Lye solution temperature.

[Wilster98]

I made my first batch of CP soap today. All went well, but the high temperature of the lye solution confused me a little. I have read recipes and instructions about the lye/water solution reaching temperatures of up 200° F.
Mine peaked at 150° F. I was under the impression that even in a cold water "bath" it takes a while for the temp to come down. Mine cooled quickly and I had it in the blender within a few minutes of adding the lye to the water.
I feel confident that the lye was totally dissolved. Is this normal? I was expecting the process to take longer.

The soap traced well and I believe I have a successful first batch. It's just the temperature thing that leaves me puzzled.

Thanks in advance. And any advise is welcomed.

Willy

 

[agriffin]

I made my first batch of CP soap today. All went well, but the high temperature of the lye solution confused me a little. I have read recipes and instructions about the lye/water solution reaching temperatures of up 200° F.
Mine peaked at 150° F. I was under the impression that even in a cold water "bath" it takes a while for the temp to come down. Mine cooled quickly and I had it in the blender within a few minutes of adding the lye to the water.
I feel confident that the lye was totally dissolved. Is this normal? I was expecting the process to take longer.

The soap traced well and I believe I have a successful first batch. It's just the temperature thing that leaves me puzzled.

Thanks in advance. And any advise is welcomed.

Willy

Yes, that's seems normal. As long as all of the crystals were dissolved...you should be good. Mine cools down quite quickly especially when I use cold water at the start.

 

[Healinya]

Sounds normal to me, too... although I don't understand why you had anything in a blender?? Scary stuff if you make soap that way.

I'm sure you know this - but you can make sure your thermometer is correct by making sure a glass of ice water is 32 degrees F

 

[AmyW]

Using room temp distilled water, my lye water peaks at about 170F. I put it in the sink with some cold water to cool it off, takes less than 10 minutes to get to 110F, and I try to keep it within 5-10 degrees of my oils. I stir off and on during this time, once it's clear and not giving off obvious fumes, it's dissolved.

PLEASE don't use a blender. If your soap overheats you could get a massive soap volcano all over your work area and you :shock: Stick/immersion blenders are super cheap, you don't need a fancy one.

 

[Wilster98]

I've read in a few web sites about using the blender to speed up the process. You raise valid points. I will be buying a stick mixer for my next batch

Thanks
Willy

 

[agriffin]

Good call! There is a website dedicated to making soap in a blender...but it is dangerous in my opinion. Why risk it?

 

[mnten]

If you have a drill, just get you a paint mixer on it and blend away.

 

[cp chick]

Wilster98, I too am a newbie, with only 4 CP batches under my belt. My lye water temp has never gone past 160 with room temperature distilled water. I had expected it to go a lot higher as well, but it never did. Oh well, it just means that I don't have as long to wait until the real fun begins. :wink:

 

[lioness]

Hi everyone I have done different size batches that require different amounts of lye water. I do the process the same but when I make a large 10lb mold its a large amount of the lye water mix and it gets very hot and takes much longer to cool down. I think its just the volume that would make a difference in how long it takes to cool but I always do the mixing in a big glass measuring bowl so that I can see the mixture go clear and I know its disolved properly. And if I want to speed up the cooling I do put the bowl in a water bath with lots of ice and it goes much faster. I also really like to have a spout and handle on the glass bowl so I am more careful with pouring into my oils. I really hate bubbles in my soap so I try really hard not to get any...lol. :wink: