Making soap info hints tips recipe
TECACENTRE.NET team brings you the www.ausis.info sure fire way to make soap.
The teams have been making soap for over 20 years now and this is one of the
recipes used on a regular basis. We recycle used cooking oil to help out the
environment this is one of the ways we do it by making soap.
Ok guys for those of you who need help with a recipe here is a no fail base
recipe. It makes a good lather and medium to hard bar.
The Recipe
4.5 kilograms canola oil
1.5 kilograms Beef fat $2.00
1.75 litres ICE AND cold water
800 grams lye crystals $4.00 #
150 millilitres Fragrance oils $6.50 dependant on your choice *
7 millilitres Di propylyne Glycol 0.05c (OPTIONAL) **
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Method and Instructions
1. Figure out your recipe or pick one out. What colour , fragrance, swirl or
whatever first.
2. Make sure you calculate the lye or caustic to fat ratio properly we use a
chart to check our calculations found at http://millersoap.com/soapdesign.html .
Many people quote way to much caustic or water *** but this chart is most
reliable we have found for fat cuastic ratios.
3. Figure the water content see above
4. Get EVERYTHING!!! together as it happens fast once you start. This includes
spoons blender, gloves, pots, jugs, ice, oil and or fats, containers and the
like also a spare person to help pour or scrape etc. Find a few old towels, or a
blanket, or some heavy rags for insulating the moulds. If you're planning to
fill the moulds to the brim, you'll also need a roll of baking paper (or plastic
film, or some heavy duty plastic) to protect you towels etc.
5. Measure the required amount of caustic soda in a clean, dry container.
Prepare the lye solution: measure the required amount of ICE & cold water in a
heat resistant container. I use a heavy plastic (HDPE) jug, which has a fitting
lid.
6. Place this container in the sink, and fill the sink with enough water to
reach the level of the water in your container or more. Just make sure the
container doesn't float too much (it will get heavier when you add the caustic,
anyway).
7. Wear your protective clothing (gloves, mask etc.)
8. Add the caustic soda to the water a little bit at a time, but not too slowly,
and stirring continually with a long handled tool (I use a paint stirrer).
9. Avoid breathing in the fumes. If you can, I suggest you use ICE as it does
not have as much vapour come off or mix your lye solution outside (wind at your
back, if any ;-). Make sure there is a water tap close by, in case of accidents.
10. Cover the container with the lye solution.
11. Measure your oils or fats directly in your soap pot. I start with the solid
oils/butters to avoid splashes.
12. Place the soap pot on medium heat.
13. While the oils/fats are melting and the lye is cooling down, assemble,
measure and organise your extra ingredients.
14. Line the mould (if you're using a log, slab or divider mold), or otherwise
prepare your moulds (some types of plastic tray moulds require greasing)
15. Determine where to place the moulds, and place a towel or thick layer of
newspaper under the moulds. Remember you will not move the moulds for the first
12 to 24 hours - so choose a spot where the soap can be left undisturbed!
16. When the solid oils/fats are melted, turn the heat off under the soap pot
and measure the temperature.
17. As I mentioned, I like working at medium to low starting temperatures. I
suggest you start getting ready to mix your soap when the oils are around 45º
C / 110º F.
18. If the fats/oils are warmer than this, just go and do something else while
you wait - or you can place the soap pot in a sinkful of cold water to speed up
the process.
19. When the oils are at the desired temperature, check the temperature of the
lye solution. Typically, this will be lower than the temperature of the oils -
which is perfect!
20. If the lye solution is still much warmer than the oils, I suggest you try
and cool it down by adding more cold water to the sink.
Pointers and Extra notes:
If the burning/slimy/boiled skin sensations are still present after one week
from unmoulding, then there is too much free caustic soda in the soap. Double
check your recipe and notes: did you leave one of the base oils out? Did you
check the accuracy of your scales? Did you double check the initial calculations
using a reliable SAP calculator?
In my experience, soap that still feels caustic after two weeks from unmoulding
is most likelyâ€Âlye heavy" batch. DO NOT THROW IT OUT
Scenting is kind of a moot point if using pine tar unless in really small
amounts because the soap will cure out with the scent of pine (less tar with
aging ). If you decide to scent along with the natural smell of the pine tar...
pick something that will blend well with that or enhance it... and you'll have
to move quickly since the soap is going to want to set up quickly and you'll
have little time for extra fussing around.
Essential oils might be better behaved since you are already going to have soap
with a tendency toward accelerated trace. Another comment was that pine tar soap
took longer to harden up during cure, but once hard that it was very long
lasting.
# The lye cuastic content will vary according to the oil fat your using
example: 5000 grams or 5 kilograms canola oil x .131 equals 655 grams rounded to
650 grams for the ease of calculating. ALwAYS ROUND DOWN with the caustic.
* The fragrance cost and amount will vary dependant on your choice usually 2% of
the total weight of soap is required except for strong or weak fragrance adjust
as needed.
example: 8.7 kilograms soap x 2% equals 174 millilitres rounded to 175
millilitres for the ease of calculating.
** DPG or Di propylyne Glycol for short is an emulsifier it will help set your
soap easier QUICKER. Trust us first time we tried the soap set in the saucepan
about 1 minute after we started stirring. So we re batched it with a new batch
of soap and used less in the next it was great.
*** To calculate the water we take the value of caustic / lye and use 215% water
to cure the soap quicker. This is the best method we have found.
example: 800 grams lye caustic x 215% equals 1720 millilitres rounded to 1.75
litres for the ease of calculating.
Once you have used this recipe a few times you will get used to finding the
trace knowing when to pour etc. You can then start experimenting by adding extra
ingredients. Examples are Paprika, coffee, beetroot juice for colour; different
swirls or multi colour or even soap balls moulding and more.
Remember never throw any soap out bad or not as it can always be used for one
thing or another. Examples are in the laundry for washing clothes or liquid soap
add 1 kilo of soap to 10 litres of hot water and cook until smooth. Use a cup of
this mix then to clean the floors or as a laundry wash or wash the dog yourself
its up to you.
