My first Beer CP Soap

[GiggleGoat]

I'm doing my first beer soap tomorrow ... any suggestions on how not to screw things up? I've read threw the beer threads and now I am pretty sure that that is the direction I'm going to take my soaps. I'm hooked and I haven't even done it yet.

 

[kharmon320]

Just make sure all the fizz is gone. Don't let the horrible stench scare you. It will eventually fade away.

 

[GiggleGoat]

I hear there's 2 times the beer will fizz. Once with carbonation being stirred out and the second time with alcohol boiling off. Is there a big gap between the two if it does fizz twice? How much should I reduce it by? 50%? And finally, does the boiled beer volume replace the entire volume of liquid called for in any given recipe?

 

[sudbubblez]

I don't prep my beer at all. I use a larger pitcher and make sure the surface area of the beer is much greater than it is deep so it cant climb out of the pitcher then add the lye in small portions. The deeper the liquid is in the container, the higher its going to be able to climb from its own boiling. The prepping of the beer, letting it go flat or simmering out the alcohol is for avoiding the violent reaction but the lye itself will remove the carbonation. If I'm using a regular measuring cup thats wide open, the lye goes into unprepped beer in very small portions (it will boil briefly each time until the solid is dissolved but not enough to start climbing out). I'm really comfortable around lye, this way may not be for everybody.

when I prepped beer by just cracking the can open and letting it sit in the fridge for a few days, no boiling reaction whatsoever, was like stirring lye into water.

 

[CamillaHB]

I put the beer in a large bottle, shake it and let the fizz out of the bottle. I do this a couple of times. Then I freeze it into ice cubes and let it thaw a bit (until it looks like slush ice). Then I add the lye which heats the beer to a temperature about 40-60 degrees Celcius. At this relatively low temperature it doesn't smell that bad.
As I can understand from the experienced soapers, beer has a tendency to heat up the soap, so that should be taken into account.
I have made 4 beer batches (not much, but still) in this manner and never experienced volcanoes or anything of the sort.
Hope this helps.

P.S. The first times I put it in the oven (CPOP) which made it overheat, so that cannot be recommended.

 

[Hazel]

Even if you're comfortable with using lye as the majority of soapers on this forum are, I still recommend simmering off the alcohol since too much may cause acceleration and seizing. When I first started making beer soap, I didn't bother with simmering and just let the beer go flat. I didn't have any problems with my first 3 batches but I suppose I was lucky. The fourth one changed my viewpoint about using just flat beer. I learned how scary a lye volcano can be and how fast it can move. Also, I was slowly adding in the lye a little at a time. Fortunately, I use a tall pitcher so it didn't spill over the sides. It doesn't take long to simmer the beer and well worth the effort even if there's only a minute possibility of experiencing either issue. I also simmer wine, too. It's better to take the extra time and play it safe.

Since you've read the beer threads, I recommend following Bigmoose's method on making beer soap. He's the expert on beer soap.

 

[GiggleGoat]

After the advice of everyone's posts I decided to boil off the carbonation and the alcohol. Since I have issue with being patient, I'd rather start the process being safer than sorry.

Beer actually 'indicates' pretty well. The carbonation boiled off and then the alcohol started to boil off. I could tell right away that the alcohol was disappearing because the bubbles of the alcohol, which were tiny and white, started to be replaced with large darker bubbles, which was obviously the beer boiling. It is quite a process but I'd rather not witness the infamous lye volcano first hand. I did, however, learn that pouring luke warm beer into an already hot sauce pan was not the smartest thing to do. I never been accused of being the brightest crayon in the box though.

I used a nice dark stout and now the house smells like yeast, molasses, sugar, and malt. It's like a Canadian heaven. Now I have to explain to my friends and family how I could beer for anything other than drinking.

 

[GiggleGoat]

Yep, adding lye to beer stinks.

Note to self: beer soap has lots of sugar and will get really hot. Soap at cooler temperatures or your soap will create a nice lava flow all over your floor.

Second note to self: Wear shoes while soaping or you'll be stepping in hot oil the next time you don't remember note #1.

 

[aussie]

Oh dear! Hope your feet are ok. Was it just oil or had you mixed the beer/lye in?

 

[GiggleGoat]

Everything was in the mold when it all overflowed. It's okay, I love it when new things happen, even if it hurts like a sun of a gun. It was a good excuse to clean. After a quick vinegar foot bath and a long rinse I seem to be none the worse for wear. My wife did wonder why I was mopping at one point.

I did manage to save most of the batch and I have to tell you, it smells so good I can't even believe it. The recipe had cocoa in it already, but I mixed together Chocolate FO and Maple Fudge FO (2:1) and the stout beer I used is even coming through on the very end of the scent, well you can't really smell the beer so much as it gives the scent a depth I haven't smelled in any of my soaps before. My feet may be sore, but I think I stumbled upon one heck of a recipe. Let's hope it cures properly and actually turns out to be soap.

 

[GiggleGoat]

I had the chance to cut the soap tonight. It is getting pretty dark, which I like, and the house now smells like chocolate, which my wife and kids like.

I'm doing a similar recipe tomorrow, hopefully I can get a grip on temperatures this time.