Making 1st hot process batch

[smeetree]

I'm really nervous!

I'm afraid it's going to boil over.

Does anyone have tips? I've made about 15 cold process batches and feel comfortable with that process. I watched some youtube videos regarding the differences. But what about specifics, such as when to adjust temperatures? I didn't see much about that. They basically say put the crock pot on medium for 10 minutes at a time through 3 phases until it's like vaseline consistency. So do we just cook it 30 minutes until it's that consistency? What to do if it does boil over? Thanks!

 

[Obsidian]

I stick blend until at thick trace then cook on low/medium until its at Vaseline. Check it every few minutes and stir it down if its creeping up the sides. It shouldn't boil over unless the crock is too full or it gets way too hot.
You won't necessarily see all the stages so don't freak if doesn't do what you expect. HP really is quite simple. Make sure to use full water, I actually use a bit more to keep the soap a bit looser.
Don't over stir, 2-3 times is usually enough, at least until you are ready to mix in scent. I like to dump my cooked soap into a large bowl then scent so the FO doesn't get cooked away from the hot crock pot. If you are making a solid color soap, you can add the color at trace. Mixing a bit of colorant with oil and swirling it around in the cooked soap can make a really neat marble affect.

 

[smeetree]

I stick blend until at thick trace then cook on low/medium until its at Vaseline. Check it every few minutes and stir it down if its creeping up the sides. It shouldn't boil over unless the crock is too full or it gets way too hot.
You won't necessarily see all the stages so don't freak if doesn't do what you expect. HP really is quite simple. Make sure to use full water, I actually use a bit more to keep the soap a bit looser.
Don't over stir, 2-3 times is usually enough, at least until you are ready to mix in scent. I like to dump my cooked soap into a large bowl then scent so the FO doesn't get cooked away from the hot crock pot. If you are making a solid color soap, you can add the color at trace. Mixing a bit of colorant with oil and swirling it around in the cooked soap can make a really neat marble affect.

Awesome, thanks. I probably won't add color or scent to this batch, but that's good to know.

Can I use soapcalc the same way I would for a CP soap?

I'm going to try to make a simple shampoo bar--would HP vs CP matter in any way with regard to that? i.e. Is the quality of the bar the same with both methods or does one produce a better bar? My logic is it would be better because I can add a hair oil like sweet almond or argon for superfat. But I don't know...

 

[lenarenee]

Hi smee,

Any idea how old your crockpot is? How big....how many quarts does it hold? How big is the batch you want to make?

My crock is 4 quarts, and easily fits a 2 lb batch with room to spare.
It's a modern crockpot, so cooks hotter than the ones from 20 years ago. There are 3
settings, warm, low and high. I never use high on any of my crocks....whether I'm soaping or cooking....it's just too hot.

I've done soap on warm only, and 2 lb batch was done in 40 minutes.

I think as long as your crockpot is large enough for your batch, start with the lowest temp you have....the soap will cook. Keep your spoon nearby and keep your eyes on it. (Which I bet you'd do anyway as its a fun process to watch).

It's really not as scary as it sounds. When in doubt, stir. I stirred my first batch so much I had to add water! Soap turned out fine. And it does really look like vaseline when it cooks.

Good luck!

 

[smeetree]

Hi smee,

Any idea how old your crockpot is? How big....how many quarts does it hold? How big is the batch you want to make?

My crock is 4 quarts, and easily fits a 2 lb batch with room to spare.
It's a modern crockpot, so cooks hotter than the ones from 20 years ago. There are 3
settings, warm, low and high. I never use high on any of my crocks....whether I'm soaping or cooking....it's just too hot.

I've done soap on warm only, and 2 lb batch was done in 40 minutes.

I think as long as your crockpot is large enough for your batch, start with the lowest temp you have....the soap will cook. Keep your spoon nearby and keep your eyes on it. (Which I bet you'd do anyway as its a fun process to watch).

It's really not as scary as it sounds. When in doubt, stir. I stirred my first batch so much I had to add water! Soap turned out fine. And it does really look like vaseline when it cooks.

Good luck!

Hi. I purchased it in 2010, and it is 6quarts. So that should be okay for a 2.5lb batch? That's the standard size I make with CP.

 

[Obsidian]

Yep, use soapcal the same as with CP. I don't think therereally is a difference in the finished bars with CP vs HP with the exception of being able to add the SF of choice to HP. If you are making shampoo bar, keep the SF at 5% or lower or you will end up with a weird greasy film on your hair. I have fine dry hair and only use 3%SF.
I think adding argon for SF would be really nice, so would coconut as its awesome on hair.

 

[lenarenee]

Awesome, thanks. I probably won't add color or scent to this batch, but that's good to know.

Can I use soapcalc the same way I would for a CP soap?

I'm going to try to make a simple shampoo bar--would HP vs CP matter in any way with regard to that? i.e. Is the quality of the bar the same with both methods or does one produce a better bar? My logic is it would be better because I can add a hair oil like sweet almond or argon for superfat. But I don't know...

Yes you can/should use soapcalc in the same manner as cp soap.

You can add your super fat at the end, but I do think know how to calculate that.

Can't speak to your question about quality without knowing how you define quality. I prefer cp because I like the smoother creamier look. But my best friend loves the hp bars I make better.

A (properly formulated) hot process bar will do just as well as a cp shampoo bar.

 

[lenarenee]

Hi. I purchased it in 2010, and it is 6quarts. So that should be okay for a 2.5lb batch? That's the standard size I make with CP.

Oh yeah! Great size for it, and yes that is modern enough to know that it cooks hotter than my mom's crockpot.

 

[lenarenee]

I can't wait to hear how this goes for you...

 

[smeetree]

Oh yeah! Great size for it, and yes that is modern enough to know that it cooks hotter than my mom's crockpot.

Sweet. So do you think I should cook it on low and just monitor the heat? What would be the sign I need to raise the heat, if it's not turning to the Vaseline consistency?

 

[Obsidian]

Its best to just leave it on low and let it do its thing, especially since newer crocks cook hotter. If it hasn't started to really cook after a hour or so, you can turn it up but as soon as you see its heated up, turn it back down. Better to have it take longer then risk burning it.

 

[smeetree]

Thank you.

So I ran my idea through soap cal, and it has a hardness value of only 25. Would this be okay for a shampoo bar?

It is:
Coconut 10%
Palm 10%
Olive 70%
Castor 5%
Almond 3%
Argon 2%

I wanted to use avocado but I'm out unfortunately so I raised the olive levels.

 

[Obsidian]

Looks pretty good and the hardness is fine for a shampoo bar. You can actually raise the castor to 10% for a shampoo bar. Try and not worry about the numbers too much, they are weird on shampoo bars. This is my last shampoo bar and it might be a bit too cleansing for my liking but its not bad. I really like that I used lard (replaced the shea), it made the bar slicker and easier to rinse.
http://www.evernote.com/shard/s216/...a8635045a39f/61c41717929821c3ac0d57337a49ef4e

 

[smeetree]

One last question, then into the lair to make this concoction.

So if I superfat 2% on soapcalc, I withhold the argon superfat until the very end correct? If so, does that mean the other 98% of the batch is mixing with too much lye? And that is fine?

 

[Obsidian]

Yes, withhold the 2% argon until the end. The rest of the batch will not be lye heavy, it will just be at 0% SF which is just fine. Good luck

 

[smeetree]

i was so nervous making my first batch of this, that i just added water into lye. :thumbdown:

i lived to tell about it. but man, that was freaky.

can i use this lye mix? it seems fine now.

 

[smeetree]

Do the lye and oils need to be near the same temperature before mixing?

 

[smeetree]

Am I safe to add rosemary EO even if the soap is fairly hot?

How long after vaseline phase do I have to pour? Thanks!

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

They don't have to be so near with hp. You can soap hotter, as in not waiting for oils or lye to cool, but that can increase the chances of it trying to climb out of the pot.

You can keep an eye on it once it is finished but cooling off to see how it thickens. Don't wait too long or it'll be too thick to mould up, of course

 

[smeetree]

They don't have to be so near with hp. You can soap hotter, as in not waiting for oils or lye to cool, but that can increase the chances of it trying to climb out of the pot.

You can keep an eye on it once it is finished but cooling off to see how it thickens. Don't wait too long or it'll be too thick to mould up, of course

Thanks. The lye was at ~125 and the oils ~80. I hope that doesn't mess it up. So far so good.