Fun With Palm!

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Hey all. I'm finally introducing palm and palm kernel oil into my repertoire. I've been reading up on it and I just wanted to make sure I've got the basics right.

Palm is good oil for adding hardness, like coconut, but without the drying/cleaning factors. It's often used in place of tallow or lard

Palm Kernel is very similar to Coconut oil. It can be used as an alternative as it has similar cleaning properties but is slightly milder.

Obviously there is much more to these two oils than just these things, but like I said I'm just making sure my basics are right ;-)

The entire amount in the container should be melted before use to make sure the stearic acid is evenly mixed in (it's a good idea to let it set in smaller amounts after doing this so it's easier to use in the future).

Is there ever a situation where the melting isn't necessary? Does the melting apply to both palm and palm kernel?
 
You are correct that Palm can be used in place of tallow/lard. Just run your recipe through a soap calc with any changes. PKO is similar to CO. I happen to use both in most recipes. I like the combination.

Unless you are buying homogenized Palm you do need to melt the entire container. I would melt it and then portion it out into smaller containers that way it's much easier to use when you need it.

PKO does not need to be melted. Mine comes in flake form and I just measure it out and put in with the CO, Palm/Lard that I'm melting and let it melt with those before adding my liquid oils.
 
Yeah, I've done the research to make sure I'm using sustainable sources. It was one of the reasons I didn't start with Palm right away. I wanted to do some reading on it.

Thanks guys!
 
Is there ever a situation where the melting isn't necessary?

Yes, if the oil is soft and not particularly separated, you can just stir it up and use it. For instance, if you melted it just the previous day or the weather is warm. It's difficult if not impossible to extract a sample that's significantly different from the whole.
 
I am planning to get a palm kernel oil I never try them before. I think it is good combination with coconut oil and castor for cleaning and laundry soap.
 
PKO is hard as a rock. Seriously. The first time I bought it, it came in a jug, and I had no idea how to get it out. It wouldn't fit in my microwave, I think I just chipped at it, until I could get some pieces out. That was the last time I bought it like that. Since then, I've only bought PKO flakes.......soooooo much easier to deal with.
 
PKO is hard as a rock. Seriously. The first time I bought it, it came in a jug, and I had no idea how to get it out. It wouldn't fit in my microwave, I think I just chipped at it, until I could get some pieces out. That was the last time I bought it like that. Since then, I've only bought PKO flakes.......soooooo much easier to deal with.

Wow, I didn't even know it came in a different form. I've only ever seen the flakes. Good to know though. I get mine from Soaper's Choice.
 
Yes, if the oil is soft and not particularly separated, you can just stir it up and use it. For instance, if you melted it just the previous day or the weather is warm. It's difficult if not impossible to extract a sample that's significantly different from the whole.
Thank you for this. I thought this may be the case. I just bought a 50 lb pail from soapers choice. I knew there was no point in getting the homogenized one because everything melts in transit getting to the middle of swampy Florida (at least at this time of year).

I was wondering how I was going to use it! I think I'll either leave it as a slurry as you stated or melt it in my car and then siphon it into a couple of 5 lb containers.

Anyone have thoughts on which would be better? I'm probably leaning toward the 5 lb containers since it will be easier to manage and will likely extend shelf life.

Eta: by a "couple" of containers, I mean 10 of course.
 
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Thank you for this. I thought this may be the case. I just bought a 50 lb pail from soapers choice. I knew there was no point in getting the homogenized one because everything melts in transit getting to the middle of swampy Florida (at least at this time of year).

Good move, I suspect. The homogenized one comes as a cube in a plastic bag in a box. It might have been not so pretty upon arrival. I imagine portions on the oil would have been delivered to many different recipients whose packages were beneath yours.

Hopefully the shelf life issue will be addressed by making craploads of soap. Do whatever you think will be most practical. If you don't mind the melting and siphoning up front, plastic buckets with covers do stack nicely.
 
I know this thread is a bit old, but I was wondering what kind of containers people use to do this, and where do you get them?
 
I know this thread is a bit old, but I was wondering what kind of containers people use to do this, and where do you get them?

I'm not understanding what you are asking? Containers to do what? Also, since this is an old thread you may do better to start a new one. Also be sure to read the forum rules and go to the introduction forum and tell us a little about yourself.
 
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I stopped making smaller tubs simply because of the volume I make these days. I make my master batch recipe around the 5L pails I buy.

When I was doing this, I would either leave it in the sun in driveway or if the weather wasn't cooperating, melt it in a large stock pot. I reused plastic tubs (yogurt, sourcream, margarine etc) to package it in smaller amounts. I would often have an idea of how much I needed for a recipe so that I could portion it and use it without more melting. I marked the weight on the tubs with masking tape so I could keep reusing them with different amounts. Just make sure you're not putting really hot oil in plastic tubs. I think the melting temp is pretty high but I like to be overly cautious!

You can enlist friends and family to save tubs for you, but if you're looking to purchase something, I'm sure there are lots of options online (https://www.uline.ca/BL_1517/Deli-Containers). Where I live there is a wholesale supply store that sells this sort of packaging.

ETA: I would not recommend buying from uline without shopping around first. They tend to run a little pricey. I'm sure you could find something cheaper on amazon of locally depending on where you live!
 
Thank you Stacy!

This was exactly what I was asking. Because of shunt2011’s response, I also just started a new thread. Hope that doesn’t get me into “trouble” here :)
 
Glad I could help. As for the zombie thread thing... people are fairly easy going here. The thing you have to remember is that this board has a LOT of visitors (way more than you ever see post or log in). Information and membership changes over the years so bringing up an old thread can make for a lot of headaches, especially when you factor in how many people might be doing it. It's not a matter of singling you out or anything nefarious. The moderators and long time members that tend to give the best answers (to the same questions over and over again, often without complaint!) all have the best interests of the community at heart and old threads can lead to misinformation :)
 
Thanks again Stacy!

I’m not one to be easily ruffled either, so no harm here. I just don’t want to make anyone else upset :)
 
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