Castor Oil Substitution

JLeigh · Nov 17, 2014

I'm hoping to make a salt soap soon (say that really fast

) and was wondering if there is a good substitute for castor oil. Thanks!

I've been trying to find a silicone mold that is about 10" long x about 4" tall and 2.5" wide. The reason is I want thinner soaps but still want to add creativity at the top. I've looked and looked and looked...Can someone point me in the right direction? Thank you.

shunt2011 · Nov 17, 2014

I love salt soap but I can't think of a replacement for Castor and you don't really need one. You can make 100% CO with a 20% SF and use 50-100% Salt. You'll still get good lather. You could also try adding some sugar to your water before your lye mixture.

JLeigh · Nov 17, 2014

Sounds interesting! I'm new to soaping, so I've never heard of adding sugar to lye water. What does adding sugar to the water do? And what % should I add?

HorseCreek · Nov 17, 2014

This is close: https://www.etsy.com/listing/162824195/tall-skinny-wood-soap-mold-with-drop

new12soap · Nov 17, 2014

I agree, you really don't need castor oil in a salt bar, 100% coconut oil works great.

Sugar can help boost bubbles in soap, use it at up to 1 tbsp ppo, but I really don't think you need that in a salt bar, either. JMO, but they already bubble pretty darn well.

Just an FYI, if you are in the US, castor oil is easy to find and relatively cheap in any walmart target kmart walgreens cvs etc, it's in the pharmacy section with laxatives.

lsg · Nov 17, 2014

Try 93% coconut oil and 7% shea butter with an 8-10-% superfat.

Obsidian · Nov 17, 2014

I've use castor in my salt bars a few times and I honestly don't notice a difference when I leave it out. 80% coconut oil with 20% oil of your choice is a good start. I prefer olive oil as I find butters make my salt bars sticky and reduce lather.

JLeigh · Nov 17, 2014

new12soap said:
I agree, you really don't need castor oil in a salt bar, 100% coconut oil works great.

Sugar can help boost bubbles in soap, use it at up to 1 tbsp ppo, but I really don't think you need that in a salt bar, either. JMO, but they already bubble pretty darn well.

Just an FYI, if you are in the US, castor oil is easy to find and relatively cheap in any walmart target kmart walgreens cvs etc, it's in the pharmacy section with laxatives.

Thanks! I'll give it a try . But here's a "newbie question" - - what does "ppo" stand for?

JLeigh said:
Thanks! I'll give it a try . But here's a "newbie question" - - what does "ppo" stand for?

WAIT! I googled it and the BEST list (from this site) of acronyms for soaping came up!

"Per pound of oil"

Excellent!

new12soap · Nov 17, 2014

:clap: nicely done!

Yep, per pound of oil, sorry... you get so used to the "shorthand"... you will, too!

JLeigh · Nov 17, 2014

Another question: I can use up to 100% of oil weight in salt bars, but am wondering what the benefits are for less v. more salt. I'm thinking, for one, less salt (say 50%) would make the soap batter easier to deal with, right? wrong?

But what about advantages to the skin?

new12soap · Nov 17, 2014

I like 25% salt per pound of oil by weight. A lot of people like more. I would suggest starting with 50% salt and see what you think, then you can adjust up or down from there.

IrishLass · Nov 17, 2014

I do 25%, too.

The more salt you add, the harder the soap and the less bubbly your lather.

IrishLass

JustBeachy · Nov 17, 2014

Obsidian said:
I've use castor in my salt bars a few times and I honestly don't notice a difference when I leave it out. 80% coconut oil with 20% oil of your choice is a good start. I prefer olive oil as I find butters make my salt bars sticky and reduce lather.

I agree and disagree with Obi. You don't really need the castor in a salt soap. I use it at 5%, because........well cause I always have.

I do a 75% coconut with castor, avocado and shea butter. I don't get a sticky feeling at all, but it's only 5% butter. I think if I made a soap without butter my head would spin off.

Maybe I need to do some experimenting and try to kick my butter addiction.

I've settled into using 50% ppo. Still produces a nice salt feel to the finished soap, but like others have said, it's easier to work with, less chance of crumbles and easier on the lathering.

cmzaha · Nov 17, 2014

Obsidian said:
I've use castor in my salt bars a few times and I honestly don't notice a difference when I leave it out. 80% coconut oil with 20% oil of your choice is a good start. I prefer olive oil as I find butters make my salt bars sticky and reduce lather.

That is interesting Obsidian, I notice a huge difference when using 10% castor oil. I recently played with some different oil combos and dumped all the salt bars. Back to my original 90-10 coconut /castor with 15% superfat.

JLeigh · Nov 17, 2014

I did it. I used 50% salt ppo (ha! I know what that means now :grin

or, rather, I got to the end, started filling the mold and realized - and I hope this happens to other people - I had forgotten to add the salt.

I regrouped fast and got the salt in though, lol. This is my third CP attempt. Sometimes I feel like I have such a long, long way to go.

Thanks for your help everyone.

Edit: I DO have a long, long way to go!

new12soap · Nov 17, 2014

if you used a loaf mold, make sure you unmold it and cut it as soon as it will hold together, while it is still warm!

JustBeachy · Nov 17, 2014

JLeigh said:
I did it. I used 50% salt ppo (ha! I know what that means now :grin or, rather, I got to the end, started filling the mold and realized - and I hope this happens to other people - I had forgotten to add the salt.

I regrouped fast and got the salt in though, lol. This is my third CP attempt. Sometimes I feel like I have such a long, long way to go.

Thanks for your help everyone.

Edit: I DO have a long, long way to go!

Yeah it would sorta blow the whole batch if you forget to put salt in your salt soap. :razz:

Just kidding. In case no one has mentioned it, you need to check it at around 3 hours from pour. It hardens up fast and if you wait to cut it much beyond 4 to 5 hours it will crumble on you as you cut. I cut mine within 3 hours or so.

Nice job on the getting it done.

new12soap said:
if you used a loaf mold, make sure you unmold it and cut it as soon as it will hold together, while it is still warm!

Hahaha, looks like we had the same thought.

JLeigh · Nov 19, 2014

Another question about salt soap

LOL. I thought, "Rather than wait 24 hours before unmolding - because it's a salt soap and will crumble when I cut it, I'll unmold and cut in 12 hours. Aren't I smart?"

Of course it crumbled. So I'm going to try it again today or tomorrow and cut it in about 4 hours as you all suggest. I'll get it right next time.

I'll say this though, it's pretty if you like "rustic imperfection." :grin:

Here's the ?: Do you guys recommend gelling the loaf if you're cutting it so early?

new12soap · Nov 19, 2014

Believe me, it has already gelled! Salt soap heats and sets fast.

I unmold and cut mine within an hour.

Seriously. As soon as you can, even if it is still the teensiest bit squishy in the middle.

Or, better yet, use individual cavity silicone molds, then no worries, leave it in there a day!

Obsidian · Nov 19, 2014

Salt bars are something you have to babysit and check constantly. I've had batches ready after one hour while others took 4-5 hours. As soon as I can get the soap out of the mold, I cut, often the soap is still quite soft. I've pretty much switched to using cavity molds as its just so much easier.

Castor Oil Substitution

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