Making a huge batch of liquid soap

[engblom]

This is how I currently have made my small batches (1.5 litres of "vaseline" concentrate):

I mix the water and lye together but not letting it cool down. I pour it into olive oil (the oil is at room temperature). This will become a quite hot mixture that I mix a bit past the trace stage. This I pour into a insulated form and keep in a very small and hot room (above the water heater). It will gel and there I Iet it for quite some time (at least a month). The lowest temperature in the room is 40C. When we heat the water it can get temporary up to 60C in the room.

Now I would want to scale up to make at least 10 litres of concentrate. As it is bigger volumes it will create more heat. I wonder, is it melting a plastic bucket if I make it in a towel-wrapped bucket? I would not want to waste a lot of organic EVO. Is there any other dangers with scaling up in how I make soaps?

 

[lsg]

You can always buy a 12 quart stainless steel or enamel pot with lid, let it gel in that and then store it in plastic.

 

[engblom]

Thanks!

I have actually one question more. I am a bit planning to sell some of it. I know not all of my customers will like the smell of pure Castile soap. I have never mixed in any nice smelling oil. I have been ordering a bit of pure lavender oil. Is it possible to mix in small quantities of lavender oil while diluting in order to make a smelling Bastile soap?

I would want to add the smell later according to demand and hopefully sell unscented Castile as much as possible.