Sticky soap when washing off . Looking for help with recipe .

[Michael Ritchie]

Hey soap forum family ,

New to the forum and happy to be here.

Ive created lots of soaps. But trying to perfect this one base . Im having issues with the way it feel when washing off. It sticky and doesn't feel like a good bar of soap I don't like the feeling and have had a few people tell the same thing .

I was hoping to see some recipes that refined with the same oils . And help with tweaking my recipe.

Olive oil pomace 38%
Coconut oil 76 23%
Palm oil 22%
Shea butter 14%
castor oil 3%

Super fat 5%

 

[Lion Of Judah]

Welcome to the forum Michael , Happy to have you here with us.
Quick question for you : How long did you let you soap sit before using it ?

 

[Michael Ritchie]

Thanks I’m happy you replied . 5 weeks . I’m really looking for a perfected bar of soap .

Then I want to use the same oils but for a different soap. And add pine tar .

 

[MelissaG]

I don't see anything wrong with the recipe though I think the coconut oil is a bit high. I don't use pomace though because I don't like the color. Maybe that's it? You do have alot of hard oils in your soap but I don't see that causing a sticky feeling, it's more likely to cause overheating in your soap or drying your skin out than it is to cause a sticky feeling. At least, from my experience.

 

[Michael Ritchie]

Thank you for the reply Melissa .

Would you up the olive oil and lower the coconut oil ?

Also what kind of olive oil do you suggest ?

 

[Michael Ritchie]

Also , what do you mean but over heating ?

 

[Johnez]

How longs it cured for? Perhaps giving it a few more weeks or months might improve the feel.

 

[Michael Ritchie]

I’m looking to have a faster curing soap . I want to wait a month or 6 weeks . My formula seems alright to you?

 

[KiwiMoose]

Are the other people that have tried it all males? The males in my household tend to complain that the soap 'doesn't dry off' very well, leaving their hands moist. Is this the issue? If so, then that's handmade soap. They are used to commercial soap that leaves your hands feeling dry. Ultimately, it's a matter of choice, but I'd prefer moist hands over dry any day. It's the reason many of us started making soap in the first place.
Other things to look at are lye concentration and super fat. Try 33% lye concentration and 2-3% superfat and see how that works for you.
There are numerous other variables - hard water/soft water etc, type of oils, ambient moisture, etc.

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

Maybe you need a chelator. Do you have a lot of minerals in your water?

 

[Blufuz]

Are the other people that have tried it all males? The males in my household tend to complain that the soap 'doesn't dry off' very well, leaving their hands moist. Is this the issue? If so, then that's handmade soap. They are used to commercial soap that leaves your hands feeling dry. Ultimately, it's a matter of choice, but I'd prefer moist hands over dry any day. It's the reason many of us started making soap in the first place.

Ha! My boyfriend complains about that as well

Still, I found that there are some handmade soaps he’s quite happy with, generally the higher cleansing ones. This one we both like, he didn’t find sticky and I don’t feel too dry; it’s basically the same as yours but without palm oil. You can use it within 6 weeks, although of course it’s a little harder if you wait longer.

 

[MelissaG]

Thank you for the reply Melissa .

Would you up the olive oil and lower the coconut oil ?

Also what kind of olive oil do you suggest ?

Pomace has a green tint to it. Pure olive oil is more yellow. I may be wrong but I remember hearing that pomace traces faster.

Coconut oil can be drying if used in too high a percentage. If it's going to be that high, I'd suggest a higher superfat to combat it. Coconut oil has a very weird effect when it comes to soap. Don't get me wrong, it's fantastic for bubbles and helping to harden your soap. This is the only case I'm aware of where coconut oil can (not always) have the effect of being drying because of the chemical reaction it has with lye.

Soap can overheat. You will hear us calling it volcanoing. If it gets too hot, cracks can appear in the soap even though the soap isn't hard. If it gets really bad, it can even expand and go over the top of the mold (I've seen pictures but never had it happen to me). I learned the hard way that it's best to use lye-water that's cooled down to room temperature. It gives me alot more time to work with it. The hotter the temperature the more likely you will have soap on a stick too. You might be lucky and don't have to worry about that, some people don't. Mostly because the area they live in is more conducive to lower temperatures.

Handmade soap should leave your skin feeling moisturized though. That's kind of the point. But it should also rinse off cleanly without leaving your hands feels sticky or dry or itchy.

I wouldn't use a chelator. it just adds more stuff to soap and that's what you're trying to get away from. Commercial soaps tend to have extra stuff added. Things like chemicals to make the fragrance last longer. And it has a tendency to make your skin sticky, dry, and itchy.

 

[Michael Ritchie]

Maybe you need a chelator. Do you have a lot of minerals in your water?

I use distilled water in all my soap recipes .

 

[Michael Ritchie]

Pomace has a green tint to it. Pure olive oil is more yellow. I may be wrong but I remember hearing that pomace traces faster.

Coconut oil can be drying if used in too high a percentage. If it's going to be that high, I'd suggest a higher superfat to combat it. Coconut oil has a very weird effect when it comes to soap. Don't get me wrong, it's fantastic for bubbles and helping to harden your soap. This is the only case I'm aware of where coconut oil can (not always) have the effect of being drying because of the chemical reaction it has with lye.

Soap can overheat. You will hear us calling it volcanoing. If it gets too hot, cracks can appear in the soap even though the soap isn't hard. If it gets really bad, it can even expand and go over the top of the mold (I've seen pictures but never had it happen to me). I learned the hard way that it's best to use lye-water that's cooled down to room temperature. It gives me alot more time to work with it. The hotter the temperature the more likely you will have soap on a stick too. You might be lucky and don't have to worry about that, some people don't. Mostly because the area they live in is more conducive to lower temperatures.

Handmade soap should leave your skin feeling moisturized though. That's kind of the point. But it should also rinse off cleanly without leaving your hands feels sticky or dry or itchy.

I wouldn't use a chelator. it just adds more stuff to soap and that's what you're trying to get away from. Commercial soaps tend to have extra stuff added. Things like chemicals to make the fragrance last longer. And it has a tendency to make your skin sticky, dry, and itchy.

The feeling after you get out of the shower is great . Bar soaps give you that sticky feeling when washing off . I’m just want to try and reduce that . I appreciate all the information . I do have one more question .

Super fatting soap . I understand it leave some fats in your soap . But if you will . Please explain 0 % percent to 8 % etc . The thing is I don’t no when to use it . So it confusing me . Like when you’re trying a soap . What would make you think to lower to higher the super fat.

 

[Michael Ritchie]

Ha! My boyfriend complains about that as well

Still, I found that there are some handmade soaps he’s quite happy with, generally the higher cleansing ones. This one we both like, he didn’t find sticky and I don’t feel too dry; it’s basically the same as yours but without palm oil. You can use it within 6 weeks, although of course it’s a little harder if you wait longer.

So how would you fix the recipe to make it more moist then dry ?

 

[Michael Ritchie]

Maybe you need a chelator. Do you have a lot of minerals in your water?

Hmm interesting - chelator - never heard of that . How does this work .

 

[Michael Ritchie]

The feeling after you get out of the shower is great . Bar soaps give you that sticky feeling when washing off . I’m just want to try and reduce that . I appreciate all the information . I do have one more question .

Super fatting soap . I understand it leave some fats in your soap . But if you will . Please explain 0 % percent to 8 % etc . The thing is I don’t no when to use it . So it confusing me . Like when you’re trying a soap . What would make you think to lower to higher the super fat.

What percent of super fat you thinking ?

 

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

One example is sodium citrate. The actual science behind them can be better answered by someone else (most likely has been in threads about chelators, there was one fairly recently) but it can prevent soap scum in hard water and also a draggy or squeaky clean feeling that you can get

 

[Michael Ritchie]

I just want to thank everyone for all the support and great information !

One example is sodium citrate. The actual science behind them can be better answered by someone else (most likely has been in threads about chelators, there was one fairly recently) but it can prevent soap scum in hard water and also a draggy or squeaky clean feeling that you can get

Amazing information . Thank you very much .

 

[lucycat]

Your formulation is pretty close to mine. I use closer to 33% olive, a bit less shea but more palm. I don't think sticky but I do think they need to be cured and fairly hard. I don't have any issues with 23% coconut and actually like that much. I also think high olive has a distinct feel and some people love, most don't notice but others dislike. So, a perfect bar is really user dependant.

You haven't discussed how you caluclated the water you used in the recipe. There can be a lot of variation in how much water is used in soap depending on lye calculators and the options you choose. More water will take time for the bar to harden; and I wondered if that could be the stickiness. I think a good starting point for water is a 33% lye concentration. That is, if your lye calculator calls for 50g of lye then the water would be 100g; the math being 50 divided by the total (50+100) for 33%. If you used a larger amount of water the soap might feel different in a few more weeks when more of the water has evaporated.

Also, have you read any of the soap information from one of the members? Soapy Stuff
This has plenty of really good information about water, superfat and plenty of other soap things, including pine tar soap.