Diluting Liquid Soap

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kcbitsupply

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I'm a bit confused as to how to know when liquid soap is diluted. I just made a recipe from Making Natural Liquid Soaps and used:

18.5 oz coconut
4.5 oz. castor oil
2 oz. jojoba oil
6.5 oz. potassium hydroxide
19.5 oz. glycerin

I weighed out the soap paste and added an equal amount of water to dilute. It looks diluted to me but I'm a bit confused on what it's supposed to look like. Or, is dilution kind of a personal preference thing? Catherine Failor's book states, "A solution is too concentrated if a sticky, viscous layer develops on the surface of the finished soap." I diluted it last night and this morning there is no layer. Am I good to go?

I read in another thread that recipes with high amounts of coconut oil should probably be diluted down to 20% because the coconut oil can be drying.

Advice from someone more professional would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Kathy
 
I would think that it is diluted if there are no lumps of paste left - exactly how much water that takes will vary with the paste, I imagine, and how thin/thick the final soap needs to be will depend partly on the possible options with the paste and also personal taste.
 
Liquid soap is not sufficiently diluted if it has lumps or a skin on the top. If neither of those exist, it is diluted.

However, if you are using a foamer bottle, you will need to dilute it further to actually get foam. I normally dilute mine about 1:1 again.
 
Thanks. Just making sure I understand everything correctly. I don't know why liquid soap has me so confused!
 
It does that to everyone who has read more than one source of information on it. That is why I try to break it down to the simplest information and process possible. It just does not have to be that complicated and stressful.
 
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