Teach Soap

Due to requests by some of my customers I am looking into experimenting with Pine tar soap. Does anyone here have experience with using pine tar in their CP soap? I have done some extensive reading but I have found the advice found on these forums to be pretty informed and useful. The main issue I have is the percentage of Pine Tar to use. I am thinking around 20% based on what I have read. Any input would be appreciated.

12-20% is good, but it can be a bit tricky too. You should add the tar to the oils and melt them all together, but watch when adding the lye, as it can make it move very fast. I have seen some say that they like another set of hands, they begin stirring and using the stick blender as the other pours in the lye bath. Thing is, you need to trust the helper to not get any lye on you as they pour. So this doesn't work for me!
I find it helps to keep the coconut 20% or less, I soap cool, and I mix the crap out of the oils before I ever add the lye bath. I also add the scent to the oils before the lye bath too, which i usually don't do.

Good luck!

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Remember, it's not just that we weather the storm, but how we dance in the rain.

Tammy

I would not use your stick blender, just stir by hand. The stick blender will make it trace even faster and it would also be horrible to clean. I use the sticks you get for stirring cans of paint so you can throw it away.

Yep, what Chris said for sure once you add the lye. But I do use the stick blender when I am mixing the tar into the oils, then I switch to only using a spatula once I add the lye bath. This works for me, you will have to see what you like best.
The person that said they use a helper, said they used both a stick blender and a whisk, but I can't really see that being too effective. Maybe my hiney is just too big to share space at the counter, but I don't trust 4 hands in one pot when one has lye being poured! Not to mention, it would trace way too fast for me. But it works for them, so different strokes for different folks.

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Remember, it's not just that we weather the storm, but how we dance in the rain.

Tammy

I haven't tried this myself yet, although I'm interested in doing so. There's a good Soaping101 video showing how fast it traces.



Please come back and let us know how your batch turns out!

I had never seen a video on making this soap and it was interesting, even if her monotonous voice was driving me insane! Lol
Just goes to show you that there is more than one way to skin a cat! Obviously I like my way for me, you'll have to try it both ways to see which you prefer. Either way, it does tend to move quite fast.

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Remember, it's not just that we weather the storm, but how we dance in the rain.

Tammy

I don't think I've ever tried Pine Tar Soap. How does it feel/behave in the shower?

It lathers nicely, is highly conditioning, rinses well, no residue left, is great for many skin conditions, including acne prone skin. Some people don't care for the scent, it is different. I have more men that like it than women, but women with skin conditions buy it anyway, caring for the scent or not.

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Remember, it's not just that we weather the storm, but how we dance in the rain.

Tammy

Finally got my pine tar soap made and out of the mold. It came out pretty good considering how fast it set up. I was using a whisk and it was like fudge in about 2 minutes. I did manage to get it fully mixed and into the mold with only on small air bubble where I didn't get it mashed down enough. The color is a very dark brown and the smell is "woodsy" I imagine if I had used less pine tar it would have been a lighter color. Apparently the pine tar soap, that the person who asked me to make this, is currently using contains a much smaller amount of pine tar as it is only an light brown color. I am now just playing the waiting game to allow it to cure before testing it out. ( btw the zap test on this stuff was nasty but no zap ) All in all I am happy with the result so far and the only thing different I will do next time is to soap cooler and see if it gives me a bit more time. Thanks for the input.

Yw Robert.
Great job Jethro! I am glad that it went well for you! How much pine tar did you end up using?

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Remember, it's not just that we weather the storm, but how we dance in the rain.

Tammy

I used 18% from my reading the suggestion was between 15 and 20 for maximum benefit without going overboard.

I usually use 18-20%, so obviously I think that was a good choice, but you can go as low as 12% and still have those properties.
Did you add scent or leave it natural? That odor will dissipate some as it cures, allowing the scent you added, if you added any, to come through more. But I think it always smells like the pine tar no matter what you add.

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Remember, it's not just that we weather the storm, but how we dance in the rain.

Tammy

I've been wanting to experiment with making pine tar soap also, but have heard conflicting information regarding the danger of creosote the may/may not be present in pine tar. Can anyone shed some light on this?

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Carrie
Wife to my Best Friend and Homeschool mom to 7 beautiful gifts

I actually used a Pine scent. I figured it might be a waste of fragrance oil but as it cures the pine scent seems to be a bit stronger then the pine tar smell although it is still there. As for the creosote issue my reading indicates that the creosote in wood based creosote is beneficial and not dangerous like the coal tar creosote. In fact wood based creosote has been in the past used a a meat preservative as well as its medicinal uses.