Teach Soap

darn...all that intro about me was NOT supposed to be included again. Geez! LOL. I'm trying to get the hang of the format.

I answered most of your questions here> viewtopic.php?f=7&t=6387

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

If you have a proper recipe, there is no lye left after saponification. Soap will not be neutral, as its pH is about 9 after saponification takes place. Whether cold or hot process the soap still needs to cure for 4 to 6 weeks so water can evaporate, making the bar longer lasting. Just because the bar does not sting, doesn't mean that the soap is safe. You can use pH test strips or use can use the zap test with your tongue. Dampen your finger, then touch it to your soap. Touch that finger to your tongue. Does it zap? If it does, it will feel like a 9 volt battery. You would definitely know. Have some juice nearby to rinse your mouth out with, just in case. If the recipe is lye heavy, no amount of cooking will fix that.

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

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

With hot process, the soap is safe to use as soon as it's cooked, but it will make a milder and longer lasting soap if you wait. Norma Cooney's book calls it neutrality, but that's really a misnomer, as soap will never be neutral. Saponification takes place pretty quickly, whether cooked or not. My mother and grandma never added any extra water to their soap cooked over an open fire. The more water you add during the cooking process, the softer the soap will be and the longer it will take for all the water to evaporate. Cooked soap is always thick and can be a little grainy. That's most likely because the soap on the inside edges cooks and dries out faster.

If your recipe is lye heavy, then yes, the soap can still zap, even after it has hardened.

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

What goes into the pot is no different with a black kettle or the crock pot. Your difference is the heat source. And as with cooking over a campfire vs an electric grill... some are great at controlling the heat source and some are not. It is nice to experience it I am sure. But I also think that my ancestors, if given a choice to use a crockpot or cooking over an open fire they would choose the crockpot for the consistancy and ease. After all they did not have the soap calculators and we would be hard pressed to do without those at this point. Now also consider that they had to produce more soap... more family members to use it... wash day soap etc. What you are trying I have seen, mostly at civil war encampments, or for re-enactments during a festival.
I have never tried the phenol... cheaper to use my tongue
As for the doneness and ready to use in a couple of days.... I will put away a sample of my soap and revisit it in 6 to 12 months to check for scent and color retention. What suprised me most when I went to use one of these bars is how much nicer the soap was! But I can't always wait... just to eager to give someone in my family a gift!
Hope you have fun getting back to your roots, keep us posted on how it is going!

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Susie
Sometimes A Mistake is so much fun, You just have to do it again!

most of my soaps will be done under more controlled heat and with a covered pot....but the one variety...the plain old kettle soap is being done this way for the heritage and also the novelty of it. Just as it's easier to buy jams and jellies...there is a certain pride in doing it yourself and even more so....the old way (for some people) plus you get the experiences of it etc. People who visit this area often want to experience something of old time Appalachia. Just like they want to hear old bluegrass music.

I know for sure I don't wanna leach my own wood ashes for my soap batches like they had to back then but I do plan to try it a couple of times this winter as we still heat with wood. but for the most part....I love the convenience and cleanliness of opening a can of lye and then knowing it's pure...but the old witch's pot or kettle for cooking...is just plain fun