Water???

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Blue-Bubbles

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Hi All

Want to make my first batch of soap, but i am slightly unsure as what water to use (sounds mad)

Do i use normal tap water? I have read that some people use distilled water, some rain water?

Which the best? What should i use?

Any advice greatly received

Many thanks
 
I used tap water once, by accident. The first time I ever made soap, I had completely forgotten and didn't remember until the soap was already mixed. It was ruined and I had to throw it out. But, I should say, that my white laundry turns grey no matter what I do, and if I pour a glass of water and let it sit, I'll get sediment at the bottom. This town has very dirty water, I won't even use it for cooking or let my dog drink it :D

So, if you want to try tap water, assuming your water is very clean, try a small batch. But I in no way recommend it. Distilled is just more peace of mind for me. If something goes wrong, I like knowing that the water wasn't the culprit. One day I may try rain water... Actually, the next hurricane that passes thru here I think I'll collect the water from that - just for namesake :lol:
 
I used to use tap water, with no problems.

But then I started using distilled, and the lye water was crystal clear, and with the tap water it wasn't, and I have pretty good tap.

I'll never use tap again.
 
It really depends on your water. I used to have access to softened well water that I filtered and it worked great. Now I buy purified water and that works great too. I'll never use my tap water since half the time we're not even supposed to drink it without boiling it first!!
 
I use tap water and have no problem. I use the water out of the fridge. I make sure the water is ice cold when I add the lye to it.
 
I have used tap water exclusively for more than 2 years now and have had no problems that I could even remotely connect to the water. And for half that time I lived in a really hard water area (now soft). I suppose if you are having problems it's best to examine each variable but if not...

And the germs you are supposed to kill by boiling it... they aren't going to survive the lye - I promise.
 
Sundown, you said you use cold water?

No problems with this at all? Any noticeable changes in texture or anything?
 
BubbleBitch said:
Sundown, you said you use cold water?

No problems with this at all? Any noticeable changes in texture or anything?

When you add the lye to the water, the water is supposed to be ice cold, otherwise you could cause a reaction with the lye.
 
I use ice water because I soap with only "warm" solutions and this keeps them a bit cooler. The only issue is that you do need to ensure your lye dissolves completely so stir until the solution clears and make sure there are no crystals lurking on the bottom (lye is less soluble as the temp drops).
 
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