Teach Soap

Hi,
I made a 40 lb batch and used 2.5 tsp (teaspoon) of Sodium Lactate. I added the SL to the Lye Solution at a temp of 105. Everything came out fine, but I noticed 24 hrs later when I un-molded the soap, it felt and looked the same as if I hadn't used any SL at all.

So, on my next batch, instead of using SL, I used salt.. but I used 2.5 TBS (tablespoon) of salt... now that made a huge difference... only 12 hrs later, the soap un-molded extremely easy and was very hard, but not crumbly as I was able to cut it and emboss it...Well, it was a bit crumbly but only on the top edges of the soap.

I will try next time to use 2 TBS instead of 2.5 of salt...it's cheaper than buying SL and seemed to have worked a lot better than SL.

My question is.. One thing I noticed when pouring the salt in the lye solution, even though I mixed it well...when I poured the Lye solution in the soap batter, I saw there was salt at the bottom of the Lye container...is that normal, or does that mean the salt was not completely dissolved?

I know when you make lemonade, even if you mix the sugar well, there will always be a bit of sugar at the bottom.. i wondered if this was normal when it came to salt in the lye solution.

I use 1.5 to 2% of sodium lactate in my batches. 2.5 teaspoons to a 40 lb. batch would do nothing.
You need to go by weight. Not teaspoons or tablespoons.

For salt, you need to pre-dissolve in a small amount of water first.

_________________
Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.