Teach Soap

I am new to soaping. I have been reading alot in preparation of making my first batch. I have found plenty of documentation regarding the caculations for lye, oils, fragrances and colorants. I have not found how they determine the amount of water for a recipe, besides just getting it from a calculator.

I feel like maybe i missed it somewhere. How do they determine the amount of water to be used (What is the calculation?)

Thank you in advance.

Amanda

Soapmakers use different strengths of lye depending on the oils or butters used. Full water amount works better if you are working with fragrances that tend to accelerate trace. The highest ratio I work with is 40% lye, 60% water. That's only for castile soap.

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

If you go to the lye calculator (soapcalc.net is the one I use) you will see a water % box in the top section. If left alone, it is set at 38% as a default (if I recall correctly). But, if you want a different amount, you can change it and it will provide the amount of water needed for your recipe. I generally use 38% as my highest amount of water for a regular recipe, and 50% for a Castile batch. But for most recipes,most of the time, I usually do a 2:1 ratio, in other words, I use 2x more water than lye. I would not recommend this rate until you have worked with soap a lot and become comfortable with your recipe, as it can accelerate trace.

In fact, I think that you should stick to full strength water until you have several batches under your belt, because it makes it a bit easier to blend in additives, colorants and to practice different decorative techniques. When you are confident in your techniques, begin to change the water percentage (by small amounts) and see how it works with your recipe. Eventually you will hit upon the percentage that works best for you, the one that allows you enough time, but not too much time. Again, this is a place notes come in very handy.

I think most of us up our water percentage when we are attempting new swirls or complicated colorings, but the "usual" water % will vary with each Soaper, and with the recipe. Enjoy the journey!

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

Tammy

I checked with a couple books I have:
One gives Weight in oz. x 0.375 (2 lbs. of soap) 32 oz. x .375 = 12 oz.
Another book calls for 6 oz. per pound of oils. 2 lbs. oils x 6 oz. = 12
This, of course, is full water amounts - no discount.
Hope this helps
Kathyt

Thanks to everyone that replied. Is there a downside to using the full water amount? I was planning to let my soap cure 6weeks anyway....

Full water works the best if you are just starting out, for recipes that accelerate trace or for those pesky fragrances that really want to speed things up.

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