Troubleshooting

[Tochie]

Hello everyone [emoji112]
Its Tochie , indeed its been a while and I have missed out on loads of eye-opening ideas coming from amazing people on this forum[emoji4].
Previously, I had wanted to make ABS even as a beginner , and I must confess that it was quite daring!.
Tried to make a batch but encountered serious challenges such as limited information as regards the real process ,and most ABS makers weren’t so willing to share their ideas. But of course, its a work in progress and am working towards putting up a useful update in no distant time.

So I went into learning general soap making from scratch , I have made a couple of batches. But I have a little problem and I sincerely need your suggestions .[emoji1431]

So I made this soap batch with my recipe, but then I just received some complaints that my soap has a “Pinchy sensation “ on the skin .
And quite honestly am not sure why.
Here’s my recipe I used for the soap:

Coconut oil: 200g
Shea butter: 10g
Cocoa butter: 10g
Water: 84g
Lye: 46g
Water as % of oil weight : 38%
Super fat /lye discount: 5%
Vit E oil: 4drops
Sweet almond oil : 20drops
Eucalyptus oil: 20drops
Sandal wood oil: 15drops
Tea tree oil: 7drops
Beet root powder ( hand made): 2 tbsp
Kindly drop your suggestions fam ,as I will find it very helpful .[emoji1431][emoji1431]

 

[penelopejane]

I guess ABS is african black soap.

90% CO will make my skin itch. As would higher than 10% CO.
I am pretty sure Eucalyptus oil and tea tree oil are also a likely cause.
Did you use sweet almond oil (increasing your SF) or sweet almond essential oil?

2 Tblsp of anything in 220g of oils seems excessively high. I'd try 2 tsp.

What other oils can you get at a reasonable price in your area?

 

[Cellador]

I agree with penelopejane, it's probably just dryness from the CO. When most people use that level of CO in their soaps, they off-set the cleansing factor by having a 15-20% superfat.

But, I have used some ABS before, and it was pretty stripping. Maybe that's just the nature of ABS and the way it's supposed to be?

 

[cmzaha]

I agree with penelopejane, it's probably just dryness from the CO. When most people use that level of CO in their soaps, they off-set the cleansing factor by having a 15-20% superfat.

But, I have used some ABS before, and it was pretty stripping. Maybe that's just the nature of ABS and the way it's supposed to be?

ABS differs considerably for Tribe to Tribe, but it is definitely not my favorite. In my opinion we cannot make ABS here in the US and should be saved for the tribal women you stir hot soap over large pots in a hot country. Just my opinion

 

[penelopejane]

I agree with penelopejane, it's probably just dryness from the CO. When most people use that level of CO in their soaps, they off-set the cleansing factor by having a 15-20% superfat.

But, I have used some ABS before, and it was pretty stripping. Maybe that's just the nature of ABS and the way it's supposed to be?

This isn't Tochie's ABS recipe. It's a general soap recipe.

 

[Tochie]

@penelopejane @cmzaha @Cellador thanks a lot for your contributions..
The recipe tho isn’t an Afrcan Black soap recipe, its a regular C.p soap recipe and I added 2tbsps of Beetroot powder that I made myself, with Sweet almond oil, tea tree , eucalyptus oil ,sandalwood oil and Vit E detailed measurements are above in the recipe.



My recipe from soapcal..
Sorry ,I mistakenly sent twice.

 

[Susie]

Too much CO for me, not enough SF if you are going to use that much CO. If you are going to use that much CO, you need more like a 20% SF.

If you are going to make "regular" soap (AKA not salt bars) you need more of a balanced recipe with hard oils, liquid oils, coconut or PKO, and castor oil. Something more like this:

Palm/Lard/Tallow 50-65%
Olive Oil/SAO/RBO/HO Sun/safflower oil 15-20%
Coconut Oil/PKO 15-20%
Castor Oil 5%
Superfat 5-8%

You can sub in the shea butter/cocoa butter for part of the palm/lard/tallow.

 

[shunt2011]

Way too much CO for me as well at 5% SF. I use 20-30% but adjust the SF accordingly. My salt bars don't even contain that high of a percentage of CO and I SF it at 15-20%. That's probably the biggest reason people are having discomfort when using the soap. You need to make a better balanced recipe.

 

[Tochie]

Too much CO for me, not enough SF if you are going to use that much CO. If you are going to use that much CO, you need more like a 20% SF.

If you are going to make "regular" soap (AKA not salt bars) you need more of a balanced recipe with hard oils, liquid oils, coconut or PKO, and castor oil. Something more like this:

Palm/Lard/Tallow 50-65%
Olive Oil/SAO/RBO/HO Sun/safflower oil 15-20%
Coconut Oil/PKO 15-20%
Castor Oil 5%
Superfat 5-8%

You can sub in the shea butter/cocoa butter for part of the palm/lard/tallow.

Oh that’s really helpful...thanks a lot

Way too much CO for me as well at 5% SF. I use 20-30% but adjust the SF accordingly. My salt bars don't even contain that high of a percentage of CO and I SF it at 15-20%. That's probably the biggest reason people are having discomfort when using the soap. You need to make a better balanced recipe.

Wow... thank you [emoji1431]...Will definitely try this in my next batch.

@shunt2011
Wow... now thats an eye opener...thanks a lot [emoji1431][emoji1431]

 

[Millie]

Fractionated coconut oil is even more stripping than regular coconut oil in soap. Try the 76 degree coconut if you have access to it (much cheaper too!) I would also use less, as others have suggested. Good luck on your next soap!

 

[Tochie]

Fractionated coconut oil is even more stripping than regular coconut oil in soap. Try the 76 degree coconut if you have access to it (much cheaper too!) I would also use less, as others have suggested. Good luck on your next soap!

Thank you so much [emoji1431]

Thank you [emoji1431] Millie, I really do appreciate.

 

[Millie]

Happy to help