98% lye for soap making

[sarahjohnson]

hi i'm new to soapmaking (never made a batch yet), I was wondering if i can use 98% lye for soapmaking. ( my moms friends son bought 24 pounds of lye and decided he didnt want it anymore. hopefully i can use it. if i can how would i calcuate it for the amount of lye since the lyecal uses 100% lye.

 

[tlm884]

I wouldn't use it. Lot's of times lye will have metals added to it to make it heat up more for the purpose of cleaning drains. If you don't know what the other 2% is I would be very wary of it. Could be toxic or could be dangerous.

 

[Genny]

I agree. If it's not 100% lye, then I wouldn't use it.

 

[Lindy]

Agree - do not use... (Just in case you needed a 3rd opinion 8) )

 

[Seventeen Soaps]

Sodium Hydroxide or lye available in Australia is only 98 or 99% pure... That's as pure as it gets and I am yet to find any here that is 100%
The stuff that contains metal here clearly states it and isn't allowed to be called Caustic Soda (what lye is called here). Our 98% works perfectly fine.
I'm not saying what you have is ok to use but just that, that is the strength available here.

 

[IrishLass]

The lye I have been using for 6 years from AAA Chemicals is 99% pure and it's been working perfectly for me all this time. The 99% or 98% does not mean that it is not 100% sodium hydroxide. The % number just refers to the level of purity. Two different things. Food grade is supposed to be 100% free of impurities because it's being used in food production. Tech grade (which is what I use) might not have 100% of the impurities filtered out, but the amount is negligable and still quite safe for making soap.


IrishLass