Guest guest Posted March 22, 2006 Report Share Posted March 22, 2006 There are two kinds of lye used, Potassium Hydroxide (KOH) which is used to make liquid soap, and Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) which is used to make bar soap. If your source only sells one kind, the chances are it's the kind you need. KOH is harder to get. I'd ask them though. Fresh milk is the only milk I use in soap. When making milk soaps, I replace all of the water with the milk. I measure out the amount of milk I'll need, and freeze it in ice cube trays. Place the frozen cubes in a container with plenty of room, then add your lye. The milk will melt as you stir. This keeps the lye solution from getting too hot. You don't want your oils hot either, warm is ok (it just may take a little longer to come to trace). As soon as I add the soap to the molds, I put them in the refrigerator. The soap doesn't have to gel. These steps keep the soap color nice and light. Diane www.GreenFireHerbs.com " Never say 'can't' when there's a 'How About This' still to be tried! " PAIGE ROBINSON wrote: > Hello Everyone! > > We are just getting set up to begin making soap and we have two > ingredient questions for anyone that would care to answer. We will be > making cold process milk soap and need to know if there is a specific > kind of lye to use. We have only a single source available locally and > only a large quantity can be purchased and it is industrial quality. > Does this make a difference? Shipping seems to be a problem if > purchasing elsewhere since I can not seem to have anyone that will ship > any in to me. We are located in Hawaii. The second question is that we > are using fresh milk in the soaps rather than the standard powdered > form. How do I handle the fresh milk for the soap? > > Thank You for everyone's time. You can respond privately if you would > like. > > Ellen > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 23, 2006 Report Share Posted March 23, 2006 As long as you are useing sodium hydroxide you should be fine, whether industrial grade, pharmacy grade, or plumbing grade. I have used the Red Devil Lye Crystals for drains, and am currently useing an industrial grade bead type that I purchase in 50lb. bags (at a dollar a pound!!!), both have done equally well for me. As to the soap question, I personally can't respond except as I've read online and in several different soapmaking books. It is recommended that you have your milk in a slushy to frozen state as your water ingredient, then add your lye slowly, stirring quickly to try to prevent turning the milk orange to brown. The heating action of the lye can burn your milk, so try small batches till you get it down. This is the main reason people prefer the dry as an additive instead of as a major ingredient. Are you useing cow or goat's milk? Is it raw or pasteurized? I've read that both perform well as a soap ingredient, with raw being the preferred product. Again, please experiment with small batches and the more generic oils such as canola, coconut, olive, whatever is prevelant in your area before you go whole hog, expensive ingredients, it will save you money and heartache down the road. Happy Soaping!!! Donna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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