palm kernel oil versus palm oil
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calico21
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two totally different animals, I use Pko to substitute for some of my coconut oil in case someone who uses my soap is very sensitive to coconut oil. I've thought about totally switching it over so I have one less oil to deal with.
Like Calico said, they are 2 totally different animals and are not interchangable. They both derive from palm fruit, but they come from different parts of the fruit. The way it was explained to me is this:
Palm oil is extracted from the fruit or flesh of the palm itself, and PKO is extracted from the kernel or the pit of the palm fruit.
In soap, palm oil acts much like tallow or lard- it makes a hard, long lasting, white soap, but is not very bubbly in the lathering dept.
PKO acts like coconut oil or babassu oil- it makes a hard, white, cleansing bar, with lots of bubbly lather.
IrishLass
Palm oil is extracted from the fruit or flesh of the palm itself, and PKO is extracted from the kernel or the pit of the palm fruit.
In soap, palm oil acts much like tallow or lard- it makes a hard, long lasting, white soap, but is not very bubbly in the lathering dept.
PKO acts like coconut oil or babassu oil- it makes a hard, white, cleansing bar, with lots of bubbly lather.
IrishLass
I did a Bastile with PKO. You could try it to start out. I think I did 75% OO/25% PKO. It still takes a long time to cure.
What oils do you have?
What oils do you have?
simplymcghie
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my favorite soap recipe uses a combination of both (with other oils too).
I should have also asked what you consider horrible numbers. What do you like in your soap? Lots of bubbles, more conditioning?
Here's a sample recipe which is close to what I like (I generally sacrifice hardness for more conditioning :wink: ) Using simplymcghie's suggestion, I added both PKO and CO into the recipe. But you could drop the CO and just use the PKO.
43% OO
22% PO
15% PKO
12% CO
8% Castor
Hardness 41
Cleansing 18
Conditioning 56
Bubbly 25
Also, you kind of have to take the numbers with a grain of salt. After curing, the soap is going to be milder. I've also notice that some batches I've done which had a low bubbly value still produced a lot of bubbles and had nice lather.
The type of liquid you use is also going to make a difference, too.
eta: I forgot to ask if you're using PKO or PKO flakes. I based this recipe on the flakes. If you're using the oil, it's going to be softer.
Here's a sample recipe which is close to what I like (I generally sacrifice hardness for more conditioning :wink: ) Using simplymcghie's suggestion, I added both PKO and CO into the recipe. But you could drop the CO and just use the PKO.
43% OO
22% PO
15% PKO
12% CO
8% Castor
Hardness 41
Cleansing 18
Conditioning 56
Bubbly 25
Also, you kind of have to take the numbers with a grain of salt. After curing, the soap is going to be milder. I've also notice that some batches I've done which had a low bubbly value still produced a lot of bubbles and had nice lather.
The type of liquid you use is also going to make a difference, too.
eta: I forgot to ask if you're using PKO or PKO flakes. I based this recipe on the flakes. If you're using the oil, it's going to be softer.
Can you post one of your trial recipes that you said had horrible numbers? This would give a better indication of what you don't want.
Thanks.
Thanks.
That's okay. I've done the same thing.
What do you consider a "good" bar of soap? I have dry skin so I like a milder bar (lower cleansing value) with more conditioning. However, the bars I make tend to be on the soft side. I've also made a kitchen bar where I used a high percentage of CO and PKO flakes. The bar was rock hard but drying to my skin.
What do you consider a "good" bar of soap? I have dry skin so I like a milder bar (lower cleansing value) with more conditioning. However, the bars I make tend to be on the soft side. I've also made a kitchen bar where I used a high percentage of CO and PKO flakes. The bar was rock hard but drying to my skin.
Woodi
Well-Known Member
I sub palm for lard, they behave almost the same in bar soap, but pko is similar to coconut, harder, lots of fluffy lather, but much less moisturizing (or non-drying) than palm.
A good recipe (to me) is 50% olive (or your choice of liquid oil); 21% palm or lard, 26% coconut or pko, (some soapers say this is too high but I like it), 3% castor (castor really moisturizes, and also helps hold your scents cuz it's so viscous, but too much castor (more than 5%) tends to make soap sticky). JMHO.
A good recipe (to me) is 50% olive (or your choice of liquid oil); 21% palm or lard, 26% coconut or pko, (some soapers say this is too high but I like it), 3% castor (castor really moisturizes, and also helps hold your scents cuz it's so viscous, but too much castor (more than 5%) tends to make soap sticky). JMHO.
Emxdee, both oils can be used in a good soap formula, just remember, like people have been trying to explain they are two different type of oils and do two different things in soap. Read their fatty acid profiles and you can see where they fit in.
Candybee
Well-Known Member
I use palm oil in place of lard or tallow when I want to make an all veggie soap. Palm oil lends creaminess to the bubbles, some hardness, and a whiteness to your finished bar.
PKO is similar to coconut oil and babassu oil. It helps make the bar hard and give it lots and lots of large fluffy bubbles.
My fav soap with PKO is a blend of CO and PKO at 50/50%. I like it best to split the amount. The reason why is too much coconut oil makes me itchy and PKO does not. So say I want a recipe with 30% CO. I will split that to 15% CO and 15% PKO. Personally I find it much more gentle.
PKO is similar to coconut oil and babassu oil. It helps make the bar hard and give it lots and lots of large fluffy bubbles.
My fav soap with PKO is a blend of CO and PKO at 50/50%. I like it best to split the amount. The reason why is too much coconut oil makes me itchy and PKO does not. So say I want a recipe with 30% CO. I will split that to 15% CO and 15% PKO. Personally I find it much more gentle.
savonierre
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I use Po and PKO in my recipe..
TeriDk
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I just made an OO (55%)/PKO (40%), castor oil (5%) soap yesterday. Still in the round mold with a bit of zap. If need be, I'll leave it there for a week before unmolding. This is my first adventure with PKO. Hope it turns out since I love lemongrass-eucalyptus EO. Probably will need a long cure. The yellow-green color looks a bit baby poopy to me so hoping the color fades but not the scent :crazy:
