Making Liquid Soap

Now that you know how to make a bar of solid soap using the cold process of soap making, you may want to start exploring something new in this type of hobby, which will really give you a new challenge as well as a new delight the next time you shower. If you want to create liquid soap, then you may want to remember that this process is much more complicated and it will also take a lot of patience as well as a few changes in your soap making process.

However, if you follow the steps in making liquid soap carefully, you will find that it won't be too hard.

First of all, you have to know the difference between the bar soaps and the liquid soaps. Basically, it differs with the alkali used to saponify the oils. You need to keep in mind that all soaps, solid or liquid, starts with a chemical reaction between oils and an alkali solution. With bar soaps, you will use sodium hydroxide. However, if you are going to create liquid soaps, you will be using potassium hydroxide.

You need to remember that liquid soap is far more complicated to create than solid bars of soap. This is why you have to use a tried and tested recipe if you are a beginner. After you get the basics, you can start experimenting and even create your very own recipe of liquid soap that has a unique scent and properties.

You should keep in mind that another difference between making liquid soap and solid soap is the process. Making liquid soap is a hot process, which means that you will need to rely on heat using a double broiler instead of the heat produced by the saponification process. Try using a crock pot as it lets it cook evenly without having to monitor the water in the broiler.

The first step is to measure out your oils and put them in the crock pot that is set on low heat. Keep in mind that you want this mixture to be at about 160 degrees F.

While the oils are starting to heat up, mix your lye water solution. You need to keep in mind that potassium hydroxide is a bit more volatile than the sodium hydroxide, which you use on the cold process of soap making. When the lye-water is completely mixed and clear, slowly add it in to your oil and keep in mind that you don't have to wait until it is cool as you are making liquid soap.

After pouring the lye-water mixture in the oil mixture, the next step is to stir the oils and lye together. Then, you can start using the stick blender. At first, it will seem as if the oils and water-lye solution wants to separate. Just keep on blending them together up until it mixes.

Depending on the mixture of oils you use, it will take quite a long time to get to trace. It can even be as long as 30 minutes. When you have a good solid trace, then you can proceed to the next step.

The next step is another step where you will need patience. This is when you put the lid on the pot and also where you will start waiting. Check the soap in about 15 to 20 minutes and if you see any separation, stir them back up and put the lid back on. Keep checking every 20 to 30 minutes or so.

In the next 3 to 4 hours, you will see that the soap will transform and go through several stages. During the first stage, the soap will resemble a thick applesauce. Next would be cooked custard with small bubbles. Then you will see watery mashed potatoes. After that, you will see solid taffy-like substance. Then you will see a chunky or creamy Vaseline-like substance. The last stage would be a substance that resembles translucent Vaseline.

During the solid taffy stage, it would seem like impossible to stir. Just keep on stirring and after a while, it will slowly start becoming creamy and will eventually resemble translucent Vaseline.

The next step is to dilute the paste by adding boiling water to the soap paste. Stir with a spoon or potato masher. After this, you can turn the heat off and put the lid on and wait.

After an hour, the mixture should have softened and you need to stir it some more. Then, put the lid back on.

After the soap paste has dissolved in water, the next step is to neutralize the soap and also add your favorite fragrance. For this, you have to turn on the heat on the crock pot and bring the mixture back to 180 degrees.

In a separate container, you have to mix your neutralizing solution, which is borax or boric acid.

The rule of thumb in adding the neutralizer is by adding + oz for every pound of soap paste. If you have about 2.8 pounds of soap paste, you will need to add around 2 oz of the neutralizer solution.

Slowly pour the neutralizer in to the reheated soap mixture and stir well. It slowly until you see cloudiness in the reheated soap. After neutralizing the soap, the next step is to add the fragrance and color you desire.

After this, you can now pour the soap in to large bottles of jar and let it cool. During this phase, the insoluble particles will settle to the bottom and the milky layer will also settle. After it cools down, you will now be able to pour the soap in to its final bottles or tubes. Make sure that you leave behind the milky layer and the insoluble particles.

As you can see, making liquid soap is much more complex than making solid soap using the cold process. If you think that you are ready and you have a little time to spare, you may want to try making your very own liquid soap.