Making Liquid Soap- With Pictures!

[Morgaine]

Ok, I finally got around to making liquid soap! And I took pictures. Here they are!

First weigh up your oils

Then melt them until they are about 160 degrees. I used my crock pot

Then you measure you Potassium Hydroxide and water

Add you KOH to the water, these are in bigger flakes than sodium hydroxide so make sure they all dissolve. Make sure you go slowly and don't just dump it all in.

Wait until your lye is about 150 degrees. THen add it to your melted oils

Stick Blend. I used short burst and then alternated with hand stirring. It will take a white for it to reach trace. THat is normal for liquid soaps.

Here is the soap just starting to come to trace. Keep mixing, you are not done yet!

Now it is getting really thick and is just starting to get like taffy. Keep on mixing!

Now it is in the taffy stage.

Check and make sure that it is fully mixed. If you notice any seperation at all. Keep mixing. Potassium based soap want to seperate much more than sodium based soaps. If it is fully mixed put you lid on the crock and start cooking it. I turned it from High while mixing to low with the lid on.

Stir every the mass every 20-30minutes over the next 3 hours. As it gets closer to being done, you will notice that the soap paste will start to get translucent in places. Keep going.

Once it is fully translucent, melt 1 oz of paste in 2 oz warm water. If it is clear, that means you are done! I have a picture of my finished paste but not the liquid soap. I'll try to get some of that tomorrow when I dilute and thicken the batch and let it sit for two weeks.

 

[Blackbird]

Thank you so much!

Now for my questions;

What recipe did you use, how much does it make?
Can milk be substituted for water in this recipe?
What is the difference between Potassium Hydroxide and Sodium Lauryl? I've only heard about using the lauryl with liquid soap so I'm very curious.
If you add fragrances I assume you add right before trace, just like bar soap, correct?

I can't wait to try this!

Also, where do you buy your potassium hydroxide?

 

[Organics North]

Wow,
I have a lot to learn..................
on

 

[freemotion]

CoolCoolCool!!!!! Is your crockpot "dedicated?" Crockpot-sized recipe, please!

 

[Morgaine]

Thank you so much!

Now for my questions;

What recipe did you use, how much does it make?
Can milk be substituted for water in this recipe?
What is the difference between Potassium Hydroxide and Sodium Lauryl? I've only heard about using the lauryl with liquid soap so I'm very curious.
If you add fragrances I assume you add right before trace, just like bar soap, correct?

I can't wait to try this!

Also, where do you buy your potassium hydroxide?

I used a recipe from Catherine Failor's Book.
35 oz Coconut
13 Sweet Almond

39 oz water
13 oz Potassium Hydroxide

I'm still new to the liquid soap making (this was my first batch), but I do know that you can use some Goat's milk as a part of your liquid. But you cannot go really high like you with Cold Process soap

Sodium Lauryl- not sure what that is exactly. I'll look it up later. Unless you mean Soldium Hydroxide, what you use to make bar soap. I'm just guessing, but the sodium Lauryl might be a syndet (synthetic detergent).

No, you do not add the scent at trace like bar soaps. Right now I have paste that you see in the last picture. I will take that, dilute it to my prefered concentration and then scent it and let it rest for 2 weeks where I will thicken it with Borax that will also neutralize any lye left in the soap. (this batch is slightly lye heavy and that needs to be corrected) I'll explain more later if you want.

I got my KOH (potassium Hydroxide) from AAA Chemicals.

 

[colowyo0809]

Wow,
I have a lot to learn..................
on

You and me both! I would love to start making our own soaps and such! Here's waiting for those goats to arrive!

 

[Bettacreek]

I've actually made liquid soaps using regular sodium hydroxide. Just make regular soap, then either cure or hot process it into a regular bar of soap. Then I cut it down to .25"x.25" chunks. Then toss them into a pump container and add some water. I keep adding chunks of soap until everything is a nice thick consistency that I like and it stops seperating. I of course turn the bottle upside down to mix it up a few times while it's dissolving. But it works great. I don't have any issues with it.

 

[valmom]

I remember reading that KOH is for liquid and NaOH is for solid soaps before I started making soap, and after I found "lye" at Home Depot for drains that said 100% lye- then got it home and it was KOH and wouldn't do for solid soap.

So, you just dilute the paste to what you like for suds? Sounds pretty simple, actually. What are you storing it in? Can I make it on the stove instead of a crockpot- I don't really want to invest in another thing to store just for soaping!

 

[~gd]

Thank you so much!

Now for my questions;

What recipe did you use, how much does it make?
Can milk be substituted for water in this recipe?
What is the difference between Potassium Hydroxide and Sodium Lauryl? I've only heard about using the lauryl with liquid soap so I'm very curious.
If you add fragrances I assume you add right before trace, just like bar soap, correct?

I can't wait to try this!

Also, where do you buy your potassium hydroxide?

I used a recipe from Catherine Failor's Book.
35 oz Coconut
13 Sweet Almond

39 oz water
13 oz Potassium Hydroxide

I'm still new to the liquid soap making (this was my first batch), but I do know that you can use some Goat's milk as a part of your liquid. But you cannot go really high like you with Cold Process soap

Sodium Lauryl- not sure what that is exactly. I'll look it up later. Unless you mean Soldium Hydroxide, what you use to make bar soap. I'm just guessing, but the sodium Lauryl might be a syndet (synthetic detergent).It is, but when you get right down to it all the soaps you make are also syndets They become syndets when you add the lye to the fats creating a synthetic soap. Sodium lauryl is a short name for sodium lauryl sulfate. lauryl is the old style fat and oil chemists name for a 12 carbon chain length oil. it is treated with sulfuric acid to produce the sulfate group on one end and that acid is then neutralized with sodium hydroxide. By its self it is such a good detergent that it tends to strip oil out of skin or hair (harsh). Therefore it is often used with materials that replace the stripped oils.
potassium salts are usually more soluble than Sodium salts so are used for liquid products. If making a solid product you want the soap not so soluble so sodium is used. Ammonia can also be used but usually is not used because of the smell. many of the ammonia products have superior germ killing properties along with cleaning properties which make for nice sanitizers. ~gd ex detergent manufacturer.

No, you do not add the scent at trace like bar soaps. Right now I have paste that you see in the last picture. I will take that, dilute it to my prefered concentration and then scent it and let it rest for 2 weeks where I will thicken it with Borax that will also neutralize any lye left in the soap. (this batch is slightly lye heavy and that needs to be corrected) I'll explain more later if you want.

I got my KOH (potassium Hydroxide) from AAA Chemicals.

 

[Blackbird]

Yikes. Maybe I'll just stick with lye and my hard bars.