This was the easiest clean up ever!!

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ChrissyB

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I made a batch of facial soap yesterday with shea butter, OO, CO, Palm and castor, 8% SF.

I normally just put my big stainless steel pot in the laundry sink, leave it there till the next day, then wash....this time I put the whole pot in the oven while my soap was gelling. I only left it in there for about 15 minutes, when I took it out the leftovers in the pot were gelled and waxy feeling. So, I took it out, filled it with water in the sink and left it. The leftover soap gell bubbled up straight away, an hour later I just rinsed the soap out, pot was all clean, and I didn't have to deal with that horrible greasy mess that is normally left to clean up!!
 
Woohoo Chrissy! Sounds like a lovely soap too. I am using my soapmaking as a way to increase my self-discipline, so I always clean up straight away......I'm afraid if I leave it, it will still be waiting for me next week! :wink:

Tanya :)
 
Tanya, I am the opposite. I am borderline obsessive compulsive, I can't stand to have even a tea cup in the sink...
but I think in the long run, if I clean it up straight away it's a horrible job, but by leaving it, it was easy. I still did all the rest of the clean up, the pot was the only thing I left!!
 
That is a great tip Chrissy, I too like everything cleaned up,putting the pot in the oven is sheer genius.
Kitn
 
Woo hoo! I hate leaving the pot to the next day, I always find it harder to clean!

I scrape my pot out good with a spatula when I pour the soap, and then a couple of hours later when the leftover soap has hardened a bit, I go back with the spatula, scrape it out, and all I have to do is wipe the pot with a paper towel to get it clean. Unless I used a strong FO or EO I don't even have to wash it with soap and water (but I usually do!)
 
I'm in the "if I don't clean it now it will sit forever camp." Interestingly enough, that philosophy doesn't carry over into other areas of my house! :lol:

Jude
 
This was the easiest clean-up ever

I'm divided 50/50 between the two camps. I am compulsively tidy with my soaping (ah, but only in that one area...my house is always a mess!) and try to clean up everything I can when done. However, I leave my pot,spoon and spatula for the next day after having wiped them down good with some paper towels or rags. I am on a septic and afraid of clogging up the works with the greasy raw soap residue. I recently came up with a clean-up trick for my stick blender. That was always a total b to clean the next day with the hardened soap bits stuck up under the blade. I was doing some back to back batches recently and I needed to get the stick blender blade cleaned off quickly. I grabbed a coffee mug, squirted some of that extra strong Dawn dish detergent in the bottom, filled part way up with super hot water and stuck the blade in. After about 15 minutes I went to work with an old toothbrush...great for getting up and under the blade which does not detach from the housing in my blender. Rinsed out residue and I was ready to go. Beats the next day scrub out or even the greasy same day clean out! That Dawn stuff will strip the grease off of anything. It is kinda rough on the hands, though. :(
 
I'm just a newbie to this but my soap making book had a great idea for clean up. I just used some old rags to wipe everything off, then washed my pots and utensils in the sink. For the rags I put them in a plastic bag, let them sit for a couple of days for the raw soap to saponify and then threw them in the laundry.
 
OnceUponATime said:
I'm just a newbie to this but my soap making book had a great idea for clean up. I just used some old rags to wipe everything off, then washed my pots and utensils in the sink. For the rags I put them in a plastic bag, let them sit for a couple of days for the raw soap to saponify and then threw them in the laundry.

Oh, I like this one! I do not like to use so much paper towel to throw away....even though I buy the recycled one. Thanks!

Tanya :)
 
x

OnceUponATime said:
I'm just a newbie to this but my soap making book had a great idea for clean up. I just used some old rags to wipe everything off, then washed my pots and utensils in the sink. For the rags I put them in a plastic bag, let them sit for a couple of days for the raw soap to saponify and then threw them in the laundry.

great idea!

this would definitely cut down on all the paper towels i usually go through with each batch!

good tip! :D
 
OnceUponATime said:
I'm just a newbie to this but my soap making book had a great idea for clean up. I just used some old rags to wipe everything off, then washed my pots and utensils in the sink. For the rags I put them in a plastic bag, let them sit for a couple of days for the raw soap to saponify and then threw them in the laundry.

Yup...me too! Must have been the same book :wink:

It works great too, cuz it is extra soap in those greasy laundry loads that my DH seems to come home with!
 
Re: This was the easiest clean-up ever

reallyrita said:
I recently came up with a clean-up trick for my stick blender. That was always a total b to clean the next day with the hardened soap bits stuck up under the blade. I was doing some back to back batches recently and I needed to get the stick blender blade cleaned off quickly. I grabbed a coffee mug, squirted some of that extra strong Dawn dish detergent in the bottom, filled part way up with super hot water and stuck the blade in. After about 15 minutes I went to work with an old toothbrush...great for getting up and under the blade which does not detach from the housing in my blender. Rinsed out residue and I was ready to go. Beats the next day scrub out or even the greasy same day clean out! That Dawn stuff will strip the grease off of anything. It is kinda rough on the hands, though. :(

I put warm water in a pitcher when I am done soaping and whiz the sb in it a few times, it cleans right up.

Kitn
 
After I pour my soap I put the pot in the sink and put straight hot water in it with dish soap. I wash everything down that way otherwise I am one of those people where it will sit forever and ever plus I only have 2 pots and some days I need to make 4 or 5 batches of soap.
 
I always soap with a lot of paper towels, too. I may try the rag method.

I also make sure I have a bottle of lemon juice right next to the sink. I have a septic tank, and am leery about what I put down it, also worried about lye damage to just about everything. So-

before I rinse out the dish I measured the lye in, the spoon I stirred it with and the plastic pitcher I mixed it in, I rinse them all with a splash of lemon juice to neutralize the lye first. As I'm typing this, I realize that if I mixed some in a large bowl of water that was sitting in the sink, it would be more efficient- I could just dunk them all :oops:

So- now I have a new method that will save lemon juice!
 
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