How to Masterbatch your Lye Water
Vložit
- čas přidán 16. 02. 2023
- Join us as we masterbatch our lye water! We mix up our lye as a 50/50 lye water solution, add it to our lye tank, and then draw from the tank for all our soap batches. We use ice to reduce fumes substantially (pretty much zero fumes!) and it keeps the lye-water cooler, which is safer. Mixing lye water ahead of time makes the soapmaking process so much easier because our lye water is always ready to go! You don't need a tank to do this, as long as you have a lye-safe container with a good lid. We've been making our lye this way for years and highly recommend it.
This was the first video we recorded (although the second video we've published), so it's not super pro. Ha! We were winging it and we're new at editing, but we hope you find it helpful.
Happy Soapmaking!
Simi & Troy
(Note: below we include some affiliate links, which will pay us a small commission if you purchase, but the price is the same for you. I promise I will never link to a product I do not use myself. These are the exact products used in our videos!)
See more supplies from this video in my Amazon shop:
www.amazon.com/shop/muddymint
Order my natural soapmaking book on Amazon here:
amzn.to/3uIOFN0
Get our original all-natural and palm oil free soap recipes here:
muddymint.com/collections/ori...
Twelve Quart Square Bucket: amzn.to/3RX003q
Safety Glasses: amzn.to/3J4NVXI
Face Shield: amzn.to/3YIHQo4
Lye Container (if you don't have a lye tank): amzn.to/3E1O6ja
Long Spoon (to stir your lye-water in the container linked above): amzn.to/3YKX4sQ
Spatulas (our favorite shape & length): amzn.to/3WqHvFc
Big Stick Blender: KitchenAid KHBC312OB 300 Series 12" Two-Speed Immersion Blender from Webstaurant
Lye Tank: 20 Gallon Lye Tank (with heating element) from Soap Equipment
Large Scale: 13 Gallon Tank Scale from Soap Equipment
Large Scoop: I don't remember! I'll have to ask Troy
Sodium Hydroxide (lye): I like Duda Diesel for lye, but this pallet of 50 lb bags was purchased from Bulk Apothecary - Jak na to + styl
Love your videos, you might what to get ahold of your sodium hydroxide Vendor and ask them if they can provide you a premade 50-50 lye solution in a drum. That way all you can pump it in to your lye tank. That way you no longer have to do this step. This was the next game changer for me. And it is safer.
YES!! The thought has crossed my mind before, but after watching your latest video, we definitely put it on our list to look into it! So happy to see your comments today!
Oh my goodness. I might skip over the ice method entirely then and go straight to premade. Great tip! Appreciate you gals sharing your process immensely.
I BET THIS SAVES ALOT OF TIME.
Absolutely!!
Thanks so much for doing this you guys- we love your videos! This 50/50 method is awesome and seems like the the very best way to do this!
50/50 lye water is fantastic! I hope you are able to give it a try! :)
Thank you!
Love your workshop!
Thank you so much for watching! :)
This is a well done master plan. Me encanto, felicidades en su canal. 🎉
Thank you, Troy and Simi for another great upload and for sharing with us all🥰
Aww.. thanks so much for watching! :)
This was great! Thanks guys! Keep them coming. 😊
Thanks for watching! We’ve got more videos on the way… 😊
Thank you so much for sharing! Very helpful 😊
Thanks for watching! 😊
That was great. Looking forward to more in the future.
Thanks for watching! :)
Thank you for the video and the helpful tips!
Thanks for watching! ❤️
Thank you very much for your amazing video nr 1. I loved watching and hope to see more of you great people !
Thanks for watching! ❤️
Thank you, this has been a game changer in my soapmaking as I'm growing
Absolutely! It changes everything!
You guys are great together. Have loved watching your videos- so helpful. Never knew there were lye tanks!
Thanks you! Glad it was helpful! ❤️
This was awesome!!!!
Thank you!!
Great job guys!
Thank you! :)
I ADORE you two. Absolute, lovely, humans.
Aww… such a sweet comment! Thank you!! ❤️❤️😍
It's good to see you use regular bagged ICE for the lye water, I have been using filtered ice water for Lye for years with no problems, so many old wives tales / mis information in the soap making community, in particular regarding using distilled water only, you guys run a decent sized operation using bagged ice obviously with no side effects 👍👍👍👍, looking forward to seeing more content from your channel.
Yep! Absolutely no issues with bagged ice. It's nice to hear from others that regularly use ice too! I think ice is typically filtered or purified, so I believe it is better than tap water, in general, for soapmaking. Thanks for watching!
I found your video soooooo very helpful. Thank you for sharing and helping others learn this wonderful craft.
Thank you so much!! ❤️
Well done!!! I never thought to stick blend my lye. I'll have to give it a go!
It works great, especially with ice! You just have to be really careful. We also stick blend our lye water when we use indigo in it and sea salt.
Thank you❤❤❤
Thank you. I have mixed lye using ice and the fumes are definitely reduced.
So glad to hear it! Thanks for watching!
Really enjoy your video. Looking forward to watching your soap journey. I love the Soap Gal too. She is just a wonderful sharing person.
Thank you so much! Soap Gal is amazing. I've learned SO much from her!
Superb💝
Amazing and very helpful video. You both are cool and humble.
Thank you so much! :)
Thank you for sharing! Troy you are a hard working man! Hard job, and risky🤗🤗🤗🌻💚 thumps up for both of you 👏👏
Yep, it's great to have Troy around to do this part! It's definitely not his favorite thing to do, but he keeps that lye tank full for us!
you guys are so lovely. i've never seen lye master batching but really would love to incorporate the idea into my business as it grows. thanks for sharing :)
It’s really been integral to our growth. Thank you for watching and I’m glad it was helpful!
Thank you so much for posting this! I am just to the point of needing to get a lye tank and this was really helpful! I will definitely forward this to my husband , I’m hoping he will take over lye making duties too! 😂
You’re welcome! So glad it was helpful. Yeah, I haven’t mixed lye in over two years. I definitely feel spoiled! 😂
Great video! Thanks for sharing this 🇨🇦👍
Thanks!! :)
I loved! Newbie in this process, follower on Instagram and now on this channel as well. Any and all tips are welcome! Looking forward to the next videos. Congratulations on the factory!!! From Brasil
So happy you loved it and thank you for the follow! :)
Thanks guys, loved your first video. I hope to be doing up big batches of lye one day in a purpose built soap shed too. Goals right there.
Sounds like a great goal! For me, master batching lye was a game changer. I absolutely hated making my lye from scratch every time I had to make soap! Good luck!
Thanks for sharing. Great job on your 1st video . . . Very well done. I masterbatch my lye also, but in a small amount.
Thank you! We did smaller amounts for years. Definitely makes a big difference, even on a smaller scale.
Love it! Subscribed and ready to see more!
That’s awesome! Thanks Patti! :)
Thank you for this. I am planning on buying a lye tank and starting to masterbatch this year so this was much needed. Very informative!
So glad to hear that! A lye tank was a game-changer for our business. Good luck!
Gracias por compartir esta técnica
You’re welcome!
Enjoyed the video!
Thank you! Glad to hear it! :)
Great idea💡 I’ve never thought of using ice to make lye water. Please keep sharing your genius ideas❤
Thanks! Yeah, it’s not something people talk about much!
I am a newbie to soap making and I am really liked you twos soap business. Thanks for sharing how to make soap. I have subscribed n like your videos. Keep it up.
Thank you!! I appreciate you watching and subscribing! ❤️
I just discovered you yesterday, on the video with the mint soap making. Brilliant couple, very professional setting, very serious content, I like all this so much. I am barely following someone in this filed, but I am following you, no doubt about that. As Pharmacist, I can say, very nice clean, neat and safety protocols followed as it should be. Space is very well organized and you seems like very serious people, not desperate housewife's from the basement kitchen. Very looking as manufacturing facility, although is not, this is very rare to see indeed. As skin expert, I can notice that your products in your web site, are pretty good, never try anything from you, but the way of carrying yourself while processing the product, speaks a lot to me. Thanks a lot for your channel, appreciated, all the best!
Thank you so much for watching, for following, and for your incredibly kind comment! We're definitely serious about our soapmaking, but try to have fun too. :) We're fortunate to have a production space so we can spread out and we have good processes in place as well. Thanks for noticing!
Great video very informative
Thanks!
Ingenious 😊
It’s magic! 😂
I did enjoy your video. I hope to see much more from you.
We'll have more for sure! :)
Awesome video!
So happy you liked it! 😊
Love it. You demystified lye and ice making me confident to use this method (with ice made from tea infusions of my botanicals)
So happy to hear that the video helped! Using ice made with tea infusions sounds amazing!
You guys are adorable!
Aww, thanks! ❤️
Hey from the UK, loved the video😊
Hey, thanks!
Thank you for sharing 💚💚💚
Thanks for watching! ❤️
Seeing these amounts of Lye and soaps as a hobbyist, is a litten bit overwhelming😂. It Was interesting and I learned a lot. Thank you and greetings from Austria
Haha! Yes, I can see that. We’ll be making smaller batches in future videos. For now we’re simply recording our process, which happens to look like this! :)
This is great to habe a look into a Business! Thumbs up
I really enjoyed this video! Thanks for sharing your process. Using ice to make the lye solution would help so much, but I have always followed the distilled water rule. I'll have to give it a try!
Give it a try and let us know what you think! 😊
So nice to meet you guys. Welcome.....
Thank you! Thanks for watching. :)
So nice to see you both on You Tube! Whatever did you do before Troy?? That giant bag of lye scares me.
So you just use ice from the store and don't worry about it being distilled water?
Thank you for making this video!
This is a great question and something we were worried about! We had always used distilled water to make our soap and were very nervous about using ice from the store. We could make our own distilled water ice cubes, but obviously that wouldn't be a good solution for the volume of lye we're making. We tried looking for purified ice (apparently Costco might have it?), but then we ended up just going to the closest store and just buying ice and giving it a go! Ice is regulated by the FDA since it is consumed via being in drinks, so I think it is often made with purified water. Apparently if the ice is clear, it is likely made with purified water. At the end of the day, we just went for it and we've been doing it this way for about two years with no issues whatsoever.
For the bag of lye, you could scoop it out, rather than pour it out if you're nervous. You can also just buy it in 50 lb buckets rather than in bags. We did the math and purchasing it in bags didn't actually save us that much money per bar of soap (I think it was a 6 cent difference per bar...), so I'd just get it in a bucket if you're nervous about the bag.
Thanks for watching!
Simi and Troy ...... Another great and interesting video! We loved it! And just like the last one.... nice editing!
🙂
Thank you so much! Glad you enjoyed it! :)
@@muddymintsoap we were re-watching this video this morning and had a question or two. Anytime we have made soap we used distilled water to make our ice for the lye water. Is distilled water not necessary? Does it matter? Also that is a cool lye tank. Is it steel that is insulated? Can you recommend a company that sells those types of tanks? In case I haven't said it already ..... cant wait for your book! Stay dry today .... it's a rainy Colorado day! 🙃
Happy to help! We actually did a follow up video to this one that should come out soon with lots of answers to these questions. So, I was also nervous about using ice rather than distilled water, but it seems like most ice is made with purified water (or the freezing process maybe helps purify it?), so we haven't had any issues with using non-distilled water/ice. We've been doing it for over 2 years now without any issues!
The lye tank is from soapequipment.com, but they also have them at discountsoapequipment.com which I might recommend a bit more (we have other equipment from them and it seems to be slightly higher quality). It sounds like the same company, but it's not. :) The tank is stainless steel, but it doesn't have a water jacket. It has a heating element at the bottom and we added the insulating jacket around it. I hope that helps!
@@muddymintsoap Thank you so much Simi! You're always so helpful! Cant wait for your followup video too! And hey can you send some of the hail ya all been gettin this way? Us body shop owners like it a much as the roofers! 😉😉😉
@@thedeubachs6280 You're welcome! I'm so happy that the videos are helpful! I wouldn't wish the hail on anyone though... such a pain and some of what we got was actually scary and people got hurt!
Uyyyyy no sabía que utilizaban la misma cantidad de soda y de agua 😮. Sorprendida
Remember that we add MORE water (or other liquid) to our soap when we make it. :)
Cool video!!
Do you cover your soap after pouring?
I like your thought process. Keeping the temps down I bet also preserves more of the essential oil scent!!
Thank you! Nope, we don’t cover our soaps. :)
Just stumbled upon your channel. Ive enjoyed the videos. I was sad to hear you would be closing. But glad you all decided to pivot. You mentioned possibly doing a class. I’ve watched a bunch of soap making videos. But none really address the business side of soap making. How to start the selling, where to sell, business set up and marketing? How/when did you decide to upscale.? I would like to see something like that. I was so inspired I purchased a few of your recipes and cannot wait to try them. Im a beginner. Lots of luck on this new chapter.
We are really itching to get back to CZcams (we're focusing on getting moved out of our space at the moment) but addressing business questions like this is at the top of our list! These are all great questions. Thanks for purchasing our recipes! I hope you enjoy making them! :)
I didn’t see the link for the plastic containers on Amazon. Thank you for sharing💙
Are you referring to the plastic containers to use if you don't have a lye tank? That link is: amzn.to/3E1O6ja. Let me know if you're looking for something different!
How I like your volumes of lye and soap. I hope to be like you someday
Thanks! Keep at it! It only took us seven years. Haha!
Thank you so much for sharing the master batching. I would like to know how you measure lye while preparing soap as some water must be evaporated during heating and all process? Do you add extra additives to account for water loss due to heat and evaporation?
Hi there! Thanks for watching. We use our 50/50 lye water solution, plus additional water (or other liquid) in our soap batch. So, we do have additional liquid in our soap. This tank is meant to hold a 50/50 lye water solution, so it helps prevent water loss due to evaporation.
I loved your first video! It gives me courage to do mine, haven’t done it yet but I will soon. BTW! Where can I find a lye container like you guys have?
Hi there and thank you!! We use HDPE plastic (High Density PolyEthylene) containers to mix our lye water. We actually have links to some great containers in the comments and in our Amazon shop, if you’re interested. I hope that helps!
Thank you so much, I wondered how to make large batches. Yes, very helpful. Thanks so very much. So you have a website to sell your soap products?
Hi! Thank you! Yes, we do. We are at muddymint.com 🥰
Thank you. The 2 2 of you look Great Team.
My question:
Does your NAOH precipitate when your store your lye?
I will be glad if you respond
Hi there and thank you! I'm not sure what you mean by "precipitate"... we do not have any issues with storing our lye-water in the tank. The lye-water can get a little foamy in the tank, but it doesn't affect the performance of the lye-water in our soap. I hope this helps!
Thanks for the video and sharing your technique. Is the ice you are using from distilled water? Was wondering if that had an effect on the lye solution, if any.
Hi and thanks for watching! I've answered this a few times in the comments, but no, it is not distilled. However, we haven't had any issues and we've been making many batches of soap this way for 2+ years. :)
Thank you! Great and informative video. Am I to understand that your 50-50 pre mix lye solution equates to what would also be called a 50% water discount? Just double checking am on the same page. Thank you for sharing and I look forward to seeing you both again!
-Momo, Denver
Hi! Sort off… we actually add more water (or other liquid) to our oils, so our water to lye ratio is 2:1. Thanks so much for watching! 😊
How do you adjust the 50/50 lye solution for the different recipes? Thanks for the great video 😊
Great question! I’ve replied to this a few times in the comments, if you want to look around, but we’re also coming out with a video soon that explains it all in excruciating detail (it’s a long video!). 😂
I love the beginning of this video.😂😂
Haha! Thanks!
Hi there. Thank you so much for sharing the information. Where do they sell lye in that quantity? Thank you
Hi! You can get 50 lb bags of lye online from Duda Diesel and Bulk Apothecary, or locally too! These were purchased from Bulk Apothecary on a pallet with 40 bags.
Keep them coming, I’ve been on hiatus also! Did you see that Soap Gal is going live tomorrow?!! ♥️♥️
Thank you! I was just about to watch Soap Gal's video!!
Love watching this process. I use the heat transfer method, so I wish I could do all this! What’s the square footage of your space? Looks great!
Hey Hilary! Thanks for watching! Heat transfer method is great for smaller batches. I have yet to actually do it! We've been using 50/50 lye for quite a long time, so never had the opportunity. We have a 1500 sq ft space that we rent out. :)
@@muddymintsoap Hello! Thanks for getting back to me on the size of your space. That sounds like a great size work space. I’ll have to try the 50/50 method some time. Thanks!
How big is your typical batch?
Hi Hilary! Sorry, just seeing this... our batch size is 67.5 lbs and we typically make 2 batches per day (more during the busy season!).
Waiting for your next video.
Just wanted to check, do you also filter the lye before use?
And, how often do you need to clean the lye tank and oil tanks??
Hi there! Yes, we send the lye through a strainer while we pour it out of the tank. We don't clean the tanks very often, as they don't really need it (plus, they're always full!). Troy does clean the spout of our lye tank pretty frequently, as it can start to accumulate some crystalized lye and clog up a little. We weren't able to record our vide last week, so you'll have to wait a little longer! I may do a quick blog post about how to use the 50/50 lye water in the meantime. Thanks for watching!
Thank you from sharing! Now just wondering if you masterbatch your lye and your oils as well to work at room temperature? I'm working on this technique at the moment and going really well!
We try to soap between 80-100 degrees Fahrenheit. My favorite temperature is right around 90 degrees. We master batch our lye mainly to have it on hand and ready to go (we usually warm it up to about 90) and we also do this because we use a lot of alternative liquids in our soaps. We have 80% of our oils masterbatched and then we add another 20% of varying oils depending on the recipe. :)
Keep going! I'm a smaller maker and just started a youtube, too! I'm not sure if your scale is where I want to be. But your shop looks amazing. Keep bringing more videos! I really enjoy your vibe! Thank you!
Thanks so much for stopping by! I definitely miss making small batches sometimes. I'm writing a book right now and getting back to small batches has been so fun! Really appreciate your kind words - thank you!
It finally became clear the next day. It's not what wanted since now it's at 32% water lye ratio but I'll be happy to experiment. My next batch is with instant coffee.
That's great! Good luck!
Thank you for what you all do. You're a good teacher
It’s truly a game changer the 50/50 lye water , my question is how would I know how much more water to add in one recipe of soap. ? And also does it really necessary to warm the 50/50 lye water before mixing it into the oils ? Thank you so much for the video. Hoping you answer my ?? Good day
Hi there! We'll be doing a video on this (hopefully soon!) to explain the water amount, but basically, if you need 10 oz of lye, you'd pour out 20 oz of the lye-water solution. The 20 oz contains 10 oz of lye and 10 oz of water. If your recipe calls for 18 oz of water, you just need to add 8 more ounces. Make sense?
We never used to heat up our lye-water, but we actually started running into issues with our butters solidifying from soaping too cool. We use a lot of butters in our soaps, but if you're only using soft oils, you may not need to warm up your lye water.
I hope this helps! Thanks so much for watching! :)
Video yang sangat bagus...❤
Salam kenal dari Indonesia🤝❤
Hi from Colorado, USA! Thanks for watching!
Nice video I follow your instargam nice to see you in youtube. A question with this amount of lye you do not need to reheat your lye solution?
Hi and thank you! Our lye tank has a heater, so we do warm up our lye before using it.
When you tipped the lye from the bag into the bucket, were you measuring it at that point, or did we just not see you measuring it? Thanks for the video! 😊
Hi there! When Troy first tips the bag into the bucket, that's just to be able to handle the lye more easily, since the bag is floppy and hard to scoop out of. So, he did not weigh anything out at that point. He did weigh the lye when adding it to the bucket with the ice, however, as you want to be sure that your ice and your lye weigh the exact same amount to make a 50/50 lye water solution. I hope this answers your question! :)
Do you use the heating element in the lye tank? If so, why? Or is it basically a holding tank? Y’all are awesome!
Yes! We use the heating element. You just have to make sure it's covered up. After you make a batch of lye, you can actually soap right away as the temperature is usually good, which is nice. Typically we heat our lye water to 90-95 degrees.
@@muddymintsoap I usually measure my oils and make my lye the day before I soap so I’m not sure I would need a heating element to soap at room temperature. It wouldn’t hurt to have it a little warmer, especially in the winter though. Thank you!!
I didn't realize those ice cubes are distilled water or are they demineralized water? I really love to make soap, but I don't like dealing with the lye and fifty pound bags would definitely make me nervous!!
Thanks for sharing!
Hi! The ice cubes are not distilled. I believe a lot of ice is made with purified water, but I'm not totally sure on that. I do know that it's considered a "food" and regulated by the FDA. What I DO know is that we haven't had any issues with our soap when using ice and it was something I was concerned about at first.
The 50 lb bags definitely aren't for everybody. You can also get the 50 lb pails (which we poured the bag into) and they are much easier to handle, so I'd recommend that if you're not comfortable with bags.
I know life is crazy right now, so totally understand if you can't respond... but thought I'd ask anyway :)
I finally did a trial of 50/50 lye solution. When I went to use it today, it was quite thick feeling and seemed like there was a significant layer on the bottom (I'm guessing it was lye that had settled?). I gave it a good stir then measured what I needed and added the extra water. It was still so cloudy I had to stir quite a bit and let it sit for a good 30-60 minutes, stirring occasionally, before it felt clear enough to use, as I feel like clear means well dissolved lye.
So, with all the stirring I had to do and the time waiting for it to clear up, it kind of felt like pre-making the solution just complicated matters. And I'm not feeling 100% certain my lye solution was concentrated enough as maybe some lye was still settled on the bottom of my 50/50 container. Do you have any experience with these issues that you could bring some perspective to?
Sorry for the novel 🙃 Thank you Simi!
Hmmm.... that's odd. 50/50 lye water is thicker (more viscous) than normal, so that's to be expected, however, there shouldn't be a layer on the bottom. That's probably lye that is settling on the bottom due to it not being mixed enough when it was made... maybe? You really need to make sure you mix a ton when you originally make it, but a bit of cloudiness and thickness is normal for a more concentrated lye water solution. When you used it, did your soap turn out okay in the end? Maybe the lye-water was too cool and that's why it was an issue? You can warm it up a little in a warm water bath. It should definitely make your work easier rather than harder! Give it another go if you can. Just make sure to mix the lye water thoroughly when you initially make it and give it a good stir (and potential warm up) when you use it. I hope this helps!
I really appreciate you sharing your video about masterbatching. I enjoyed watching it and look forward to seeing more from you! In relation to Jessica Pillips' question, I was wondering what the temperature of the lye would be when you soap if you don't use the heating element that comes with the tank? If using the lye at room temperature, do you play with the lye and oil temperatures, for example; soaping with oils at 110degrees and lye at 70degrees (room temp.)? I've wanted to try masterbatching but that little detail always throws me off.
Great question! We actually DO use the heating element in the lye tank. What I was saying in the video is that you should never turn on your lye tank when the heating element is exposed, like you saw in the video. It will create nasty fumes and is quite dangerous. As long as the heating element is covered up with your lye water, you're good to heat it up. We heat our lye up between 90-100 degrees and have our oils around the same range. My favorite temperature to soap at is between 90-95.
Early on, I used to batch my lye in containers and didn't heat it up and we actually ran into issues with lye that is too cool. What can happen is that the cool lye can cause issues with any butters that you have in your recipe. If you use a recipe with only soft oils, it might be fine, but we were getting solidified butters in our batches which caused the soap to look really bad. You can also get false trace. Took us a while to figure that out, but the cool lye was the culprit. I think if your lye is 80 degrees F or higher, you should be good. I like to keep my oils within 10 degrees of that, but have soaped at a wider range many times without issues. Hope that helps!
Thanks so much, it seems much more convenient to measure and pour the lye solution since the concentration is measured out to your recipe.
I myself soap at 90 to 100 degrees, depending on the temperature indoors. I hope to streamline my process, and this video has been a huge help.
Thank you for a lovely video. I had a question though- whenever we run a recipe through soapcalc it gives us the weight of the solid lye and water separately. So how do we know how much lye water to put in from this? I use a 25% water to oil ratio.
Hi there! Luckily we have a whole video explaining this. You can find it here: czcams.com/video/ZBKufXcQYmk/video.html. I hope it helps!
@@muddymintsoap thank you! I just purchased your book too! I'm loving it so far :)
Thank you!! :)
Brilliant idea to make that amount of lye. If you use a fifty fifty lye solution how much lye do you use per pound of soap?
Thank you! We definitely want to do a video on how to use the 50/50 lye solution. It’s just simple math and I explained on another comment here earlier…
Thank eso much for showing your method.
Question, why the lye water need to be heat up?
I just bought your recipe ☺️ I’m so excited to try it.
Hi Magliz! If your lye water is too cool, it can sometimes cause issues, particularly with recipes that contain butters, since butters have a high melting point. We've had issues when our lye was under 80 degrees Fahrenheit. We typically warm up our lye in the tank (which is what the tank is designed for!) to about 95 degrees F. Our oils are also at about 95 F. Ideally, we like to keep them within 10 degrees of each other. I'm pretty happy if the oils and lye are both between 85-105 degrees. :)
Oh, hooray! Thank you so much! We hope you enjoy it! :)
Hi 👋 new to the @MuddyMint channel! Curious about using ice for smaller scale soap making. I see this is time and resource efficient for a business. But I'd like to try it for small volume soapmaking. How do i determine the ice-lye ratio?
Hi there! Welcome to the channel! Yes, you can absolutely use it for smaller batches. It's a great idea as it doesn't generate any fumes and your lye water cools down much more quickly. You can replace your full water amount with ice. Just weigh out the ice the same way you would water and then start slowly adding your lye. The ratio depends on your recipe, of course... I hope that makes sense!
@@muddymintsoap Yes it does , thank you! ❤️ Might try with part aloe juice - part water (ice).
Is the residue of lye in the tank an issue? It looks like there are pieces that can break off. Do you stick blend in the tank, too? What about using a 20 gallon lye solution tank in a home setting? How best to control the lye dust when emptying the bag? How best to protect from drips from the tank? How best to protect pets and family (children & adults) who use the space when not making soap (I work out of my kitchen and garage)? How many pounds of lye solution does the tank hold (96+96=192 lbs or more)? How long would the lye solution be good? How long do you have the heat on to bring the temperature up to 90ish degrees? (I saw your follow up video, but it didn't answer these questions) Thank you!
Hi there! Thanks for watching our video. The residue you see on the sides of the lye tank are just foam and you don't need to worry about them. We do not stick blend in the lye tank. For a home setting, I recommend smaller containers, as shown in our "How to use a 50/50 lye water solution" video. You should never have children or pets around when mixing or using lye. When storing your solution, keep it out of reach of pets and children and make sure to mark your container to show what it contains (skull & crossbones is a good idea!). Our lye tank holds about 200 lbs of lye-water. The lye solution is good for a while in the tank. I'd say 3-6 months at least? We turn on the heat before making our soap and the amount of time we heat up our solution depends on a lot of things: how much lye water is currently in the tank, the temperature of the room, how recently it was used. You can measure the current temperature and warm it up for 10-15 minutes and check it again. After a while you get the hang of it. I hope that answers all your questions!
In what way is this ice (that melts to *water) distilled or sterile for soap making?
Hi! I've answered this a few times in the comments, but it was a concern of ours. However, we haven't had any issues since switching to ice instead of distilled water.
When you were at the store I was thinking oh, I should share about the countertop ice machine. 🤣 Then I realized just how much of a batch you make at a time! I normally do 900g in a industrial size mayonnaise container with a handle. I'm doing a concentration of about 35% with half the liquid weight as ice. I'm getting ready to start using a second to double my run size. Now I didn't know you could use 100% ice 🤔 I might have to pay a visit to the ice vending machine in town. It's less expensive than going to Walmart here. The lye tank is something I might have to look into if I get big enough. I already use one for my oils.
Nice! A countertop ice machine seems like a great idea! Yeah, we use quite a bit of ice and refill this about once a week, so it's just a lot easier to go buy ice. Haha!
@@muddymintsoap In that quantity it sure is!! I tried using 100% ice for a lye water batch last night. Much cooler and no fumes at all. I think I have a new method!
Nice!
❤❤
Great video ! I noticed that your lye tank had dry lye in it. How do you know what the lye concentration is after adding your new batch? Is the saturation point 1:1?
Hi! There's no dry lye in the lye tank. There was a bit of leftover lye water at the bottom and on the edges, a bit of a foam accumulates. And yes! Our lye water is mixed 1:1. That's the minimum amount needed to properly mix lye. Our lye-water ratio in our soap is 1:2. I hope that helps!
Great. I wondered about a 1:1. It makes it so easy.
Oh that makes sense! It also makes it easy to add other liquids in place of water if only a batch or two requires it. Instead of making a separate custom solution for a particular batch.
Just curious , we use distilled water so is it ice that is distilled?
Great question! We did answer this a couple of times in the comments, but we do not use distilled ice water. It doesn't seem to be readily available, so we just use ice (which is typically made with purified water, as it is considered a food so needs to meet certain standards). I was concerned about this at first, but we've been doing it this way for nearly 3 years and all is well so far! :)
Hello! I find masterbatching the lye solution so fascinating. That was really interesting! I certainly do not make that much soap like yall do, but just might try this on a smaller scale. I read through all the questions, so I see about adding the extra water and all that and I am looking forward to yalls next video too! One question I have that I didn't see asked (hopefully it wasn't and I missed it, I know it can be a little annoying getting asked the same questions over and over...🤣) Is the cure time the same for the soap? Like the 4-6 weeks time frame? Is using this type of solution meant to speed up the curing time as well? I have seen some videos and even heard where in 24-48 hours the soap is ready and can be ready to sell as well. I know in that time frame the soap is safe to use and all, but I didn't think it was a fully cured bar of soap and won't last as long. I see how this can increase production and one can sell more bars of soap, but I have always heard that you should cure your soap for at least 4 weeks. Love your videos and seeing you and Troy work together. Yall are so cute! 😊
This is a great question! We cure our soaps for 4 weeks with our 2:1 ratio for water to lye. We have also measured our cure time by weighing our soaps over time until the change in weight was negligible. Our soaps were mostly cured within 3 weeks (in our dry Colorado climate), but in my opinion, the longer the cure time, the better the soap. Of course, there's a happy place in there, as essential oils fade as time passes.
You can reduce cure time by reducing the amount of water in your recipe, as the majority of what's happening during the cure time is water evaporation. This can vary a lot depending on where you're curing your bars and your climate. As I said, we measured our cure time at 3 weeks, but we still do 4 weeks, as I feel the soap is better after a full four week cure. If you used even less water, you could reduce the cure time by a week or so. I highly recommend testing your soaps by weighing them regularly to figure out your cure time. It's a fun experiment and also helps with properly labeling the weight of your bars.
Kevin Dunn, who's a scientist and a soapmaker, has done a lot of fun scientific tests on cure time as well as many other soapy questions. He found that soap continues to harden and lose moisture for up to 60 days, even when a 50/50 lye water solution was used (see article here: cavemanchemistry.com/WaterDiscount-Dunn.pdf). While saponification is complete after 24-48 hours, that doesn't mean it's going to be a great bar of soap. I personally find soap to be drying after such a short cure time. So, I guess I recommend a 4 weeks cure (longer if you use more water) and I also recommend figuring out your own cure time! I hope this helps!
@@muddymintsoap That helps so much! Thanks for your response. I do cure mine for 4 weeks, but never did the weighing and I like that idea. I am going to start doing that. I am with you and feel that a bar of soap with a short cure time is drying to the skin and it doesn't last long either. I have bought your soaps before and they last forever! At least it seems like forever! 😆 Even the sample ones last pretty long so you and Troy are making really good bars of soap! It makes me kind of nervous to use even less water in the recipe to reduce cure time, so I do think sticking with the 4 week time frame and weighing the soaps is a really good thing. Thanks for the link to Kevin Dunn's article. How fascinating that is! I have always said that if I had known that I could turn butters and oils into a beautiful bar of soap, I would have paid so much more attention in chemistry class! 😂 Thanks again!
Haha! Yes, the chemistry is fascinating!! I'd love to hear the results of your cure time experiment. And thank you for the kind words about our soap! :)
Hi again @muddymint ...I don't see this question in the comments yet - but if the cost [and lack of space] prohibits getting a heating tank, how else can a tub of master batched lye be stored and for how long? Would heating the volume needed at the time I need to make soaps, be ok [meaning the stored solution is still good]? I'm trying to envision how I can safely do this, save some lye solution for another batch day and maintain the safety and integrity of the lye solution. Thanks in advance :)
Yes, excellent question! We did a follow up video to this one explaining how to make a smaller batch. Hopefully we can get it edited and out soon! You can store it in a lye-safe/heat-safe container with a lid (you don't have any evaporation to happen!). I did this for a long time and it worked great. I would keep my lye-water for 1-2 months without any issues. I simply poured out what I needed for my soap and I usually warmed the lye-water up in a water bath (never microwave or heat the lye-water directly!). I'd just boil some water and place my lye-water container in it and it just takes a few minutes to warm up. I explain this in more detail in the upcoming video, but hopefully that helps for now. :)
@@muddymintsoap Looking forward to the new vid!! 🤩
Do you keep the heating tank switched ON all the time??
No, we don't keep it on all the time. We turn it on every morning before making soap and turn it off once it gets to temperature. At that point, we can make soap all day and it stays at the right temperature. :)
Can I ask why you don't make it directly in the tank? It seems like it might be safer to put the ice in the empty tank (still weigh it of course) then pre weigh and add the NaOH to the ice in the tank?
Yes! Great question! There are two reasons why we don't do it that way. For one: the lye tank is high up, so we'd need to be on a ladder of some kind to mix our lye water. This feels less safe for us. Secondly, there's a heating element at the bottom of the tank that we're worried about bumping into when stick blending or stirring our lye water. We don't want it to get damaged during the making process.
@@muddymintsoap thanks you. I can totally see why now.
Question about your ratio of 50/50. Is there a reason why you don't add a little more water to the ratio to be on the safe side? Super interested as to why your ratio is 1:1 . Thank you
Hi there! We use a 2:1 water to lye ratio. The reason we use a 50/50 lye solution is for convenience (it’s always ready to go!) and because we use additional liquids that are not water. We use goat milk, coconut milk, aloe vera juice, coffee, carrot juice, and other liquids in our soaps, so this way we don’t have to mix those with the lye. We simply add those to the oils. So, the ratio ends up being 2:1 in the end with plenty of safety margin. You can also use water to do the same thing. Hope that makes sense!
@@muddymintsoap Thank you so much.Very helpful.
I’ve been looking online for a 50/50 lye and water solution and can’t find it. I see 50/50 with caustic soda, but not water. I’m afraid to try cold process unless I can find a solution like the one you received in the box from Makesy. But they don’t sell just the 50/50 solution and there’s no way I can afford $400-500 for a kit. Do you know where I might be able to purchase a premixed solution online?
You can actually purchase it from Makesy and it's one of the only places I've seen it, although you might be able to get it from a chemical supplier. Here's the link on Makesy: bit.ly/3vnbfeB. Just remember that the solution still requires you to be careful when using it, even though you don't have to mix it yourself. Good luck!
The solubility of NaOH at 25C (77F) is 1000g of NaOH per 1L of water, so this is the ideal temperature to make 1:1 ratio of this lye solution. A little bit warmer to be safe. If your temperature is lower, it will not dissolve it all.
Hmmm... interesting! The temperature does go up automatically due to the reaction, so this isn't something to be concerned about as 77F is quite low, right? Or maybe I'm misunderstanding. I appreciate your input! :)
@@muddymintsoap Yeah, I think you are good! From the video, after you mixed the solution still with ice, at first it was cloudy due to the NaOH particles still undissolved in cold water. As the temperature rises, more NaOH gets dissolved and the solution clears up.
@@astropgn Okay, yes, that makes sense. Thanks!
Why didnt u tell me you started a Utube channel? YAY!!
Haha! Because I have no idea who you are! :)
One question the ice you buy is it distilled water over here I don’t think it is??
I should have read others comments you answered my question in someone else’s comment.
Yes, I answered elsewhere, but it turns out you can't find distilled ice (not that I could find anyway). The closest thing is probably purified ice, or you can make it yourself, I suppose. I watched a lot of other soapmakers and how they do it and nearly all large batch soapmakers just use regular ice, so we decided to try it and haven't had any issues at all. I believe ice is more purified than just regular tap water. We've been making our soap this way for nearly two years now and we make a lot of soap!
@@muddymintsoap that is wonderful for people like you. Thanks for responding despite me finding the answer elsewhere. Ijust make at home
Are the bags of ice from distilled water or is it another safer method?
Hi! I explain this in detail in other comments, but this is just regular ice (not from distilled water). We've been making soap this way for 3 years and haven't had any issues at all! Ice is purified, as it's considered a food, so it probably contains less minerals than tap water.
@@muddymintsoap Thanks for replying! I found the answer after I made the comment 😄.
When master batching how do u calculate how much of the already made batch to use in your recipe?
Great question! We're actually going to do a video on this next, but the basic premise is this: when you pour out your 50/50 lye solution, you know exactly how much lye and water you have. For instance, if you pour out 10 oz of the solution, you have 5 oz of lye and 5 oz of water in there. If you pour out 15 oz of the solution, you have 7.5 oz of lye and 7.5 oz of water. So, what you need to do is check how much lye your recipe calls for and double that number. Pour that out of the 50/50 lye tank. For example, if your recipe calls for 8 oz of lye, you want to get 16 oz of the 50/50 solution. So, you'll have your 8 oz of lye and you'll also have 8 oz of water. If you need 16 oz of water for your recipe, you need to ADD 8 MORE ounces of water to your batch. You can either add it to the 50/50 lye solution (which will heat it up, btw) or you can add it to your oils (this is what we do). And guess what? You can add ANY other liquid (not just water!). It makes adding milk extremely easy, for instance. It all sounds complicated, but it's really easy once you get it. Hopefully our next video can explain this better. Thanks!
@@muddymintsoap thank u so much!
Thanks took a while to find the answer but it was well worth it. I make up lye in several batches according to the soaps I make ( all labeled) then when i am doing making this soap I slightly warm the lye to the same temperature as the oils. You way I will be able to make a master batch then add the adjustment to it. I must sat this is brilliant.