Mixing lye indoors or outdoors?

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RKrynicki

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I am new to CP soaps and I have a small kitchen (not much counter space to work with). We have a room in our basement that I plan on setting up as my soap room, but I'm not sure if it's a good idea to mix the lye in the room or to go outside and do it. I have 2 kids and 4 ferrets, but they don't go anywhere near my soap making stuff. I have all the needed protective gear for mixing, but would it be safer to mix the lye outdoors then bring it downstairs to my soap room to add in the oils?
 
I mix my lye in the kitchen sink but there are no kids here. if your kids stay upstairs and you wear a mask I would much rather not carry a container of lye around the house
 
I don't mix my lye solution outdoors, but it's certainly an option that some people prefer. You will want to consider the consequences of what might happen if you happen to drop the lye container while moving it indoors. If you mix the lye for each batch, it's a real temptation to use an open container, but an accidental stumble or elbow bump while carrying an open pitcher of lye can have serious consequences. If I were to mix lye solution outdoors, I'd want to look into some kind of container that can be securely closed while I was moving it around.

When mixing indoors, it's important to minimize the amount of visible fumes that rise off the lye solution when it's really hot -- maybe for the first 15-30 minutes during and after mixing. I keep some kind of loose cover over the mouth of my lye container as much as possible during that time. I also mix the lye under the vent hood of my stove with the vent fan running full blast. IMO, it's more important to keep the container loosely covered than the vent running. I want the fumes to stay in the lye container, not get out in the open air. (But it's also important to not cover the container tightly -- you do not want pressure to build up in the lye container.)

lyeContainer.jpg
 
I don't mix my lye solution outdoors, but it's certainly an option that some people prefer. You will want to consider the consequences of what might happen if you happen to drop the lye container while moving it indoors. If you mix the lye for each batch, it's a real temptation to use an open container, but an accidental stumble or elbow bump while carrying an open pitcher of lye can have serious consequences. If I were to mix lye solution outdoors, I'd want to look into some kind of container that can be securely closed while I was moving it around.

When mixing indoors, it's important to minimize the amount of visible fumes that rise off the lye solution when it's really hot -- maybe for the first 15-30 minutes during and after mixing. I keep some kind of loose cover over the mouth of my lye container as much as possible during that time. I also mix the lye under the vent hood of my stove with the vent fan running full blast. IMO, it's more important to keep the container loosely covered than the vent running. I want the fumes to stay in the lye container, not get out in the open air. (But it's also important to not cover the container tightly -- you do not want pressure to build up in the lye container.)

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Normally I would mix it in the kitchen (the soap room isn't ready yet), but I have my ferrets' cage in the corner next to our dining room table and our vent above the stove doesn't work. I don't know if the windows open in the basement where the soap room is, but we do have multiple fans that I could use. I understand the possibility of having an accident while going down the stairs, but I also want to make sure the fumes don't linger. I will definitely try covering it loosely, but I'm more worried about the fumes of the lye mixture lingering and making the kids or pets sick if I mix it indoors.
 
When I first made soap I mixed it outside. Now I mix it in the kitchen sink. Less risk of dropping something, and if it ever volcanoes or something because of an additive (it hasn't happened to me yet), at least it's in the right place. For a regular batch of soap (i.e., not a huge one) the amount of fumes generated is quite minimal. I don't usually run the vent, just make sure I don't breath directly above the mixing container. I would not think it would be dangerous for pets or children unless they directly breathed from the container itself. (My cat who often lingers around, is not bothered by it in the slightest.)
 
Ditto bout fumes not bothering cats.... Somehow one or the other slips through and watches me even if I try keeping them out the kitchen while I'm soaping lol

I also mix my lye in the kitchen but mine opens up to outdoors and there's a fan directly above the sink so I'd like to think whatever fumes are made it's safely blown out. I don't stand directly above the container though.
 
I did buy a P100 face mask to help protect myself from the fumes and I my children know not to touch any of my soap making stuff (especially if they want something made just for them). My ferrets never run in the kitchen, but with their cage in the same room, I'm not comfortable mixing it in there.
 
My soaping area is in the basement, with no window. I decided early on that it was much better for me to mix my lye solution in the basement than to carry it through the house and down the stairs. I have a good respirator mask and do as DeeAnna does - loosely covering the lye container with a folded paper towel until I am ready to use the solution.
 
Once lye solution is reasonably cool, the fumes are no longer a a problem. If you cover the opening of the container when the solution is hot and steamy, very little of the fumes can escape -- they will either condense back into the liquid or be absorbed by the paper towel or other covering. If they're in the liquid or on the covering, they aren't in the open air to bother anyone.

I still use the stove hood and still wear a respirator when I mix my lye solution, but honestly, I would rather not have lye fumes eating up my stove hood or floating around my kitchen causing mischief, however minor. Keeping the container of hot lye solution covered so those fumes stay corralled is the single most important thing you can do to minimize the risk. As a former bird owner, I know your concern about your pets, but this can greatly reduce the risk to the point I don't worry about mixing lye solution in the house.
 
Probably the easiest way to mix and cool lye in your situation would be to pour it via funnel into a plastic container with a handle like a bleach bottle or milk jug. You can then pour the water in, mix it up, and put it in a cool water bath capped. This way you can mix it up outside, cap it, and carry it to wherever you are going safely.
 
I've not found the fumes to be a issue as long as you keep your face away from the container. They aren't toxic and have no smell, the danger comes from breathing them in directly as they are caustic.
As long as your kids/animals aren't hovering above the containers, I wouldn't worry. You wouldn't want a fan blowing the fumes round either.

I mix right by my soaping area. I don't like to even carry my solution 10 feet to the fridge, always afraid I'll trip over a dog and spill it.
 
Probably the easiest way to mix and cool lye in your situation would be to pour it via funnel into a plastic container with a handle like a bleach bottle or milk jug. You can then pour the water in, mix it up, and put it in a cool water bath capped. This way you can mix it up outside, cap it, and carry it to wherever you are going safely.
Water should never be added to lye. And the lye solution shouldn’t be tightly capped until it is cool.
 
Water should never be added to lye. And the lye solution shouldn’t be tightly capped until it is cool.
i always add water to lye with no problems whatsoever. turns out, you actually need to do that in order to make soap. after the initial degassing of the fumes, you can cap and transfer easily and safely.

But hey, i'm only mixing 1.1Kg of lye to water at a time. maybe it works differently in smaller amounts.
 
i always add water to lye with no problems whatsoever. turns out, you actually need to do that in order to make soap. after the initial degassing of the fumes, you can cap and transfer easily and safely.
But hey, i'm only mixing 1.1Kg of lye to water at a time. maybe it works differently in smaller amounts.
Adding water to lye, and not lye to water is actually very dangerous and could cause serious injury, it doesn't matter amount you are mixing.
Please be careful and don't advocate for this method.
 
Adding water to lye, and not lye to water is actually very dangerous and could cause serious injury, it doesn't matter amount you are mixing.
Please be careful and don't advocate for this method.
I would have to go ahead and say that this is pretty off topic. However, assuming the original post is not commercial volume then mixing in a large container by pouring the ingredients through a funnel in order to carry the lye solution is a pretty safe solution. You an add lye to water and water to lye safely and dangerously. There are quite a number of factors involved that this is not the place to discuss here.
 
I would have to go ahead and say that this is pretty off topic. However, assuming the original post is not commercial volume then mixing in a large container by pouring the ingredients through a funnel in order to carry the lye solution is a pretty safe solution. You an add lye to water and water to lye safely and dangerously. There are quite a number of factors involved that this is not the place to discuss here.
I have to disagree that this is not the place to discuss, and it is only off topic because you made the comment that you can add water to lye. Maybe you, in your commercial set up, have an enclosed mixing tank, but I would suspect that you are one of a very small handful of forum members that would have that kind of equipment. Pouring water into lye in an open container - large or small scale - is dangerous and that needs to be pointed out for new soapers that come here looking for information.
 
I mix 1-2 gallons at a time in a bucket in the kitchen sink containing an ice bath. I cover my nose and mouth with a folded towel until the fumes stop, then I lightly set the lid on the bucked until my lye cools. Only near accident I ever had with lye was when I was new and thought I should mix it outside. Well, I tripped and fortunately only splashed a small amount on my deck and none on me. That was the end of mixing and carrying around lye solution.
 
I have no kids at my apartment and I have a very small kitchen. I only make single batches less than 42 oz due to the size of my apartment. I have a a fairly large window that I open, and a fan that I aim in the direction of where I’m mixing my lye mixture (usually on the stove cover cause I don’t have much counter space). I also have the overhead stove fan on as well, and I have never run into any problems.
 

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