I master-batch my lye solution for long-term storage (@ 50% concentration) in re-purposed laundry detergent bottles made from HDPE #2 (recycle code), and it works just fine.
IrishLass
I'd rather look stupid for a moment by asking a stupid question then to spend the rest of my life not knowing. Thanks for the help and the gentle nudge in the right direction without making me look silly (I tend to do that well without any help :?). You are sharp as a tack!
Oh, I see -- my brain went to 1/2 the strength a recipe requires. I'm glad I asked and thanks so much for explaining it to me. My brain doesn't quickly embrace "soap talk" yet. I just got used to everyone talking about the percentage of oils
Ditto everything Kchaystack said.
To explain further, the reason why I (and many others) master-batch a 50% lye solution this way is because it really does simplify things. If it didn't, I definitely wouldn't do it, I can assure you (I'm always looking for an (upstanding) easy way out of things if possible, lol).
The main way in which it simplifies things for me is that it cuts out the 1 step that is the most annoying and that takes me the most time to do when making a batch of soap. When I mix my lye solution, I go the extra mile with safety precautions, not only in the protective gear I wear, but also in making sure my mixing area will be free and clear of other living beings for a certain amount of time. My hubby especially doesn't appreciate being anywhere near my mixing vicinity when I mix lye - even for hours afterwards (he hates the smell of it, and he has a nose like a bloodhound or a pregnant woman that can smell the lingering effects of it long after everyone else has ceased to detect it).
If I had to go through that kind of rigmarole every time I felt the call of the stick-blender, it would drive me to frustration and I would cease to love making soap so much anymore. Mixing up one large master-batch at a time to last me through several batches of soap has been a life saver for me.
Why a 50% solution specifically, instead of a 33% or a 40%, for example? Because the math is easy (see- I'm looking for that easy way out again! lol)
To explain, when I make soap, I don't always use the same lye concentration every time. Although I mostly like to use a 33% solution, sometimes I use higher concentration than that and sometimes I use lower depending on my formula and/or FO. If I were to make up a large 33% master-batch solution and then one day decide I wanted to make a soap with a 31.5% lye solution, I would drive myself insane trying to figure out how much of my master-batch solution to weigh out and how much extra water to add to it in order to convert it over to 31.5%. I'm just not that masochistic and self-loathing. lol
A 50% lye solution is made up of equal parts of lye and water by weight: 50% lye and 50% water, which makes the math of converting the master-batch solution to a different % solution childsplay. All that it takes to convert the 50% solution to whatever concentration I desire is to perform a simple 2-part math equation that any 1st-grader can do (or even kindergartener) and that works the same every time across the board no matter what different solution % I wish to convert to. It's my favorite kind of math equation, and it only takes a mere 5 seconds to do!.
So, whenever I feel the call of the stickblender, I take 5 seconds to do the math equation for my batch, take my jug of lye solution and weigh out the proper amount, and then I weigh out the proper amount of extra water, and proceed with soaping. I don't have to clear the house, I don't have to take extra precautions against the fumes (because there aren't any fumes), I don't have to wait for the solution to cool down, etc...). It's just a win/win method for me in every way.
HTH!
IrishLass
A 50% lye solution is made up of equal parts of lye and water by weight: 50% lye and 50% water, which makes the math of converting the master-batch solution to a different % solution childsplay. All that it takes to convert the 50% solution to whatever concentration I desire is to perform a simple 2-part math equation that any 1st-grader can do (or even kindergartener) and that works the same every time across the board no matter what different solution % I wish to convert to. It's my favorite kind of math equation, and it only takes a mere 5 seconds to do!.
So, whenever I feel the call of the stickblender, I take 5 seconds to do the math equation for my batch, take my jug of lye solution and weigh out the proper amount, and then I weigh out the proper amount of extra water, and proceed with soaping. I don't have to clear the house, I don't have to take extra precautions against the fumes (because there aren't any fumes), I don't have to wait for the solution to cool down, etc...). It's just a win/win method for me in every way.
HTH!
IrishLass
IL - I don't understand how this works. My soapcalc results will give me very specific amounts of water and lye to use based on my oils used. So I don't understand how this 50% solution works. I also don't understand how you take the 50% solution and make it a 26.953% solution. ( I used my last recipe as an example).
I'm so sorry if I'm being dense, but I just don't understand anni really want to because I would love to do the hazmat safety routine just once for several batches (I'm like you in this aspect of the soaping game lol).
TIA for the help
DeeAnna hit the nail right on the head. If you want to use a 50% master-batch of lye and have the math conversion work for you, don't use the 'Water as % of Oils' icon on SoapCalc. Instead, use the 'Lye Concentration' icon (located just below it) which calculates your water amount based on the lye amount (instead of the oil amount). I don't know why SoapCalc still has the 2 different ways of calculating water on their site when one of them is clearly superior to the other (at least in my reckoning anyway). Having both causes nothing but confusion.
