Curious
- Thread starter KDP
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I prefer sodium citrate hands down because it requires no lye adjustment. and it dissolves more easily for me. It also makes great cheese sauce. 
In soap I use it at 2% of oils; some go higher than that, and some lower.
Citric acid consumes some lye, and it actually becomes sodium citrate in that process. This means you have to increase the amount of lye to offset the amount consumed by the CA. There is an easy formula for that, but I just use SoapmakingFriend. When I used CA in the past, I also used it at 2% of oils. More than that made rubbery or crystallized bars for me.
In soap I use it at 2% of oils; some go higher than that, and some lower.Citric acid consumes some lye, and it actually becomes sodium citrate in that process. This means you have to increase the amount of lye to offset the amount consumed by the CA. There is an easy formula for that, but I just use SoapmakingFriend.
When I used CA in the past, I also used it at 2% of oils. More than that made rubbery or crystallized bars for me.
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Mostly ditto the above. I use sodium citrate at 1.5% of total oil weight because I was sometimes getting little crystals on the top of my soap when I used 2% TOW.
I switched from using citric acid to sodium citrate also because of the math/extra step of adjusting the lye. I also use it at 1.5% of my oil weight.
Zany_in_CO
Saponifier
I use citric acid... no sense carrying both products... cost wise and storage wise... did I mention I'm a "Less is More" minimalist?
@DeeAnna 's Soapy Stuff is a good resource for this type of question. Scroll down about 3/4 of the page to find the link to info about using citric acid.
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Zany_in_CO
Saponifier
HIJACK ALERT!It also makes great cheese sauce.
I use it to make a yummy appetizer.
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/sweet-sour-meatballs.70604/
MommaSoaper
Well-Known Member
Has anyone had any customers having issues with sodium citrate? Allergic reactions or rashes? Just curious as I was reading about it elsewhere. Thanks!
Zany_in_CO
Saponifier
@MommaSoaper Unless you have a specific need for it, eliminate the problem -- just don't add it.
TIP: Check for it in the ingredients listed in popular online handcrafted soaps on Etsy and elsewhere. That should give you some idea of how unnecessary it is.
TIP: Check for it in the ingredients listed in popular online handcrafted soaps on Etsy and elsewhere. That should give you some idea of how unnecessary it is.
@MommaSoaper Many of my highly-sensitive-skin family members and friends use my soaps, all of which contain SC. No one has reported a problem yet with any of soaps in terms of irritated skin, rashes, etc.
I personally have super sensitive skin as well - if someone would have an adverse reaction, it would be me. But I have zero issues with it.
Most of my soap users live in hard water areas. For them, adding some kind of chelator such as SC or citric acid (which the NaOH will convert to SC) is necessary to achieve nice lather and lessen the soap scum on the showers and sinks. Without a chelator of some sort, many of them cannot use handcrafted soap for those reasons. SC also protects against rancidity/ DOS, which can be helpful if your users aren’t aware of proper use and storage of handcrafted soaps.
All that to say, if you are making soap just for yourself, and don’t live in a hard water area, then a chelator may not be needed. But if you plan to share it or potentially sell it, without a chelator, you may lose fans and customers who do have hard water, because they will struggle to work up a nice lather, and they will hate the soap scum buildup, too.
I personally have super sensitive skin as well - if someone would have an adverse reaction, it would be me. But I have zero issues with it.
Most of my soap users live in hard water areas. For them, adding some kind of chelator such as SC or citric acid (which the NaOH will convert to SC) is necessary to achieve nice lather and lessen the soap scum on the showers and sinks. Without a chelator of some sort, many of them cannot use handcrafted soap for those reasons. SC also protects against rancidity/ DOS, which can be helpful if your users aren’t aware of proper use and storage of handcrafted soaps.
All that to say, if you are making soap just for yourself, and don’t live in a hard water area, then a chelator may not be needed. But if you plan to share it or potentially sell it, without a chelator, you may lose fans and customers who do have hard water, because they will struggle to work up a nice lather, and they will hate the soap scum buildup, too.
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@MommaSoaper I use it - even with softened water I notice a difference in soap scum when I don't add sodium citrate. No one I've ever given soap to has had a problem with a rash or other reactions.
