Soap Making forum?

Oct 04, 2019 12:49:32

Hi I'm thinking of getting into soap making to use up all the lard and tallow I get from harvesting my animals and ash from my woodstove. I thought I'd look and see what folks at permies.com have to say and I dont see a forum. Could one be created?
I think the topic is a permie one.

Thank you.

Oct 04, 2019 13:13:18

great idea.

One could be created.
But we need enough content to fill it first.
If we have 50 threads, plus a thread about the forum, and a volunteer moderator to take on the project, we can make the forum.

I think the first step is to find existing threads and post them here. Then start created threads about soap making until we get to 50. A good place to put the new threads is probably in purity: https://permies.com/c/purity

Right now, I'm focused on creating enough content for a photography forum (because the internet badly needs a nice place to talk about photography and video making). Here's an example of the process involved in building a new forum: https://permies.com/t/122621/Photography-forum-permies

Oct 04, 2019 19:43:12

I'll be your volunteer moderator. It's kinda a pet project for me, too, and I'd love permies to have our very own soap making forum!

Oct 04, 2019 20:06:20

Oct 04, 2019 20:21:33

10 - https://permies.com/t/124792/personal-care/purity/Making-shampoo-bars

11 - https://permies.com/t/116617/rancid-lard

Oct 04, 2019 23:41:50

This was my very first attempt at making soap. We made about a thousand bars. Go big or go home. :-)

I didn't use electricity to heat the oil. I set it in the sun until I thought the temperature was about right. Then when the lye was mixed with water, a double boiler was used, to heat the oil and cool the water. It was all mixed together without the benefit of a thermometer, which I could not find anywhere in the Philippines. I guess they already know it's hot there. Each store said the same thing, sorry out of stock.

Every batch of soap turned out great. I guess I'm pretty good at guessing temperatures.

Oct 05, 2019 08:37:28

I'm interested in making soap from ash and fat. Cooked on a rocket. Good info is needed on this. When i do it i will document it.

I watched many youtubes on using ash. Watching a 20 minute video to find out is was a "fail" was disheartening. I encountered this more than once. I finally found a success. I think the difference was cooking, cooking, cooking til done. Everyone else gave up to soon.

I think the concentration of the lye made from the ash is where it varies so much.

Oct 05, 2019 11:37:22

Check out African black soap. They mix the oil with the ash to get an abrasive bar.

Oct 09, 2019 08:38:48

Thanks Carla, Ive not lost interest either. But like you I too have been busy outside trying to get chores done before the S**W flies. (apologies for using a four letter word! )

Dale : A thousand bars! holy cow! Did you sell them? that sounds like several lifetime supplies! African Black soap sounds like a great way to clean dirty hands. Not sure I want to use in the shower though!

Oct 09, 2019 11:05:37

I just posted a thread over in Purity so we can get this soap forum going. It's on the Best Resources for Beginning Soapmakers. If you want to learn about the process, you might check out the thread--I've included a lot of good links.

Dec 15, 2019 19:44:30

12 - https://permies.com/t/131271/kitchen/Rendering-Fats
(It's in the cooking forum, but rendering your own fat is a huge boon to sustainable soap making, and it has been referenced, in the thread, in the OP, as one of the reasons she wants to know more.

Jun 11, 2020 09:42:17

wayne fajkus wrote:I'm interested in making soap from ash and fat. Cooked on a rocket. Good info is needed on this. When i do it i will document it.

I watched many youtubes on using ash. Watching a 20 minute video to find out is was a "fail" was disheartening. I encountered this more than once. I finally found a success. I think the difference was cooking, cooking, cooking til done. Everyone else gave up to soon.

I think the concentration of the lye made from the ash is where it varies so much.

Reliable lye from ashes:

A large amount of hardwood ashes for sodium hydroxide (making hard bars)
A large amount of softwood ashes for potassium hydroxide (making liquid soaps)

I’m talking about 20 Gallons of ashes for a small amount of water passed through it.

Then you make a “well” by digging a hole in the ashes and put in 2L of water
It’ll take a long time to come out and should be strong enough to make an actual soap. If not, pass the resulting liquid through it again.

Then, use that with oils for a better chance at making something successful

Jun 21, 2020 14:47:36

here is a thread for the soap making forum

My soap making experience

Not looking good. I think this might be the end. Wait! Is that a tiny ad?

montana community seeking 20 people who are gardeners or want to be gardeners

https://permies.com/t/359868/montana-community-seeking-people-gardeners