Palm Oil???

Wounded Healer · Jan 17, 2011

I'm sorry if something like this has been posted before, but I didn't see a way to search archives!

I'm brand new here and brand new to soaping, I am attempting my first cold process soap tomorrow. I absolutely cannot find palm oil locally and just do not want to pay shipping. I read online somewhere that I can substitute it evenly in a recipe with rice bran oil. Is this true? I'd really hate to mess up my very first batch!

I know that a seasoned soaper can easily swap out oils and adjust the amount of lye, but I know absolutely nothing about that stuff! Please help!

Also, for mixing my lye solution, I know I pour the lye into the water, but the 6 oz of lye is for the crystals, right? Does it matter how much water i mix it into?

Thanks, I know I sound stupid, but I really want to get it right!

Maurica

heartandsoap · Jan 17, 2011

you can test your recipe with the soap calculator. You can easily make a soap without palm oil, no worries

http://www.soapcalc.net/calc/SoapCalcWP.asp

AmyW · Jan 18, 2011

I'm finding lard is eerily similar to palm oil, number wise. You don't need to use either though. Definitely crunch your numbers, it gets easier the more you do it, especially after making a few batches.

Free shipping for palm oil (assuming you are cont US):
http://www.wholesalesuppliesplus.com/Pr ... x.+8+lb%29

SudsyKat · Jan 18, 2011

Welcome to soaping!

I second everyone else's comment about plugging numbers into Soapcalc, and to answer your question about how much water to use, it DOES matter. I'm not an expert, but I'll give you my brief explanation...

Under the "water" section, Soapcalc will ask you the question a few different ways (there are various ways to look at your water amount), and the only one I really understand or use at this point is "lye concentration". 25% concentration is about as low as you'd want to go, I think, and you can go higher - I've only ever gone to 33%.

The lower lye concentration (like 25%) means you'll be adding more water. It will be a weaker solution, meaning you may take longer to reach trace (which can be desirable depending on a number of factors), and your soap may take a bit longer to harden in the mold and longer to cure. It's "safer" to use lower concentrations because you avoid the risk of accelerating trace (like if you're working with a misbehaving fragrance oil or you are soaping very hot). If you're doing fancy designs or something, it helps to have the extra time to work.

The higher lye concentration means that you'll use less water (you'll have a stronger solution). A higher lye concentration should help you reach trace faster and your soap should cure faster. But it's also trickier to work with high concentrations because you don't have as much time to do whatever you want to do to your soap before it starts to set up.

Wounded Healer · Jan 18, 2011

OK, I'm playing with the soapcalc, but I'm afraid I'm going to gank things all up! I've never done this before, this is my first batch, so I'm trying to figure out what oils do what in the soap. I'm REALLY glad I asked, because just substituting the palm with the rice bran oil would have been a mess! Thanks everyone, you have all been so helpful! I'll keep you updated!

soapbuddy · Jan 18, 2011

Anytime you want to swap one oil for another, besides running it through a lye calc, look up the SAP value of that particular oil online. Some are very similar, some are very different.