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I was using wide range paper so not super accurate, but my meter confirmed, 12.3. I wouldn't be surprised if the pine tar had more water than what soapcalc expects, making for too much KOH. I'll just bump it down with a little citric acid. I zap tested it a few times before it passed the test...

I made a little batch of a liquid pine tar soap last night. It passes the zap test after cooking for 4hrs so I added water. This morning I tested the pH, out of curiosity, it was about 12! I used some before testing and had no ill effects, but I have rather non sensitive skin. Could the pH be...

I must have whipped some air into it or something. The batches I had made just before turned to a solid clear block in very little time. Those likely had less water as they were made in an uncovered Pyrex beaker rather than a covered pan. The thing that really through me off was that it didn't...

Thanks for the replies! To clarify no pun intended, I was using extra lye with the intent to then balance the pH once liquid. So when I said the pH was super high I mean that as proof there wasn't a shortage due to mesurment failure. I baked it again and just gave up and added water and citric...

That makes sense, oh well. I'm sure I can find a use for it, it is a great solvent...

Mods; please move this to the most appropriate subject as you see fit, I wasn't sure where to put this. So I became the owner of 3 gallons of old orange oil today. Without any other reasonable use for it I though; "why not experiment?" What I'm thinking is to use about 1/2gal to make batch of...

I've been making HP soap for some time, but just recently got my hands on some KOH. I made two small batches of liquid soap , things went well, then I stepped my batch size up... The problem: it never set. Everything seemed fine but it stayed in the mashed potatoes stage (72hr in my oven!!!)...

There should be no CO2 in beer after it has boiled, or any other dissolved gasses for that matter. The sugars in a beer post fermentation can very greatly. A oatmeal stout for example will hold a thick head because of proteins, and larger (none fermentable) sugars. A dry light beer will have...

Yes you're reading it right. I was expecting to get a comment along those lines from at least one person. I am quite new to soaping, but I know small craft business. Also I'm aiming for a niche market where quality standards don't really exist yet (so I can set them where ever they happen to...

I hope I did too :lol: . I ended up kneading in additions after it had stiffened (I have very few nerves left in my hands from years of glass blowing). So that extra step likely helped reduce that potential problem. Also I had shredded the re batched soap quite well before dumping in the new...

and done! I wish I had mixed in additions before it stiffened up... oh well, I learn best by making mistakes.

I'm currently making my first HP soap (and hanging out here to pass the time). It's also my first time at using a lower water concentration (18%). So far things seem to going okay. The batch is about 2.5kg at 0% superfat. I'm rebatching another 3ish Kg into it. That batch was quite high in...

Success! I found it easiest to only heat it to about 125F and mix it with my hands. It was softer at higher temps, but the leverage of the spoon was working against me too much. I found that the inside of the soap was still quite meltable, wile the outside had cured to a leathery shell. When...

Thank you so much! Knowing the proper terminology sure make a big difference when doing a Google search. Well I guess it's time to get the cheese grader out.

So I made some soap a few months back which has been aging in paper. Today I thought I'd just melt 6lbs of it and add color and some lavender oil, maybe some oats... The problem is; it doesn't want to melt! With a little research, after the fact, I have learned the M&P soap is different in...

Molded into an ice cube tray... Just a thought, I have no idea how castable that mix would be.

Hi, I'm from western Mass. I enjoy just about any DIY type hobby. I just made my first batch of soap. It was more of a experiment than anything. I was cleaning out my deep frier and wanted to do something with the oil so I did a little research and mixed: 16oz NaOH with 4.4 cups water and...