that I put all of my commonly used (and often misplaced) bits and bobs - spatulas, measuring spoons, thermometer, googles, Dixie cups, etc. So I grab the whole box and I have all of that stuff that I usually have to dig around to find.

 

[jewels621]

I measure out and prep absolutely everything in advance....my soft oils go I a stainless pan, hard oils in glass and nuked to melt. While my hard oils are melting I mix my lye. Once it's completely dissolved I place that pan in an ice water bath to cool the lye. When it cools to 120* I take it out of the ice bath and set it on the counter, then mix my melted hard oils with the soft oils, and add the lye solution. Temps come out nearly perfect every time. It usually takes me way longer to set everything up than it does to actually make the soap and get it in the mold. I always feel like it should be harder to do than it is.

 

[IrishLass]

The biggest time saver for me is master-batching my lye. I make enough ahead of time to last me through about 7 or 8 batches of soap spread out over a period of weeks.


IrishLass

 

[navigator9]

I don't do a lot of fancy stuff, swirls, layers, colors, so soaping really doesn't take much time at all for me. I have found things over the years that make my work more efficient, which I guess saves time in the long run. I like to make my lye solution the night before, so it's at room temp already when I'm ready to soap. I like to get everything I'm going to use out and in place, molds, scale, stick blender, pots, spatula, oils, butters, FO, etc., and I try to place things in the order that I'll use them. I write my recipe on a post it, and stick it to the kitchen cabinet door above where I soap, so that I can't lose it by laying something down on top of it. I have the mold in the preheated oven ready for CPOPing my soap. I've never actually timed it, but it goes pretty fast.

 

[Susie]

I masterbatch my lyes.

I masterbatch my sugar and aloe vera juice as well as simple syrup with sugar and water. These are stored in the fridge. The aloe vera juice, I just prepped the whole container with sugar and put in the freezer. I can take them out as I need them.

I have my recipes in sheet protectors and I hang them from the cabinet knob using a pants hanger with the two clips. I use a dry erase marker to check items off and make notes that can be transferred to the computer when done. Then it just wipes right off the recipe.

I now put all my dirty soaping equipment into an empty 25 lb lard bucket, and wash once it is soap. Saves a ton of time. And the lid fits securely enough that I do not worry about accidents. The bucket will hold bowls and such from 3 batches of soap, so I can do them all at once. And I start the night before I plan to wash them by pouring water and Dawn into it. Big hint: Pour the hot water in first, then add the Dawn after you stop adding water. Then in the morning, they have practically cleaned themselves.

I am bound to think of more, and I will edit them in as I think of them.

 

[Gaspar Navarrete]

Great ideas, everyone.

One more thing to add from me. Use those same wax-lined paper milk cartons (1/2 gallon) to mold the soap and then recycle them after you have un-molded your soap. Don't have to worry about lining molds with freezer paper or washing silicone molds.

 

[crazy_lil_Mom]

I keep my main soaping supplies on a cart. That way I'm not gathering them each time. I do like others have mentioned above, except master batching. Moving everything to a sink of hot water as soon as I'm finished with each item helps me stay focused too.

 

[Susie]

Oh, yeah, I have a soaping cart. Everything in one place saves my sanity.