Yes, lye is used as a drain cleaner. It's very powerful and quite good at it.
You may get comments supporting both you and your husband. I've been on elists for a lot of years, and have heard people say they have separate soap stuff, as well as those that use their food equipment.
You don't say what material your "soap pot" is, but I do hope it's stainless steel. Lye doesn't get along very well with aluminum and non-stick coatings. Enameled cookware can be used, but only if it doesn't have any scratches, knicks or other areas where the coating is damaged.
Be careful with the plastic you use for your lye container. Plastics are not created equal, and the heat from the lye solution can melt some. It can also "eat" others. I have an old plastic pitcher from a broken ice tea maker, and I would set my soap-covered whisk, stick blender and spatula in it while making the soap and after while waiting for clean up. The lye has taken it's toll and I can no longer use it for that. I simply use it to hold utensils on one of my soap shelves.
Lye can also etch some materials due to the "scraping" done while stirring with whisks, spoons, etc. This etching can weaken the material, and create the potential for stuff getting down into those scratches.
The best plastic containers for a lye solution that I've seen are 1) a polypropylene, tri-corner beaker, and 2) the heavy duty Rubber Maid pitcher (which has the benefit of a lid). The polypropylene one is made to withstand most acids, bases, solvents, FOs, and EOs. I use them often. They're inexpensive too. Downside is that the largest is about 32 ounces, so if you need a larger container, go with the Rubber Maid pitcher.
For making small batches, I use a plastic batter bowl I found at Fred's (sort of like a dollar-type store, but not everything is a dollar). It cost me a dollar, and can handle at least a two pound batch. It's microwave safe, so oils can be warmed in it. Since it's lightweight, it won't overburden a scale like a heavy pot may do, so I can weigh directly into it.
In the end, it comes down to how you feel about using your cooking equipment for both food and soap. Personally, I don't., but that's me.
Carol
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