HP soap and nonstick???

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Pande

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Hi I'm new to soap making so when I saw a 5 qt crock pot at the thrift store for $6 I jumped for it.
But now after buying it I realized it's got a nonstick coating on the inside of it. It doesn't have any scratches so I'm not worried about it leeching into the soap but will it react with the lye?

I'm sure I could use it for other things like candles or lip balm or something bit it really would bum me out if I can't use that nice big pot for soap.
 
From an MSDS for Sodium Hydroxide solution

Sodium hydroxide solutions (10-100%) do not attack plastics, such as Teflon and other fluorocarbons,
such as ethylene tetrafluoroethylene (Tefzel), ethylene chlorotrifluoroethylene (Halar),
chlorotrifluoroethylene (Kel-F), polyvinylidene chloride (up to 70%), polyvinyl chloride (PVC),
polypropylene, nylon, acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), styrene-acrylonitrile (SAN), polyetherether
ketone (Peek), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMPE),
crosslinked polyethylene (XPE), polystyrene and ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) (52,54); elastomers, such
as ethylene propylene (EP,EPDM), nitrile rubber (nitrile Buna N), neoprene, Viton A and other
fluorocarbons, Chemraz, Kalrez, Teflon and Fluoraz, chloroprene, butyl rubber (isobutylene isoprene;
IIR), natural rubber, synthetic isoprene, chlorosulfonated polyethylene (CSM), silicone rubbers, flexible
polyvinyl chloride (PVC), ethylene vinyl acetate; and coatings, such as chemical resistant epoxy, coal tar
epoxy, general purpose epoxy, epoxy polyamide, phenolic and urethanes (10-50% but see above for
higher concentrations).

Perusing the interwebs suggests the coatings often fail on people. Not all non-sticks are created equal. Since most often they are coating aluminum pots your better off with something simple you can be more sure of for your regular equipment. Personally if I had it already I'd use it and see.
 
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Yes it will react with the lye. When I first started making soap I decided that I did not want to invest a lot of money into new equipment cuz I didn't know if I liked soap making or if I would stick with it. I used old an old non stick pot. Every forum and article told me no but I did anyway. It was fine the first few times then I ended up getting pieces of the non stick coating in my soap.
 
Yes it will react with the lye. When I first started making soap I decided that I did not want to invest a lot of money into new equipment cuz I didn't know if I liked soap making or if I would stick with it. I used old an old non stick pot. Every forum and article told me no but I did anyway. It was fine the first few times then I ended up getting pieces of the non stick coating in my soap.


The Teflon in this isn't chipping? Is it going to chip off from the lye itself or is it just going to chip if I'm rough with it?

I'm hoping if I be careful and not use any steel spoons it could be okay.

I wonder if it's possible to some how get rid if the Teflon on the one I have, under the Teflon is ceramic
 
The pot I used was in very good shape when I started to use it. It was an old pot but not very much used since it was very large and its only the two of us in the house so we don't cook large amounts of food. I used a plastic spatula for stirring. I thought the same as you, I was gentle with the stirring and scratching but none the less the coating ended up falling off in chunks and mixing with the soap after about 4 or 5 batches. Reaction with the lye is the only reason I see for the rapid deterioration of the coating. I have another smaller pot from the same set which we use frequently for cooking and its only now starting to show wear and tear. I refer to those as the "learning batches". That has been my experience, I know its not the answer you were looking for.
 
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