Make Home-Made Soap

1. Make Home-Made Soap Source: Cole Brothers

2. Soap - Introduction How Soap is made Soap is made by mixing lye and water with fats or oil.  Through a complex chemical reaction lye which is also called sodium hydroxide (a base) converts Fats or Oil (an acid) to soap.  This process is called saponification.  How Soap Cleans Soap cleans by acting as an agent between water and dirt.  Soap allows the water to wet the surface that is being cleaned better. In addition, soap grabs dirt and connects it to the water.   Soap basically grabs dirt or grease and allows water in to wash it away.  This may be an over simplification of the process but it is accurate. Soap does more than just clean. The soap you make using this online guide will contain at least 25% pure glycerin. Glycerin draws moisture to the skin, soothing and lubricating its cells. Most soap sold in stores has had its glycerin removed and sold back to the consumer in other skin care products. Also, most store soaps are actually petrochemical-based detergents, which are good cleansers but are harsh on the skin.

3. Soap – Good Reasons To Make Soap • Here are some of those characteristics as well as some other good reasons to • make your own soap: • Lye soap is gentle. • The quality of soap that is made at home can easily surpass store bought soap for considerably less money. • With homemade soap you get exactly what you want.  You can scent, color or make the bars all natural if that is your preference. • Depending on the ingredients used, home made soap bars can easily outlast their commercial counterparts. • Lye soaps have a 'creaminess' that just can't be duplicated by any of the soaps you find in stores. Lye soap is wonderful on your skin. The making of lye soap causes it to produce a large amount of natural glycerin as a by-product. This is stripped off in commercial bar soap production and sold for other commercial uses like lotions, but in homemade soaps the glycerin is left in the soap. • Lye soap can be used to clean just about everything. . There's nothing you can't use it on. By the way, ever get engine grease on your hands while working on a car? Give lye soap a try!  Saddle soap is simply lye soap, so it's good for leather too. • Soapmaking is fun and creative.  Bars of custom soap make great gifts for friends and family. • If you wish you can produce soap for profit. Soapmaking is a good barter able skill which can easily be turned into a profitable business. • Soap making is easy!

4. Soap – Safely Working With Lye (NaOH) NaOH / Lye is one of the key ingredients in the production of soap.  Through a chemical reaction it converts oils and fats to what we know as soap.  Lye is also one of the key ingredients in drain openers such as Drano and liquid plumber because of its unique ability to convert greasy buildup into a soluble substance thus clearing a clogged line.  Lye should be handled in the same way that drains cleaner, bleach or pool chemicals would be handled.  If mishandled it can be a dangerous chemical and can cause harm to you and others.  If handled correctly these kinds of problems can be avoided.  There is no reason why accidents involving lye cannot be completely avoided. You can substantially reduce your chances of ever having an accident by remembering three things. 1. Never pour water into lye.  Always pour lye into the water. (Slowly)  If you pour water onto lye it can cause a violent reaction. 2. Secondly, be careful not to splash or spill the lye solution. 3. Keep lye out of the reach of children.

5. Soap – Ingredients Oil or Fats - Almost any natural oil or animal fat can be turned into soap. Lye (NaOH - Sodium Hydroxide) - This is the ingredient that converts the oil or fat to soap. Water - Preferably distilled water or bottled water. Minerals in hard tap water aren't good for soapmaking. Essential and Fragrance Oils - These are not required, but can add a nice fragrance to your soap. Soap Colorants – To color the soap. Other additives - Oatmeal, spices, herbs etc can also be added to soap at the trace stage.

6. Soap – Equipments • Pair of safety goggles and a long sleeve shirt or coveralls. (Important) • Pair of Neoprene rubber gloves or dish washing gloves. • Half gallon Rubbermaid type pitchers (dishwasher safe) one for water, one for lye • Sturdy plastic stirring spoons, one for oils, one for lye/water mix. • Glass (not aluminum) candy thermometers. • Large enameled or stainless pot to melt oils in. (16 qt. would work). (Do not use aluminum pots, only stainless steel or enameled.) • Old blanket, preferably wool. (For insulating molds after pouring) • Kitchen food scale or postal scale. • Saran type food wrap. (For lining molds) • Molds • Stick Blender is optional (creates a faster trace) or Standard Kitchen Blender with lid and Towel

7. Soap – Method Step one - Prepare your molds.  Molds can be anything from a greased pan to capped PVC pipes or candy molds.  Set up your molds on a flat and level surface.  Grease them with PAM.  Make sure you have enough molds ready to accommodate all of your soap mix MOLDS: For molds you can use a wooden or cardboard box lined with saran wrap, candy molds or even a PVC pipe capped on one end.  If you use a PVC pipe all you do is spray the inside with PAM, pour the solution into the pipe, and let it set, and then uncap and push out the soap. You then can cut it into round pieces.

8. Soap – Method Step Two - Measure out your water and lye.  Dissolve the correct amount of lye in cold water (Do not use an aluminum container. Use stainless steel; enamel coated steel or a heat resistant glass container like Pyrex).   Do not pour water into the lye.  Pour the lye slowly into the water a little at a time.  Stir until dissolved and let cool. Your previously cold water will become very HOT in a matter of seconds after stirring in the lye Allow the lye/water solution to cool to around 43oC.  At this point it will be clear.

9. Soap – Method Step Three - Measure, Mix and Melt Oils and fat and let cool gradually to around 43oC. If your oils are already in liquid form such as palm oil, coconut oil, canola oil or corn oil simply heats them up to around 43oC. Make sure the pot that the oil is in is large enough to hold the oil and lye solution with enough room left over for stirring without splattering.   If you wish you can use a separate container for mixing the oil and lye.  In this case you would pour the warmed oil into this container prior to step 4.

10. Soap – Method Step Four - Pour the lye solution into the oil/fat in a thin, steady, stream with slow, even stirring.  Be careful not to splatter the solution onto yourself or others. Continue stirring.  Depending upon the type of oil you are using the solution will begin to thicken or trace in between 15 minutes to 3 hours. If you are using a slow trace recipe you may want to stir for a few minutes and then let the solution sit for 10-15 minutes and then repeat this process until a trace appears. (A trace is when you can take a spoonful of the soap solution and pour a stream across the top of the solution and have it leave a trace)

11. Soap – Method Step Five - When the solution begins to thicken you can add any essential oils or fragrances as well as any other additives that your recipe calls for.  (I.e. Oatmeal, herbs etc...) Stir these ingredients into the soap mix thoroughly. Step Six - Pour this mixture into your mold or molds.  After you pour the solution into your mold you should cover it with a towel to keep the soap from cooling to fast.  This will assist the soap in curing. Step Seven - Let the soap harden for a day or two and then pop it out of the mold, cut it and let it age for about 3 weeks before using it.

12. Soap – Making in Blender <Best Choice For Faster soap Making> • Although using a blender does not allow for big batches of soap, it has four major advantages: • Blending your soap mix makes for a much shorter time to the thin trace stage. Instead of 15 - 40 minutes, it might require only minutes or even seconds. • Since liquid fat and oils can be used at room temperature, no thermometers are required. For solid fats simply heat them until they are melted. • The blender effectively whips the lye water into the fats producing a much smoother mixture so the chances of your mix separating are greatly reduced. • Your soap bars will be creamier in consistency and should float due to the air that is whipped into the solution. • (Use small one-pound batches only).

13. Soap – Making in Blender <Best Choice For Faster soap Making> Step One - Dissolve the lye in cold water and wait until it cools and the mixture turns clear. Step Two - Carefully pour the oil and then the lye/water solution into the blender.  Be careful not to splash or spill the lye on yourself or others. Step Three - Lock the blender in position, secure the cover, place a towel over the top of the blender for safety, and process at the lowest possible speed.  Make sure you are wearing your goggles when you process the soap mixture and make sure the towel is in place to avoid any accidental splashing of the lye/oil mixture.

14. Soap – Making in Blender <Best Choice For Faster soap Making> Stop the blender and check the soap often to watch for what is called a thin-trace stage.  This is when the soap mixture just begins to thicken.  Each time you stop the blender, wait a few seconds before removing the cover. Sometimes the soap "burps" when it stops as trapped air comes to the top. At the thin trace stage, stop the blender and stir the soap to check for tracing and to allow bubbles to escape. Step four - At this point you can add any essential oils, colorants or fragrances as well as any other ingredients such as oatmeal or herbs. Blend these in for a few seconds and then stop the blender. Step Five - Pour the soap into individual molds. Cover it with a blanket for insulation. Let the soap set for a day or two and then after popping it out of the molds cut it and let it age for at least three weeks.

15. Soap – Making Liquid Hand Soap in a blender Making liquid soap is no more difficult than making hard bars.  The difference is in the type of lye you use.  For hard bars you use sodium hydroxide.  For liquid soap you use potassium hydroxide also known as Potash or KOH. Prepare the same way you would regular bar soap in a blender except use potassium hydroxide instead of sodium hydroxide and instead of pouring the solution into a mold you pour it into a plastic container to cure.  (The solution will take a little longer than regular soap to trace since you are using potassium hydroxide versus sodium hydroxide.)  Once in the container let the mixture cure for two weeks.  After two weeks thin the mix with water until it is about the consistency of hand soap.  At this point you can add any essential oils or fragrances you desire.  You can use a stick or regular blender for this step also. After it is mixed pour the soap into a pump jar type container and you are done.

16. Soap – Recipes For Blender Process Two Liquid Soap Recipes <Sabun Cair>Recipe#1 340 g Palm Oil 170 g Coconut oil 50 g Olive oil122 g KOH - Potassium hydroxide250 g Water + 10 cc desired fragrance + desired color <At Room Temperature> Recipe#2 340 g Soybean oil 80 g Coconut Oil 60 g Palm Oil 60 g Corn Oil 109 g KOH - Potassium hydroxide 230 g Water + 10 cc desired fragrance + desired color <At Room Temperature>

17. Soap – Recipes For Blender Process Two Bar Soap Recipes <Sabun Padat> Favorite Castile I 235 g Olive oil 150 g Coconut oil 100 g Palm oil 74 g NaOH – Sodium hydroxide 210 g Water + 10 cc desired fragrance + desired color <At Room Temperature> Favorite Castile II 250 Palm oil 140 Coconut oil 100 Corn oil 75.5 g NaOH – Sodium hydroxide 210 g Water + 10 cc desired fragrance + desired color <At Room Temperature>