Using a coffee urn for masterbatching oils?

[RDiehl6690]

Hello,
I have recently been experimenting with masterbatching my oils. It has been working well and really speeding up my soap making. I am currently using a wax melting pot to do so. The problem is it is only a 5L pot and does not hold enough to do my large molds in one go. In looking for a larger vessel to melt my oils I stumbled across these coffee urns/water boilers from webstraunt store. They are 5 gallons which would be plently and they have adjustable temperature control. (Says min is 120, although the dial appears to go lower). Has anyone tried something like this? Is there any reason why this wouldnt work? I would love to buy a dedicated soap making melting pot but I am not in a position to spend that much money right now and this seems like a workable alternative. I was also toying with the idea of using an empty 5 gallon oil bucket with some type of heater (immersion or band) but it seems that it would take a long time to heat up, plus I wouldnt be able to turn it on as I put my oils in to melt them. Any advice or ideas are appreciated. Thanks!

 

[AliOop]

Wow, what a creative idea. Since you are only doing oils in this, and not lye solution, it seems like it should work.

 

[justsomeguy]

Hello,
I have recently been experimenting with masterbatching my oils. It has been working well and really speeding up my soap making. I am currently using a wax melting pot to do so. The problem is it is only a 5L pot and does not hold enough to do my large molds in one go. In looking for a larger vessel to melt my oils I stumbled across these coffee urns/water boilers from webstraunt store. They are 5 gallons which would be plently and they have adjustable temperature control. (Says min is 120, although the dial appears to go lower). Has anyone tried something like this? Is there any reason why this wouldnt work? I would love to buy a dedicated soap making melting pot but I am not in a position to spend that much money right now and this seems like a workable alternative. I was also toying with the idea of using an empty 5 gallon oil bucket with some type of heater (immersion or band) but it seems that it would take a long time to heat up, plus I wouldnt be able to turn it on as I put my oils in to melt them. Any advice or ideas are appreciated. Thanks!

I have a digiboil wax melter that says it'll hold 9.25 fluid gallons of melted wax. Paid $169 for it I believe. Only tested it to the point of making sure it heats up so far though...

 

[Shirley-D]

It looks good but I have never used one for heating oils. I did have a coffee urn years ago and used it for coffee when entertaining--wished I had kept it. My thoughts are this:

1. Can you clean it easily? My coffee urn had a short open drain/tap at the bottom that was easy to clean with a slender bottle brush, so you are probably ok on that account.
2. Bear in mind that the heating element is all at the bottom so the heat is concentrated there. With a thin liquid like coffee the heat could travel easily throughout the volume of liquid. Thicker oils or fats might get too much heat at the bottom and not enough at the top. You would have to stir it for a while I think.
3. Although the outside is shiny like stainless steel (that's the style of it, the cosmetic look), the inside could be aluminum which you don't want.
4. If the fats/oils are too much and the thing self-destructs, your warranty will be voided and you lose $100.

I hope it works for you, do let us know. I was eyeing my instapot with the keep warm setting. It is big enough for me but I am still using it for cooking, beside, there is no way to grip to pour, too dangerous for me. Maybe someone else can chime in with some experience/wisdom.

 

[dibbles]

Being able to clean it was my first thought. @Shirley-D also raises good points about the inside of the pot being aluminum and the uneven heat distribution. If you decide to try it, please let us know how it works!