rjalex
Well-Known Member
Dear friends,
I think I was mighty lucky with my first batch Soap came out beautiful with a great green chlorophyll created color !
Now as I'm debriefing what I've done I have a few question for you more expert people.
I have mixed my oils by heating the two hard ones I have (Cocoa butter and the much softer virgin coconut oil) just to have them melting and then I've added all the liquid ones. I've read about people doing the opposite. My thinking is that the less I heat oils the less I can degrade them and so why heat the liquid ones ? Do you agree ?
I have spent time and efforts to get lye and oils to the same and correct heating temperatures. I have mixed the liquids when both were at around 93deg F. I've read a lot of you mixing at higher temps (100 or 110). Could this be because higher temps are needed when using animal fats ? I only want vegetable ingredients in my soaps.
Since getting the acid and base at the same temp was by far the more stressful task, could I premelt the lye solution in large advance and then simply slightly heat it to the desired temp right before mixing ?
Last question not totally temp. related. If I mixed my batch into a plastic container such an empty ice cream vat, could I just leave it in there and not pour it into another mold ?
Thanks a lot
I think I was mighty lucky with my first batch Soap came out beautiful with a great green chlorophyll created color !
Now as I'm debriefing what I've done I have a few question for you more expert people.
I have mixed my oils by heating the two hard ones I have (Cocoa butter and the much softer virgin coconut oil) just to have them melting and then I've added all the liquid ones. I've read about people doing the opposite. My thinking is that the less I heat oils the less I can degrade them and so why heat the liquid ones ? Do you agree ?
I have spent time and efforts to get lye and oils to the same and correct heating temperatures. I have mixed the liquids when both were at around 93deg F. I've read a lot of you mixing at higher temps (100 or 110). Could this be because higher temps are needed when using animal fats ? I only want vegetable ingredients in my soaps.
Since getting the acid and base at the same temp was by far the more stressful task, could I premelt the lye solution in large advance and then simply slightly heat it to the desired temp right before mixing ?
Last question not totally temp. related. If I mixed my batch into a plastic container such an empty ice cream vat, could I just leave it in there and not pour it into another mold ?
Thanks a lot