Making Liquid Soap

Making liquid soap can be a lot of fun, and it has an advantage over other kinds of soaps because it can be used immediately after being made, instead of having to harden and season like some other methods of soap making.

Making Liquid Soap: The Hot Process

The method used when making liquid soap is called hot process soap making as opposed to the usual cold process used to make most traditional soap or the melt and pour method that makes glycerin soap possible.

The hot process allows what is known as saponification to happen much more quickly than it does in cold process soap making. Saponification is a fancy word for the reaction between a fat and a chemical that makes soap happen.

In the case of hot process and making liquid soap, the chemical that is used is potassium hydroxide. Sodium hydroxide, also known as lye, is used in cold process soap making. The difference is that potassium hydroxide allows the finished soap to stay liquid even after it cools. You can buy potassium hydroxide from many companies that sell sodium hydroxide.

Other Supplies for Making Liquid Soap

The supplies for making liquid soap are much the same as those for cold-process soap making, with one major addition. To make hot-process soap, you need a double boiler that is large enough to hold your full batch of soap.

The inside part of the double boiler should be stainless steel, while the outside can be just about anything. Do not use aluminum products when making soap, as they will corrode when exposed to the chemicals.

Other materials you will need include:

• a five-gallon bucket with a pour-spout lid
• blankets or towels
• a stick blender
• a nylon spoon
• plastic, stainless steel or glass bowls for measuring materials
• a funnel
• rubber gloves, goggles and protective clothing
• a scale
• measuring cups

Recipes for Making Liquid Soap

Here are some places you can find recipes for making liquid soap:

• Snowdrift Farm
• Ponte Vedra Soap Shoppe
• Soap Delicatessen
• Essence Supply

Instructions for Making Liquid Soap

Depending on the ingredients called for in your particular recipe, the instructions for making liquid soap may be a little different, but the basic procedure is always the same. You start with distilled water in a pot, then add the potassium hydroxide. Insulate the pot with a towel because the mixture will get very hot and almost boil. Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, heat the oils to around 120 degrees. Your water mixture and your oil mixture should be the same temperature when you combine them. When they are the same temperature, add the oil to the water and mix for a couple of minutes with the stick blender.

Let rest for five minutes, then repeat. Let rest for 10 minutes and repeat the cycle again, continuing until trace occurs. This is when the soap gets thick and the surface holds droplets for a second when you drop soap down on it.

Your soap might look pretty strange at this point, but that’s OK, because now you put it in the top of your double boiler, filling the bottom with water to the same level as the soap is in the top pot. Heat the water to boiling and check regularly that the water level doesn’t drop. Stir the soap well every 15 minutes or so. You’ll see globs of soap and separated oil, but just keep mixing. After the first half hour you can stir less often, as it will take four to eight hours before the soap is ready.

You know it’s done when it is transparent and there is no liquid left. Make sure you stir really well, turning over the mixture from top to bottom so you are sure there is no liquid left.

This soap mass will then need to be diluted to use as liquid soap. Boil distilled water and put the soap mass in your bucket. Insulate the bucket completely, including the bottom, with towels or blankets. Add water, stir a little, put on the lid and let it sit.

You’ll want to stir once every hour or so for the first four to eight hours, then less often as the soap dilutes. It should be finished in two or three days. You know it’s done when it is all smooth. If the soap isn’t all dissolved in three days, add more boiling water.

Using Liquid Soap

Once this process is done you can bottle the liquid soap up in store-bought dispensers. Give it away as gifts or use in your home. Homemade liquid soap is much more natural than the stuff you get in the stores and can be much more gentle on your skin as well. It sounds like a very time-consuming process to make liquid soap, but once you have tried it you’ll be glad you did.