Measuring water?

[SoapMakerDeluxe]

I'm checking out my Soap Queen instruction ebook and it says early on to measure water (for lye water) by volume, but then gives the amount of ounces to use.

Later on in the eBook it just says to use "x ounces" of water. In some recipes, it gives a range of water to use, in other recipes, no.

So what's a good way to be sure I'm using the right amount of water for my lye? I plan on using 3 oz of lye in doing the basic two pound recipe from the Soap Queen eBook. It says use 7 oz.

I know it might be an obvious answer, but can someone explain what I should aim for when it comes to amount of water for the lye water?

 

[Obsidian]

Weigh it, you weight everything that goes into soap.

 

[lsg]

Yes, always weigh the ingredients, including the liquid.

 

[Relle]

Always run the recipes through a soap calculator.

 

[SoapMakerDeluxe]

Okay so basically ignore that it said to measure by volume?

I'll run it through a soap calculator to make sure.

 

[Susie]

Always weigh. Always run all recipes through a calculator yourself. Typos happen.

 

[IrishLass]

Ditto what everyone else has said- always weigh. Always, always, always, no matter what anyone else says (or types).

The reason why this is so important is because not all volume measuring cups/spoons are made to a specific standard (at least not in the USA). If you have some free time and several different brands of measuring cups and/or spoons, it's a fun (and eye-opening) experiment to compare them to each other against a substance with a known measurement. Ever since conducting such an experiment myself, I now weigh all my ingredients when baking/cooking, too (not just when I'm soaping).


IrishLass

 

[DebiB]

I did the same thing you're doing. Confusing liquid ounces (volume) with weighted ounces.

A small batch of lotion that did not emulsify properly taught me the difference. I bought a scale ☺

 

[Consuela]

Well I won't flog a dead horse...but weight.

Mathematically as well....you know for those days when your computer is down, or the internet is down, or for whatever reason - you need to double check a recipe by hand (multiple times of course because unless you're a mathematician or a genius...) but lets say that the lye calculator isn't available to you:

According to one of my soaping books:

If you have 3 oz (by weight) of Lye - sorry I soap in grams... so 84 grams.
Then you should multiply by 2.5 for the water..... so 7.5 oz (by weight) or 210 grams....

*HOWEVER*

I am a discount-water soaper, and I always find 2.5 to be WAY too much water, so I discount mine slightly.

Edit to add: I suppose it's worth mentioning though, that none of it actually matters without a SAP chart.

 

[sagehill]

Another voice to say, always doublecheck internet recipes, even from books... especially from books.

Just the other day I came across an old recipe for Pumpkin Puree soap in SoapQueen's blog, where the lye seemed a bit high for the oils. I ran the amounts through the MMS lye calculator and saw it had 3% superfat. Though some men might not mind 3%, it's way too low for many people I know.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

.............I know it might be an obvious answer, but can someone explain what I should aim for when it comes to amount of water for the lye water?

Lye needs at least as much water by weight as itself to dissolve. So 1oz of lye needs 1oz of water, minimum.

For many uses in soaping, that minimum is a bit too low and so the recipes call for more. Depending on the recipe, process (cp or hp) and whether or not you are looking to do swirls and so on, the actual ideal amount of water will vary.