Oops left out a oil

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chrissyshuen

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Feb 29, 2020
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Hi,today I unfortunately made a mistake. I left out 7% safflower oil out. I was distracted by some one
my recipe

50% coconut oil
20%palm
20% olive oil
7% safflower oil
3% castor oil

my super fat is 5%
I hope that’s enough info
 
Leaving out more oils (7%) than you have superfat/lye discount/safety margins (5%) means that the soap will be lye heavy and not safe for use (on skin) or give away.

Any chance you can still rebatch or salt-out the batch?
 
Commercial NaOH isn't 100% pure, but almost all soap recipe calculators assume it is. This means there is a "hidden" superfat built into recipes produced by these calcs. The hidden superfat is the difference in the real purity and the assumed 100% purity.

Your recipe with the missing 7% safflower is right at -1% superfat, assuming 100% NaOH purity. Allowing a reasonable guess for the hidden superfat -- which can typically be 3% to 8% for fresh NaOH -- then your soap still has a slight to moderate positive superfat even with the missing safflower.

I normally use 2-3% superfat AND I correct for the NaOH purity. My soap turns out fine.

If you used a calc that assumes 100% NaOH purity (every online calc I've looked at is like this), your soap should be okay as it is. No need to rebatch or jump through other hoops to "fix" it.

And even if your NaOH happens to truly be 100% pure and your soap really is slightly lye heavy at -1% lye excess, the soap will still be fine after curing. A slight lye excess like this can and does dissipate over time. So again, there's no need to jump through hoops to fix this soap.
 
Last edited:
Commercial NaOH isn't 100% pure, but almost all soap recipe calculators assume it is. This means there is a "hidden" superfat built into recipes produced by these calcs. The hidden superfat is the difference in the real purity and the assumed 100% purity.

Your recipe with the missing 7% safflower is right at -1% superfat, assuming 100% NaOH purity. Allowing a reasonable guess for the hidden superfat -- which can typically be 3% to 8% for fresh NaOH -- then your soap still has a slight to moderate positive superfat even with the missing safflower.

I normally use 2-3% superfat AND I correct for the NaOH purity. My soap turns out fine.

If you used a calc that assumes 100% NaOH purity (every online calc I've looked at is like this), your soap should be okay as it is. No need to rebatch or jump through other hoops to "fix" it.

And even if your NaOH happens to truly be 100% pure and your soap really is slightly lye heavy at -1% lye excess, the soap will still be fine after curing. A slight lye excess like this can and does dissipate over time. So again, there's no need to jump through hoops to fix this soap.
Phew 7% is so little and in this case I will let it cure longer then usual. I’m still trying to understand super fat etc. I hate rebatching it’s messy and the last time I did this I put it in a food processor and mixed it with soda for laundry.

Thanks everyone I will use a check mark next time since the recipe is on my iPad. I hate being distracted and my mother is so good at it.
 
Mothers can be like that sometimes. I love my mom dearly and we usually get along well, but sometimes .....!!!!
 
Ha! Thanks for validating me. I have been my moms caregiver for the past 3 years, I started making soap because of the pandemic as I couldn’t work anymore ( hairstylist) my mom loves to watch but I like her to mask up because of the lye. My mom came upstairs touching everything not realizing it’s so dangerous for her 85 year old skin! I feel like I’m in crazy pills. My mom speaks very little English and for me to process speaking to her in Cantonese it’s very difficult. So I think I’m ending up like my mom at my age . ( good lord)! Some of you may relate, if it does it only makes me feel sane. Have a wonderful Sunday!
 
If you ever need to vent, you're welcome to vent to me or even to the group at large. You aren't the only one with Mom Troubles. ;) We're good at lending our support if you need it! ;)
 
This is a public thread. You're welcome to contact me privately if you wish. Or if you don't mind sharing a photo here, that's okay too -- it's up to you.
 
If you ever need to vent, you're welcome to vent to me or even to the group at large. You aren't the only one with Mom Troubles. ;) We're good at lending our support if you need it! ;)
Oh my no, you are NOT the only one with MOM problems. You should see some of my rants. Good luck to you dear, as a caregiver, it is not fun.
 
It's my kids who get me off track! I try to soap when they are at school, but if they are home and I tell them to leave me alone so I can concentrate then they are underfoot. They are teens so they should know better!
 
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