Allergic to coconut oil

[LauraHoosier]

I tried doing a search here and it won't let me look past the first page of possible matches so I figured I'd ask here.

Hubby has a friend that is allergic to coconut oil and has asked if I can make him some soap. I've been looking at Palm Kernel Flakes but can't find any recommendations for a full replacement of coconut oil only a recommended add it as 10-15% of the coconut oil's original amount and still use coconut oil.

Can't do that here. Can it be used at 25% and not end up way too drying? The recipe I'd be using it in is my standard 50% OO, Canola oil and castor oil with 25% being PKO. Would it be better use a combo or PKO and PO?

I'm plugging numbers into soapcalc and I'm on the fence :?

 

[debbism]

You could try using some babasu oil - my understanding is that is can be subbed for coconut oil - of course run the recipe thru the lye calc - I have been waiting for the right time to try it myself.

 

[musiccitysuds]

You can always do a castile bar with 100% OO.

I also have a recipe where I use 30% olive oil, 10% castor, and 60% palm (not sure about pko). The lather isn't great, so I add some sugar to the lye solution (or use a fruit juice as a water replacement). It makes a super hard, long lasting bar. But it's tough to get that dense lather without CO.

 

[carebear]

Coconut is not some sort of evil drying oil - I regularly soap with it at 75%+. Same with palm kernel. You can use it at any level you wish, just be sure to balance it out with other oils/butters and with an elevated lye discount.

I cannot imagine why anyone would limit the use that way - it's fine to replace co 100%

 

[dieSpinne]

Palm kernel oil may also trigger the allergies, since coconut is just another kind of palm seed.

Palm oil may be safe, though it is not as lathery as the palm seeds.

Babassu is also a palm seed oil.

Here is a soap made with Olive Oil, Cocoa Butter and Castor Oil.
It isn't exceptionally bubbly, but the lather works OK with a loofah or an ordinary washcloth.

This recipe starts with a Kilo of oils, but can be adjusted as you see fit since the metric system is good for measure adjustments.
The SF is about 8% (I say "about" because I rounded DOWN to the nearest tenth of a gram on the NaOH)

Olive Oil ------------------ 500 g
Cocoa Butter ------------- 400 g
Castor Oil -----------------100 g

Water ----------------------380 g (38% of initial oil mass... adjust as you see fit.)
Lye ( NaOH )---------------125.0 g



This recipe yields a soap very similar to a Castile. Unfortunately, it needs almost as long to cure.

 

[carebear]

open to animal fats?

and yea, of course you wouldn't want to replace CO with something else he's allergic to. but barring the allergy - palm kernel is a great sub.

 

[LauraHoosier]

You know I hadn't thought about animal fats. I'll have to ask him if it would be a problem for him or not. If its ok that opens up another group of options. I can do that Thanks CB!

 

[judymoody]

I have used PKO at the same ratios as CO, no problem. Chemically they are very similar with respect to their fatty acid profiles.

 

[IrishLass]

Ditto on the PKO being a good 1:1 sub for coconut. It's slightly less bubbly and less cleansing than coconut, but not so much that you'd notice in a drastic way or anything like that. The difference is pretty subtle, at least to me. It's hard to tell the difference unless you're purposely looking for it. Babassu is a great 1:1 sub for CO, too.

IrishLass