properties of glycerin method soap

[enzymerich]

Hello,

I've been experimenting making a lot of glycerin method liquid soap lately thanks to all the good advice on this forum. Thanks for sharing so generously!

In an effort to create the best recipes I have been using just one oil at a time to make a paste and have made 100% pastes out of coconut, palm kernel, sunflower, olive, almond, castor and jojoba oils. All came out well and tested clear except the jojoba (probably because of it's unique properties). This way you can see how each oil behaves in it's 100% liquid soap form before combining pastes.

With 100% pastes you can then mix the pastes in different combinations and percentages in small amounts (for example 4 ounces total of pastes), dissolve them and then observe the properties of the new combination. Then you can tweak the ratios for more suds, less drying, more economical, etc.

Later on when I get some really good combinations for particular uses - shampoo, body wash, dishes or laundry I might switch to combining the oils first before adding the glycerin/lye solution but for now it's a good way to experiment.

I have a question about the effects of using glycerin (in the glycerin method) on the properties of the liquid soap. For example, 100% coconut oil liquid soap made with the lye/water method is supposed to be "drying" because of the cleansing properties of the coconut oil. But when you use the glycerin (which is said to be moisturizing) in the glycerin method does the glycerin still retain it's moisturizing properties and compensate for the drying effects of the coconut oil?

Reason I'm asking is because a friend who is sensitive to the drying effects of soap tried my 75% Coconut oil / 25% Sunflower oil liquid soap (made with the glycerin method) and found it too oily and didn't rinse off that well (which was not my experience). I expected her to find it too drying because of all the coconut. That got me to thinking that maybe all the added glycerin might have an effect on the moisturizing properties of the soap.

So, What I am asking is in anyone's experience are you getting the benefits of the glycerin in the glycerin method and thereby creating a liquid soap with different properties than you would have if you used KOH and water for your lye solution?

Thanks for any input!

Richie

 

[FGOriold]

That is an interesting question and I too am interested in the scientific answer. I made a facial soap for myself that had low cleansing and high conditioning numbers using the glycerin method and love it. Does not dry out my skin at all but I also don't feel that it leaves it an oily residue and it does wash off easily - but then I don't have a version of this formula made with distilled water to compare it to. I use the glycerin method on my coconut milk body wash too. For shampoos, I use water though.

I wonder if the effects of using the glycerin method are the same as when you add glycerin (1 - 1.5 ounces per lb.) to the finished diluted soap.

 

[Robert]

I wonder if the effects of using the glycerin method are the same as when you add glycerin (1 - 1.5 ounces per lb.) to the finished diluted soap.

"Glycerin method" I suppose means having glycerine added to the water used for the saponification. The time the glycerine is added shouldn't make any difference to the properties of the finished product; it stays dissolved in the water, and I imagine if you're making liquid soap, you're keeping all that water in the product.

The only difference you should see is in the process. Glycerine is also known as glycerol, meaning it's an alcohol, and alcohols catalyze alkaline ester hydrolysis, i.e. saponification. So the process goes faster, but gets to the same place.

 

[FGOriold]

Thanks Robert - I figured that it would not matter whether glycerin was used during the creation of the paste or added after dilution but was not 100% sure. I do like using the glycerin method as it definitely cuts down on how much attention I need to give the paste as it cooks. My next experiment is to use both distilled water and KOH to create the paste to get the benefits of using glycerin without having to use so much - an amount more equivalent to what I would add after dilution. Not sure what my cook times will be with this, but we shall see.