Liquid Soap + Saltwater

[troyrim01]

Hey guys

Okay, so after diluting a batch of soap, adding fragrance, etc. and allowing it to cool, it was very thin (I didn't use a citric acid neutraliser)

My batch produced between 1,400ml and 1,500ml of liquid soap. I thickened it with a 20% saltwater solution. I added 5ml every hour until it reached a nice thickness. (I added 90ml of saltwater solution in total)

So now I know that my liquid soap requires 90ml of saltwater, is it a good idea to add the full 90ml at once for my next batch (or will that somehow cease or cloud my soap?), or still only add 5ml every hour?

 

[Navaria]

Could you dilute it less to begin with and not have to thicken it at all?

 

[troyrim01]

I tried that but it left a water blob of mess in my crock pot. So now I stick to a 25% dilution (25% actual soap)

 

[Sapo]

Generally, if you slowly "creeped up" to the necessary amount of water for dilution, and then slowly creeped up to the ideal salt solution quantity for thickness...

...you can just add the exact same amounts next time, right off the bat, and get very similar results. Some minor deviations are possible because no two batches of oil will be exactly the same, KOH purity may deviate a bit, your scale might screw up a gram or two, ... you get the point. Overall, just go ahead and add the desired (75% water, 90ml salt solution) quantities right off the bat next time.

What is the recipe?

 

[troyrim01]

18oz. Coconut Oil
4oz. Palm Oil
10oz. Olive Oil
10oz. Canola (Rapeseed) Oil
8oz. Sweet Almond Oil
11.4oz. Potassium Hydroxide
33.3oz. Distilled Water

22oz of soap paste diluted with 35oz water

(once diluted):
0.4oz liquid silk
0.5oz sulfonated castor oil (turkey red)
2oz fragrance
6ml liquid dye colour

then once cooled, 90ml saltwater is added

 

[Susie]

For your next batch, try the recipe in post 8 and keep reading after that: http://www.soapmakingforum.com/showthread.php?t=46114

The only difference I would do is to mix the KOH with an equal amount of water, and add the glycerin to the oils.

This makes a lovely thick soap.

However, to try to answer your question, you probably could have stick blended the blob into the water, and used a bit less water at the end. I do not use saltwater to thicken my soap, as I find it decreases the lather significantly.