Some advice for my first attempt: what oils to choose?

[purplekitten]

Hi,

I'm about to make my first portion of soap and the question is about oils. I want to try making liquid soap and the most accesible oil in my area is cold pressed sunflower. Do you think it's ok to use sunflower oil alone for liquid soap? A lye calculator that lists some properties of ready soaps shows that sunflower oil if used alone will give 0 value for cleansing and bubbles, while the recommended number is 12 and up. So I have doubts about it. When I add milk fat to the equation, cleansing and bubbles go up to 6. If by milk fat they mean cow milk butter this is just what I need as where I am I can get natural butter much more easily than coconut or palm oil. Does anyone have experience or knowledge about using cow milk butter in soapmaking? Please share it if you do. And what do you think of the whole idea of pure sunflower or sunflower and butter soap?

 

[lsg]

I would suggest trying cp soap first before attempting liquid soap. Here is a link to a lye calculator that list butterfat as an option.

http://www.essential7.com/misc/lyecalc.html

 

[purplekitten]

Thank you lsg! Going to check it out.

 

[judymoody]

I don't make liquid soap but I can tell you that cow butter has butyric acid in it and in combination with lye it stinks something awful. I'm speaking of Sodium Hydroxide (for CP soap) not Potassium Hydroxide (for liquid soap), so it might be different.

 

[purplekitten]

One more question. Are scales with 1 gram resolution precise enough for weighing ingredients? I saw scales with hundredth gram resolution metioned in tutorials but hope it's not that essential. For example, can amount of lye of 119.78 grams be safely approximated to 119 or 120 grams?

 

[purplekitten]

Stink is a big turn off Does it stink just in the process of making or in ready soap as well?

 

[Dennis]

I use Escali scales, measures whole grams. It has served me well for a long time. About $20 or so at WalMart.
Click on the link below in my signature for a simple recipe complete with instructions. If your first batch, this covers everything step by step and makes it easy.

 

[new12soap]

One more question. Are scales with 1 gram resolution precise enough for weighing ingredients? I saw scales with hundredth gram resolution metioned in tutorials but hope it's not that essential. For example, can amount of lye of 119.78 grams be safely approximated to 119 or 120 grams?

If weighing to the gram always round your lye down and your oils up, even if lye amount is 19.9, use 19 NOT 20.

I have heard of people attempting to use regular butter and I have only heard horror stories of the finished product.

 

[Lindy]

I have to say that I have never heard of a soap made with butter to be successful.

 

[purplekitten]

Thank you everyone for the replies. I decided to get coconut oil. Really excited to make some soap and hope it will be good enough to share