Teach Soap

Hi,
I found a recipe that I would like to try but I need help with it. The recipe is
2.4 oz lye
6 oz water
10.5 oz olive oil
5.25 oz coconut oil
it calls for 1 T. castor oil but what I want to know is can I substitute soybean oil for the castor oil?
I don't really understand how to find the caluculations for changes.
Thanks!

Please run this through a lye calculator. You cannot sub one oil for another. They have different SAP values.

Also....please use weight measurements, not volume; especially with smaller recipes.

I would suggest using a soap calc. like: http://www.thesage.com/calcs/lyecalc2.php

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

There are some good soapmaking books out there that also have SAP values listed and general soapmaking rules and tips.
I like "Soapmaker's Companion" By Cavitch.

Thanks for the advice y'all. I ran it through the lye calculator but I don't understand how that thing works, that's why I asked the question. Is there an easier way to find out?

You could get all the SAP values and do the math - it's been so long , I forgot the formula. I am math challenged though!
There must be a website somewhere with the formula! When I find it I'll post it here.

thanks, i am math challenged too.

I have a soapmaking program that I just love! Has all the calculations in there for me and stores all my recipes and inventory on raw supplies and finished goods too. I can re-size recipes and find costs for everything. Really has helped me Suoer-size my business without too much more "office" work to do. ( I also use an accounting program for invoicing and banking.) Why not make your life easier!

what's the name of the program?

_________________
~Shell

The online lye calculators are as easy as it gets - the do all the math for you. (Which I love!)

Try www.soapcalc.com - that's my favorite.

_________________
http://www.magichandsworkshop.com
http://www.magichands.etsy.com
http://www.magichandsworkshop.blogspot.com

Go to www.SoapMaker.CA and you can get a free trial verson to use. TRUE ENOUGH, the free ones get the job done but this has added features that may be handy for some people.

I like soapmaker, too, Lauri.

_________________
http://www.magichandsworkshop.com
http://www.magichands.etsy.com
http://www.magichandsworkshop.blogspot.com

I am on my 20th or so batch and I have created some of my own recipes using the soapcalc.com calculator. I realy like this because it allows me to easily change the sizes of my batches by keeping the percentage of ingredients the same. But my question is this...I read somewhere that to shoot for a total INS value of 160. However there are some recipes that I have used that will never have an INS of 160 due to it's lack of coconut oil and sometimes in some recipes palm oil. i.e. Castille Soap has a low INS value and does not measure up well in the other categories such as hardness. But I know Pure olive oil soap is made all the time for people with allergies to coconut oils. So how important is the INS value? or should I just ensure to run it through the calculators to get the proper lye and water calculation for saponification?

I don't know if I know what an INS value is. What is an INS value? Maybe if you refresh my memory........