Environment affects both the process of soap making, and the qualities of the soap you use. The temperature of your soaping environment affects the working time you’ll have with your soap batter. In warmer climates, hard oils (butters/fats) will be softer. In colder climates, these oils will harden more quickly because they are farther from their melting point. Soap suds and residue will vary in hard water vs softened water. So, the ingredients that are valuable in your favorite recipe may be different than the favored recipe in a different environment.
... links to recipe calculators (soapcalc, soapee)
... Explain emulsion & trace (link to I Dream in Soap video) – include pics with my definitions for thin/medium/thick; add a link from the Getting Started’s Making a Batch of Soap section
... Explain scaling recipes, Explain properties of oils, Discuss temperature (melting points, same temperature, room temperature, …) and lye concentration (and add a link to it from the Getting Started’s Making a Batch of Soap section)
How much soap fits in my mold?
Click here to calculate your mold volume
In addition to the oils, your mold volume includes the lye solution and any additives (e.g., fragrance oil).
For example, if your mold can hold 32oz, your total amount of oils must be less than 19-24oz (depending on superfat and lye solution concentration.
Why does the amount of oils depend on the superfat and the lye solution concentration?
The more concentrated your lye solution is, the less volume it consumes.
The amount of lye depends only on the amount and type of oils, whereas the amount of distilled water depends on the lye concentration desired.
Increasing the superfat decreases the amount of lye needed.
Increasing the superfat means increasing the amount of oil that will remain after all the lye has bonded.
If the superfat is too high, the soap will take a long time to harden; the remaining oils will make it squishy.
So, for the Lizard Lather Signature Recipe, if the superfat is maxed out at 20%, and the lye concentration is at its maximum of 50%. then only 19 oz of oils can be used in a 32 oz mold, because the amount of lye solution will add 10.6 oz (now at 19+10.6=29.6 oz), and some room is needed for fragrance oils and/or colorants. If the superfat is minimized at 1% and the lye solution is at minimal concentration (25%), then up to 24 oz can be used in a 32 oz mold, because the lye solution only adds 5.4 oz (now at 24+5.4=29.4 oz)
Long story short: once you"ve determined your mold volume, you will need to play with the numbers for amount of oil along with superfat and lye concentration to determine your recipe.
Why is such a warm temperature recommended for soaping?
Of the oils included in this recipe, lard has the highest melting point.
The melting point of lard can be as high as 113°F, meaning that lard must be heated up to 113°F in order to melt.
In order to mix properly, all of the oils must be melted when mixing.
Soaping above the highest melting point ensures the oils will mix properly.
Melting points of the oils in this recipe:
Why were these oils chosen?
Each oil has a set of qualities that contribute to the quality of the final bar of soap.
A good website for calculating lye solution values is soapcalc.net.
Recommended maximum for each oil in this recipe: