AlchemyandAshes
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jul 12, 2012
- Messages
- 1,237
- Reaction score
- 781
In reference to the following posts, I've decided to post a "Visual" on "The Zap Test".
(Thanks for the "encouragement" <read : DARE> HausFrau, Hazel and Lindy!)
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=34190&p=302100#p302100
search.php?keywords=Sanitary+zap+test
What exactly is a "zap test"? Is it safe, you ask? Is it sanitary, you ponder?
Well, it is quite literally TASTING your soap to test for lye heaviness or a very high pH. By either placing the tip of your tongue on the soap in question, or for the faint of heart, rubbing your wet finger on the soap and then placing said finger on your tongue, you will either get the somewhat salty/bitter taste of "soap" (those of us with smarty pants mouths know this taste all too well), or you will get a "zap" or "tingle" or "burn". It's not really a big deal, but it is a quite accurate way of checking for lye heaviness. Even the great Professor Kevin Dunn (Scientific Soapmaking) thinks so!
The zap is like what you got as a kid (or, um, "adult") when you stuck the end of a 9 volt battery to your tongue. I believe the reasoning behind this is that Sodium Hydroxide is alkaline in nature, and a 9 volt battery is also alkaline (alkaline batteries?), hence you get a similar result. Maybe I'm making that up, but it sounds plausible. My older sister forced a 9 volt in my mouth after telling her "she wasn't the boss of me", so I learned at an early age what a "zap" was. I also learned that it wouldn't kill me, no matter what my sister told me, though my mom thought I might get some weird germs from licking things I shouldn't. (She was probably right, but don't tell her...it would ruin my street cred.)
So kids, you're in safe hands with me! I've licked a few batteries and tons of soap in my time, and here I am...alive and well to bring you this Public Service Announcement!
THE ZAP TEST - STEP 1:
SELECT YOUR SOAP
[attachment=4:36q9nt64]zaptest_1.jpg[/attachment:36q9nt64]
STEP 2:
TONGUE APPLICATION
[attachment=3:36q9nt64]zaptest_2.jpg[/attachment:36q9nt64]
STEP 3:
"ZAP!" OR "ICK! THIS TASTES LIKE SOAP!"?
[attachment=2:36q9nt64]soap in mouth.jpg[/attachment:36q9nt64]
[attachment=1:36q9nt64]battery.jpg[/attachment:36q9nt64]
STEP 4:
RINSE AND REPEAT (This one's for you HausFrau, Lindy, and Hazel!)
[attachment=0:36q9nt64]zaptest_3.jpg[/attachment:36q9nt64]
If you got a zap, reevaluate your recipe, run it through a couple lye calculators, and check your scales accuracy. If all seems as it should, leave your soap alone for a few weeks and zap test again. It may just be a bit high, as fresh soap usually is, and will come down a bit during cure. If you have visible crystals of lye or weeping pockets of lye (sounds like some creepy medical condition), then it will not sort itself out and will need to be rebatched.
Well my soapy friends, I hope this Visual Guide to the Zap Test has brought you enlightenment. I leave you with these words of wisdom...feel free to use them in your marketing:
TONGUE TESTED - SKIN APPROVED!
IF IT'S GOOD ENOUGH FOR MY TONGUE, IT'S GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOUR SKIN!
I LICK EACH BAR TO ASSURE YOUR SAFETY!
(Thanks for the "encouragement" <read : DARE> HausFrau, Hazel and Lindy!)
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=34190&p=302100#p302100
search.php?keywords=Sanitary+zap+test
What exactly is a "zap test"? Is it safe, you ask? Is it sanitary, you ponder?
Well, it is quite literally TASTING your soap to test for lye heaviness or a very high pH. By either placing the tip of your tongue on the soap in question, or for the faint of heart, rubbing your wet finger on the soap and then placing said finger on your tongue, you will either get the somewhat salty/bitter taste of "soap" (those of us with smarty pants mouths know this taste all too well), or you will get a "zap" or "tingle" or "burn". It's not really a big deal, but it is a quite accurate way of checking for lye heaviness. Even the great Professor Kevin Dunn (Scientific Soapmaking) thinks so!
The zap is like what you got as a kid (or, um, "adult") when you stuck the end of a 9 volt battery to your tongue. I believe the reasoning behind this is that Sodium Hydroxide is alkaline in nature, and a 9 volt battery is also alkaline (alkaline batteries?), hence you get a similar result. Maybe I'm making that up, but it sounds plausible. My older sister forced a 9 volt in my mouth after telling her "she wasn't the boss of me", so I learned at an early age what a "zap" was. I also learned that it wouldn't kill me, no matter what my sister told me, though my mom thought I might get some weird germs from licking things I shouldn't. (She was probably right, but don't tell her...it would ruin my street cred.)
So kids, you're in safe hands with me! I've licked a few batteries and tons of soap in my time, and here I am...alive and well to bring you this Public Service Announcement!
THE ZAP TEST - STEP 1:
SELECT YOUR SOAP
[attachment=4:36q9nt64]zaptest_1.jpg[/attachment:36q9nt64]
STEP 2:
TONGUE APPLICATION
[attachment=3:36q9nt64]zaptest_2.jpg[/attachment:36q9nt64]
STEP 3:
"ZAP!" OR "ICK! THIS TASTES LIKE SOAP!"?
[attachment=2:36q9nt64]soap in mouth.jpg[/attachment:36q9nt64]
[attachment=1:36q9nt64]battery.jpg[/attachment:36q9nt64]
STEP 4:
RINSE AND REPEAT (This one's for you HausFrau, Lindy, and Hazel!)
[attachment=0:36q9nt64]zaptest_3.jpg[/attachment:36q9nt64]
If you got a zap, reevaluate your recipe, run it through a couple lye calculators, and check your scales accuracy. If all seems as it should, leave your soap alone for a few weeks and zap test again. It may just be a bit high, as fresh soap usually is, and will come down a bit during cure. If you have visible crystals of lye or weeping pockets of lye (sounds like some creepy medical condition), then it will not sort itself out and will need to be rebatched.
Well my soapy friends, I hope this Visual Guide to the Zap Test has brought you enlightenment. I leave you with these words of wisdom...feel free to use them in your marketing:
TONGUE TESTED - SKIN APPROVED!
IF IT'S GOOD ENOUGH FOR MY TONGUE, IT'S GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOUR SKIN!
I LICK EACH BAR TO ASSURE YOUR SAFETY!
Attachments
Last edited:
and yet very informative at the same time! Thank you for taking the time to enlighten us . . . but now I have this image in my head of you and Gene Simmons in a soap licking contest . . .
. The cherry stem trick seems much cooler, and is a great free-drink-getter at a bar. 8) 
