Liquid soap going hard and bright green

[spurky]

So I got a new supply of KOH on the bag is says 90% pure but the last two times it has gone hard and bright green. Today it went solid within 30mins from trace.

Liquid Required (Excluding: Glycerine) 885.18 g
KOH Weight at 90 % Purity 590.12 g (adjusted for citric acid)

Olive Oil 1625g
Coconut Oil, 76 deg 625g
Castor Oil 250g

Citric Acid 25g (added to lye water)
Glycerine 590.12 g added at same time as lye to oils.

Previous successful liquid soap stayed a nice yellow.

Whenever I have done a soap that has olive oil that goes green my husband & I pretty much determine that it is unusable. But maybe we are wrong.

But why has it gone solid? Could the purity be not 90% and maybe higher. It made a very loud crackle sound when I add to water (more than my previous supply). Attached is the soap gone hard and bright green within 30mins of trace and yes that spoon is being held up by the paste.

Please help.

 

[DeeAnna]

"...Whenever I have done a soap that has olive oil that goes green my husband & I pretty much determine that it is unusable. But maybe we are wrong...."

So what is leading you to the idea that the soap is unusable? Just the color? Or is are there other specific reasons why you think the soap is not good?

It's pretty common for soap made with some olive oils, especially extra virgin OO, to have a greenish color. Doesn't always happen, but it seems to be common. That would be my first thought about your soap.

A KOH soap paste becoming firm within 30 minutes is also fairly common. All that means is the soap has changed from a plastic or semi-liquid state to a more solid physical form. The fact that this happened with this particular batch but not with others is probably due to differences in the water/glycerin content of the various batches.

As far as the crackling goes, it might be this new KOH is higher purity than your previous KOH. Hard to say.

And it's also impossible from the info given to know whether that means your soap is lye heavy or not. You need to do a zap test or do a total alkalinity test to know if your soap has excess lye or not.

 

[AliOop]

I agree with DeeAnna’s response. My KOH always crackles and hisses; if your prior batches did not, they may have been old and weakened by exposure to air.

Your picture looks exactly like my soap paste after I have mixed to trace. No need to cook it - it will saponify on its own just like CP bar soap would do.

At that point in the process where it becomes thick like that, I cover it and let it sit until it is zap-free. Usually that’s within a few hours, but sometimes it is overnight. Once it is zap-free, I dilute it with water as usual. That is typically 2:1 water to paste ratio for a pump bottle, or 5:1 for my foamer bottles.

 

[spurky]

"...Whenever I have done a soap that has olive oil that goes green my husband & I pretty much determine that it is unusable. But maybe we are wrong...."

So what is leading you to the idea that the soap is unusable? Just the color? Or is are there other specific reasons why you think the soap is not good?

It's pretty common for soap made with some olive oils, especially extra virgin OO, to have a greenish color. Doesn't always happen, but it seems to be common. That would be my first thought about your soap.

A KOH soap paste becoming firm within 30 minutes is also fairly common. All that means is the soap has changed from a plastic or semi-liquid state to a more solid physical form. The fact that this happened with this particular batch but not with others is probably due to differences in the water/glycerin content of the various batches.

As far as the crackling goes, it might be this new KOH is higher purity than your previous KOH. Hard to say.

And it's also impossible from the info given to know whether that means your soap is lye heavy or not. You need to do a zap test or do a total alkalinity test to know if your soap has excess lye or not.

When we have done a bar soap and it goes this color it has become soap, but it gets the DOS very quickly. Even one bar soap just went smelly after a month. So I don't trust it when it goes green.

I don't have zap and I have put more water in for dilution to see if will work.

It is not just firm but almost rock hard. My water to lye ratio is 2.5:1 should I make it 3:1 for the paste?

 

[AliOop]

Not sure what DeeAnna does, but I use at least a 3:1 water:lye ratio when making LS paste, and even then it's pretty firm. So it's not surprising that your paste is really hard with the lower amount of water. I actually like to do 2:1:1 glycerin:water:KOH since the batter comes to trace faster that way, and it helps the soap feel milder on my hands, too.

That is a really large batch of paste. Do you keep the paste in the fridge until you are ready to dilute what you need? That will help prevent rancidity.

The other potential concern is your metal spoon and container. Are you positive that they are high quality stainless steel, with no other metals in them? And that the curing soap (whether bars or LS) isn't exposed to sunlight or metal surfaces (curing racks, metal lids) while curing? Those are all potential sources of DOS.

 

[DeeAnna]

I also use a 3:1 water:lye ratio for making KOH soap paste.

I've used 2:1 a few times and that works also. At that ratio, however, the finished paste is definitely more firm than at 3:1. It still dilutes and behaves as usual, though. Just firmer.

 

[AliOop]

I also use a 3:1 water:lye ratio for making KOH soap paste.

I've used 2:1 a few times and that works also. At that ratio, however, the finished paste is definitely more firm than at 3:1. It still dilutes and behaves as usual, though. Just firmer.

Do you find it takes longer to dilute a firm paste? I definitely notice a difference.

 

[DeeAnna]

Do you find it takes longer to dilute a firm paste? I definitely notice a difference.

Longer if there's less water in the paste? Yes I think it's slower to dilute.

 

[spurky]

Not sure what DeeAnna does, but I use at least a 3:1 water:lye ratio when making LS paste, and even then it's pretty firm. So it's not surprising that your paste is really hard with the lower amount of water. I actually like to do 2:1:1 glycerin:water:KOH since the batter comes to trace faster that way, and it helps the soap feel milder on my hands, too.

That is a really large batch of paste. Do you keep the paste in the fridge until you are ready to dilute what you need? That will help prevent rancidity.

The other potential concern is your metal spoon and container. Are you positive that they are high quality stainless steel, with no other metals in them? And that the curing soap (whether bars or LS) isn't exposed to sunlight or metal surfaces (curing racks, metal lids) while curing? Those are all potential sources of DOS.

The pot is a stainless steel. I believe the spoon is too. The only reason I use that spoon as my silicon spoon would have broken due to the paste being rock hard. But definitely something to consider. thank you