I'm just wondering if I mix 100g of water with 80g of lye will the solution then weigh 180g all together after the lye dissolves in the water. I guess I'm wondering if the weight of the lye changes after it dissolves? Thanks so much.
Weight of dissolved lye
- Thread starter CLMP
- Start date
Help Support Soapmaking Forum:
- Joined
- Mar 18, 2022
- Messages
- 693
- Reaction score
- 879
Hmmm I have wondered the same thing. I weigh the water then Tare the scale. Then pour in measured lye. Don’t think the weight could change without water evaporating.I'm just wondering if I mix 100g of water with 80g of lye will the solution then weigh 180g all together after the lye dissolves in the water. I guess I'm wondering if the weight of the lye changes after it dissolves? Thanks so much.
Here is a great website and tons of information. Lye conc vs water:lye ratio | Soapy Stuff
If the container is not covered, then the weight will change from the lye reacting with oxygen and creating what we know as lye lint/ soda ash. I saw a video of Kevin Dunn showing this during a seminar but do not remember if the weight increased or decreased.
I tried this last night and what happens is the water rapidly loses it weight as the water heats up so you can't measure the lye that way! It was a good thought though.Why not weigh your container first, then add the water, and the lye, and weigh again, and record your results? It's a good question for a beginning scientist to ask.
But you can! Because it is only water that is lost via evaporation due to the heat. The lye weight stays the same.
Just remember that once the solution cools down, if you leave it uncovered, it will start gaining water weight as the lye draws water from the air. Tricky stuff, that lye!
So here's the thing If the weight of the lye stays the same but just the water evaporates when mixing together how is a master batch of 50/50 work because once you add them to gether the water evaporates which means the solution isn't 50/50 any more so even if I add a little liquid to it for my batch wouldnt the lye solution then have to much lye in it how would you even measure this accurately. I'm a little confused about this. I guess my whole point to this is to understand if it's more accurate to mix your lye right before you soap or is it still accurate to master batch. Sorry my brain is working overtime about this lol
So I tried testing my soap with ph strips how do I know if they work the ones I dipped in water are a bit darker then the soap tested one. They are all most the same color wouldn't the one dipped in soap be darker than the one in water. Curious. Is this color green safe it says this color is between 9 and 10.
We don't usually test soap with pH strips because it's not an accurate measure of it being lye heavy or not. Soap is generally around 10pH or so because it is an alkaline product.
If you want to test for lye heavy or lye pockets in soap - just use the zap test.
If you want to test for lye heavy or lye pockets in soap - just use the zap test.
I am going to recommend that you watch this video. It's a good tutorial that walks you through it. For a quick explanation:
1. Weigh your container before making the mix. Write down the weight to remember for later.
2. Weigh your distilled water into the container.
3. Weigh out an equal amount of NaOH and slowly pour that into the container. Stir until dissolved.
4. Loosely cap the container to prevent as much evaporation as possible.
5. After it has cooled, weigh the container with the lye solution in it.
6. Subtract the container weight (from step 1). This will give you the weight of your MB lye solution.
6. If the weight of your MB lye solution is less than (water weight + NaOH weight), top it off with distilled water. Now you are back at 50-50 solution strength.
Honestly, I don't worry about evaporation and have not had any problems. Remember that your lye is almost never 100% pure, so that also gives you a little leeway.
Ok as soon as I'm brave enough lol just joking so do you mean to lick my soap for a zap if so how many days should I wait to do that can you do it right away as soon as it is unmolded I never done this before and I'm trying to figure out if a soap I made is lye heavy I might of miss calculated my lye amount.
Hi just thought I should let everyone know why I was wondering this is because when I was making the Faux Sea Water and lye I kept thinking the white stuff was undissolved lye but it was the baking soda so I thought I will strain it all into one bucket and split up later and save this lye water for later. Well when I went to weigh it out I weighed the water weight plus the lye wait which then left me an amount short for the third batch which I then realized that the water was now less due to evaporation when I mixed it up. Well I used some of that in my batch realizing there might be to much lye in my batch now it might be fine but it might be a little lye heavy now. Hopefully this makes sense I've tried to explain this the best way I could and the reason is because I can't through lye down my drain because we have a septic tank so I was trying to use it up. But I just found out there is a place at the dump for hazardous material where I can bring this lye. So I won't have to figure this out now LOL.
Well this stuff was great to learn though and I might even try master batching in the future.
It doesn't sound like you accounted for the weight of the sea salt and bicarb, either - those would also throw off your calculations.
That’s a great walk through of the process, @AliOop - thank youI am going to recommend that you watch this video. It's a good tutorial that walks you through it. For a quick explanation:
1. Weigh your container before making the mix. Write down the weight to remember for later.
2. Weigh your distilled water into the container.
3. Weigh out an equal amount of NaOH and slowly pour that into the container. Stir until dissolved.
4. Loosely cap the container to prevent as much evaporation as possible.
5. After it has cooled, weigh the container with the lye solution in it.
6. Subtract the container weight (from step 1). This will give you the weight of your MB lye solution.
6. If the weight of your MB lye solution is less than (water weight + NaOH weight), top it off with distilled water. Now you are back at 50-50 solution strength.
Honestly, I don't worry about evaporation and have not had any problems. Remember that your lye is almost never 100% pure, so that also gives you a little leeway.
I haven’t worried too much about evaporation, but might do this and consider the top off.
Yes I was thinking that too! Well at least I learnt that stuff now Lol I decided to just bring that jug of stuff to the dump to the hazardous section and I will just start over.Lol
Why do people melt their hard oils separate from their soft oils and mix them together after. Why not just warm them all up together. I have been warming them all up together. I'm still learning so much even after 8 months of soap making. LolI am going to recommend that you watch this video. It's a good tutorial that walks you through it. For a quick explanation:
1. Weigh your container before making the mix. Write down the weight to remember for later.
2. Weigh your distilled water into the container.
3. Weigh out an equal amount of NaOH and slowly pour that into the container. Stir until dissolved.
4. Loosely cap the container to prevent as much evaporation as possible.
5. After it has cooled, weigh the container with the lye solution in it.
6. Subtract the container weight (from step 1). This will give you the weight of your MB lye solution.
6. If the weight of your MB lye solution is less than (water weight + NaOH weight), top it off with distilled water. Now you are back at 50-50 solution strength.
Honestly, I don't worry about evaporation and have not had any problems. Remember that your lye is almost never 100% pure, so that also gives you a little leeway.
Only the hard oils need to be melted, right? If you add room-temp soft oils to the melted ones, it cools the entire mix down faster. So you can get to soaping sooner.
Oh that makes so much sense thats a great Idea. Wow I wish I would of thought of that. Thanks so much now I must go figure out a plan for this month's challenge LolOnly the hard oils need to be melted, right? If you add room-temp soft oils to the melted ones, it cools the entire mix down faster. So you can get to soaping sooner.
