How to clean your tools after HP soap making?

[ezeriuke]

How do you clean up after HP soap making?

The crock pot, just wash it in the sink and dry it - i guess?

How do you clean the lye/water container? Do you use vinegar or something like that, or do you just wash it in the sink as well???

Please help, I just finished my first soap

 

[Bubbles Galore]

Lye/water container. I rinse it thoroughly first and then wash in hot soapy water and rinse. I usually leave the other things until the next day and then wash, so as not to put the chemicals down the drain. By the next day, it's just soap.

 

[ezeriuke]

But lye is used as drain cleaner, so it would not hurt the pipes, would it?

 

[Bubbles Galore]

Well yes, lye is drain cleaner. I don't know where you live but here in Australia, everything that goes down the drain, ends up in the sea and I don't really want to put that lye/oil mixture down the drain if I can help it. I don't think it's particularly good for your drains in that state either. It might leave an oily residue that could eventually block your drains unless you run very hot water down there to flush thoroughly. Mainly, I just feel better if it's saponified first. The tiny amount of lye/water in the jug is not a concern.

If you would prefer to wash your equipment straight after soaping, then wipe out your crockpot with some paper towel first and then proceed to wash in hot, soapy water and rinse in very hot water. Whatever you are comfortable with. :wink:

 

[honor435]

I usually wait til the next day, scrape out any soap left, then wash in sink, wash lye stuff with soapy water.

 

[SoapPoopette]

Since the mixture is really soap after the cook in the crockpot, I just fill it with hot water and wash out all my utensils with it. Everything is squeaky clean and ready to go for the next time. I do rinse out my lye/water containers then I wash them in that same crockpot with the cooked soap in it. HTH

SoapPoopette 8)

 

[mandolyn]

I put everything with soap on it in the soap pot & sit it on top of my curing rack. A few days later it's soap, so I just run water into it & wash everything.

 

[Overthemoon]

I wash all my soap materials immediately after my crockpot is cool. The soap left in the crockpot gets everything squeaky clean. My lye container gets rinsed out and then washed in hot and soapy water.