I'm wondering about additives that don't participate in the chemical reaction: micas/colourants; clays; exfoliants; etc. At least, I don't think they participate in the chemical reaction. Do I need to factor them into my base recipe? Is it just a bunch of trial and error. I know you do have to factor in fragrance oils; there's a section in SoapCalc for it. I don't think there is a section in SoapCalc for clays. I'm sorry if this is already answered somewhere; I'm still trying to figure out how to search effectively on here. Any thoughts and experience you'd like to share, I would love to read them! Thanks so much! CW
How to measure additives?
- Thread starter CreativeWeirdo
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Hi, another newbie here also. If you search on ' clays usage max ' this should get you started. Not used them a lot myself. Coloring mostly. Mix my fragrance oil with kaolin clay for each batch. Read it anchors scent? Not enough experience to attest to that. But hydrating the Clay. Before hand, with either fragrance or batch oils. Is not a bad thing. 
Beware....Also can accelerate trace. If you use to much.
Beware....Also can accelerate trace. If you use to much.
To make soap you need lye, water to dissolve the lye and fats (oils, butters, rendered animal fats). FOs/EOs are only factored in as it relates to the total batch weight.
Colorants (micas, clays, oxides, pigments, powders, etc) in themselves are fairly negligible in terms of overall weight and/or volume. What you might have to factor in is the amount liquid that you disperse them in which is why some soap makers use batch water (before adding Lye) or oils. If you are using minimal amounts (like I do), it’s not a concern, but if you’re making a 2lb batch of soap with six colors dispersed in a tablespoon of oil, you might want to weigh those six tablespoons. In sufficient quality it can increase your total batch weight, it can increase your Super Fat and it can increase your cure time.
Exfoliants…it’s going to depend on what you are using and how much you are using. Poppy seeds, apricot seeds, cranberry seeds, even used coffee grounds, unless you are are making a super scrubby soap, isn’t going to change anything. Pumice and salt have a bit more weight, so you would want to decrease your total batch weight by the amount you are adding.
Then you have additives like beer, coffee, fruit and vegetable purées, milks, aloe vera, etc. You account (factor) for these under the heading of ‘water replacement’, but you need to know what can replace water at 100% or what can only replace at a max of 50%.
Colorants (micas, clays, oxides, pigments, powders, etc) in themselves are fairly negligible in terms of overall weight and/or volume. What you might have to factor in is the amount liquid that you disperse them in which is why some soap makers use batch water (before adding Lye) or oils. If you are using minimal amounts (like I do), it’s not a concern, but if you’re making a 2lb batch of soap with six colors dispersed in a tablespoon of oil, you might want to weigh those six tablespoons. In sufficient quality it can increase your total batch weight, it can increase your Super Fat and it can increase your cure time.
Exfoliants…it’s going to depend on what you are using and how much you are using. Poppy seeds, apricot seeds, cranberry seeds, even used coffee grounds, unless you are are making a super scrubby soap, isn’t going to change anything. Pumice and salt have a bit more weight, so you would want to decrease your total batch weight by the amount you are adding.
Then you have additives like beer, coffee, fruit and vegetable purées, milks, aloe vera, etc. You account (factor) for these under the heading of ‘water replacement’, but you need to know what can replace water at 100% or what can only replace at a max of 50%.
By factoring in, I assume you mean does the amount of lye have to be altered? Although many additives do not have the impact, there are some that do require an adjustment to the amount of lye used in the formula:
Any liquid replacement that has fat (milks, coconut milk, etc.)
Citric Acid (either in juices or fruits or as a chelator)
Vinegar (creates Sodium acetate which will harden soap)
Any food additive that contains fats (avocado purée, for example)
There are probably others I am not thinking of off the top of my head.
As for how other additives interact with lye or the soap batter itself, but do not require an adjustment to the amount of lye, those also exist. So although there is no change in the amount of lye, I still factor them when planning the soapmaking when they are included.
Some additives interact with lye to accelerate heat:
Liquid replacement that contains alcohol &/or sugar will support faster heating & can lead to volcanic-like eruptions if not handled properly.
Certain fragrances can also accelerate heat (some spicy and some floral fragrances, for example)
Food additives that contain high sugar content (plain table sugar, for example - used to support bubbles)
Also some additives, including colorants can lead to the soap batter getting thick faster.
Titanium Dioxide (to color the soap white) thickens batter
Micas that include TD in the mix (see the list of ingredients in the mica)
Some other colorants also thicken the batter more than others. You tend to learn this through practice.
When separating batter for multiple colors, it can make enough of a difference that it can alter the order in which one pours the colors, or alter the choice of when to mix some of the colors into the batter so that the batter doesn't thicken up really fast in one color while the others are still very fluid.
And as said above, any colorant which requires pre-mixing in water or oils (or glycerine) will impact the formula depending on how one chooses to do the pre-mix. Taking batch water or batch oils is one method, but some people use addtional water or additional oils, which alters the formula, the superfat and the water:lye ratio (or lye concentration).
Any liquid replacement that has fat (milks, coconut milk, etc.)
Citric Acid (either in juices or fruits or as a chelator)
Vinegar (creates Sodium acetate which will harden soap)
Any food additive that contains fats (avocado purée, for example)
There are probably others I am not thinking of off the top of my head.
As for how other additives interact with lye or the soap batter itself, but do not require an adjustment to the amount of lye, those also exist. So although there is no change in the amount of lye, I still factor them when planning the soapmaking when they are included.
Some additives interact with lye to accelerate heat:
Liquid replacement that contains alcohol &/or sugar will support faster heating & can lead to volcanic-like eruptions if not handled properly.
Certain fragrances can also accelerate heat (some spicy and some floral fragrances, for example)
Food additives that contain high sugar content (plain table sugar, for example - used to support bubbles)
Also some additives, including colorants can lead to the soap batter getting thick faster.
Titanium Dioxide (to color the soap white) thickens batter
Micas that include TD in the mix (see the list of ingredients in the mica)
Some other colorants also thicken the batter more than others. You tend to learn this through practice.
When separating batter for multiple colors, it can make enough of a difference that it can alter the order in which one pours the colors, or alter the choice of when to mix some of the colors into the batter so that the batter doesn't thicken up really fast in one color while the others are still very fluid.
And as said above, any colorant which requires pre-mixing in water or oils (or glycerine) will impact the formula depending on how one chooses to do the pre-mix. Taking batch water or batch oils is one method, but some people use addtional water or additional oils, which alters the formula, the superfat and the water:lye ratio (or lye concentration).
ResolvableOwl
Notorious Lyear
Lactic acid, yoghurt, kefir, sourdough (consumes lye to form sodium lactate, another popular helper to harden soap)
It's apparently more popular, though, to use lactic acid directly as its salt, sodium lactate (in aqueous solution), that doesn't need extra lye.
