Need help! 100% Coconut Oil Soap For Laundry

[dcsharpe]

OK, I followed the suggestion of making a 100% coconut oil soap with 0 super fat for using in my homemade laundry detergent. Most of the posts I found were talking about how fast it set up and grating it right away because it gets so hard so fast. Mine didn't really appear to do anything different than a typical CP batch. My concern is that if it isn't going to work really quickly, should I pop it in the oven to force it to gel? It is in a silicone mini loaf pan so it is individual bars and it is very flexible so I can't really wrap it up easily. Should I CPOP it?

 

[tryanything]

I'm sure it's fine. I made some last night for laundry powder also. It didn't seem to set up as fast as when I make salt bars either. I left it on the counter overnight and they were hard by morning. I still used my individual molds so I didn't have to worry about cutting them. And my food processor had no problem shredding them once I actually put everything together.

Hint: If you are going to use a food processor, once the soap is shredded, add a bit of backing soda and it will get down to a really fine powder. Good luck.

 

[dcsharpe]

Thank you for responding. It is always good to hear someone else say its OK when you are doubting yourself. I just checked it again and the top is already getting hard and the bottom is still really warm too. I actually just use a 4 sided cheese grater to grate my soap. I normally use Fels Naptha and microwave it till it turns into a foamy blob and it grates really easy. This last time, I tried the Zote Flakes and it was easier because I just kinda rubbed it around in my hands and it crumbled up into powder. I like the smell but it isn't getting my clothes as clean. I read here that 100% coconut oil with a 0 super fat works great so I'm giving it a try. Doesn't make sense to be trying to make soap and still buy soap for other stuff, lol! I have hard water so I'm hoping this will work with it.
Sorry, got to rambling
Thank you again!

 

[dcsharpe]

New Question. The soap is hard, yay! It is still turns bright pink with the drop of phenolphthalein. Do I wait to cure it or just wear gloves and grate it? Then it would cure really quickly right so I could mix my detergent up fairly soon?

 

[lsg]

I don't think it will cure any more quickly grated than in the bar. It might lose moisture faster, but then it would be harder to grate.

 

[tryanything]

I don't use phenolphthalein. I zap tested mine (knowing I would most likely get zapped) and was surprised when I didn't. I guess what they say about NaOH being not 100% pure is true. Anyway, I grated the next day no problem and didn't wear gloves, though I probably should have. My hands didn't burn but by the time I was done mixing everything together they were definitely dry. I'm with lsg - go ahead and great now (if you haven't already). A lot of other posts I read about making laundry soap, everyone seemed to grate the next day.