Adding lye into only 1.1 water and the rest of water (up to 2:1 w:l) into the oils

[teofana]

Hello! I would like to experiment with more water alternatives. So far I've tried milk and coffee. The milk got very gelly like and I strained it, because i didn't want to risk having undissolved lye. This is actually a problem for me, this fear of undissolved lye. When i mix it with water sometimes there are still little pieces left on the bottom (like 2-3, but still...) and i squish them with my thermometer (bc i use an alcohol one) and then it's all Incorporated. But in milk i cannot see... I've read to mix the lye with 1 part water (because I'm not so confined in my soaping skills I'm thinking 1.1) and the rest to be added in the oils. So, I'm having this questions:
1. If I want to add honey/ sugar/ salt/ citric acid, should I add it in the lye water or in the milk?
2. How do people do cream/ mashed fruits or veggies instead of water? Aren't they scared the lye won't fully dissolve?
3. Not really on the subject, but I'm thinking to add a very fatty milk. Should i reduce the superfat in order to still have lots of bubbles (that will not be killed by a high superfat)
4. Is there to much sugar? (As there is too much honey that can make it softer)

Sorry for this long post! Thank you in advance if you reply. Have a wonderful day!

 

[AliensrReal]

Hey, sorry nobody has answered you. I add additives to my lye solution. I don’t know if honey should be added to lye or not as I’ve never used it.

For adding milk I would certainly reduce the super fat or try and figure out how much lye is needed to saponify all the milk in the lye.

Hopefully others can provide further insight.

 

[teofana]

Hey, sorry nobody has answered you. I add additives to my lye solution. I don’t know if honey should be added to lye or not as I’ve never used it.

For adding milk I would certainly reduce the super fat or try and figure out how much lye is needed to saponify all the milk in the lye.

Hopefully others can provide further insight.

Thanks a lot!

 

[A-Polly]

Hi @teofana. For incorporating honey, my favorite way is described in detail by IrishLass in the first post of this thread from a few years ago:
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/my-experimental-honey-beeswax-soap.55689/

Her procedure works great! I don't usually masterbatch my lye, but just keep back a portion of the water for dissolving the honey. I think starting with room-temperature solutions helps a lot. For convenience, here are the descriptive paragraphs:

1) Working from my room-temp masterbatch 50% lye solution, I weighed out the required amount of 50% solution for my batch into a measuring cup and set aside.
2) In a separate measuring cup, I weighed out the required extra water (room temp) to bring my total lye/water solution to a 33% concentration, then I added the honey to this extra water amount and stirred to dissolve.
3) Added my room temp honey water directly to my waiting room temp 50% lye solution. This is the way I always mix my honey, btw, because when I do, I never get weeping honey or honey dots in my soap. When both are combined together like this at room temp in the exact manner that I just spelled out, the mixture will turn very dark and get hot (mine reached a peak of 161F/71C), but I never experience any violent reactions like volcanoes or hissing or anything like that. However- if you were to pour dry lye directly into a pitcher of honey water - watch out. It'll hiss and spit and volcano some (been there done that once, have never done it again, lol) Oh, another bonus of doing it this way is that I never experience overheating in my soap as it goes through gel. It's like the lye solution takes the ornery fire right out of the honey. Set honey/lye solution aside (covered).

 

[lsg]

I do not reduce the superfat when using milk. It would be hard to figure what percent the milk equals. That said several members have mentioned that they use less than 5% superfat in their soap recipes. I usually wait until thin trace to add honey to my soap. I know from experience that adding sugar to lye water gives you caramelized sugar in the bottom of the lye mixture.

 

[AliOop]

1. If I want to add honey/ sugar/ salt/ citric acid, should I add it in the lye water or in the milk?

Sugar, salt, and citric acid should be pre-dissolved in your liquid of choice, before you add the NaOH.

 

[teofana]

@A-Polly thanks a lot! I'll definitely try it out this way!

 

[teofana]

I do not reduce the superfat when using milk. It would be hard to figure what percent the milk equals. That said several members have mentioned that they use less than 5% superfat in their soap recipes.

I think to try to reduce my SF to 3%. I've never done this for hand soap, but I'm willing to try it out.

know from experience that adding sugar to lye water gives you caramelized sugar in the bottom of the lye mixture.

Oh, interesting! It didn't happen to me yet, but I've used very little honey per kg, maybe that's why?

 

[teofana]

Sugar, salt, and citric acid should be pre-dissolved in your liquid of choice, before you add the NaOH.

Oh, ok, interesting. When you say it like that i understand that A-Polly's (IrishLass's) suggestion isn't correct? Because combining the pre-made solutions would also mean adding them after the NaOH.
Or you literally mean only the three (sugar / salt/ citric acid) and not the honey?

 

[AliOop]

You can reserve some of your liquid to dissolve just the additives, separately from the lye. Then you can combine them, because the additives are already dissolved.

However you choose to do it, the point is not to dissolve the dry additives in that same water in which you have already dissolved the lye. The lye tends to prevent them from dissolving.

Honey is not dry granules like the others are. For honey I like to use IL's method as described by A-Polly.

Hopefully that clarifies.

 

[teofana]

@AliOop Yes! That clarifies things a lot!!

Thanks everyone for your time!