Teach Soap

Has anyone ever tried making shampoo, conditioner, or lotion in 5 gallon pails with pail heaters? I need a quick solution in making larger quantities and keeping equipment cost at a minimum. Anyone have any good ideas?

Have you tried an electric blanket? I heat my oils and liquids on the stove, let cool some, then pour into sanitized buckets to mix.

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

Aha... this is the "scale up production" problem.
Yes, you can use 5 gallon buckets to prepare creams etc., and as you've discovered, heating can be a problem. Another problem is mixing. A stick blender won't do, and commercial mixers cost a bloody fortune for some reason. I don't know what you mean by a "pail heater" but if it is one of those heating coils you suspend in the liquid, I think it would be likely to cause hotspots and problems. My own largest batches are 4 litres because that's the largest container that will fit in the microwave oven.

I don't make lotions, but for mixing in a bucket, would this work?
http://www.betterbee.com/Products/Cream ... oney-Mixer

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Lesli Sagan
Avital's Apiaries
Like us: http://www.facebook.com/AvitalsApiaries

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

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

Thanks for the interesting link! I would hesitate to use an electric drill though, the carbon and copper particles those things emit would contaminate everything. I think I'd want to get a local engineering shop to knock up a stand, with a DC motor mounted on it, and a control. Still, that's expensive.

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Lesli Sagan
Avital's Apiaries
Like us: http://www.facebook.com/AvitalsApiaries

what? use an electric drill to mix food? Totally shocked by that idea. Appalling. Electric drills spew metal and carbon particles from their ventilation slots. You'll have noticed that a stick blender has no ventilation slots? Do you make the connection as to why?

I've never noticed my drill spewing, but then, I've only used it to screw together woodenware, so I wasn't paying that much attention. But yes, people whip buckets of honey with that and a drill to make creamed honey. How big are these particles?

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Lesli Sagan
Avital's Apiaries
Like us: http://www.facebook.com/AvitalsApiaries

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