Undissolved lye? Rebatch a second time?

[AliOop]

Hi @AliOop, I tried and get an error code when going to the article.

Thanks for letting me know. I just redid the link and it seems to work for me. Does it work for you now?

 

[earlene]

Has anyone ever used those ph tools to see if lye heavy or not? Debating whether or not those are more effective than using litmus or zap?

Not I, but there are folks here who do own such tools and have mentioned using them. Soap is going have a pH between 9 and 11 (or 9.5 & 11.5). Litmus paper is an unreliable method of testing soap for pH and as AliOop says, it does not really tell you if soap is lye heavy or not. As unreliable as it is, it cannot even tell you the actual pH of your particular soap.

Incidentally litmus paper & pH strips are NOT the same thing at all. Litmus doesn't give you any kind of accuracy other than to tell you if something is alkaline or basic.

pH strips give you a rough estimate, depending on how accurate they are (they are not all equal in quality) and how well the sample is prepared.

PH testing doesn't necessarily tell you whether you have a lye-heavy soap. I recommend reading this article on @DeeAnna's Soapy Stuff pages of her website. Be sure to scroll down and read the part that starts with this heading:

I want to use pH test strips to check if my soap is safe or lye heavy. How do I do that?
Measuring pH with test strips, even high quality strips, cannot tell you if your soap is skin safe or lye heavy for two reasons.

It wasn't working for me before either, but it does now. Thanks for fixing it.



Regarding the pH meters, @SudzNDudz, in AliOop's link, DeeAnna goes into how important it is to use the pH meter correctly and how important it is that they be properly maintained and calibrated. I used to do similar tests in my working life where calibration prior to equipment use was required each and every time the equipment was used or at least daily, depending on the particular piece of equipment, so I know that sensitive equipment is remains accurate and dependable only as long as it is well maintained.

Here's a video by Dr. Kevin Dunn on testing & adjusting pH of soap. (He shows that reducing the pH of true soap makes it not soap anymore, but that this can be reversed.) Interesting, but probably not pertinent to your last question.:



This is the one I meant to attach in which he shows how to test bar soap using phenothalein:

 

[linne1gi]

Thanks for letting me know. I just redid the link and it seems to work for me. Does it work for you now?

Yes, it’s now there. It’s a good article.

 

[earlene]

deleted - not sure how this happened, but double posted previous post.

 

[AliOop]

I think your link is not working, at least for me it's not. Not even after you re-did it.

https://classicbells.com/soap/pH.asp

Sorry! Maybe try refreshing your page? It works for me and for @linne1gi .

 

[linne1gi]

Sorry! Maybe try refreshing your page? It works for me and for @linne1gi .

Yep, just tried it again. its at post #18.

 

[earlene]

Sorry! Maybe try refreshing your page? It works for me and for @linne1gi .

No, it is working for me. Somehow when I went to correct a mispelled word in my post #22, the forum software edited a draft of that post that I corrected before actually posting #22. I've since deleted post #24 because it was a duplicate of post #22 but an earlier draft from before I posted it (I think, since what's in #22 is what I did post first.) Confusing, right?

 

[linne1gi]

No, it is working for me. Somehow when I went to correct a mispelled word in my post #22, the forum software edited a draft of that post that I corrected before actually posting #22. I've since deleted post #24 because it was a duplicate of post #22 but an earlier draft from before I posted it (I think, since what's in #22 is what I did post first.) Confusing, right?

Yep!

 

[TheGecko]

SoapQueen is wrong on many things. Using glass for her lye solution is another that is crazy.

Yeah...I got in trouble for commenting about that on a lot of her videos. And she doesn't scrape her containers...that's like a felony!

 

[linne1gi]

Yeah...I got in trouble for commenting about that on a lot of her videos. And she doesn't scrape her containers...that's like a felony!

Me too, I sent her a private message and was told to shut up!

 

[SudzNDudz]

Not I, but there are folks here who do own such tools and have mentioned using them. Soap is going have a pH between 9 and 11 (or 9.5 & 11.5). Litmus paper is an unreliable method of testing soap for pH and as AliOop says, it does not really tell you if soap is lye heavy or not. As unreliable as it is, it cannot even tell you the actual pH of your particular soap.

Incidentally litmus paper & pH strips are NOT the same thing at all. Litmus doesn't give you any kind of accuracy other than to tell you if something is alkaline or basic.

pH strips give you a rough estimate, depending on how accurate they are (they are not all equal in quality) and how well the sample is prepared.


It wasn't working for me before either, but it does now. Thanks for fixing it.



Regarding the pH meters, @SudzNDudz, in AliOop's link, DeeAnna goes into how important it is to use the pH meter correctly and how important it is that they be properly maintained and calibrated. I used to do similar tests in my working life where calibration prior to equipment use was required each and every time the equipment was used or at least daily, depending on the particular piece of equipment, so I know that sensitive equipment is remains accurate and dependable only as long as it is well maintained.

Here's a video by Dr. Kevin Dunn on testing & adjusting pH of soap. (He shows that reducing the pH of true soap makes it not soap anymore, but that this can be reversed.) Interesting, but probably not pertinent to your last question.:



This is the one I meant to attach in which he shows how to test bar soap using phenothalein:

Thanks! I'm learning that soaping is really a science...so much to learn!

 

[AliOop]

Yeah...I got in trouble for commenting about that on a lot of her videos. And she doesn't scrape her containers...that's like a felony!

Right?!? Although I think many YT soapmakers skip the scraping (and blending) due to comments that it is boring. So let's hope in real life she doesn't waste all those materials.

 

[SudzNDudz]

Not I, but there are folks here who do own such tools and have mentioned using them. Soap is going have a pH between 9 and 11 (or 9.5 & 11.5). Litmus paper is an unreliable method of testing soap for pH and as AliOop says, it does not really tell you if soap is lye heavy or not. As unreliable as it is, it cannot even tell you the actual pH of your particular soap.

Incidentally litmus paper & pH strips are NOT the same thing at all. Litmus doesn't give you any kind of accuracy other than to tell you if something is alkaline or basic.

pH strips give you a rough estimate, depending on how accurate they are (they are not all equal in quality) and how well the sample is prepared.


It wasn't working for me before either, but it does now. Thanks for fixing it.



Regarding the pH meters, @SudzNDudz, in AliOop's link, DeeAnna goes into how important it is to use the pH meter correctly and how important it is that they be properly maintained and calibrated. I used to do similar tests in my working life where calibration prior to equipment use was required each and every time the equipment was used or at least daily, depending on the particular piece of equipment, so I know that sensitive equipment is remains accurate and dependable only as long as it is well maintained.

Here's a video by Dr. Kevin Dunn on testing & adjusting pH of soap. (He shows that reducing the pH of true soap makes it not soap anymore, but that this can be reversed.) Interesting, but probably not pertinent to your last question.:



This is the one I meant to attach in which he shows how to test bar soap using phenothalein:

Really good info! Thank you

 

[TheGecko]

Right?!? Although I think many YT soapmakers skip the scraping (and blending) due to comments that it is boring. So let's hope in real life she doesn't waste all those materials.

I just think that if you’re going to make videos about something that could potentially cause harm, you have a responsibility to do it correctly or have some kind of disclaimer.

 

[TheGecko]

Thanks! I'm learning that soaping is really a science...so much to learn!

It’s also magic.

 

[linne1gi]

I just think that if you’re going to make videos about something that could potentially cause harm, you have a responsibility to do it correctly or have some kind of disclaimer.

Exactly!

 

[AliOop]

Totally agree! I did notice that, in her most recent YT video, Holly of Kapia Mera used a plastic mixing pitcher for the first time in a long time. She used to use them all the time when she first started, but switched to glass, ostensibly for the better camera shots of the stick-blending process. But one could use a Cambro container for that, like the ones used by the other Holly (Missouri River Soap) and Katie (Royalty Soaps).

I hope the switch back is permanent and not due to batch size or some other temporary factor. She's one of my favorites to watch, except for that one issue. It's ironic, because all of her videos start with a fairly long intro that is mostly about lye safety.

 

[linne1gi]

Totally agree! I did notice that, in her most recent YT video, Kapia Mera (Holly) used a plastic mixing pitcher for the first time in a long time. She used to use them all the time when she first started, but switched to glass, ostensibly for the better camera shots of the stick-blending process. But one could use a Cambro container for that, like the ones used by the other Holly (Missouri River Soap) and Katie (Royalty Soaps).

I hope the switch back is permanent and not due to batch size or some other temporary factor. She's one of my favorites to watch, except for that one issue. It's ironic, because all of her videos start with a fairly long intro that is mostly about lye safety.

Agreed, I love Holly. Her videos are so calm, unhurried and even soothing.

 

[TheGecko]

Totally agree! I did notice that, in her most recent YT video, Kapia Mera (Holly) used a plastic mixing pitcher for the first time in a long time. She used to use them all the time when she first started, but switched to glass, ostensibly for the better camera shots of the stick-blending process. But one could use a Cambro container for that, like the ones used by the other Holly (Missouri River Soap) and Katie (Royalty Soaps).

There are too many other 'clear' containers and/or camera angles that would provide the best view for the soap making process.