Soaping 101 liquid soapmaking video?

[CassieLouisa]

I was so excited to get home and make my babassu soap I made a major mess up. The soapcalc calculator defaults to "percent of water to oils" at 38 percent. In my haste I didn't change this and my KOH would NOT dissolve with my glycerin. It was a white thick and sloppy mess. I was ready to throw it out and start over when I realized what had happened. I quickly added the additional glycerin to my pot, cooked it till all the lumps were dissolved but it was definitely not going to be clear. It's a brown sugar/amber color but I added it to my oils anyway.

This one has to go in the trash - maybe next time I'll double check my soapcalc ratios!

 

[DeeAnna]

I would personally not have used the brown KOH-glycerin mixture. I would be very, very uncomfortable with that idea, because you are soaping with a glycerin mixture that has degraded from excess heat and strong alkali.

There are good reasons why people are not advocating using this method as much as they did at first, and you have just found out one of the reasons why. I would discard this soap.

Dissolving the KOH in and equal or greater weight of water is much easier and safer and the resulting soap is plenty fine.

 

[Susie]

I would personally not have used the brown KOH-glycerin mixture. I would be very, very uncomfortable with that idea, because you are soaping with a glycerin mixture that has degraded from excess heat and strong alkali.

There are good reasons why people are not advocating using this method as much as they did at first, and you have just found out one of the reasons why. I would discard this soap.

Dissolving the KOH in and equal or greater weight of water is much easier and safer and the resulting soap is plenty fine.

^^^^This!

I use either an equal weight of KOH to water or half the water weight in water, then the remainder in glycerin added to the oils. I would never have used the brown KOH/glycerin, either.

 

[CassieLouisa]

^^^^This!

I use either an equal weight of KOH to water or half the water weight in water, then the remainder in glycerin added to the oils. I would never have used the brown KOH/glycerin, either.

Sorry if I offended anyone - I'll toss the whole batch.

I would personally not have used the brown KOH-glycerin mixture. I would be very, very uncomfortable with that idea, because you are soaping with a glycerin mixture that has degraded from excess heat and strong alkali.

There are good reasons why people are not advocating using this method as much as they did at first, and you have just found out one of the reasons why. I would discard this soap.

Dissolving the KOH in and equal or greater weight of water is much easier and safer and the resulting soap is plenty fine.

I'm new to LS -- it was an honest mistake. But I'm tossing it.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

I don't think that anyone is offended. But the thoughts and responses to this method is covered in the two main ls threads - there are better options.

Maybe that's where some frustration (rather than offense) is there - the information is there for all to read and has been linked to and pointed out. When someone insists on using a method with more potential for problems and then has problems.............it could be frustrating for all

 

[Susie]

I am not offended. But I have tried to use that burned glycerin/KOH. It stunk and had to be thrown away anyway.

 

[DeeAnna]

I was also not offended -- I was really worried.

My earlier post was worded as low-key as I could manage at the time, given that I was extremely concerned about your decision to use the brown KOH-glycerin mixture.

 

[biarine]

In my opinion just throw the burned glycerin/koh. I did made mistake 4 years ago when I am newly soaper, I burned my milk but instead of throwing it and re-done again, instead I still continued and it looks good and smell nice. I let it cure for 6 weeks and I put the soap into my tray where I put all my cured soap. Then 3 months later, I wanted to use it and I check the soap in my horror the white soap turn yellowish brown the scent it's still ok but the look was awful. It goes into bin and I learned my lesson . I wasted my essential oil. Beautiful scent my mock Carnation ( blend of geranium, black pepper and ylang ylang)

 

[Irishboy]

Super excited

It has taken the best part of three days to read all the posts in this thread. I had read Jackie Thompson "liquid soap making" book and it was daunting to say the least.

Anyhow about an hour ago I simply couldn't wait any longer and decided to heck with it, try IL method and see what happens.

My recipe ran through SB as follows

10.50 oz OO
6.30 oz coconut oil
3.15 oz castor oil
0.52 oz Shea butter
0.52 oz cocoa butter
4.51 oz Potassium Hydroxide 90% pure
13.52 oz glycerine

I melted the oils until liquid in my crock pot.

I added the Potassium Hydroxide to the glycerine and gently heated until clear (about 230f reached)

I added this to my crock pot and wisked by hand quite vigorously and in about 3 mins bubbles where floating above my head. I couldn't believe it would be that quick so continued to wick for about another 2 mins, the liquid went from clear to sudsy.

I stopped at this point and put the lid on. The mix is very liquid and the crock feels quite warm.

I'm pacing the floor like an expantant father, I'm panicing that I have destroyed it as it's sudsy but super excited that it actually happened so quickly and tomorrow when I wake up (if I can sleep at all) there might just be soap in the pot.

Thank you everyone especially IL, Susisie and Deedena (sorry about the spelling).

I am in Ireland and thought Irishboy was appropriate in tribute to Irish Lass, hope that's ok!

 

[IrishLass]

Welcome Irishboy! :wave: I feel honored by your tribute!

Don't worry- you haven't destroyed your soap. If the crock is still on, though, I would turn it off. No need for it to be on at this point. It will saponify nicely on its own to the paste stage without any added heat.


IrishLass

 

[Irishboy]

Loving it

Thanks Irish Lass, today I diluted it and it's really lovely to use, there is layer of foaming Creaming stuff on the top, do I skim that off and discard or will it go away after a few days.

I have ordered some polysorbate 80 to dissolve my EO, do you hand mix the fragrance in our stick blend?

Thanks again for the fantastic thread and all the knowledge within.

 

[IrishLass]

The foam/cream on top is just soap paste that hasn't dissolved all the way yet for either lack of time or for lack of enough dilution water. If it is time-related, it should dissolve within a few days time if you just let it sit. If you find that it's still there without any change after a few days, then it's most likely water related. In that case you can either add a teensy bit more water at a time (with periods of rest in between) until it fully dissolves, or if you are impatient and it's not a whole lot of foam/cream, you can just scoop it off and set it in a little bowl by the sink to wash your hands with (instead of tossing it).

When I add my fragrance, I just stir it in by hand.


IrishLass

 

[Irishboy]

Does anyone know an approximate PH of the finished soap based on IL's recipe, I ask because to add a natural preservative but it dosent work over PH5.5 and I know regular soap is usually much higher.

I don't have a meter so wonder if anyone has checked their PH when diluted?

Thanks

 

[Zany_in_CO]

When I diluted a gallon of liquid soap today, the pH was alkaline -- pH 10.5. I'm happy with that because nasties won't grow in that environment! Preservatives are formulated for lotions & potions that have an acidic pH, with pH 7 being neutral. A preservative for products of pH 5.5 added to your LS may react negatively. TIP: Best not to use preservatives unless you are knowledgeable about how they behave in any given environment.

 

[biarine]

When I diluted a gallon of liquid soap today, the pH was alkaline -- pH 10.5. I'm happy with that because nasties won't grow in that environment! Preservatives are formulated for lotions & potions that have an acidic pH, with pH 7 being neutral. A preservative for products of pH 5.5 added to your LS may react negatively. TIP: Best not to use preservatives unless you are knowledgeable about how they behave in any given environment.

In your experience Zany how long it took before the liquid soap become bad? Thank you.

 

[Zany_in_CO]

In your experience Zany how long it took before the liquid soap become bad? Thank you.

Never. I actually found a 4 oz bottle of shampoo I made in 2010 when I was cleaning out my soaping closet. Smelled nice. I'm using it now. It's better than when it was first made.

 

[Irishboy]

Ph and shelf life

Thanks Zany, Biarine

Now it's really really early days, but my goal is to launch a great organic liquid soap (not a bottle of chemicals from the lab) and of course shelf life is a major concern.

I want to keep it as natural as possible and if I do need to add antioxidants or preservatives these must be nature based.

I read a lot about the fact that the soap is high ph and therefore hostile to any bacterial growth but just wanted to ask out loud the question.

I was worried about the base oils going rancid but if they haven't in several years I guess

Many thanks for your valued knowledge.

Andrew

 

[biarine]

Never. I actually found a 4 oz bottle of shampoo I made in 2010 when I was cleaning out my soaping closet. Smelled nice. I'm using it now. It's better than when it was first made.

Really? Wow that's awesome.

 

[DeeAnna]

For liquid soap and other products with high pH, your only preservative options are Liquid Germall Plus, Glydant Plus, and Suttocide. See http://www.makingskincare.com/preservatives/

 

[Zany_in_CO]

...my goal is to launch a great organic liquid soap (not a bottle of chemicals from the lab) and of course shelf life is a major concern. I want to keep it as natural as possible and if I do need to add antioxidants or preservatives these must be nature based.

Hi Andrew,
I like the way you think. Keep in mind that fully-saponified soap requires no preservative. Dr. Bronner's and Vermont Soap are two examples of companies that have been around for a very long time and use no preservative or other chemicals in their products. Dr. Bronner's gained popularity back in the Hippie Days and continues to make excellent all natural products today. The labels are fun to read!!! Link:

https://shop.drbronner.com/

Vermont Soap lists "Rosemary Extract Preservative," but technically ROE not a preservative, but rather an antioxidant that helps to extend shelf life. To use, find a source that carries ROE "Rosemary Oleoresin Extract" and follow the manufacturer's recommendation for use rate. Add to oils before adding the lye solution. (I add it to oils when the container is first opened) Link:

http://vermontsoap.com/about-our-soap/our-ingredients/

I read a lot about the fact that the soap is high ph and therefore hostile to any bacterial growth but just wanted to ask out loud the question.

It's an excellent question. Susan Barclay Nichols (swift crafty monkey) wrote a detailed article about the use of ROE in bath and body products. You can download it for your files here:

FORMULATING WITH ROSEMARY EXTRACT https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BwPE22k1fTp6N2k4M1dsTGNlY28/view

I was worried about the base oils going rancid but if they haven't in several years I guess

If you are referring to my shampoo, I think I should mention that I used a bit of rosin in that particular formula. There are also some essential oils that have "preservative qualities" that you can use to fragrance liquid soap.

ROSIN saponifies much like an oil but without any resulting glycerin. It gives a smooth cold cream finish to the lather and also acts as a detergent and preservative. Calculate - Rosin has the same SAP value as Wheat Germ Oil. (NOTE: May cause contact dermatitis in sensitive individuals).

HTH :bunny:
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