Wrong Lye Selected on Calculator.

[golden_seal]

I chose the 90% on soapcalc.net but didn't actually click the KOH... So I'm short 1.20oz of lye. Anything I can do about it..? It's already a paste at this point.
I'm wondering if I could add the lye with a small amount of liquid and cook it overnight...

 

[DeeAnna]

A couple of thoughts come to mind. One is to just dilute as usual and understand the excess fats or fatty acids are going to separate out and float. Get that layer off the top and the rest should be fine.

Another idea (and probably the one I would consider first) is to mix up the missing KOH with some water and carefully stir the lye solution into the paste. Gentle heating (crock pot, hot water bath, oven) may help loosen the paste as well as encourage saponification.

Susie and Irish Lass, the Liquid Soap Queens here on SMF, may have other, better suggestions.

 

[golden_seal]

A couple of thoughts come to mind. One is to just dilute as usual and understand the excess fats or fatty acids are going to separate out and float. Get that layer off the top and the rest should be fine.

Another idea (and probably the one I would consider first) is to mix up the missing KOH with some water and carefully stir the lye solution into the paste. Gentle heating (crock pot, hot water bath, oven) may help loosen the paste as well as encourage saponification.

Susie and Irish Lass, the Liquid Soap Queens here on SMF, may have other, better suggestions.

I decided on the second option and I will see how it goes

Thanks!
I think my 100% coconut oil soap might be a total loss though. It seized up pretty fast after I added the extra lye. I did this with two recipes today...yay me..lol

 

[DeeAnna]

Try some warmth and maybe some extra water to loosen the paste. I can't say for sure, but if your lye water was cool, the cooling of the paste might be an issue. It just might need some patience and time.

 

[golden_seal]

Try some warmth and maybe some extra water to loosen the paste.

I added some water and turned the crock to low. Hopefully it breaks it up some. The other recipe seems to be doing okay and I did the same thing. I guess I will find out tomorrow morning how it went.

Thanks again!

 

[DeeAnna]

I'm all for the "put it to bed" and ignore it method. LS seems to respond well to that!

 

[Susie]

Either method DeeAnna suggested would work equally well. I no longer use Soapcalc.net for liquid soap. It does not have enough batch water for me. It gives me stiff paste that is difficult to dilute. I much prefer the 1:3 ratio Soapee.com or summerbeemeadow gives.

If I were to try to fix that soap, I would add the whole remainder of water to make that 1:3 ratio with the missing KOH added. I would add that mixture to a warm crock pot of broken up paste, and turn it off to sit overnight. Just let it rest covered. See what you have in the morning. If you still have lumps, add some heat and keep it covered for a bit. If you end up with a skin on the top, add a tiny bit of water at the time until it is all melted.

 

[golden_seal]

It worked out well! I was able to selvage them and I'm loving the 100% coconut oil dish soap so far

 

[DeeAnna]

Most excellent news. Good job!

 

[Susie]

Well done!