Tell me about Salt bars...why great?

[ourwolfden]

I use 80% coconut oil and 20% butters (cocoa, mango, shea, depending on what I have on hand) and 100% sea salt. It is really nice. I may try using another oil in these after reading this thread. Salt bars are hard enough I don’t really need the extra butter. I bet avocado would feel awesome.

 

[em79]

I was wandering if any of u have made these HP? If so Does the salt melt when added to HP ? And do salt bars dissolve fast , like would u need to keep them to air dry or they fine to stay in the shower?

 

[shunt2011]

I was wandering if any of u have made these HP? If so Does the salt melt when added to HP ? And do salt bars dissolve fast , like would u need to keep them to air dry or they fine to stay in the shower?

Can't help you with the HP question but as far as keeping them in the shower that is fine as long as they are allowed good drainage and air circulation. I've not had a problem.

I love salt bars and pretty much use them exclusively. I use 80% CO, 15% Avocado and 5% Castor with 20% SF and 25-30% Salt. I use milk as 1/2 the liquid amount or beer.

 

[Obsidian]

I have made them HP and it didn't work very well for me, I think I used too much salt. It was like thick cement and nearly impossible to get in the mold. I think some of the salt did dissolve but not much. Really didn't find any reason to HP them again.

They will dissolve fast if left in standing water or if the shower rains down on them. They do need a very well drained soap dish, I use a stainless steel wire basket. I leave mine in the shower and they last forever.

 

[em79]

Ok so i gave it a go and used the same formula as u shunt but as soon as i put it in the mold i chucked it into a warm oven for half an hour and was perfect timing to cut them easily. Now how long do they need to cure before using do u suggest? Im usually crockpot soaper the bars are lovely and smooth i also used silk im not sure if that would help im new to soaping . I just quickly washed my hands with the left overs (not sure if that was too smart since the lye was probably still active) but it didnt irratate my hands or burn and they were sooooo smooth!!! If it feels like this now im so eager to give it a go when they are properly cured

I have seen someone on utube do HP salt soap shes pretty experienced look like she knew what she was doing and confident . It took me a while to get the courage to try this since i had read so many peoples bad experiences

 

[em79]

This is what it looked like when cut and dont laugh at my poor excuse for a mica line lol it was my first time trying one lol

 

[shunt2011]

Your soap turned out lovely. Especially for a first try and cutting it too. Nice job. Personally, I like to cure my for a really long time. They just seem to get better with age. 4 months to a year. However, give them 8 weeks and give it a try. I know how hard it is to wait.

 

[em79]

Oh good god Shunt 4 months!!! Ive got a festival coming up in 10 days so i guess it wont be ready to sell . I might have to store these away and give the long cure a wait and make another batch and try HP thank you so much for the advice !

Yes my son and i who likes to help me actually were very happy when it didnt seize and came out like this

 

[Obsidian]

No soap will be ready for use in 10 days except melt and pour. CP and HP both need to cure a minimum of 4 weeks.

 

[em79]

No soap will be ready for use in 10 days except melt and pour. CP and HP both need to cure a minimum of 4 weeks.

Ive made HP soap which was ready after a few days . Yes ive learned the longer u leave it the better but ive definitely not had to wait 4 weeks for a few soaps

 

[Muskette]

I was wandering if any of u have made these HP? If so Does the salt melt when added to HP ?

I make HP salt bars. The salt is added at the end of the cook after cooling slightly (about 175 degrees) and has never melted for me.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

Ive made HP soap which was ready after a few days . Yes ive learned the longer u leave it the better but ive definitely not had to wait 4 weeks for a few soaps

You don't HAVE to wait, but as someone selling you really SHOULD or you are selling a very sub par product to your unsuspecting and short-changed customers.

You certainly should not be selling a recipe that you haven't used for some time. Or the conversation goes:

Customer "so what is this soap like?"
You "no idea, I made it a few days ago....."

 

[em79]

No soap will be ready for use in 10 days except melt and pour. CP and HP both need to cure a minimum of 4 weeks.

You don't HAVE to wait, but as someone selling you really SHOULD or you are selling a very sub par product to your unsuspecting and short-changed customers.

You certainly should not be selling a recipe that you haven't used for some time. Or the conversation goes:

Customer "so what is this soap like?"
You "no idea, I made it a few days ago....."

Actually this will be my first sale and the products have all been made several months before so please dont assume i would "short change" anyone.
Any soaps which i have made which i found i could use sooner have been only for myself and not for sale . All my soaps that are ready for sale are no less than 1 month old . Ive only been soaping for 6 months so im still learning

This is why i asked about the salt bar curing times so that i would not have made the mustake of selling it since it was so solid thinking its ready and that the salt may have a shorter cure time .

 

[not_ally]

I think EG was concerned b/c you seemed to intend to make an HP batch and sell it in 10 days, he did not know your back story and was just commenting on what you said. So it is a good thing that you posted and found out that the cure time is the same (actually, longer) with a salt bar. Do continue to post w/questions, this place is a goldmine of information.

I am in the process of making several batches of salt soap w/different levels of salt so that when they are FINALLY ready (I am impatient, too I will be able to figure out which level I like best. To satiate my curiosity I cut thin pieces off the ends of the loaf, and then cut those into little tester pieces so that if I cannot control myself I can test one of those little pieces just to see how they feel at a given/earlier point in the process.

 

[aprice522]

Thank you all for your help! I am the OP and just got my bulk CO order Tuesday and the silicone mold today and put the kids to bed and made myself some salt bars! I finished them about 50 mins ago and am so excited!

I made Obsidian's recipe (I think it was...) 80%CO, 20%OO, 20%sf--40% salt (don't ask why 40--oh...because I did a 500g batch and I like round numbers...so 200g salt)

I added turmeric powder for color. (my first time coloring a soap)
I used sweet orange EO and petitgrain EO and a tad of sandalwood EO.

I will stalk my soap till I can unmold and share a picture! Then the horrible cure wait......

And...on to beer I go.

 

[aprice522]

Thank you all for your help!

Here are my first salt bars. 80 co/20 oo with 200g salt in 500g oils. Made last week and I will wait a few more weeks till I test out part of one! Thank you so much for all your help and advice!

[/url]Salt soaps by Angie price, on Flickr[/IMG]

 

[Obsidian]

Those look great! I'm sure you will love them.

 

[Seawolfe]

Nicely done! You'll fall in love once you start using them

 

[Sonya-m]

If I just use regular table salt that has an anti caking agent will I get any problems?

 

[shunt2011]

If I just use regular table salt that has an anti caking agent will I get any problems?

No you should be fine. I've read of others using plain table salt with no issues. I've not done it myself though.

I use the sea salt located in the grocery aisle with other salts when in a pinch or when on sale.