EspañolLast Updated on
This DIY liquid castile soap recipe is easy and inexpensive to make. It's a great multipurpose cleaner, perfect for both your body and around the house!
A couple of years ago, I showed you how easy it was to make a basic beginner soap, even if you've never done it before. I understand why making soap can sound intimidating, but once you give it a try, it can become very addicting. Seriously, not only is it a pretty thrifty hobby because you can make large batches that will last you a long time, but it's fun to be able to customize the soap to be exactly the way you want it and not depend upon what's on the market.
Even if you're just a beginner, it's easy enough to change up your soap by only using different essential oils, or exfoliants like poppy seeds, or other fun ingredients without having to do a lot of research into making a new viable recipe. As you get more experienced, you'll probably want to take things a step forward and make new recipes of your own and add in milk or pumpkin or spices and colorants. Once you learn how to use a soap calculator, that isn't really that difficult either.
But maybe, you'd just prefer something a little different?
A liquid soap perhaps?
I'll have to admit that I was making soap for a very long time before I started making liquid soaps and coming up with a DIY liquid castile soap recipe for you to try. There aren't as many resources available for making liquid soaps, so it's a bit of trial and error at first, but once you find a recipe that works out well, it's pretty simple to make. While it does take a little more time and effort than whipping up a batch of bars of soap, I think you'll find that it's well worth it, especially when you take a look at the price of a store bought liquid castile soap.
I want to call special attention to something. When making liquid soaps, you use KOH, potassium hydroxide, rather than NaOH, sodium hydroxide, the lye used in bar soaps like my easy, beginner soap.
What is castile soap?
Technically, Castile soap is a type of soap made with only olive oil, whose name originates here in Spain. (You can read more about the origin of Castile soap and other other soaps in my recipe for pure Castile bar soap.) Over the years, the definition of Castile soap has broadened to include other types of vegetable oils such as coconut oil. Dr. Bronner's Soap, which has probably become the most famous commercial liquid castile soap, even has a greater percentage of coconut oil than olive oil.
When it comes to making a homemade castile soap, though, I was a bit of a purist, and wanted it to be the real deal and made with only olive oil.
Why did I decide to make a pure, liquid castile soap?
The great thing about liquid soaps over bars of soap, is that it is very versatile and you can make several different types and then mix them to the perfect combination for you after having made them!
Soaps made with different oils have different properties.
Soaps made with olive oil, for example, tend to be more hydrating for your skin than soaps made with coconut oil. On the other hand, they don't lather up as much as a coconut oil soap, nor do they leave you feeling squeaky clean in the same way (partly because they are more hydrating). Pure coconut oil soaps tend to be great for cleaning around the house and for laundry. Pure olive oil soaps tend to be gentle on the skin and great for gentle body cleansing.
The ideal solution would really be to combine different oils when making your soap to get the qualities you want from the various oils you use. That's exactly what they did when they formulated Dr. Bronner's soap, and what I did when I showed you how to make a basic beginner soap using a combination of olive oil and coconut oil.
When you're making a bar of soap, you have to decide what combination you want to use from the very beginning, and your entire batch will have that very same combination.
With liquid soaps, though, you have the advantage of being able to combine your various soaps after the fact, making it easier to experiment with smaller combinations until you find the perfect soap for your need.
That's why I made a pure liquid castile soap, using only olive oil, and then later made a pure liquid coconut oil soap (recipe here) and I mix them together in differing quantities depending on how I want to use each soap.
The other great thing about making liquid soap is that, unlike with bar soap, you can also add in your additives like essential oils after the fact. This means that you don't have to divide your batch at trace and work quickly to mix in your different essential oils to each part before the soap sets up. I, instead, make a concentrated liquid soap base, and as I dilute it and mix it using soaps made with various oils, I also decide what essential oils I want to add. This gives me the freedom even months after having made my soap base, to play with fun combinations.
So have I convinced you to give it a shot?
I hope so!
Easy, beginner, DIY liquid castile soap from scratch!
Easy DIY Liquid Castile Soap Recipe
Makes 1-2 gallons of liquid soap. (See notes below)
Ingredients
Instructions
- Measure out the olive oil and begin to heat it over low heat. I warmed mine on the low setting of my slow cooker. A slow cooker is perfect for this sort of job because it will gently warm without burning, and keeping things at a steady temperature. (In the picture you can see that I first thought to try using a glass bowl in my slow cooker as a sort of double boiler, but I later found it too difficult and just poured the ingredients directly in the slow cooker itself.
- Mix together the glycerine and water, and measure out the potassium hydroxide (KOH).
- Carefully add the KOH to the water (and not the other way around!) in a well ventilated area. I usually do this outside. Stir the KOH into the water until it dissolves. It will be cloudy at first, but then it will clear up.
- Slowly add in the the KOH mixture to the warm olive oil, and slowly stir them together in the slow cooker over low heat to incorporate the lye mixture into the oils.
- Using a hand held blender, begin to blend the ingredients together in the slow cooker. In a few minutes the mixture will begin to thicken and look like mayonnaise, and then just moments later will look like a creamy pudding.
- A couple of minutes later, the mixture will begin to look grainy. A lot of people call this the mashed potatoes stage because that's sort of what the mixture resembles. Continue to blend. (If at any point the mixture becomes too thick to blend with the hand held blender, switch to mixing with a wooden spoon, but when working with only olive oil I found the mixture to be pretty workable throughout the process.)
- As you continue to blend, it will start to get creamy again, and you will notice that you will start to see translucent streaks in your mixture. Once you reach this point, you can stop blending with the hand held blender, and begin to stir occasionally with a wooden spoon.
- The mixture will begin to thicken up and become more translucent. We are now working on making a soap base paste which will be dissolved into a clear liquid soap. The process will take 3-4 hours, and you will want to check on it and stir it up every half an hour or so. (See, I told you this takes a bit longer than making bar soap, but the results are worth it!!)
- To check for "doneness," we will look to see if our paste is dissolving into a completely clear liquid soap. To do this, take a small amount of the soap paste and dissolve it in water, and look to see if the water is clear once the soap paste is dissolved. If the liquid is cloudy, you will want to continue to cook the soap in the slow cooker. You can let it cook another half an hour before checking on it again. If it dissolves clear like the soap in my picture, you are finished making the soap paste.
- Your liquid castile soap paste is now ready to be stored or dissolved into liquid soap as needed.
Notes
- This recipe makes 4.5-5 lbs. soap paste which can be diluted to 10-20 lbs. soap or more. That ends up being 1-2 gallons, or more, depending upon desired concentration.
- Keep in mind that liquid soap is not as thick as commercial gels and surfactants. Liquid soap is of a thinner consistency, and doesn't need to be thick to be concentrated and work well.
Diluting your soap paste
Once you have made your soap paste, you'll need to dilute it as needed to get your liquid soap. For that, you'll need to take some of the paste and let it dissolve into water over the course of several hours or over the stove. I used distilled water for my liquid soap to help make sure it will last as long as possible, but for small batches that are going to be used relatively quickly, you can probably get away with tap water without any issues. You can read more about how to dilute a soap paste here.
When I made my first batches last fall, I diluted my various soaps into thick, clear liquid soaps, but was disappointed to find that a week or two later, they started to turn opaque and much thicker.
Why did my DIY liquid soap turn opaque?
It turns out that as the weather got colder, my soaps turned more opaque and thicker just like coconut oil solidifies when in a cold environment!
I wouldn't have been surprised that the coconut oil soap did that, but my beginner liquid castile soap did the exact same thing!!
I had my suspicions that that was the issue, but wasn't able to confirm it until this spring when some of my thicker liquid soaps, left as is as an experiment, turned perfectly clear and beautiful again. (update: this winter, my soap has become very thick, opaque and a bit gloopy again. Keep this in mind if you are making this soap in winter!)
So, does that mean you can't use homemade liquid soap in the winter/cold environments?
No.
You can still use your soap, you'll just need to dilute it a little more. I haven't provided an exact amount of water to use for dilution because I've found that it depends upon the temperature outside, and what I'm looking for in consistency for each particular use of the soap.
I was curious to compare, so I recently bought some of Dr. Bronner's soap to compare with mine, and I have noticed that the soap I bought was also quite a thin, diluted consistency. After some reading, I've learned that most commercial liquid soaps are later thickened with added ingredients. I prefer to keep mine as natural as possible, so I leave it as is… diluted until transparent and usable in a soap pump.
In the winter, then, my soap is a little bit thinner than it is in the summer, but that isn't a problem for me.
Why did I add glycerin to the recipe?
This question has come up several times, so I thought it was best to update this post with an answer.
When I first wrote the post, I had studied several methods of making liquid soaps. One is called the glycerin method, and replaces part of the water with glycerin. In theory, that is done to help move the process along and make the liquid soap paste process more quickly. Because this was meant to be a beginner liquid soap recipe, I wanted things to be as quick and fool proof as possible, so I chose the glycerin method.
In the end, I don't know if it really makes the process quicker and easier or not, but I have found several benefits to adding glycerin to the recipe:
- The resulting soap paste dissolves very easily in water. I don't need to heat the water nor do I need to leave it for days at a time. I can cover my soap paste with distilled water and in a couple of hours I have a beautiful, clear liquid soap effortlessly.
- I find that even my liquid coconut oil soap is hydrating enough to use on the body despite the fact that it hasn't been superfatted at all. I think the extra glycerin helps to make a really great, hydrating soap that is clear and doesn't need extra oils. (I think that's also why my homemade glycerin bar soap is hydrating even without superfatting at all.)
My DIY liquid body soap recipe:
60-70% liquid castile soap (made with olive oil)
30-40% liquid coconut oil soap (for lather, link goes to the recipe post)
Essential oils of choice.
I mix all of the ingredients together, and keep a bottle in the shower to use instead of shower gel.
I like to switch up the essential oils used in each batch, and have so far tried adding lavender essential oil with a bit of tea tree oil in one batch, and a citrus blend using lemon and bergamot in another.
I'd love to hear what blends are your favorites.
I cooked it but I think I didnt cook the paste enough, the diluted soap is very milky. Is it okay ??
Hi Huzaifa,
Yes, it can remain cloudy (with an opaque paste) when it isn’t cooked for long enough.
Most of the time, it will eventually convert to become more transparent on its own.
One time I purposely took some paste out to show the difference in appearance of the fully cooked vs. not fully cooked soap paste. I took too long to take the pictures, though, and several weeks later they looked and behaved exactly the same. I think that if it’s warm where you have it stored, it will finish up even faster.
It shouldn’t be a problem to use the soap. It may be slightly more alkaline and irritating to the skin if it hasn’t fully saponified. That would be the only issue I can think of.
It should still behave like soap and you should be able to use it for general cleaning. With time (if not immediately), you should be able to use it for skin too, and it should eventually be like a fully cooked soap.
Of course, if you find it isn’t behaving as you like, you can always cook it a bit longer too- either in a crockpot or a low-temperature oven. 😉
In making your body wash, could a use part honey and part liquid coconut oil?
Hi Mary,
Honestly, I normally avoid adding honey to any homemade cosmetics (other than things that are going to be used immediately, like a facial mask).
While honey is self-preserving on its own, once it is added to other products, it can make them much more difficult to preserve and can contribute to microbial growth.
Soap on its own is also self-preserving because of its high pH. I personally don’t think you should add too many things to soap, unless you are going to mix a tiny amount for immediate use.
You can superfat with a bit of oil, but know that it will most likely make your soap cloudy and will cut down on its cleansing abilities slightly.
If you find liquid soap to be too harsh, you could try making a body wash with mild surfactants instead.
(I can put a recipe up on the blog soon, but it follows the ideas in the micellar water and the shampoo recipes.)
Hi Tracy!
Thank you for the recipe, I’ve been thinking about making liquid soap for a while and will definitely try this one.
I just wanted to know if I could use pomace instead of pure olive oil or if the end result might be impacted.
Thanks!
Sandrine
Hi Sandrine,
While you can use just about any olive oil, pomace is actually listed differently on the lye calculators and uses a different amount of lye.
I’ve personally never tried using it, so I’m not sure how it works. You’d have to adjust the recipe to use it, though.
I have used all different grades of olive oil, though- from “light” to “extra virgin.”
Living in Spain, I have access to inexpensive, high-quality olive oil. I’m not sure I’ve ever even seen pomace here. 😉
Hi Tracy,
Just wanted to let you and your readers know that I tried with pomace and it works just fine! You just have to run the calculation through SoapCalc to be sure about the weight.
So for people unfortunate enough to leave in a country where olive oil isn’t really cheap, this can be a solution.
Best,
Sandrine
Great to know!
Thanks, Sandrine.
Did you have to change the weight a lot?
I usually use SBM crafters advanced lye calculator when formulating liquid soap recipes because it’s said to be the most accurate. (Just a tip!)
I do use soapcalc a lot for bar soaps. 😉
Hi Tracy,
I am an absolute beginner at making soap and I have been struggling to make the liquid soap for three days now. The first day I cooked it for 4 hours and it turned very hard and impossible to mix. The second day I added a bit of water and it became more manageable. After four more hours of cooking it got yellow and translucent like amber, but when I dissolved a bit in water it was cloudy. Today I cooked it for four more hours but it still isn`t transparent when I dissolve it in water.
Is it essential for it to be clear and transparent? I have to say that I used about 700ml olive oil, but then added 100gr soy oil and 100gr pumpkin oil because they were getting old and I didn`t want to throw them away.
Best regards,
Beba
Hi Beba,
No, it’s not essential for a liquid soap to be clear and transparent. It’s more of an aesthetic issue.
That said, your problem is probably because of the added oils.
Soap recipes are very precise. I calculated the exact amount of lye for the exact amount of oil I chose. If you add more oils, you are superfatting the recipe and making for a cloudy soap that will be less cleansing, but likely more “conditioning”. If you switch out oils, sometimes it will be OK, sometimes not. Each oil has a different lye requirement. That’s why lye calculators are available online to help calculate how much lye to use for the oils you choose.
On top of that, I’ve found that adding oils other than coconut oil and/or olive oil to a liquid soap, even if used in the correct quantities, can make for a cloudier soap. I found that when I made the first version of my Dr. Bronner’s copycat recipe. I have decided that the addition of other oils isn’t really worth it. It doesn’t appear to improve the quality of the soap and only makes it cloudier.
Hi Tracy,
I am an absolute beginner at making soap and I have been struggling to make the liquid soap for three days now. The first day I cooked it for 4 hours and it turned very hard and impossible to mix. The second day I added a bit of water and it became more manageable. After four more hours of cooking it got yellow and translucent like amber, but when I dissolved a bit in water it was cloudy. Today I cooked it for four more hours but it still isn`t transparent when I dissolve it in water.
Is it essential for it to be clear and transparent? I have to say that I used about 700ml olive oil, but then added 100gr soy oil and 100gr pumpkin oil because they were getting old and I didn`t want to throw them away.
Best regards,
Beba
Hi Beba,
Soap recipes are very precise. The liquid soap recipes I’ve posted are even more precise because I have calculated them to be exact. Many online liquid soaps are made to have a lye excess (too much lye) to make sure that the soap comes out completely transparent. You then have to “neutralize” those soaps. To avoid the hassle, I have calculated my soap to be exact. While there isn’t a superfatting (extra oils) in my liquid soaps, I have tested them all to work out as written. They are gentle and transparent when made as written.
The second you change the recipe, it’s very unexpected what will happen. I have posted many types of liquid soap by now. I found that even when calculated correctly, adding oils like argan and jojoba oil made for soaps that separated with a cloudy layer. While the soaps still work, they aren’t as pretty.
I’ve never worked with soy oil nor pumpkin oil in liquid soap, so I don’t know what type of soap they make.
Another thing to keep in mind, is that you can’t just switch out the oils used in a soap recipe like you can with a food recipe. Each type of fat has a different saponification value. That means that you will need more or less lye to convert the same amount of different fats. Any time you make a change in fat/oil to a soap recipe, you’ll need to run the changes through a lye calculator to make sure you are using the right amount of lye.
Hi Tracy!
Thanks for sharing such great info and recipes! I am looking for a liquid soap recipe to use as an ingredient in making shampoo. Do you think the coconut oil soap would be best for that? Or do you think either will work? I’m a soap maker so I definitely understand the difference it makes in cold process soap, but it sounds like it doesn’t make as much difference in liquid soap. Thanks for sharing your thoughts! And I’m super excited to try your liquid soap recipe for at home use. It sounds so nice!
Hi Tara,
I’m kind of the wrong person to ask about that as I don’t feel like the pH of any soap is really adequate for haircare.
I have tried it, in many different ways, and it ends up eventually damaging my hair and making it feel like straw.
I have since developed surfactant-based shampoos on the blog- if you read those articles, you will also find my thoughts on why not to soap. 😉
Here’s my clarifying shampoo and my shampoo bar.
Hi,
Firstly thanks for the recipe. I think I may have over cooked mine as it too a long time to change to translucent and then I forgot about it…….
The paste I have is dissolving, however the resulting liquid is cloudy…
Do you have any thoughts or ideas?
Kind regards
Pippi
Hi Pippi,
Normally problems with cloudiness tend to resolve themselves with time. (Even when they don’t, it shouldn’t affect the use of the soap.)
If you dissolve the paste, try to let it settle for a couple of days. Normally it will clear up.
Hello Tracy
Am very happy to be at your blog.
God bless you for sharing. Thanks be to God with your recipes I will make my own soap.
Thanks so much, Edith! 🙂
Hi Tracy,
I love your website! This is my first attempt at making home-made soap, and it doesn’t seem to be turning out right. The mixture wasn’t thickening very fast and took longer than I expected to finally thicken up. But then it suddenly turned into a solid brick. I used a fork and potato smasher to try to keep mixing and stirring, and now I’m just letting it sit in the crock-pot on warm, trying to mix it up every half hour. I did use KOH. But after reading some other comments, I think I’ve added too much glycerin. Novice mistake, but I didn’t realize fl. oz isn’t the same thing as weight oz. I bought two 4 fl. oz. bottles of glycerin. I was measuring the weight when I added it to the water, but I got distracted and the digital scale turned off. So, I just poured all 8 fl. oz. in assuming it was the right amount anyway. So, now I’m not sure what this means…what does too much glycerin do to the final outcome? I have no idea how much extra glycerin I’ve added, probably a couple ounces. Any suggestions? Thank you!!!
Hi Jana,
I don’t think the amount of glycerin should be a problem. I use glycerin as part of the water because it helps move the process along more quickly and (theoretically) makes the process more fool proof. 😉 It also makes for a soap paste that more easily is diluted in water. I suspect it makes it more conditioning and less harsh too. The glycerine amount doesn’t have to be super precise, though.
It’s also not unusual for the soap to very quickly go from almost liquid to very hard almost immediately. That part doesn’t sound off.
Is there anything else that makes you think that there is a problem with your soap paste? I’d just continue and go with what you have!
Yep, you’re right! Ultimately it turned out fine. I think I caused myself extra work, but after a few hours of heating and stirring/smashing the chunks it eventually turned back into a thick, fairly smooth paste. Thanks so much for your expertise!
Hi! Thanks for sharing! Why do you use hemp, coconut and jojoba oils while teaching in the video, but the recipe contains only olive oil? Thanks!! <3
Hi Mariana,
I have several recipes for liquid soap up on the blog. When I published this post, I didn’t make video. I wasn’t making videos very often back then, and I’m now slowly but surely going through old posts adding videos and new information to help people out.
Anyway, in this case, I did make video for my newer liquid soap recipe, so I decided to show the general process of making liquid soap here by showing how I made my Dr. Bronner’s copycat liquid Soap.
Until I make a video for this particular soap, I figure seeing the general process is still better than nothing for those who want that sort of a visual guide.
I have to admit that these days I almost always make the coconut oil-based liquid soap. It’s the cheapest to make and probably my favorite.
Greetings, thank you so much for this recipe as well as all of your helpful replies to the comments (over 300, wow!)
I looked to see if my question was posted and answered and could not find it. I apologize if I am repeating it.
Question: how do I fix a soap that is cloudy when used? My liquid soap is clear, and diluted, and neutralized. It seems fine until I use it. Once I use it the soap it becomes cloudy while rinsing under the tap. I have used it for my laundry, dishes, and my body and it cleans well, does not leave any residue, and rinses off well. Yet the optics of it has me wondering if there is a way to remove this cloudiness?
Thank you in advance,
Christine
Hi Christine,
Sorry I missed your comment the first time through. (Yes, I get a lot of them and sometimes some of them slip through with the spam!)
I’m not really sure about that. Isn’t the cloudiness you’re describing just part of the lather? I guess I’d have to see it to understand it better.
Hi!
I tried this for the first time today and have a solid chunky mixture that I can barely stir. I definitely used KOH and am wondering if I just leave it in the crock pot for 3-4 hours and hope it softens or if I just start over. As I read through other posts I couldn’t see an exact solution to my problem or why it would go like that.
Hi Jane,
I’d try to continue cooking and just try to stir it as best as you can with a wooden spoon or something solid enough to try to move it.
I have that happen with the coconut oil liquid soap. It doesn’t normally happen with my olive oil based one, but who knows why it behaves differently for some people. Perhaps it’s differences in the oil, climate, slow cooker, etc., etc.
In the end, it ends up working out by itself for most people who are worried about it.
If you’re still having issues in a few hours, feel free to send pics to [email protected].
I’m about to go to bed here in Spain, but I can try to help tomorrow if need be.
Don’t throw it out!
In most cases it will work itself out!
Hi! I love this receipe. I’ve started to make all my household cleaners and have been using Dr. Bronner’s, bit it’s so expensive! So I’m greatfull! Maybe I missed it in the reading… I struggle sometimes. But the printed receipe only is for with olive oil. To do coconut oil is it a 1 to 1 substitution?
Hi Sarah,
Thank you!
No! You’ll need to check out the other recipes and make one depending on which one you prefer. The lye amounts can vary from oil to oil. 😉
Since writing this years ago, I find myself now almost always making the coconut oil liquid soap.
If you want one that is mixed with coconut oil and olive oil, I also have this option for a Dr. Bronner’s Copycat.
In the end, though, the cheapest to make is the coconut oil one and it’s the one I like the best. They are all very similar, though. I don’t notice much of a difference in the liquid soaps, which really surprised me because bar soaps using olive oil ore nothing like those that use coconut oil!
Hello Tracy, first of all thanks for the recipes, i already made two of them, the bar soap and the liquid, when i did my first bar soap i was jumping of excitement that i could make soap then i decided to try the liquid, which brings me to this post, i thought i would share with you my experience, so i had the oils warming, i add up the rest of the chemicals, just like the recipe, i dont know if it was to hot, but when i started mixing them, the mixture started boiling out, so i turn off the pot quickly and i started cleaning the soap that had spilled, by the way, it makes a lot of foam, so i was cleaning and cleaning, that rag was squeaky clean, then, i follow the recipe, everything went well, after 3 hrs when i did the test, the liquid was cloudy, so i let it cook another 2 hrs, i did the test again, and still the water was not clear, after 2 extra hrs of cooking i remember about the distilled water, i did the test again with distilled water and it was already done, the tap water was making it cloudy, ok, then i try my fist wash in the washing machine, and it didn’t work, it left my dishes with a white layer and greasy, so, i run the dishwasher twice with vinegar, but the soap works well with hand washing, i use it on everything but the dishwasher. i think one of the problem was that i used two types of coconut oil, i didn’t have on hand all the amount, so i went to get more, and the only one that i found at that moment was one that was unprocessed, with odor, by the ways, that coconut oil smells like rotten coconuts, maybe the mixtures of two different oils made it not be able to use it in the dishwasher. now i dont wait for the paste to melt to wash dishes by hand, i put the paste in a container wide enough to rub my dish sponge over and done, i am from a country where they sell soap for dishes in small container and paste base, so, it works well, thank you, now am waiting to use it all up and make it again, this time with one type of coconut oil, take care.
Hi Juana,
Thanks for sharing your experience. I’m glad it worked out for you in the end.
Yes, I only use soap for handwashing too.
In fact, a detergent for the dishwasher is really the only thing I haven’t been able to make successfully. Most are made with “enzymes” and other ingredients that I wouldn’t know how to obtain or use. I still buy little dishwasher tabs from the local ECO supermarket for now.
But, yes, it works wonderfully for hand washing dishes. I use mine for that too!
Hello! I just spent the last couple days making a diy Castile soap (not your recipe) with olive oil and coconut oil. It was a huge disaster. It literally ate the enamel off my crock pot. I thought everything was wasted but this morning I finally got it completely clear without any chunks. But as soon as it gets cold it turns white and opaque. It is diluted, but is there anything else I can do to salvage this? I hate wasting supplies. Thank you!!!
Hi Holly,
I’m sorry to hear that!
Were you using KOH and not NaOH? Does it appear to be solid or is it a paste?
Can I maybe see the recipe to get a better idea?
It’s really hard for me to know what’s going on. I’ve definitely never had a liquid soap eat away at the crock pot. Normally the reaction of the lye and oil takes place immediately, so there is really little lye leftover while it’s cooking. That said, a lot of people formulate their recipes to have a lye excess to help ensure that the liquid soap will be transparent.
Hi, first of all, thank you for sharing this! I have no experience in soap making at all but I really want to try it to help with saving money. I see that the 2 main base here are olive oil and coconut oil. Can I add another moisturzer to the mix, like shea butter? Also can I add coloring to it just for fun look or will coloring mess up the mixture? Thanks!
Hi Jez,
Any changes that you make will completely change the soap and will mean that you will have to run the recipe through a lye calculator to ensure that you will end up with a viable soap. I’d recommend beginning with a recipe like this one and then later on you can get a better idea about changing up the recipe. (Also, just because an oil is moisturizing doesn’t mean that a soap made with it will be. The oils change completely during the chemical reaction.)
As for the colorings. Yes, you can add a coloring to the soap at trace and then pour it into molds. You can even divide up the soap and experiment with different colors. This recipe has a pretty long working time, so you should be able to play with the mixture a bit. A soap made with more coconut oil would have a lot shorter working time, for example.
I have finished my first batch of olive/coconut liquid soap and am happy with the results. Unfortunately, I did not know when to add the essential oils and added it after diluting the paste and it just seemed to float or gel without mixing so I have very little fragrance. Do I add it with the diluting water? Thanks in advance.
Hi Marcia,
I always add in the EO’s when I dilute too (but I usually have a thick dilution-with less water-ready that I use first. I add my EO’s and then add more water to further dilute. So, that may be why I don’t have any issues.) Normally, because you are adding such a small amount of oil, the emulsifying properties of the soap are enough to incorporate the oils.
You could definitely try incorporating the oils better by taking the oils and mixing them with the soap paste first, right before adding the water. The soap has solubilizing properties, but maybe they aren’t working for you because there is too much water when you are adding them and that is causing you problems.
(You can buy commercial solubilizers and you are supposed to use them in that way- you mix the oils with the solubilizer before adding the water-based ingredients for them to work properly, so it would make sense that it would be best to do it that way with soap too!)
I hope that made sense!
Hi I tried your this recipe and I love it! I’m excited to try the coconut oil soap as well. I was just wondering if there are any natural preservatives that I could use in the soap so it will last longer? Also what step would I incorporate the preservative? How long does this soap stay good as the paste and once it is diluted? Once again absolutely love your site! Thanks in advance 😊
Hi Brittany,
Thanks so much. I’m happy it went well for you.
The coconut oil one has become my favorite! 🙂
With soap, you don’t really have to worry about preservatives because the pH of soap is high enough that the soap should self preserve itself for up to a year! (I’m basing that on a discussion I had once with a professional cosmetic formulator who told me that products with a pH below 4 or higher than 9 normally keep up to a year without preservatives.) That beats out a lot of the more natural preservatives, most of which won’t work at the high pH range of soap anyway. 😉
With that in mind, don’t add weird ingredients to your soap when you dilute it if you want it to keep for a long time. Any time you add something organic- anything plant-based or food-like- you’re reducing the time it will keep, and it’s almost impossible to judge by how much. (Think of people adding coconut milk to their product.) Also, don’t add anything that will lower the pH too much. The soap could fall apart, and it won’t keep as long.
I still like to keep most of my batch undiluted because it will keep even longer that way. I’ve had a few batches for way more than a year (maybe more than 2 by now) as sort of an experiment. They look to be just as good as they were when I first made them.
Hi Again!
I am in the middle of making my first batch of this. I am very suspicious that my crock pot (even though it is set to low) is significantly too hot / hotter than yours. Here is what has happened. I am at the 1 hour mark, and the mix is dry as a bone. I can see a few chunks / bits of translucence, so that is heartening, but it is virtually impossible to stir. To give a baking analogy, if this were an attempt to cream flower and butter, you would think I had added at least 2X the amount of flour called for. I am going to see if I can get some movement with a potato masher – but i am not super confident! I am tempted to add some distilled water to moisten it a bit, if I end up doing that, I will report results. For the future – can you estimate the temperature at which a successful batch would be cooked? Thank you very much, Clarice
OK- I left the mess to cook in the crock pot, and checked it every 30 minutes and mashed it with a potato masher. Much to my surprise it DID revert back to a very thick, moderately creamy texture. Ultimately, it ended with a hard-ish semi-translucent paste that i had to chunk out of the crock pot when it cooled. It does not dissolve easily – but when a bit is cooked with water and then blended with an immersion blender, it does finally go into solution. I am going to try this recipe again, on an induction cook-top with controlled temperature, using a double boiler technique. Thanks!
Did you ever try it with the other method?
I see I missed your last question…
I think that most slow cookers cook around 190-200ºF when on the low setting.
I’d try to keep it around there or less.
Hello,
I apologise if this question has already been posted, but is there a way to make this soap without glycerin? If so, does the recipe need to be altered? I can’t wait to try this recipe!
Thanks
Hello Chris,
Yes, you can just sub the glycerin for water.
The glycerin serves several purposes:
1) It moves the process along more quickly, making the soap making more fool proof.
2) It makes for a milder soap.
3) It may make for a paste that dissolves more easily.
Hello!
I am so excited to try making this soap. But could I make it on a stovetop instead of a slow cooker…? How would convert the recipe?
Thanks so much,
Saba
Hi Saba,
Yes, you could either make this in the oven or on the stovetop. The problem with the stovetop is that it may be difficult to keep the heat low and cook it evenly without the bottom burning. That’s really what you’ll need to try to do- cook it at a low heat for a long period of time without allowing the paste to burn. You could perhaps use a double boiler or try at very low heat, moving more constantly. You can also spread it over a baking sheet and bake at a low temperature.
Hi there – thank you for these recipes! And your well written informative blog!
I have been struggling to make a whipped sugar scrub soap – i.e., a scrub that foams, and has a sort of paste-like consistency. All of the recipies I have found say the same thing “start with XYZ whipped soap base”. I would really rather make mine own base so that I know what is going into the mix!
Do you think this liquid castille soap might be a candidate for a “base” for a soapy sugar scrub?
Thank you so much, C
Hi Clarice,
Interesting. I haven’t tried something like that. I’m not sure if the water content would dissolve the sugar. I’d think you’d want more of a “Cream” soap, something I haven’t played with too much yet.
What I love to do is to make emulsified sugar scrubs. Have you tried that? It doesn’t foam, but it does get sort of lotion-y. (Is that a word? Ha!)
I use mine to clean my arms, legs, and even face and love the way it leaves my skin.
I can definitely look into the cream soap for a foaming scrub, though. I’ll add it to my “To-do” list. 🙂
Thank you! I will try the emulsified recipes and see how they go – and will also try to use your liquid castille – and will certainly let you know how it goes. I have some very fine pumice powder that perhaps i could use with the castille – given your very salient comment about the water content and sugar. All the best, Clarice
I should have mentioned I am trying to replicate the Pacha whipped soap scrub – super yummy, but $$$ at $12 for a smallish jar. I also want to get away from various additives. Thanks again, C
What kind of POH are you using? Is it 90%. Does it matter?
Hi Mike,
Yes, mine is also around 90%.
That’s typical because there is some moisture in there. That’s what they are accounting for in the 10%.
Hi Tracy, I’m new to making liquid soap. One thing I would like to know is how much distilled water to I need to the soap paste to dilute it. Thank you and I look forward to your reply
Hi Julia,
It’s really a matter of preference and how you are going to use it. That said, I usually use one part paste to around 2-3 parts water. If I’ll be using in a foaming dispenser, I add more. I cover more about this in my post about how to dilute a soap paste. 😉
My soap will not pass the clarity test. Everytime I try it keeps coming up cloudy. I had it on 4 hours yesterday then turned it off to go to bed. Put it on this morning from 10am-7pm.
Were you ever able to resolve the problem?
You may have noticed in the other comments that it doesn’t necessarily have to come completely clear when you are making it. Often, it resolves on its own and sometimes it needs a couple of days for the soap to settle when you dilute it in water.
I’m not sure why that happens to some people, but it doesn’t appear to normally affect the quality of the soap.
hello Tracy,
i’m not sure but did i just overcooked it?
mine seems dry and chunky
i can even mold it.
thank you.
Hi Oliver,
Did you use KOH or NaOH as your lye?
It sounds to me like what would happen if you were to use NaOH (which is used to make bar soaps), but if you did use KOH, we can try to pinpoint the problem.
i use KOH and everything seems to be fine even if mine does not look like yours, maybe its because i hand mixed it. 🙂 i just have some inquiry what will happens if KOH is increased?
Hi Oliver,
If you increase the amount of KOH, you’ll end up with a lye-heavy soap. That means that the pH will be increased and it can be more irritating to your skin. Many people make their liquid soaps lye-heavy to begin with to ensure they end up with a transparent soap, and then they bring the pH down with acids or other chemicals. I prefer not to deal with that and try to make my recipes exact. That can mean, though, that the soaps are more prone to cloudiness, especially when it’s cold outside. I’ve found that the process (and final soaps) can look different in winter.
So, yes, differences can be due to a number of reasons, and in many cases the soap will change with time and temperature. In most cases, though, if you followed the recipe as posted, it should, at the very least, make a workable soap. It may not be completely transparent in some conditions, but will likely be a great soap for using.
thank you very much. ill continue to experiment more.
what does superfat means? and how is it done?
Superfatting is adding more oil to the recipe than the exact amount needed for converting the lye in the recipe. Most bar soaps are superfatted slightly to make them more conditioning. Superfatting at around 5% is a good place to be at for most soaps, but it will depend on the oils used in the recipe and the intended use of that soap. (I don’t superfat soaps that I intend to use for cleaning, like my laundry soap made with coconut oil.)
I also don’t superfat liquid soaps because the oils would make them cloudy. Most people are looking for a transparent liquid soap. If you don’t care about transparency, and want more oils in your liquid soap, you can always experiment with adding some to small portions of your soap paste at the time of diluting the soap. I’ve never tried it, but I have seen people make recipes for conditioning washes that way.
thank you very much
Thank you for your wonderful website and all the work you put into sharing your passion. I made my first batch of castile soap and I’m currently making the liquid coconut to mix with it. I really want my soap to feel conditioning and I don’t like the subtle “sticky” feeling that to me feels sort of dry from the olive oil. Since the coconut oil won’t make my soap more conditioning is there something I can add in the mixture of the two without having to add a whole new soap recipe? I have shea butter if that work what would be the method of incorporating it or something else once the soap is already in liquid form?
Thank you
Hi Melissa,
Some people do add other things to their soaps once made to make more of a conditioning body wash type product. I personally haven’t done it or tried it, but it is something you can do. Some people add other oils. I’d be careful about adding anything too “organic” (in the sense of being too food-like or plant-like and not organic vs. conventional) because it can interfere with the self-preserving nature of liquid soaps. So, I wouldn’t add in anything like coconut milk or anything like that (I see those often suggested on some blogs, but don’t think it’s a good idea as it is a nightmare to preserve.)
Honestly, I haven’t found the coconut oil LIQUID soap to be drying. I don’t even really notice much of a difference between my liquid soaps- even though I thought I would. With bar soaps, there is a huge difference between a soap made with coconut oil and one made with olive oil- HUGE! In the end, though, I haven’t found it to be true when making liquid soaps. I now normally either just make the coconut oil liquid soap or the Dr. Bronner’s Copycat recipe.
I’ve really found all of the liquid soaps to be quite gentle, though.
If you find that maybe your skin isn’t reacting well to soaps in general, you may want to consider playing with natural surfactants. My latest post is introducing them, and I plan on sharing posts soon for shampoos and shower gels. Some people just don’t react well to the higher pH of soap and may handle those types of cleansers better. (There is a bit of a myth that soap is always better than “detergents,” but not all non-soap surfactants are bad, and some may be much better for some people.)
Hi, the reason your soap behaved the way it did is because KOH doesn’t saponify all of the soap the way NaOH does. This article explains it very well
https://www.modernsoapmaking.com/tips-tricks-making-liquid-soap/
Hi Felicia,
Are you referring to the way it became more opaque in winter and then became transparent again in the summer?
I’m still not sure why that happened to me, and it doesn’t happen every winter or with every batch. In that case, though, the soap was transparent to begin with, so I’m pretty sure the saponification had already completed.
I do think that the resource you sent is interesting as I have also been experimenting with cold processing the liquid soap and have found that eventually the batch will saponify and clear up on its own. If you don’t jump start it with some heating, though, it can take months and months. On the other hand, if you jump-start the process by cooking it, it only takes a few weeks to progress to a more transparent paste (which makes for a transparent liquid soap)!
Thanks for sending the link!
Hey hey! Imma gonna try this. May i just check that thru the entire 3 to 4 hours the micture will be on low heat? Cos i read and re-read, it didnt say to take it off heat? Thanks!
Hi Sophie,
Yes, you read correctly!
You’ll be “cooking” the soap for the entire time.
This will help get the soap to become a more transparent paste, which will make for a more transparent soap.
I’ve actually cooked the soap for less time, and you end up with a more opaque paste which made for a soap that separated into layers. It did work, but wasn’t as pretty. Interestingly enough, after several weeks, the paste did become more transparent on its own (which wasn’t the case with one I made without any heat at all). So, basically, the full cooking process will get you to a paste that you can use immediately.
Thanks for sharing Easy, Beginner DIY Liquid Castile Soap Recipe.
You’re very welcome!
Would it be possible to make the castle soap with avocado oil and maybe the coconut oil? I keep reading about all the wonderful benefit of avocado oil and was curious. I would love to see a recioe tweaked for the avocado oil. I’d be a little afraid to try it without some educated guidance. Lol.
Hi Heather,
You could calculate a new recipe using avocado as one of the complementary oils in the same way that I used hemp and jojoba in my Dr. Bronner’s copycat recipe. I personally haven’t tried using avocado oil in liquid soap yet, but I definitely wouldn’t use it as the main oil.
Remember that the oils are completely changed in the soap making process, so you won’t necessarily end up with the same benefits of an oil in the final product. Coconut oil is very hydrating normally, but it can make a drying type soap. Olive oil makes a more conditioning soap. Interestingly enough, though, I don’t notice as much of a difference in homemade liquid soap. I find those differences to be much more apparent in bar soaps.
If you read my Dr. Bronner’s copycat recipe, you’ll see that when I added too much jojoba and hemp that I ended up with a cloudier soap and I didn’t find it better in any way.
My favorite is probably just the easiest and cheapest one to make… the coconut oil liquid soap. I make that the most often. I occasionally experiment, but I always go back to that one.
(Remember that any changes made to a recipe, when it comes to the oils, have to be run through a lye calculator first! Each oil reacts differently with lye, and each will need a different amount to react with the same amount of lye.)
Hi! I followed all the directions, used the right lye, and mixed it until it turned a little streaky and opaque. Then I cooked it, and cooked it… and cooked it. 8 hours the first day, then put it on ‘keep warm’ so I could sleep, then another 8 hours, and then I got fed up and turned it off. Then turned it back on just to see….still opaque it the clarity tests. What did I/should I do?
Hi Kristen,
Stop cooking it!
I’ve since found through experimentation that even if you only cook it for a little while and your soap paste is opaque, that it will eventually become more transparent on its own.
My guess is that after that amount of cooking, though, that yours really is mostly translucent, it just may not look that way to you.
Even if your soap paste were to stay on the more opaque side, the resulting soap will still work as a liquid soap. It really just ends up separating into two layers with a transparent layer underneath a more opaque layer. (Or at least that’s what has happened to me when I’ve intentionally kept the paste opaque for experimentation purposes.) That makes it less aesthetically pleasing, of course, but you could use it in a stainless steel or another type of opaque soap dispenser.
I’d try dissolving a small amount to use and would store the rest of your soap paste. My best guess is that if your soap paste doesn’t look mostly transparent/translucent, that soon it will become more that way.
Thanks! So even though it’s not opaque in the clarity tests, it’ll be safe to use?
Sounds great. I can’t wait to try it out. However, I want to make mine citrus. What oils do I need to use, how much and when do I add them?
Hi Ben,
It’s really up to you! Adding fragrances to the soap with essential oils is all a matter of preference. I don’t normally measure, but just add a few drops and mix and add more as needed until I’m happy with the scent. For citrus, I’ve used orange oil, lemon oil, bergamot, etc. You can also mix them together. I also quite like citrus oils and lavender together. It’s up to you! 🙂
I am ordering supplies to make this soap! How much essential oil should I add to this recipe?
Hi Chloe,
It really depends a lot on the essential oil you use and your preference for potency. I hear people saying that you should use around 1-2% of the recipe, but I don’t normally measure at home. I usually go by nose and just add until I think it smells good- and then add the tiniest bit more for good measure. EO scents tend to fade much more quickly than artificial scents, so it’s always good to add a little more than you need.
I will say that my soaps aren’t highly scented. Most soaps you buy (even those scented with only EO’s) have a much more potent scent, so they probably are using larger amounts than I do. (I’m probably using much less than 1%)
Certain oils have scents that last much longer. Lavender is one of those.
Other oils may be irritating to sensitive skin if you add them in high concentrations. It’s not usually so problematic with soap because it’s a rinse off product, but it’s always something to keep in mind.
PS And I definitely used caustic potash (KOH), not the other one …
Hello Tracy,
Can this liquid soap be considered safe to use as hair shampoo as long as the ph is lowered with citric acid?
Hi Joan,
Well, as you seem to know because of the statement about lowering the pH with citric acid, soap has a high pH. Most shampoos have a lower pH because they have determined that the best pH range for haircare products is in a lower pH range (3.5-5.5).
No matter how much citric acid you use, you’ll never be able to lower the pH of soap to get it into that range. In fact, I’ve heard it said that you can’t really get soap to be neutral (ph=7). Once you start to lower the pH of soap, it begins to fall apart and won’t be effective. (I wrote a little bit about it in my post about neutralizing liquid soaps, but I need to update that post as I know more about the subject now and think I can add a lot to the post. 😉 )
So, rather than trying to drastically lower the pH of the soap, you could use the soap and do a vinegar rinse to help neutralize the pH of your hair afterward.
I don’t do well with soap in my hair, but, of course, not all people do well with all shampoos. I do know of people that use soap in their hair and that are quite happy witht he results.
Instead, I’ve been looking for safe alternatives.
I’m actually in the process of taking a natural haircare course, and have started to make my own natural shampoos. This week I think I finally found a few successful shampoos. (My husband likes the clarifying shampoo I made, and I’ve been using a cleansing conditioner type product.) They are non-soap surfactant based, but using mild surfactants and avoiding the other undesirables usually found in shampoos. If you’re interested, stick around as I’ll be posting some recipes here soon. (Not immediately, as I like to test out products for a while before posting to make sure we thoroughly approve of them.)
Sorry about my question I realized after I sent it that someone else had asked you and you answered. Sorry about that!! My mistake. Still, thanks so much for your kindness in going beyond and above to explain this to me. You’re absolutely right that if one tries to lower the ph of soap it stops being soap. Thank you for your blog I love it!! I have ancestors from Spain. They settled in Puerto Rico where I was born but now I live in the US mainlad. La Paella es mi plato favorito!! ?
You’re very welcome!
No worries- I will be doing posts on the subject soon enough. 😉
What part of Puerto Rico are you from?
I’ve been there several times and have seen quite a bit of it. I really loved it.
We also spent time on Culebra y Vieques. I loved the phosphorescent bays (dream like!), the El Yunque rainforest, the beautiful beaches, wonderful food. I totally wish I could find or grow quenepas here too. I don’t ever drink soda pop anymore, but if I had to choose one to drink, it would be Coco Rico. hahaha
Hi Tracy,
Thanks for the recipe. I tried it and succeeded on first attempt made me and my sons very happy. Later on as I learned further I added cetyl alcohol to small oil mixed and added it to my dilluted soap. Voila, I made my own conditioning shampoo. I added citric acid to it to lower the PH but it became less foamy. Is it normal? My next question is do I need to add preservatives to my new shampo since I also add water to it as we’ll as the aloevera gel. Thanks again Tracy.
Hi Lin,
I’m so happy it worked out for you!
I don’t have a lot of experience with using soap as a shampoo because my hair is very sensitive to the higher ph of soap and I’ve never been able to get it to work well for me. I haven’t tried adding cetyl alcohol to soaps, so that’s really cool that it worked well. I’ve been experimenting with mixtures of emulsifiers and different surfactants to try to make conditioning shampoos, and find it interesting to see what works and what doesn’t.
The problem with soap is that it really needs to be alkaline to be, well, soap. If you lower the pH too much, the soap will break down into its various components again. That could explain why you’re finding your shampoo to be less foamy when you lower the pH. That’s also why soap doesn’t work as a shampoo for many people (including me). I know of people who swear by using soap based shampoos, though. They usually have thicker hair that isn’t as bothered by the higher pH of the soaps.
I reached the translucent phase of the recipe and when I went back to check on it, it was hard! I turned the heat up (had it on ‘keep warm’) and it softened enough to break it apart. Will it soften back enough to stir? What did I do wrong and how do I fix it!?!
Hi Victoria,
Well, this comment arrived in the middle of the night for me, so you’ve probably already finished, but here are my thoughts.
I wouldn’t worry too much about it. Let it do its thing. For some reason, the way the process looks seems to differ from batch to batch, but in the end, you should end up with a decent soap paste.
If you can’t stir, just mash things up as best as you can to keep any parts from burning and to allow the center areas to be in closer contact to the heat of the pan.
Hello:-)
can i use this recipe for both hair and body for my baby?
Hi Rashmi,
If you normally use Castile soap for your hair and body, then, yes, you can use it for both. Soap in general has a high pH which makes it not-so-ideal as a shampoo for many people. It really depends upon your hair type. I don’t use soap for my hair because I don’t like the way it leaves my hair (but my hair is fine and curly). I think people with thicker hair can usually get away with it more.
Hello:-)
can i use this castile soap recipe for my 3months baby?
thanks in Advance
While, yes, you can use it on your baby, I suggest being conservative with how you use it, especially on babies and people with sensitive skin. Baby’s skin is quite sensitive, and I prefer using mostly just water on babies, saving the soap for dirty areas. (I actually think that’s a good practice for everybody and not just babies).
Each of us is different, though, and we all react differently to different soaps/surfactants. It’s always a good idea to keep an eye on how a certain product affects the skin and switch if need be. I use this soap on my son’s skin. He has atopic dermatitis and very sensitive skin, and I haven’t had any problems using it on him. That said, I reserve the soap for areas that are more prone to being dirty, or to actually remove a stain or something like that. Most of the time, he mostly showers with just water.
Hi there,
I was recently looking up ways to make DIY body oil wash as my skin is EXTREMELY dry and uncomfortable. I noticed most recipes called for “liquid castile soap” but I couldn’t find any that were just simply pure castille soap. They all had things like citric acid, palm oil, etc. in them. I want to avoid all of that, so I’d like to try your recipe on how to make your own. My question is, can I still use the other recipes I found, and just use this recipe to satisfy the requirement for the castile soap? I found a recipe I really like that includes honey, vitamin E oil, olive oil, and essential oils. Will adding all of these other ingredients in this recipe mess up the consistency? I noticed your own recipe at the bottom only includes the oil soap from your recipe and essential oils. Will adding vitamin E, olive oil, and honey mess things up for me? It’s my first time making this so I want to get it right! 🙂
Thanks in advance!!
Hi Kelsey!
You can definitely use this in the same way that you would use any other Castile soap.
That said, I’d like to caution you about some of the mixes that you can find online. Liquid soap doesn’t really normally need preservatives because it has a high pH. It’s basically self-preserving (just like honey).
The problem is that some of the recipes I’ve found actually make not-so-safe mixes because they either change the pH of the final product (which can both break down the soap itself and make it prone to bacterial contamination. Bacterial contamination can make your skin break out into a big red rash. (apart from other possible problems)) Honey can be problematic in homemade products because while it is self-preserving, once mixed with other ingredients, it actually makes a product more difficult to preserve. I wouldn’t suggest adding a lot, and would stick to very small batches so you don’t keep it around for very long. You’d probably want to test the pH of your final product too. If it falls below 9, you’d want to look into using some sort of preservative.
Adding more oil will make for a cloudy, less effective soap, but yes, it would probably be gentler. Adding a small amount of vitamin E can help keep the extra added oils from going rancid more quickly. ( I’d stick to around 0.1% of a recipe- and definitely not more than 1% as in higher percentages it can actually make them go rancid more quickly.)
Because it’s hard to know which recipes to trust, if I were you, I’d actually honestly start with just the plain Castile soap and see how you react to that. Some (maybe even most?) people with sensitive skin do really well with it. Others are affected by the high pH of soap. If you are one of the latter people, you may need to look into a surfactant based “gel” rather than soap. I took a course in working with natural surfactants, and I’m working on making those sorts of product for the blog soon!
I’d also recommend not using any cleaner all over every day. I like to use my emulsified sugar scrub on my arms and legs, and leave the soap and other surfactants for areas that are more likely to need deeper cleaning to avoid odors. 😉
hello tracy
and thanks for all the details, attention and care
i would like some help learning how to use the soap calculator.
in order to change the recipe a bit with more oils…
Hi Hilla,
I think we’ve already chatted over Facebook, but I’ll give a quick answer here too, just in case somebody else is interested in the answer.
For liquid soaps, I use the SMB crafter’s advanced lye calculator. It’s supposed to be the best for liquid soap recipes and has the advantage of allowing you to add glycerin to the recipe too. While glycerin isn’t mandatory, I’ve found that it makes the recipe go more quickly, making it easier for beginners especially. The glycerin also makes for a soap paste that is easily diluted, and a gentle soap.
I normally calculate my liquid soap recipes at zero% superfat so that I don’t have to worry with neutralizing the soap later on.
Agradezco tu valiosa información gracias por compartir
Gracias, Ale! 🙂
This is a lovely article. However I would love people reading to know that the origin of (cake) olive oil soap (& the invention of soap in sum) is Syria (Syria / Lebanon / Palestine) – not Spain as you have written.
After it began to be produced in Spain much later it became known in England etc. as Castile soap; as it was produced there for much of Europe.
One can research Nablus (Palestine) soap & Tripoli (Lebanon) soap & Aleppo (Syria) soap. All of them still made. (Although war & occupation have affected their production).
This may seem a small matter – but since we are maligned at every turn inc. frequently called ‘greasy’ / ‘dirty’ / ‘backward’ etc. – people should know that we invented soap & it is still made the same way there.
The Bedouin supplied the sodium ash from a plant grown along the river. My family comes from ancient olivers (olive vineyard owners) & priests in South Lebanon. (Priests were landowners). Many things were brought to Spain & Europe from Syrians & Arabs. (glass / parfum / soap / underclothes – underwear / stone building techniques etc.). Arabs & Syrians were in Spain for 800 years. And also Portugal & the South of Italy.
Thank you for allowing me to write slightly off topic from soap production technique here ??????
Hi Hayet,
I’ll have to take a look at what I wrote in this post and edit it as needed.
I actually wrote about the origin of Castile soap in my pure Castile soap recipe. You’ll probably like my description of the origin better there. I think that I probably was meaning that in Spain they tended to stick to soaps made with only olive oil, whereas in other regions the soap took on different names and used different oils. In your area laurel berry oil is commonly used with the olive oil and it’s marketed as Aleppo soap and not Castile soap (which goes back to the definition you use for Castile soap), in France they tend to use a different combination of oils (including olive oil), and it’s marketed as Marseille soap. They are all very similar in nature, though, and some (probably most) people will call all of them Castile soaps nowadays.
I also have a laurel berry soap recipe on the blog just to pay tribute to the way the Aleppo soaps are made. I occasionally buy Aleppo soaps, despite making a lot of soap myself, because I happen to love it. I definitely don’t want to take credit away from where credit is due. I’ve watched the videos of how Aleppo soap is made, and truly am inspired by their workmanship. 🙂
Is this tear free? If not how could I make it tear free to use for a baby.
Hi Rachel,
From what I understand, tear-free formulas really only have a pH that is closer to the pH of your eyes. That’s closer to the neutral range of 7, but may be around 7-8. The pH of soap is normally higher than that.
Most tear-free shampoos are surfactant based. For a baby you could use a gentle surfactant like the one I used in my micellar water, and then test the pH to get it into whatever range is most important to you. (Skin pH tends to be more acidic and lower.)
You can try to bring down the pH of soaps slightly with citric acid or something, but too much and the soap will fall apart. Soap always has a more alkaline pH.
Many people use Castile soaps on babies- you just have to be careful around their eyes, but in reality probably any product will irritate eyes to a certain extent.
Hi. I have been making solid soap with no apparent problem until I tried making liquid soap yesterday and it separated into 2 layers. Clear on the bottom and paste like on the top. Can I do something to save it ? Cook it? More blending? Or I really should throw it out? Thankss .
Hi Dewi,
I definitely wouldn’t toss it.
Yes, you can try cooking it more, but in my experience with a bit of time, pastes that haven’t fully cooked actually go through and finish the process on their own with time. It may be that by now it’s already fixed itself? When you say clear on the bottom, what do you mean? Is it liquid?
If you are able to mix it all, that’s what I would do. I would then either try cooking it for longer or just set it aside in a large glass jar to see what happens over the next few days. Test out a small amount of the mixture by dissolving it in water and seeing if it behaves like soap.
Thank you for providing me with exactly what I was looking for! I cannot find a soap (liquid or otherwise) that does not have an excess of drying ingredients it. I will need to make it. I have no trouble with the soap being thin except for one problem: thin soap does not stay in the hand very well. During my research, I came across guar gum. Apparently, this is a common thickener for commercial soaps. It is also natural. I may try it for thickening and see how it comes out. when I do, I will report back.
Hi Denise,
I haven’t tried with guar gum with soap yet. I have tried guar and/or xanthum gum with gels and lotions and things to different levels of success (or not). 😉
I’ve often had big blobs of gum in the bottom, and other not-so-great results, but I don’t usually mix very well because I’m afraid to make a lot of foam.
In the end, my favorite way to dispense liquid soap that is thin is to use the foaming dispensers. Those are great and make for a fun product that is easy to use.
I’d really love to hear how your experiments go, though!
Hello! I am just trying this, and it won’t make it to, much less past, the step 5 creamy pudding consistency. I used an immersion blender until it was so hot I couldn’t hold it (10 min?), a hand mixer for about 5 min, then stirred by hand for about 30 min. I read a bunch of the over comments while stirring ?, and it looks like it will be as safe and effective now as it would be if I progressed through the steps, it’s just unlikely to be transparent. It’s that accurate? I’m about to leave it cooking on low for a few hours, just in case there’s any value… Thank you!
Hi Hope,
I think that, yes, it will be fine. If you didn’t cook it for several hours, you may not have gotten through all of the stages, but they are mostly there for you to make a mostly transparent soap. Whether or not it’s immediately transparent is hard to know. My best guess is that over time it will become transparent on it’s own.
In either case, that’s a cosmetic issue, so it shouldn’t be an issue for safely using your soap. 🙂
Thank you! As it turns out, though the blending and stirring didn’t help it progress through the stages, as you noted in your reply, it did progress just from cooking on low for several hours. And, it does seem to be transparent! That was not even a big deal for me, but glad it worked. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe. I’ll be trying the coconut oil one next! ?
Hi! First off, I’m new to soap making, so I don’t really know much about the effects of different oils and such! However, I always try to source locally whenever I can and avoid plastic and the like- which is why I was wondering if rapeseed oil would work in castile soap? It is one of the only oils available locally grown and pressed near me. Thanks in advance!
Hi Jess,
Yes, you can use rapeseed oil. It’s a more conditioning oil in soap, but shouldn’t be used in large percentages because it can go rancid or cause the soap to get ugly brown spots. To make a more cleansing, stable bar, you’d want to add a solid oil like coconut or lard or tallow, or butters and such. I can’t readily find rapeseed oil here in Spain because nobody ever uses it. I specially bought some to try to do a copycat recipe of the Beautycounter charcoal face bar. You can see my recipe for an activated charcoal soap here as an example soap with rapeseed. I also used it in my dog shampoo bar.
If you want to modify the oils in a recipe, you have to run it through a lye calculator first to check how much lye will be needed for the new recipe as not oils need the same amount of lye.
Hi Tracy,
I hope you are doing fine. I really need your help more, more than you imagine. I was applying your amazing recipe for a project, however, I couldn’t come to step 6. The soap hardened like tiny pieces of mashed potatoes and did not look creamy eventually. I stopped cooking it because it kept hardening. I wish you could give me an advice so that I can make it creamy to proceed with my project. Thank you in advance.
Hi George,
Did you use KOH (potassium hydroxide) as your lye? (That’s my first question because using NaOH lye will result in a solid bar and not a paste for a liquid soap.)
After that, it’s hard to know what’s going on without seeing a picture. You could send me one at [email protected], and I can try to help.
You may be just fine- the past doesn’t always necessarily turn out exactly the same.
You could dilute some of it to see how it behaves. (Ideally it would be interesting to know the final pH of your diluted soap to get a better idea of what’s up.)
Oops – also, does the olive oil need to be extra virgin or is it better if its not?
Hi Liz,
I usually use extra virgin olive oil, but that’s because I usually buy a good extra virgin olive oil here in bulk, so I almost always have a lot of it at home. I can buy it for a very good price here in Spain. That said, it doesn’t really need to be extra virgin olive oil. What is more important is that it be pure olive oil and not olive oil mixed with some other oil. That could really throw off a soap recipe.
As for the storage of the finished soap paste- I usually use glass jars. I prefer to avoid plastic whenever I can, so that’s why I choose glass, but you can use plastic. What I would avoid, though, is any sort of metal container. I ruined one of my soap pastes because I didn’t realize that the tin I was storing it in wasn’t stainless steel. Stainless steel should theoretically be OK, but I’ve had the paste react with metals so I try to avoid any sort of metal just in case. (I do use stainless steel liquid soap dispensers at times, though. I think it must be the concentration, the fact that the soap paste is freshly made, and that it is stored for so long that can cause the problems.
I usually keep mine on top of the medicine cabinet in a bathroom that we don’t use very often, so it doesn’t get a lot of light, but to be honest with you, I’m not sure how much the light would affect it. I guess I always try to store anything I’ll be keeping for a long time away from the light, just in case.
Hi, before I start this, could you tell me what you store your undissolved liquid soap in? Does it need to be glass or dark glass or does it matter? Thanks.
would love to try if I only knew thar KOH is???? and NaOH????
KOH (potassium hydroxide) and NAOH (sodium hydroxide) are the types of lye used most in making soaps. NaOH is the lye that can be commonly found in the drain cleaning section of supermarkets and is used for making bar soaps. KOH is a bit harder to find, and is mostly used for making liquid soaps. You normally have to buy it online from Amazon or from a soap and lotion supply type store.
Hi Tracy…I’m back with another question. So I filled a few Mason jars halfway with distilled water and the remainder of the jar with the soap paste. The paste did dissolve but was very thick so I poured the mixtures into a crockpot and added more water. It ‘cooked’ for several hours, resulting in a layer of waxy foam over a clear concentrated liquid soap. Do I only use the clear soap and dispose of the waxy foam, or does that waxy foam dissolve?
Sorry for all the questions. The next time will be much smoother, I’m sure.
Hi Carol,
No need to apologize. I’m happy to help however I can.
I’m not quite sure how to answer this question, though, as I haven’t found any of my liquid soaps to have a waxy foam like that. If you have any sort of strange layer that doesn’t match the rest (I have had an oily layer form on top with certain liquid soaps I’ve experimented with- especially when using waxy oils like jojoba in them), you can just skim it off. You could try to use what you skim off, as sort of an experiment to see if it’s also just soap that hasn’t fully dissolved or something like that. If it behaves like the rest of the soap, either mix it in, or skim it off for cosmetic reasons.
I find that especially at colder temperatures, sometimes my soap will form layers or get cloudy, and then it tends to clear up when things heat up again. That may be another determining factor. I hope that helps. Sorry I don’t have a more concrete answer for you.
Tracy, I am thinking to make the soap in small quantities. So, is it ok to reduce the quantity in half or do we need to calculate the lye? Your advice is really important to me.
Hi Maddy,
Yes, it’s fine to reduce by half, and also fine to double the recipe. I’ve calculated it out for people both ways before. Just make sure you cut everything in half.
Before halving the recipe, though, consider that the final soap paste lasts for a very, very long time. I don’t dilute it all at once, and only dilute smaller portions at a time. I’ve had soap pastes stored away for more than a year without any issues. Once you do the work, why not get a decent sized batch out of it? 😉
Tracy, I think I’m guilty of impatience. I read more of your article, and I think my mixture is just fine. I expected it to dissolve in a couple of minutes. My bad!!! Now I’m looking forward to the finished product again. Thank you.
Hahaha, No worries, Carol. 🙂
I know how that goes. I’m not always the most patient person myself.
I saw your first message on my phone, and was just going to advise that you leave it in water for awhile, perhaps even overnight if need be, but now I’m happy to see that you figured that out.
I find that these liquid soaps made with glycerine dissolve pretty well without having to do a lot to them. The ones without the glycerin are often really difficult to dissolve in water. Either way, it isn’t immediate. You could speed things up with a bit of heat, but I usually just leave it be overnight and that does a pretty good job of mostly dissolving the paste. Then you just need to mix it to help even it all out.
Good luck!
In researching DIY personal care products, most people, me included, are trying to avoid the use of chemical additives. Isn’t KOH a chemical? Most DIY products use castile soap made with potassium hydroxide.
Hello,
KOH is potassium hydroxide; they are one in the same. All soaps are made with some form of lye. Liquid soaps normally use potassium hydroxide (KOH), and bar soaps normally use sodium hydroxide (NaOH). Are they chemicals? Well, yes. As is water (H2O), and carbon dioxide (CO2). We can’t really avoid chemicals, but we can try to avoid toxic ones. Lye isn’t really toxic, but it is highly alkaline, making it very caustic. That’s why you need to be very careful when working with it. You need to react the oils with lye to get soap, but if you do things correctly, and don’t use too much lye for the amount of fat/oil used, you won’t have any lye left in the final product.
Soaps are still usually more “natural” than surfactant based cleaners, but they are developing more gentle natural surfactants these days for those who don’t like using soap. I’ve also been experimenting with some of those and will be sharing DIY’s using the more natural surfactants hopefully soon.
To add to my earlier comment….I returned to my Crock Pot and discovered the mixture was thickening so I continued to mix, and it did go through all the phases in your instructions. When I got to the final phases, it got REALLY thick so I stopped whipping it, but it quickly turned to a hard waxy texture. Is that what I should see?
Hi Carol,
Yes, it sometimes takes longer to get through the different stages for some people. I think a lot of that has to do with the varying temperatures in slow cookers. It also seems to take longer in the winter. It all sounds pretty normal to me.
In the end, you should end up with something that’s sort of like a thick putty that can be molded. Yes, I guess it’s sort of waxy like. 🙂
If you cooked for a really long time, because it wasn’t going through the stages as quickly, you may have evaporated more water off, leaving you with a more solid paste. That isn’t a problem, though. Once you dilute it, it will all be the same.
I hope it works well for you! I love making liquid soaps! My favorite is probably the coconut oil liquid soap. That one moves more quickly, and gets super thick and solid much earlier on. So, the varying behavior between batches could also be dependent upon which olive oil you use. (I tend to use extra virgin because it’s pretty cheap here in Spain to use the good stuff.) 😉
Thank you for responding so quickly. I don’t think the final product is right. I now have a Crockpot full of a solid wax product. I took a small amount out and added it to water, but all of it did not dissolve after stirring it for 5 minutes. I also tried boiling a small amount in water (since it looks like wax). Do you have any suggestions?
Hi Carol – did you manage to find a way to salvage your soap in the end? because I have just had exactly the same thing! Any suggestions much appreciated … Kathryn
Hi Kathryn,
If you look at the newer comments, you’ll see that Carol ended up with a soap she was happy with. She thought the paste would immediately dissolve, but gave it time and it was fine. (Which is why I didn’t respond on that comment because she had already written me an updated comment later on that day.)
Your soap paste is probably fine. It can appear a bit waxy or almost like a translucent silly putty. That’s perfectly normal.
Are you having other issues with it?
Hi Tracy! Thanks so much for your answer (which I have just found, sorry!). Yes, I eventually had the sense to read through everyone else’s answers and eventually my solid turned to a liquid, hooray! It’s now 24 hours later (although it was turned off overnight) and I think it’s getting more translucent, and certainly runnier (although very creamy when I stir it). It doesn’t dissolve clear, but it sounds like that might not matter …? Should my hands feel very slightly greasy after using it? Thanks again!
PS (Sorry, think I’m having more problems with the internet than with the soap!) Think greasy texture meant the soap was too thick! Have decanted most into a jar now and attempting to dissolve the rest in equal amount of water – funnily enough it went stiff when I added the water, but guess it will dissolve eventually …?
Hi Kathryn,
Yes, I think it should be fine. It does have a bit of a weird texture and you can definitely play with the amount of water you use depending on how thick you want your soap to be and what you plan on using it for.
I am a bit surprised that yours isn’t translucent, but that may be because you have a very thick mixture so far. No, it doesn’t matter if it is translucent or not and it still will work. I’ve cold processed liquid soap before (basically meaning that I skip the cooking process) and I end up with an opaque paste that works just fine. Sometimes liquid soap just needs time to settle. (They call this sequestering.) I haven’t found that I normally need to do that, but I have made some liquid soaps with certain oils like jojoba that make a cloudier soap which can separate into layers. You can skim off the top and leave whatever settles to the bottom alone and just use the middle layer of the soap and it ends up being transparent. If you mix it, you end up with a cloudy soap that also works just fine. 😉
It’s all about experimentation. (I tend to do a lot of it.)
I hope it all works out for you, and thanks for the updates!
Thanks Tracy!! Yes, I have diluted it now and it’s quite clear. Now for the tricky part of selecting which essential oils to use! Think I have overdone with the tea tree oil for the first bottle already … 🙂 Thanks again for your reassurance! Kathryn
I’m so happy to hear that!
Yes, for me it’s all about experimentation with the essential oils. I think I use different ones in almost every batch. Ha!
I still go back to lavender mixed with citrus oils quite a bit. 😉
I made the mixture according to your directions, however, my mixture never changed texture. when I reached step 5, I blended for 15 minutes, but it still looks the same. It just feels like warm oil.
Greetings!
I am here commenting to ask if how much can this recipe make because I am using your recipe as a soap paste for my project. And I am just not sure if this recipe will be too much or too little.
It would be a pleasure if there can be some container references like a 1 Liter bottle or something else that is known in order to give me an idea of how much your recipe of Liquid Castile Soap.
Hoping for your response from your most convenient time.
Hello Jan,
The amount of paste obtained does vary a bit, depending upon how much water evaporates away, etc.
I usually can fill up a one liter jar with soap paste after having already dissolved some for my soap. Next time I’ll have to try to better measure its volume. I’ll be making more soon, so I can try to figure it out, but you should end up with more than a liter of paste.
Thank you so much!!! With this I’ll get closer to what i just need.
Great! Yes, it’s my personal favorite and super easy! (It does get thick faster than the others, but that’s not a problem.) 🙂
I hope it goes well for you, and I’m always happy to help if you have any trouble along the way!
Nice Presentation. I appreciate.
You have explained in a very clear words.
Thank you, Vishnu!
Is there any way to make this soap without a stick blender?
Hi Greta,
Theoretically, yes, you can make it without a stick blender, but I’ve never done it that way myself. You may be whisking for awhile. That said, the heat of the slow cooker in this recipe should help move things along more quickly. Just keep mixing until things thicken up. By that point things won’t be much different from if you had made everything with the stick blender to begin with.
I make liquid shampoo using my own recipe. I use citric acid or borax or mix of both to neutralise. I didn’t notice you using any in your recipe. Shampoo needs a lower pH than body soap.
Hi Helen,
My hair doesn’t react well to soap, or even most shampoos for that matter. So, no, I don’t normally make “shampoo” with liquid soap nor do I make shampoo bars. I think they tend to work better for people with oily and/or thick hair. Even if you “neutralize” the soap with citric acid or borax, you still end up with a high pH for what is recommended for many hair types. You can add it, and it can work well to bring down the pH a bit and make the soap milder, but too much throws off the chemical reaction of the soap. I’m curious as to how much citric acid you add because I’ve always read that too much will just make the soap fall apart and separate. (Thus really ending up with oils, and lye that is neutralized with the citric acid, in a way.) I’m totally open to trying it out again, though, as I am a person who likes experimentation more than relying on what I read. 😉
I do remember the soap getting cloudy right away as you lower the pH, but I guess most shampoos aren’t as clear as liquid soap anyway.
I’ve been finishing up a course in natural surfactants and am working on elaborating recipes for people with hair like mine. 🙂
But, yes, it would be nice to have a soap “shampoo” alternative for those that prefer soap to surfactants.
Oh, and Helen, one more thing I forgot to mention… If you start lowering the pH of the soap- even if it were to work well without compromising the integrity of the soap itself, it then pushes the soap into a dangerous zone when it comes to microbial contamination.
The reason you don’t need to add preservatives to liquid soap is because the pH is normally 9 or above. I talked with a cosmetic chemist who assured me that liquid soap doesn’t need a preservative because most anhydrous solutions that have a pH of 9 or above can be stored without the need for preservatives for up to a year. (There may be some exceptions as some liquids like milks and aloe are more prone to microbial growth. That said, aloe tends to be acidic, so you’d probably need to add a lot of alkaline ingredients to bring the pH up by that much, meaning your concentration of the aloe would be quite low and it’s probably in the safe zone again.) As soon as you try to bring down the pH below 9, you’ll have to worry about finding an effective preservative that would work to allow you to store your “shampoo.” Most of the natural preservatives I use aren’t effective over a pH of 7-8, and I’m not sure you’d ever be able to really get a soap to have pH that low. I think it would be a hard thing to juggle.
I guess you could mix up your shampoo before each use, but who has time for that? 😉
Hello ..
In my soap am getting a settlement of thick forms under the bottle… After shaking it’s getting normal , but every time am getting the settlement understand the bottom … How to solve it …
Hello,
I’m not sure I understand your question. Are you asking about once you’ve diluted the soap, that you get a layer of something on the bottom?
That can be normal, especially in the winter. Allowing the soap to settle should give you a nice clear layer on top. If you need a completely clear soap, I’d actually suggest letting the precipitate settle to the bottom, and pouring the top part into the dispensing jars. If you are getting more than just a small amount it could be due to a number of factors. The cold definitely can affect the clearness of the soap. Also, if you didn’t use distilled water, minerals in the water can affect the final soap.
Hi Tracy,
I tried to make this soap, add all the ingredients as they say in the recipe. But in blending process, after mashed potatoes stage soap did not convert to creamy stage again.
So, I’ve blend it a long time and leave it to cook. After 4 hours is still in cloudy fluffy stage and its not changing at all. I’am putting this aside from heat and hope for your help. 🙂 Do you have idea how I can fix it?
Hi Dragana,
In my experience so far, eventually it all comes around. In any case- even if it never turns somewhat translucent, you should have a usable soap.
Let me tell you about what I did once…
After it had only been cooking for a few minutes, I took out some of the soap paste and set it aside to take pictures comparing the more opaque soap, and the clear cooked paste. I set it aside and forgot to take the pics for several weeks. Know what happened? By the time I wanted to take the pictures to show the difference, the paste that hadn’t been cooked much had already become more translucent and there wasn’t much of a difference between the two.
So, I tried making a new batch, this time not cooking at all. My hopes were that it would eventually turn more translucent too. That was a few months ago, and that paste is still very opaque. Is it usable? Yes! It still behaves as soap when diluted- it just makes a milky looking soap rather than a translucent one.
Those long stories were my way of saying that I’d probably just leave it and try a small amount out.
The paste that you store will likely come around and turn on its own in the next few weeks. Meanwhile, you can still use it. It may not look perfect, but it should be completely usable. If you find it doesn’t behave as soap- then we have a whole other problem, and can talk again to see if we can figure out what happened. 😉
Thank you, I feel relief now. 🙂
Ok, I will leave it stored for few weeks and wait for some change. I hope it will turn out well.
Hi, I got the same result as my soap paste was undiluted. But I cooked for longer then 4 hours. So I decide to diluted anyway and my diluted soap turned out translucent when it has cooled down
Hi Ruthy,
Thanks for sharing your experience!
I’ll have to update the post with the possible situation that could arise. I haven’t had that happen myself, but I think it may have to do with the heat of the different slow cookers or something like that. It’s probably more likely to happen in the winter, too. I do appreciate your help, so thank you!
I thing it was so great to have seen this recipe and it has truly been helpful in going forward
Happy to help!
Hello, i added all of my ingredients as you said into the crock pot and have mixed for 6 min with a hand mixer and it is not thickening at all. How should I proceed?
Hi Cara,
If you have added all of the right ingredients in the right amounts, keep blending. Soaps with only olive oil take a bit longer than others to reach trace. The heat will help speed up the process a little, but it isn’t unusual for olive oil soaps to take longer to go through all of their steps. (When making a pure Castile bar soap using only olive oil, it not only takes longer to get to trace, but it also takes longer to harden enough to unmold- and then should be cured for a lot longer than other soaps.)
Hi Tracy
one more question, for making of bar soap required 6 to 8 weeks for curing what about liquid soap, can i use immediately or need to do curing as well. please help. Thanks.
Hi Rahuveer,
You can use your liquid soap right away. There may be some chemical processes that continue over the next weeks, and the soap may improve with time like bar soap, but in the case of liquid soap, I haven’t noticed much of a difference either way.
During the cooking process, you are finishing the saponification process, so you don’t have to worry about that.
With bar soaps, you want the bars to dry out over the next weeks to have a hard, long lasting bar of soap. Depending upon the method you use for the bar soap, you may also be allowing for the saponification process to complete. Usually that will occur within a couple of days after having made the soap. You could use the soap at that point, but it’s best to wait to allow bar soaps to dry and improve lather, etc.
Thanks so much for the recipe and for the answer. I have had the same question. I’m so happy…
You’re very welcome.
Happy to have helped, Lin! 🙂
HI Tracy,
very useful video, i am planning make shampoo with the same Technic u said, but i want o add pure Aloe vera and coconut milk to improve hair growth, as I need to add water and other ingredients, please advice me on any preservatives. I dont prefer those but i want to know about the self life so that i can prepare that particular amount.
Advice me whether i can use this method for making shampoo and self life of this with out preservative . Thanks in advance.
Hello Rahuveer,
There is a bit of controversy about whether or not you need to add a preservative to liquid soaps because of the introduction of water. While I use preservatives for my other DIY products, I don’t normally use them with liquid soaps, and haven’t noticed any issues. Soap in general has a high pH, in a range that isn’t that hospitable for most bacteria and other unwanted microbes. Because it is in that high pH range, most of the more natural preservatives don’t really work for them anyway. (Preservatives like Leucidal and Rokonsal are usually said to be effective in products with a pH up to 8, but soap is usually higher than that.)
When adding in other ingredients, it’s difficult to know what the outcome will be when it comes to microbial growth. The introduction of something like coconut milk would introduce organic substances to the mix which I’m sure would decrease the shelf life of the product. I personally haven’t done it, so I have no idea what to expect. Without being able to test the final product, it’s really impossible to know about what may or may not be growing in the product.
If I were to do something like that, I’d probably just mix small amounts with the soap before I was going to use it. I wouldn’t try to store it.
In any case, I personally am not a fan of using soap for my hair as a shampoo. I find it really drying. Some people do use it and love it, though.
Thank you very much. It’s really a great help. Thanks for your tips also. I have gone thro lot of info about the shampoo with SLES and ALES both are harmful for the hair so I want to try more organic. Infact I worked in cosmetics R&D. BUT 15 YEARS ago cont remember all preservatives we used. Any way thank you very much I will let u know my experience once I am done.
Great, Rahuveer!
I hope it works well for you.
I personally don’t like using soap in my hair, but I don’t like most commercial shampoos either. I’ve been experimenting with washing my hair sometimes with my homemade conditioner, and have also been experimenting with some more natural surfactants.
I’m not 100% happy with any of my formulations yet, which is why I haven’t put them o the blog yet.
In fact, my plan for January is to take an online course in natural surfactants and formulating natural products using surfactants. My hope is that it will allow me to formulate some great new recipes for my home and for the blog. 😉
Hello. I am Janko from Slovenia. I want to ask you for how long can final soap be stored? Thank you.
Hi Janko,
If you keep most of it in the paste form, and dilute in small batches, it will last quite a long time. I have been saving batches from well over a year ago as a test, and the paste seems to be the same as it was when I first made it. I does depend how you store it, though. I had one container that had a metal lid, where the paste actually contacted that lid, and that affected it badly. In the large jars with metal lids where the paste wasn’t in contact with the metal, I didn’t have any issues.
Hello, Tracy.
I made 100% olive oil liquid soap from this recipe several weeks ago. All looks pretty much like the photos at each stage. I put the paste into jars and, though still clear enough, the paste has gone from chunks to solid in the jars. Does this mean something is not as it should be?
Also, the one larger jar I have diluted really irritates my skin and is also drying my skin. Is there anything I can do to make this more soothing than it is?
I have been using pure olive oil liquid castile soap (Penns Hill) and it really makes my skin soft. I sometimes mix Dr. Bronner’s with this to get more suds and that still works well for me. I use both on my hair with no conditioner and it works fine as my shampoo.
I want to make my own liquid castile to save on the high cost.
Can you tell me what I might have done incorrectly or what I might be able to do to make this more usable and mild on my sensitive skin?
Thank you so much!
Hi Leslie,
Your comment surprises me as I find both this soap and even the one made with only coconut oil to be quite mild. I actually make the one with coconut oil the most often now as I find it the most versatile. I even often use it to wash my face even.
Let’s see if we can figure out the problem…
When you say it started out as chunks and then turned solid…
That sounds strange to me. For me, the paste is sort of like silly putty. It never was really chunky at all, and it definitely shouldn’t solidify.
This may be a stupid question- but let me start with this possibility…
Did you use KOH (potassium hydroxide) or NaOH (sodium hydroxide, aka. regular lye)? You need KOH for liquid soap- and the amount of NaOH would be completely different. If you were to use NaOH, you’d be making a hot process bar soap rather than making a soap paste. The steps would very probably look very similar, but you’d end up with something a bit hard to work with that would eventually solidify.
If that wasn’t the issue, I’ll try to keep brainstorming with you to see if we can figure out the issue.
If that was the problem, I may be able to help you rebatch that soap so that you can at least use it as a more mild bar soap. 😉
Thank you for responding!
I checked the jars again and the soap paste is like silly putty. It’s just that it was more chunky when I put it in the jars a couple months ago and has settled and is not chunky at all.
I did use potassium hydroxide (KOH).
So all looks like it should be ok, but, I just cannot use it because it not only dries my skin (just tried to use the diluted soap a few times to wash my hands), but actually feels like an irritated, almost burning-type of reaction. I tried it a few times, waited a couple weeks or so, then tried it a few more times.
I hope I can figure what is wrong because I’d love to be able to make and use my own soap as I do the ones I purchase…hand washing, showering, shampooing.
Thank you!
Hi Leslie-
Well, that’s good at least-
If you have a liquid soap, even if we can’t fix it for your skin, you can at least use it for general cleaning around the house. I go through a heck of a lot of liquid soap, and have transitioned from a lot of other cleaners. I’ve even been using it successfully in my dishwasher. (I’m not sure that that’s generally recommended, but it’s what I’ve been doing. 😉 )
Do you happen to have any test strips?
Did you dilute it with distilled water?
It would be interesting to see if the pH of your soap turned out excessively on the high side. Soap inherently has a high pH, but if a particular batch has a higher pH than usual, especially if there in unreacted lye, it can be irritating to the skin.
Did you try to neutralize the soap in any way? Or just leave it as is (as I usually do)?
Did you read my posts about my thoughts on liquid soap neutralization?
Sorry for all of the questions- I’m just trying to get as much info as possible so as not to make a bad recommendation.
If I were you, I’d probably mix in some oil into the soap that you want to use for your skin. By doing this, you do risk it getting cloudy. For some people that is a big deal, but personally I’d rather have a cloudy soap than one that irritated my skin.
You can always use an opaque stainless steel or ceramic soap dispenser. 😉 (I actually normally use those, and only use the glass for taking photos of mine for the blog. I wanted people to be able to see what they’d be making.)
The reason liquid soaps aren’t normally superfatted like bar soaps is that people want to make a perfectly clear, transparent soap. If you have very sensitive skin, though, I’d at least try adding a bit more oil to it. By this point, the saponification is complete, so you can now use a more expensive oil that works well with your skin if you like. It should end up being the superfatted component. (Of course you can just use more olive oil too.)
I hope this helps somewhat- I’m happy to try to help you more throughout the process.
I will read about neutralizing the soap. I have not tried that. I will order some test strips, too. And, I can try adding almond or virgin olive oil. Will add comments as I gradually try different things. Thank you for your help!
Oh, yes, I did use distilled water. And, I don’t care much if adding oil makes my soap cloudy, so, that’s fine.
Hi Tracy
Just started making this, didn’t have a blender so I used a hand mixer. Has all gone well so far, and have got to the mashed potato stage and then on to creamy stage – then… it’s now gone to a consistency of shaving foam, instead of translucent streaks. I’m thinking perhaps the mixer added air to it? Shall I just leave it overnight on a low heat and see what it’s like in the morning or keep attempting to stir it? BTW thank you so much for all your information, my 8 year old has inspired me to use less plastic and this is the first step – no more throw away body wash bottles for us!
Hi Lucy,
Yeah, I’d just leave it. I’m sure it’s fine.
Sometimes things look a bit different for some reason or other. I’m sure once you dissolve it in water, you’ll end up with a usable soap. In some cases it may not be transparent, but to me that’s not a big deal. For me the important thing is to have a usable, natural alternative to some of the stuff you’d buy at the store! 🙂
Hi Tracy, thanks for the reply – quick update I left it overnight and then turned the slow cooker on again in the morning and it seems to be doing ok. I’ve had it on for 5 hours now and its still opaque when put into water to test, but i think that’s probably because it is VERY cold in my part of England at the moment!
Hi Tracy,
Thanks for this great recipe. I am about to embark on making my own soaps and lotions. I have looked at other liquid soap recipes but they seem to take too long (2 days!).
I apologise if you have answered these questions but I am keen to get off to a good start:
– can this recipe be adjusted to use a mix of olive and other oils if I didn’t want to make them separately and blend later? If so, what oils would you recommend?
– is this suitable for use on the face, and/or do you have a recipe for a face wash/cleanser?
– do I need to sterilise the storage containers for the paste?
– do you recommend using different equipment for soap making and food preparation (I have seen conflicting advice on this)
Thanks again,
Melanie.
Hi Melanie,
Those are great questions, and I’m happy to try to help you at any point along the way! I usually am very quick to respond, but have only been looking about every other day right now because I’m just getting done with a kitchen remodel and I’m still trying to get the house back together. 😉
1) You can definitely adjust the oils- and I now have a liquid Castile Dr. Bronner’s copycat recipe up on the blog. I’ve actually also been experimenting with making the soap without the hot process part- and will eventually get my findings up on the blog. (Meaning that I think that not only do you not need days to make a liquid soap, but you probably don’t need hours either!)
2) I actually find this suitable for the face and often use it on mine. It is said that bar soaps are gentler on the face because you can superfat them, but I find this soap to be super gentle. Even the coconut one is mild. Perhaps it has to do with the addition of the glycerin. I’m not really sure why, but I find it very gentle. I do have an activated charcoal bar soap that I normally have been using to wash my face, but in the shower I use the liquid soap. (So, on most days I guess I really end up washing my face with my mixed oil liquid soap.) Ha!
I’ve just now started experimenting with surfactants, and will be working on a gentle non-soap face wash eventually. I want to make sure I fully understand and have experimented with them before just throwing recipes up on the blog, though. I have fairly oily skin, so I can handle soap well, but I suspect that people with dry, sensitive skin may do better with the bar soap or with a surfactant based wash.
3) While I don’t sterilize the storage containers per se, I do run my jars through the dishwasher. It’s a good idea to at least run very hot water through them and make sure they are thoroughly clean. I also usually dilute with distilled water. It’s inexpensive, and I figure it will ensure my mixture will last longer. (That said, I’ve never had issues the few times I’ve diluted with tap water.)
4) I personally see no reason to invest in different equipment for soap and food making. Keep in mind that lye is used to cure olives, make the crust on pretzels and sometimes bagels, etc.
I think people think of lye as some super toxic chemical that is going to kill you if some microscopic drop remains in your mixer or whatnot. They then go and eat lye cured olives with no issues.
Lye is a powerful base, and just like a strong acid will burn you if you are’t careful, and it’s fumes can also hurt you. Once you mix with oils, though, you have soap. Even if some lye remains, I just don’t see how it can hurt you. You can rinse everything with vinegar to try to neutralize any remaining bits, but personally I find even that to be an overkill. 😉
Thanks so much for your reply Tracy. I’m on my way to buy the ingredients for this and your basic bar soap recipe. I am really excited about making my own soaps and skincare. I am overcoming my nervousness about working with lye and dealing with pH issues, but I am still a little anxious about preservatives. I don’t want to sell the things I make but would like to give them as gifts. Is there a simple principle about working with preservatives that you could share?
Thanks again,
Melanie.
Hi Melanie,
Well, with soaps you don’t really have to worry about preservatives. Some people say they use preservatives with liquid soaps, but I don’t think any of the natural preservatives work at the pH of liquid soap, and I’ve never had any issues with soaps, even those that have sat around for months and months at a time.
I think that the high pH of soap helps preserve it naturally. It’s a bit of a controversial subject, but I wouldn’t worry about it for home use or gifting. Selling, of course, is a whole other game.
As for other products like homemade lotions, it’s the addition of water to a product that allows for bacterial growth and makes a preservative necessary. I talk more about some of the preservatives I use in the lotion recipe I just linked to with the general guidelines for how long they should preserve the lotion. (The preservatives I use generally say they keep for 3 months, but I’ve talked to people who sell products in the US who use the same preservatives and say they generally have a shelf life on 12-18 months! I’m guessing Europe errs on the side of caution, and have to admit that even lotions I’ve had sitting around for months past the 3 months haven’t shown any signs of anything going awry!)
There are preservatives that allow for longer lasting products, but they are less natural, and most people who follow my blog aren’t interested in using that sort of thing because they are making their own products in the interest of avoiding just that. 😉
Hello Tracy, I am very thankful to have discovered your detailed and easy to understand blog. I have a small cp soap business in rural New Zealand and have recently made your liquid Castille soap successfully. I love it and am not planning on adding coconut because it is so gentle. I’ve noticed that brambleberry sells Castille soap paste and markets it toward the “middleman” , the soap maker, just like a melt and pour soap base. I have this idea and I was hoping you would tell me what you think. I’ve put the soap paste in attractive 8oz jelly jars. I was thinking I can sell the soap in a 200ml pump ready to go but also offer the jar of soap paste for the customer to dilute as needed for approximately 4 refills. I’m finding a 1 part (50g) of paste to 200mls of water to be a good thickness. I think New Zealanders are keen to “participate in the process” and are also looking for the simplest, most gentle products. And also, would diluting it as needed increase its shelf life particularly if an essential oil was added at dilution? Can you think of reasons this might not be a good idea? I would of course give instructions for diluting and would highly recommend the method of patiently leaving it in a jar a day or two. I was also considering whether I should include an option of a 5ml or 10ml essential oil, perhaps lavender that people could add when they dilute their paste. But I wasn’t sure if either size would be enough to scent 4x 200mls of soap… I use essential oils in my cp soaps but I’ve never rebottled them before and don’t know if it’s going to be economically viable yet, just wondering if you had any thoughts on this. I added about 4 g I think( I didn’t have a dropper and my scale was acting up so not very scientific!) to a 200ml bottle of soap and the scent is very faint. I think even if unscented was the only option , people will still buy it because I’ve had success selling unscented Castille bar soap in the past. Thank you for your excellent blog, Tressa
Hi Tressa,
I absolutely LOVE that idea!
I can’t think of any reason that it isn’t a good idea. It’s actually quite genious, and I’d totally buy it if I didn’t make the soap myself. 😉
(If it were bottled up cute enough, I might consider buying it anyway.) Ha!
I also quite like the idea of selling it with a small bottle of essential oil, and do think either the 5ml or 10ml would be enough. That, of course, really depends on the scent and how strong each person likes their scent to be. I personally never measure out fragrance, either, and prefer to go by what my nose says, but small bottles tend to last me awhile, and I use them for lots of different homemade products.
Scents like lavender are popular and do very well in lasting long in soaps as compared to some of the other scents. I love citrus oils, but you need to add a lot more of them, and they don’t tend to last as long. That’s why I usually use them in combination with another scent like lavender or rosemary.
Have you tried making the coconut oil liquid soap? I really think you should give it a try. In the end, it’s the soap I make the most. I feel like I should update all of my liquid soaps to say how the coconut oil soap is my favorite. I actually find it very mild for your skin. Maybe it’s because I use the glycerin method. I’m not really sure, but the final soap is very nice. I rarely make the one with olive oil anymore because the coconut oil one is a lot cheaper to make, and is such a great multipurpose soap that I really love it. I now understand why Dr. Bronner’s soap is mainly comprised of coconut oil. I did do a copycat recipe too, but I think I added too many of the other oils to it which not only increases the price, but it appears to cloud up the soap. (I want to make a new version recipe with my thoughts on the subject.)
Seeing as you’re a professional DIY-er, I’d love it if you’d consider joining my Facebook group. I haven’t been very active in there lately, except to answer questions, but I’d really love to get together a great group of people who make their own products to brainstorm up some great ideas together. 🙂
Hello again, Tracy, Thank you so much for your reply…I really appreciate the advice and will try the coconut liquid soap paste this week. I actually got the olive oil paste and soap all labeled and ready for the cafe shelves where I sell my product and then realised I’d misspelled Castile, as I did in my first comment to you! At the same time, I was having. a slight hesitation about the lack of lather and still weighing up the essential oil option. So all of your comments are very timely and helpful. I live quite “unplugged” as noted by my just seeing your reply today so sorry for the delay. This is the first time I’ve ever written on a blog! As such, I don’t think I would be very active on a facebook group, at least at this time. But I will be sure to check up on your blog from time to time. I really do appreciate your help. Warmest Regards, Tressa
Hi Tressa,
No problem! I completely understand! I just figured that if you were already on Facebook and were going to be experimenting, you might want the opportunity to network with others who are doing the same. A few girls in the group are making the laurel berry soap right now. It’s fun watching how their experiments go.
I’m always here to answer questions, so no worries. 😉
Hi again,Tracy, and thank you. Well I made the coconut soap today and it’s very nice. Then I started to wonder if you’ve ever tried to make a liquid soap PASTE that has the blend of olive and coconut, similar to what you’ve recommended 70% olive and 30% coconut? Or maybe 60/40. I noted the water and KOH amounts are different for your two liquid soap recipes. So I inputed the oils into soapcalc.net but I read somewhere( Your blog?) that there might be a better calculator on line for liquid soaps. Since the glycerin is replacing part of the water, that doesn’t effect the amount of KOH, right? I didn’t see anywhere on the calculator to include glycerin so assume it’s like using milk instead of water?
I’m trying to figure out marketing details by presenting the product line as simply as possible. I’ve done three batches of the olive and one of the coconut, and I was considering selling both a 100% olive and a 70/30 blend already diluted in the pump dispenser. I can then sell the 100% olive oil paste, but thought if I sell 100% coconut oil paste so the customer could blend their own, you’d end up with lots of extra coconut. I’m using pomace olive oil so the price difference isn’t that much, although the olive is $1.50 more per litre. Thanks so much, Tressa
Oh yes, I’ve decided to provide the essential oil blends as you’ve recommended.
Hi Tressa,
I think your soap line sounds wonderful! 🙂
I use the Summer Bee Meadow advanced calculator for my liquid soap recipes. It allows for inputing glycerin.
I have published a post with mixed oils- my Dr. Bronner’s copycat recipe, but the more I use it, the less impressed I am with it- and I actually want to update that post with my thought, findings, and a new recipe that only uses coconut and olive oil. (That recipe adds other more expensive oils like hemp and jojoba, and I don’t really see much benefit from it. Plus, it seems to leave a cloudy film floating on top. I had another reader comment the same to me.) I0m planning on making a new batch in the next couple of weeks and adding my comparison to the post.
My favorite is still the coconut oil liquid soap. I use it the most- and use it for almost everything around the house lately. (I thought I’d like the pure Castile soap (with only olive oil) best, but in the end, I don’t. Here olive oil tends to be a lot cheaper than coconut oil- unless you can find a cheap source of coconut oil for DIY uses online. (It wasn’t until this year that I did finally find a cheaper source- and had to buy a huge tub of it.)
Hi Tracy
Thanks a million for your detailed information
I have a question about liquid soap, please.
I watched a video online on how to make liquid Castile soap thicken by adding salt solution.
When I do this to a certain extent, like 12 tbsp per liter, I get a thick liquid like sauce, but it doesn’t thicken further. It doesn’t become a paste like the video. If I add more, it separates into a clear liquid and foam on top. Why does this happen?
Another question, do I have to leave the Castile soap for 2 – 3 weeks to cure before I use it? Would it behave better if I do? Or shall I use it from the second day?
Thanks a lot.
Hello Mona,
I’m not really sure about the salt solution. I know that salt is often used to purify soaps. Because soap doesn’t really dissolve in salt water, you end up separating the water from the soap and ideally any impurities in the soap will dissolve out in the water. I imagine that after a certain point, you are basically separating the soap from the liquid component.
I personally don’t use salt to thicken my soap as I don’t mind it on the thinner side.
As for the curing…
It isn’t really necessary to wait. Some people think that the soap will improve with time, but I haven’t personally found much of a difference. The curing time seems to be more important with bar soaps where you want the soap to harden so that it will last longer. They do say that there are some chemical processes that continue after having made the soap, which could mean the soap does improve a bit, but, like I say, in practice I haven’t noticed much of a difference. 😉
Thank you very much Tracey. I really appreciate your detailed explanation 🙂 (Y)
Does the liquid soap require curing time like the soiled Castillo soap does due to the lye?
Hi Julia,
No, you don’t really need to cure the liquid soap paste. It may still get slightly better with time, but it’s not due to anything with the lye. The saponification process has long finished after the cooking time, so you dodn’t have to worry about waiting for the lye to convert.
Some people like to let the soap sit after dissolving the paste in water, too, to give a clearer soap. This is basically just a cosmetic concern.
They do say that some other chemical processes continue on after the saponification process completes that may improve the soap slightly with time, but I haven’t personally found much of a difference with the liquid soaps.
Hi Tracy,
First off, thank you for the great DIY! I’ve been looking for something like this for quite sometime!
I’m attempting to make my own anti-fungal/antibacterial/antiseptic dog shampoo (I have a dog with itchy, yeasty skin) and this will be the foundation of my shampoo I’m hoping. My question is: once I’ve made the castile soap, can I use it as the base for my dog shampoo (adding other ingredients) without ruining the base soap. I see in the comments you mention that this is a fairly precise recipe, so should I add essential oils etc after the soap is already made, or should it be incorporated initially?
Thanks,
Sarah
Hi Sarah,
There is no problem adding in essential oils and other additives when you are going to dilute the soap paste. That’s how I normally do it.
You can read more about how I tend to dilute my soap in my post about how to dilute a liquid soap paste.
If your dog has sensitive skin, you can probably add in other things like small amounts of coconut milk or other nourishing additives too. I wouldn’t mix up large quantities, though; just enough for a one-time use. Adding in organic ingredients makes it easier to introduce bacteria into your soap mixture, so you don’t want to try to keep it for later unless you add a preservative. You can also add in some other oils, but it will probably make your soap cloudy, and too many could definitely reduce the effectiveness of the soap.
You may even consider making a conditioner for a final rinse. I actually use my homemade conditioner on my dog, and it really leaves her hair beautiful. A conditioner is basically formulated in the same way as a lotion, so it’s great for the skin. Mine is a very light one that can even be used as a leave in conditioner, so it doesn’t weigh down the hair. That said, I’d probably rinse it off a dog, just in case, but you don’t have to be super thorough about it.
I talk more about how I wash my dog’s fur, and my thoughts on using soap on a dog in my dog shampoo bar recipe post. You might want to give it a read to help you decide how you want to formulate your shampoo. 😉
I hope that helps give you more ideas!
Oh- in any case- don’t worry about ruining the recipe. Follow the recipe as-is to make the soap paste. Once you have that made, you can easily experiment with small amounts of diluted soap paste. If something doesn’t turn out as wanted, you’ll only have ruined a small batch and will still have the rest of your soap to play with.
Thanks for sharing the recipe. Please clarify the following:
Does the KOH water mixer to be mixed into oil while it is heating?
How long do we keep the mixture on heat? I mean when should be mixture removed from heat source?
Is slow cooker mandatory for making the soap?
I do not have slow cooker? How can i make this soap?
Hi Abhi,
You don’t need to mix the KOH water into the oil while it is heating, it will just hasten the process and make things a bit easier for you. Mixing them together without heat will take a lot longer to get to the point of “trace,” which is when the soap starts to form.
The slow cooker isn’t mandatory for making the soap, it just makes things easier because a slow cooker will maintain a low heat setting which will help you cook the soap paste without it burning. Some people choose to mix the soap over a double boiler instead, or will cook it in an oven in a baking pan.
All of this said- I’m going to say something controversial… you may not need heat this at all to make a soap paste. All liquid soap recipes I’ve seen have always used heat, though. I’ve been experimenting making a soap paste without heat, and I think my experiment will turn out well. Instead of heating, though, you need to wait at least several weeks for the paste to go from opaque to more transparent before you can use it. If you cook your soap, you can use it pretty much instantly afterwards.
In several weeks, if my cold process liquid soap experiment turns out well, I’ll be writing a new post about it and will explain my findings.
some liquid soap recipes call for borax or boric acid mixed with water to be added to the soap to neutralize the excess lye. I see this recipe doesn’t call for that. Why do some need it and others don’t? Who would want to do the extra step if it isn’t necessary?
Hi Lynne,
That’s a great question. I write more about the issue in my post about how to neutralize liquid soap.
When making liquid soap, many people are very concerned about their soap being crystal clear. So, to make sure that there aren’t any excess oils in the soap that can make it cloudy, they make those soaps with extra lye, and then later lower the pH with borax, boric acid or sometimes citric acid (for those trying to avoid borax). Neutralize is sort of a misleading term because soap is never neutral in pH, but it does bring the pH down to make it so that it isn’t alkaline enough to irritate your skin.
I’ve found that when using the glycerin method, not only is the process slightly easier, but the final soap is nice and mild. I don’t use a lye excess in my recipe, but don’t superfat it either. The idea is that the recipe is exact, using just the right amount of oils for the lye used. Of course slight mis-measurements or differences in ingredients could mean that you have a tad of either lye or oil leftover, but in either case it shouldn’t be enough to either cloud the soap or to be alkaline enough to irritate your skin. (If it were, you could always lower the pH a bit with one of the mentioned acids.)
If you don’t care if your soap is transparent, you could always superfat the soap slightly for a more moisturizing soap. When people make recipes for body washes, they often add oils and other moisturizing ingredients to liquid Castile soap. The final product is more moisturizing, but not crystal clear.
I personally prefer to avoid borax and boric acid, as I’m not comfortable using them. Citric acid is better, but a bit harder to work with to get a clear soap. I tried to develop an easy recipe that would give most people a relatively clear soap without having to do that extra step.
I hope that makes sense. 🙂
Hi Tracy! Thank you for posting all of this great information! Two questions for you (1) I am thinking to make a batch of soap paste and then dilute it as needed over several months; how do you store the paste? Does it need to be stored in the refrigerator? (2) when adding essential oils to the paste for purposes of scenting, would you add the oils as you are diluting in water, or add the essential oil to the paste first so it can incorporate with the fats, then wait a while, and then dilute? thank you again!
Hi Kerri,
Great questions.
I do exactly that- I dilute whatever I need and keep the rest as a soap paste so that it will keep longer. I’ve kept batches for over a year in glass jars in cupboards and that has worked well for me. You can probably use plastic or silicone containers, too. I’d stay away from metal, though, as I’ve found it can react with the soap paste somewhat.
I add in the essential oils when I’m diluting. That way I can keep adding to scent. 😉
I have more information about how to dilute liquid soap paste in this post. I also just posted a new liquid soap recipe last night that uses several oils (like Dr. Bronner’s). I haven’t had a chance to link to that post from this one yet, but you can find how to make a multipurpose liquid Castile soap like Dr. Bronner’s here (in case you’re interested in that one instead).
Hi Tracy!
I was wondering if you know…what effect does the amount of water you add to the KOH have on the final product of the soap? I’ve seen recipes with a lot less water added with the KOH and other recipes that say just triple the KOH to get the amount of water needed. Any insight? Thanks!
Hi Christin,
Honestly, I don’t think it really matters. If you use less water, you’ll probably just end up with a thicker soap paste that is harder to dissolve later on. That, of course, will also depend a lot on how long you cook it.
I think pretty much all of the liquid soap information is all based on one book, and I’m finding through experimentation that some of the information written as set in stone may not be. I still want to experiment a bit more before I write a post about it, but I’m finding that even the whole hot processing probably isn’t necessary.
This recipe makes a soap paste that very easily dissolves in water. I don’t even usually heat up the mixture, I just leave the paste with some water for a few hours and let it dissolve on its own. I’ve read from other people that some liquid soap pastes are very difficult to dissolve. I think the glycerin helps, and probably the amount of water in it.
I hope that helps! 🙂
Thanks so much for your insight. I’ll definitely be experimenting some more. Because it seems everything needs to be weighed out so precisely, I just found it interesting that the soap calcs seem to give very different #s for the water. Thanks again!!
Thank you for the recipe. My 100% olive oil soap gel is now beautifully translucent on its own, so I suspect dilution will just get it to usable range.
Yay!
I’m so happy to hear it! Enjoy your soap! 🙂
Hi Tracy!
I just make my own liquid castile soap!
Aaah! So happy that this recipe work so well!
It’s so translucent. I halved the recipe.
At first, it did not turn out like yours step by step. Mine didn’t even reach that mashed potato /grainy stage. Don’t know why. But i just cook it until 4hrs and done the clarity test. And the result looks wonderfully translucent. I’m amazed that i could make my own liquid castile soap!
Thanks so much Tracy!
You’re so welcome, Adrianne!
Thanks for letting me know it worked out well for you. 🙂
Yes, I’ve made this recipe several times since then, and it doesn’t always look exactly the same throughout the process. That said, it always seems to eventually work itself out right.
I think maybe subtle differences in different oils used (from different brands), temperature variations, etc., can all affect the process slightly.
I think liquid soap is one of the best, the most cost effective DIY projects there is. Welcome to the world of liquid soap making!
Can I use the type of immersion blender that has a plastic covering on the “stick”? The one you have pictured has a metal stick. Thank you. K
Hi Kwasa,
I’ve never seen an immersion blender with a plastic covering, but my best guess is that should be fine using that.
Lye can burn through some plastics, like plastic #1, but it’s normally OK to use with most of the more durable plastics. I would expect them to use a more durable plastic for something like that, so I can’t imagine it being a problem.
In any case, by the point you begin to use the immersion blender, you’ve already stirred the lye mixture into the oils, so the reaction has already started to take place. There’s probably not enough straight lye solution left to do anything bad to your plastic covering.
Hi, Tracy.
Can i half the recipe? Because my crockpot not large enough to make the full recipe.
Really want to try this recipe asap! Hehe..
Thanks.
Hi Adrianne,
Yes, that’s fine! As long as you maintain the proportions, you should be OK! 🙂
Good luck! I hope it goes well for you!
Ok, I started this soap last night and it still isn’t ready. My work area is in my basement and it stays around 68-70 degrees in here. Could it be too could?? Should I turn my slow cooker up to high?? I only have low and high on it. I’m about over this soap, but I don’t want to waste it. HELP!!
Hi Dana,
Definitely don’t throw it out. It could be something about the temperature. Other people have told me that theirs started working when they turned the heat up higher. I’m considering updating the post to tell people that they may need to turn the heat up higher on their slow cookers, but I’m afraid of people burning the soap. I’d give it a try, but would keep a close eye on it.
I will say one thing: I recently did an experiment. It actually wasn’t meant to be an experiment, but I separated out a small amount of the paste before processing it in the slow cooker. I wanted to show the difference between processed and unprocessed paste. The unprocessed was more opaque and white. I set it aside for several weeks, and when I took it out again to take final pictures of my soap, guess what I found? The unprocessed paste had become translucent too!
I’ll be diluting both soon to see what happens, and if I can even tell a difference between the two! It may be that you don’t even really need to process the soap in the slow cooker if you aren’t in a hurry to use the soap. It appears that eventually the paste may get where it needs to be on its own. In any case, I suspect that all of the processing is really only done to get a translucent soap. If you don’t care about that, it’s probably not even necessary. (I’ll be doing more experiments with that, and will try to share the results as soon as I can!)
Good luck!
Im curious. Did your unprocessed paste make a translucent liquid soap? How did it turn out?
Hi Nadi,
To be honest, I never got around to adding water to it.
I can add some this weekend, and let you know.
I’ve been meaning to make a full batch of liquid soap without hot processing to see what happens, but I’ve been really busy with back to school stuff and planning for my son’s birthday party next week. After that’s done, I’ll hopefully have more time for experimenting.
I’m sorry. I missed this comment when it arrived. I’ve been finding a few as I clear out the box.
It’s still pretty opaque even now, but I think that’s due to the cold weather. I’m looking forward to seeing what happens as the weather heats up.
Hey Tracy ,
thanks for the amazing Blog.
my question is can i use liquid castile soap as hair shampoo?
Hi Salma,
Thanks so much!
I personally don’t use soap in my hair. Soap is on the alkaline side, and I feel like it strips hair of its moisture, and just isn’t the best choice for hair. If you have used other castile soaps to wash your hair before, though, this one would work in the same way. If anything, this one would be gentler because it is made with only olive oil, and most castile soaps sold commercially aren’t pure castile soaps and use mostly coconut oil. Some people use castile soap on their hair and their hair adapts to it, and they like it.
I’ve been working on developing some gentle shampoos using gentle surfactants, and hope to get them up on the blog. I’ve also used my DIY hair conditioner as a sort of cleansing conditioner. It’s worked well for me to a point, meaning I can go a week or two between washing with something else, but eventually I need to wash with something else.
I am experimenting and working on different ideas for people to try, and will try to get them up on the blog soon after figuring out what I think works best. 🙂
Hi Salma.
Years ago, I experimented with a lot of different options for washing hair. The best I have found, and still use to this day, is simply diluted ACV. Not many people can cope with the smell though – my kids hate it!
The vinegar must be unfiltered, with the mother still in it. Otherwise it will strip your hair, rather than condition.
I put about 1cm into a 600ml plastic bottle and top it up with shower water, pour it over my scalp and let it run through my hair.
Afterwards, I use about half a teaspoon of a mixture of olive oil, castor oil and rosemary EO. This is used only to look after my curls and is probably not required if you have straight or wavy hair.
I hope it works for you! 🙂
Tracey,
Fantastic recipe. Can’t wait to try it out! I love that you’ve kept it as basic and natural as possible.
Thanks.
Hi Tamara,
You’re welcome!
I hope the soap goes well for you.
Also, thanks for the tips about cleansing hair!
I’ve tried so many different things myself, and although I don’t mind the scent of vinegar, I couldn’t get it to work well with my hair. (It almost left my hair feeling like it had some weird buildup on it, which seems impossible seeing what vinegar is, but… it is what it is.)
I tried using only water for awhile, which actually worked well for me for several months, until it didn’t.
Lately I’ve been using a cleansing conditioner, and alternate that with using my homemade conditioner as a cleansing conditioner. (I can’t use mine exclusively because after a certain number of washes, it feels like it starts to build up too.)
I’m now working on formulating a gentle shampoo. I’ve been experimenting, and it will eventually make its way to the blog when I’m fully happy with the formula. 🙂
I think it’s great to have options. We are all different, and our hair is so different, so I guess we each need to experiment and find out what’s best for us!
Throughout the journey, I found that my hair is actually quite curly too. I always thought it was straight with unruly waves on the lower layers. It’s amazing how your hair can change when you stop stripping it with harsh shampoos! 🙂
Hi Tracy, I love the sound of your conditioner, as soon as I can get hold of some btms (seems a little elusive here) I will give it a try. I use an infusion of rosemary with some citrus EO’s added at the moment, I have used it for yeeaars lol so would be good to try something new.
Hi Pauline,
I hope you’ve been enjoying the sun! 🙂
I wanted to mention last time that if you were using a shampoo base, that shampoos are made with surfactants and not soaps, so that could explain the difference in behavior. Of course, if you were making a homemade shampoo using soap as one of the ingredients, that’s different.
I did make my double batch of liquid soap, but I’ve been using the old one up mostly for cleaning. I haven’t really played much with the essential oils as I still have all of the soap dispensers around the house mostly full. I’ll try to remember to use rosemary next time, though, to see if I have the same problem.
It’s always been difficult for me to find stuff here in Spain, and I normally have to look to the UK and Germany, so it’s interesting that you can’t find BTMS there. I can try to look for it later on. (I’m about to head out right now.) I lucked out and found a relatively new online store here in Spain that has all sorts of natural ingredients, oils, emulsifiers, etc.
I imagine they probably ship to anywhere else in Europe, so you may be able to get it from them. I have no idea how much shipping would be. I buy lots of stuff in bulk, as I’m always making new things, so I usually get free shipping for having spent so much. 🙂
Have a great weekend, and enjoy the weather!
Hello Tracy,
Ooh would you let me know the details of the online store you have found please? I don’t suppose shipping will much different to that from France or Germany.
No I didn’t use a surfactant shampoo base, I used a gentle liquid soap psste, rosemary infusion and EO’s. I know a lot of people don’t think you should use soap for your hair, but mine is doing much better with it than with commercial shampoo.
Must get some more coconut oil then I will make both soap pastes again, then experiment with the essential oils. I WILL figure it out lol The weather took a turn for the worse and we had lots of rain and it felt quite chilly. It seems to be improving though. ? Thanks for your help.
Hi Pauline,
I buy from a place called cremas-caseras.es.
I just took a look and they do appear to send to all of Europe. They also send through Amazon. http://amzn.to/2uk7NNt
(That’s an affiliate link to the BTMS)
I’m not sure if it works out cheaper to buy through one or the other. (Their site or Amazon)
So you may want to take a look to see which way works out better. 🙂
Yeah–things have been colder here lately too. Most people seem to be happy about that, but I like pool and beach time with my little guy and easily get cold, so…
I don’t mind the heat. Ha!
Enjoy your summer!
Hi Tracy, thank you for replying, the oil combinations I used were rosemary and lavender, and rosemary and orange. I will try to do a test and see which is the culprit. It is really odd because I use rosemary and citrus oils (blood orange, lime and grapefruit) in my shampoo (made from a different soap base) because it smells divine ? and haven’t had this happen.
Thanks again, looking forward to more recipes ? Take care.
Hi Pauline,
That’s really interesting. I have often used a combination of lavender and citric oils, but I don’t think I’ve used rosemary in the soap. I don’t know why it would change the consistency like that, though! I do often use a combination of lavender and rosemary in hair products like my homemade conditioner, but that’s a totally different sort of recipe too.
If you do figure out the problem, I’d love to hear about it. I just made a huge double batch of the coconut oil soap, so maybe I’ll try it out on that.
If it does end up being rosemary that’s the “problem oil,” perhaps you can try with lavender and orange. I really love that combination, and I’m guessing it’s pretty similar scent-wise. 🙂
I will let you know when I make my next batch. The weather is really nice at present, so I am enjoying that while it lasts lol we don’t see enough of it here in the UK, so soap will have to wait a while ? How did your experiment go?
Hi Tracy,
I made a couple of different liquid soap pastes which came out great. But, I dissolved some of the castile paste (50 gms in 150 gms distilled water) it was lovely like a shower gel consistency, I then added a few drops of essential oil (as I didn’t like the olive/soapy smell) and it changed consistency immediately to that of water ? I wanted a nice body wash/shower gel. Any ideas what went wrong and what to do with the next batch please?
Thank you.
Hi Pauline,
Hmm, interesting- that hasn’t happened to me (yet)! I’m sorry that happened and I totally understand your frustration!
What essential oil(s) did you use?
If you don’t like the new consistency, there is something you could try to save this batch.
I’ve been using foaming soap dispensers with my liquid soap, and I really love them! You’re supposed to use them diluted anyway, so the watery texture isn’t a problem. When you pump the soap, it comes out nice and foamy, and you end up using less soap that way! (Plus, I find dispensers easier to use in the shower than trying to open bottles.)
As for what to do next time…
I guess I’d try separating out very small amounts and test them with a few drops of different oils to see which ones are reacting with the soap to change the consistency like that. Once you have a better idea of what causes the problem, you can avoid those oils in your larger batches. I haven’t experienced that myself yet, but it is now something I will be on the lookout for!
I’d love to hear back if you figure it out, and if I find out something, I’ll let you know too!
It’s be great to help other people avoid the same frustrations!
Hi i have some questions. where do you storage? Plastic or glass? And the crock pot can be stainless steel? Do you know the shelf life?
Hello Jariliz,
I usually store in glass because that’s a personal preference. Some people do store in plastic, though, without any problems. I wouldn’t recommend storing in any sort of metal container, though.
I would assume that if the crock pot is stainless steel, that should be okay. When making soaps, you have to be careful of metals because the lye can react with certain metals. That said, stainless steel should be fine.
As for the shelf life, I’m not really sure. I’ve had a batch stored as a paste at my house for around a year and a half, and it seems to still be working fine. It will probably depend a lot on the water content, how you store it, the temperature, etc., but it should store for a long time. 🙂
Hi,
Can I use regular cooking pot instead of a crock pot and would that make the cooking process longer? We don’t have them where I live so I can’t buy one. Thank you
Hi Lena,
Well, you can give it a try in a double boiler, being very careful not to let it burn. The reason for the slow cooker is that it stays at a constant low heat and is safe to leave alone for several hours. With this being such a long process, the slow cooker is ideal.
The other, perhaps easier option, would be to bake it in the oven, at least in the later stages. I’d probably try the first part over the double boiler, and then once you are ready to cook it, to bake it in the oven at around 190ºF/90ºC. (That’s the normal temperature for the low setting of a slow cooker.)
Remove it from the oven to stir, and then place it back in the oven to continue cooking it.
I hope that helps!
Hi! I’d love to try this recipe but I have a serious issue.
I do not own a slow cooker. Is it possible to be made in ordinary pot?
If yes, please let me know the cooking time and procedure.
Wait for your answer anxiously! Thank you
Hi Matina,
While it’s possible to make this in an ordinary pot in a double boiler on the stovetop, you’d have to be a lot more careful throughout the process to keep the soap from burning, or to keep from running out of water, as you go. The reason most people use a slow cooker for this is because the temperature is maintained pretty steady and you have a lot less possibility of burning the soap paste.
I have recently seen one other possibility. After reaching trace, you can cook the paste in a pan in the oven (at around 250º F), removing the pot to stir the ingredients throughout the process. That sounds like an easier, less messy way to do things without a slow cooker!
I want to know if potassium chloride is the same as soda ash?
Hello Olaitan,
Soda ash usually refers to washing soda or sodium carbonate. It can’t be used for making liquid soap.
Help!
I measured out all the ingredients exactly.
My original stick blender burned up by the “mayonnaise” stage.
The second blender wasn’t able to handle past the “mashed potato” stage.
I used a spoon and got through all the steps… but it turned into a white stiff, hard lump I haven’t been able to stir.
I put the lid on the crockpot, the very outside of the blob started to look a little yellow/ clear , but the inside is still hard and white.
Is it going to be okay?
Help!
Hi Terry,
I’m sorry to hear your blender had issues with the mixture. I guess I should update the instructions and let people know that they should allow the blender to rest and not use it too continuously, and that if it appears to struggle, to just move to hand mixing.
I wasn’t able to use my blender much for making coconut oil liquid soap, but with this recipe, the mixture stayed thin enough for me to use the blender throughout the entire process. From what I hear, there is a huge difference in types of olive oil, and many people have told me that in the US, many olive oils are diluted with other oils. I don’t know whether or not that is actually true, but if it is, it would definitely explain differences when trying to make soaps with the various olive oils.
I had a very hard time stirring the coconut oil liquid soap, and had to work really hard with steal forks, and spatulas to try to mix it as best as I can. You may want to check out that recipe to see if the process mimics more the struggle you were having.
Having a solid, hard mass, though, does surprise me a bit. You did use KOH and not NaOH, right?
My gut feeling is that it probably is still OK, but, of course, it’s hard for me to be able to assure you without having been there and being able to check to make sure all was done correctly.
If I were you, I’d go ahead and try dissolving it and seeing if it behaves as soap. Castile soap made from only olive oil doesn’t provide a lot of lather, so it’s normal for it not to be super bubbly, but you should get some bubbles. I’d try cleaning something with it to see how it behaves.
You can also check out my posts on diluting the liquid soap, and my thoughts on pH and neutralizing the soap. They may help you get a better idea about the quality of your final soap.
I hope that helps. If you have any more questions about it, don’t hesitate to ask!
Hi Tracy!
Thank you for getting back to me so soon!
Last night I turned off the crockpot, put on the lid and went to bed.
This morning most of the glob was mostly gelatinous and clear with only a small amount of firm foam tracing within it.
I tried dissolving a little of the clear and the same amount of ‘foamy’ in distilled water… the results were CLEAR.
That’s good, right?
I’ll check out the pH and go from here.
Any other suggestions?
Tracy, you are amazing!
Thank you
Terry
Oh, yay!
Yes, that does sound good! I’m sure it all worked out after all. 🙂
Thanks so much, you are too sweet! I’m always happy to help. I know these sorts of things can be intimidating at first- and that things don’t always turn out exactly the same.
As long as the outcome is good, that’s what’s important. 😉
Have a great weekend. Don’t spend too much time cleaning with your new soap. Ha!
The olives are gathered from many different distributors (Turkey, Spain, Italy, Greece, etc) to make the batch. Could this be the reason?
Hi Jackie,
That’s possible. Anything is possible. 🙂
There are a lot of different varieties of olives, even here. That said, lye calculators tend to use all olive oils, except pomace, at the same amount. They don’t even specify a difference between extra virgin olive oil and a “light” olive oil (whatever that may mean in different places).
I think the bigger issue is when other oils have been mixed with the olive oil (and yet they still call it olive oil). Other oils often have a different value and need a different amount of lye than olive oil would. A non-pure olive oil could most certainly completely throw off a recipe if enough non-olive oil were included!
Hello Tracy
This is the ‘skinny’ on Olive Oil (from “theKitchn”):
Richard Gawel is an olive oil expert and long-time appointee as Presiding Judge in various major olive oil shows. On the difference of refined and unrefined oils he says, “Refined oils have little or no olive aroma, flavour, or colour (what they have gets there via blending in few percent of an extra-virgin oil). They also have no bitterness.”
Virgin Olive Oil is unprocessed. Light is processed and has some stuff removed. There may be a reduction of Oleic content, but not enough to alter soap, just the color and odor.
I started with your recipe. I missed the glycern, but it came out fine.
Hi Don,
Thanks so much for the extra info. I’ve always wondered what the light oil really was. I do know that they all seem to have the same saponification values in lye calculators so that makes sense.
Yes, it’s fine to skip the glycerin, or to trade it out for a bit of water. It’s there to make the recipe move through the stages more quickly, and I’ve found that it helps the final paste dissolve a bit easier. It’s helpful for beginners to add it in, but as you saw definitely not essential. 🙂
I think it may help make the soap milder, too, making the liquid coconut oil soap pretty mild on the skin.
Hi Tracy,
Thank you sooo much for such an informative article. I was about to start making the liquid soap according to your formula, but was wondering how you got the amount for KOH, because I was trying to convert to grams, so I did my own calculation for KOH, for 32oz of olive oil, I get 6.08oz of KOH, I am scratching my head on this, I am new to soap making, am I missing something here?
Thank you again for your help, can wait to try your recipe.
Julie
Hi Julie,
There is quite a bit of variance in the calculations of the KOH for liquid soaps in the various lye calculators online. Many places say that it’s because some account for the humidity that may be left in the KOH crystals, making them weigh more or less, and others don’t. Lye calculators don’t seem to vary so much for NaOH used for bar soaps because they supposedly don’t hold water in the same way. 😉
I actually tried out a lot of different calculators at the time I formulated this, and after researching what people had to say, I ended up using this calculator because most people seemed to say it was THE lye calculator for liquid soap formulation. I also liked that it allowed for adding glycerin to the recipe, which is good for beginners because it helps move the process in the right direction more quickly.
I think the Bramble Berry one gave me a smaller amount of lye to use, specifically 6.4oz, but I haven’t seen one so far go as low as 6.08oz. It doesn’t surprise me that there is one, though, as I’ve often seen people complain about the crazy amount of variance in the lye calculators.
I will say that after having made this, my soap is clear and isn’t irritating to our skin, so I think the calculation is pretty good. If you were to use less KOH, you’d probably have leftover oils that would end up clouding up your soap. (I have more information about that, pH, neutralization, etc. in this post.)
I hope that helps, and I hope it works out for you! I love this soap- and actually use the coconut oil soap version even more. (It’s great for general cleaning, washing dishes, etc.)
Hello there Tracy!
I came across your site and am SO impressed with your clarity and passion! This is obviously a “labor of love” for you; evident in the time (and patience!) you’ve taken responding to all the posts you’ve had. Kudos to you, Tracy!
I also have a question that I haven’t seen in the posts. I would like to make an organic liquid Castile soap, and therefore do not want to use KOH (Potassium Hydroxide) aka caustic potash, which is inorganic. I read somewhere that NA²CO³ (Sodium Carbonate) aka washing soda, soda ash, soda crystals, which is organic, can be used in making Castile soap. Also, it’s a natural foaming agent.
Do you have any advice about using this instead KOH? I’m wondering about how this would affect the process – and the ratios.
Looking forward to hearing you thoughts on this!
Sincerely, with so much respect,
Joni
Hi Joni,
Thanks so much for your comment! It really made my otherwise not so great day! 🙂
Now to the challenging part of your question…
One of the reasons that soap can’t be labelled as “organic” in the US is because it can never reach 95% of its ingredients as organic. I remember reading that even water isn’t considered “organic,” so lotion makers will sometimes infuse organic herbs into their water to call it an organic ingredient. (Just found the link now.) Are you sure that sodium carbonate is considered organic? All of the terminology is so confusing- especially when comparing the different meanings of organic, of course. (Is it made from organic farming? Is it an organic or inorganic compound (organic chemistry)?)
Either way, I’m not really sure why it would be to your advantage to use it over KOH. If it’s to make a saleable product, I’m not really sure you can ever really call a soap “organic.” Most people who choose organic products would still choose a soap over a chemical detergent, especially if they know reasonable effort has gone into using quality ingredients and organic oils, etc., when possible.
In any case, back to the question…
I’ve tried to do a search of how to make soap using sodium carbonate, but haven’t found a lot of information. I did find someone who did a not-so-successful experiment.
Sodium carbonate isn’t a strongly basic as NaOH lye, so if it is possible, you’d need more of it. Of course there are lots of stories about how people used to make soap by using ashes from their chimney and mixing it with water to use as their lye. They then mixed that with homemade tallow or lard, or whatever fat they had on hand, to make their soap. The problem with those methods is it’s really hard to get the soap “right” so to speak. It may be a lot more harsh (too much lye) or have too much fat and not be very cleansing. With the ability to buy soda ash now, it seems feasible to be able to calculate an amount and make soap with it, but I’ve never tried it myself.
In any case, using sodium carbonate, if you did make a successful soap, it would almost positively be a bar soap and not a liquid soap. I tried making liquid soap with sodium hydroxide and it definitely doesn’t work the same way.
Sorry that I can’t be of more help. At least I tried. 😉
Hii Tracy,
The recipe looks great and I want to make it.
With what calculator are you using?
Thank You
Oana
Hi Oana,
I cross checked it on a couple of different lye calculators. Right now I can’t remember the specifics, but I can try to take a look at my notes and see if I can find more information about how I chose to use what I did.
There are a couple of them that do help you out with liquid soap recipes, and they now seem to compensate for the humidity that can be found in the KOH crystals.
Hello, I am at the soap paste stage. It looks really good and like it is supposed to. However, when I do the clarity test it is still cloudy. Is this a problem? It seems like you said that it should be okay if I made it to the clear, gel paste stage. Also, if I store it In Paste form will it keep longer? How long does it keep in paste form? How long does the soap keep after dilution? Thank you so much. I’m sorry if these questions were already answered, but I couldn’t find specifics and I don’t want to hurt anyone with the soap. Again, thanks for your detailed and useful recipes.
Hi Shiloh,
I’m going to guess you’re going to be fine.
It may even end up clearing up for you as the weather gets warmer or with time.
The soap being transparent or not is just aesthetic.
I do keep most of it in paste form because I figure that without water, it should keep longer.
I’ve had a batch for 2 years now that is still fine to use (both what I have in paste form and the part I have partially diluted). With time, it may start to smell a bit rancid, which is when you might consider tossing it. That said, you can still use it for general cleaning.
I go more into detail about how I dilute it in my post about diluting liquid soap.
I did have part of the paste stored in a tin that had metal, and it looks like the metal affected the paste. I’m going to try it out in the next few days to see if it’s salvageable or not.
When in doubt, you can always try using it for general cleaning around the house. 😉
I hope that helps!
Hello, made your beginner soap yesterday worked so well, this is my next endeavour, I just wanted to check you keep your mix in paste form and dilute as necessary, if you do keep it as a paste, may I ask how you store it. Unless I missed part of the post 🙂 thank you. Love your work!
Hi Gina,
I’m so happy your soap worked out!
I usually divide up my paste. I leave some in paste form, and semi-dilute some of it for easier combining with the coconut oil soap when I want to mix up another batch. I then fully dilute the small amounts I want to actually use.
This is my reasoning: the paste will keep the best and takes up the least amount of room, but it takes awhile to dilute, and it’s harder to work with when you want to mix up batches of liquid soap.
I pretty much am always using a combination of both this soap and the coconut oil liquid soap, so it’s easier for me to keep both on hand partially diluted.
I talk more about my process in my post about diluting liquid soaps.
Oh, I forgot to answer how I store my paste.
I keep it in a wide mouth glass jar in a dark cabinet in my pantry. 🙂
Thank you! One quick question do you cover the crock pot or leave it open? Asking because the lid makes condensation not sure if that matters. I made it today, I will say that heat makes a difference not all crock pots seem to have the same temps. I struggled in the beginning to get it to thicken but when I turned the crock pot to high it worked very quickly. (I got the crock pot off a freebie site so not 100% familiar with it yet.) I love it I will feedback once I’m done.
It’s perfect looks just like yours! I weighed it for the sake of interest and it was 1.250kgs. Thank you so much for sharing this excellent tutorial
Yay!
I’m so happy to hear than, Gina!
Liquid soap making is really rewarding. I love it.
I hope the coconut oil soap goes well for you too. 🙂
Traté de buscar esta receta en la sección en español pero no la encontré, pero igual entiendo inglés aunque prefiero comentar en español, espero no te moleste. Estoy haciendo una receta que pusiste en los comentarios:
Aceite Castor 1oz
Aceite Coco 1oz
Aceite Oliva 6oz
KOH 1.68
Liquido 5oz
peeero, doblé la receta para q no me salpicara al batir, de esta manera:
Aceite Castor 2oz
Aceite Coco 2oz
Aceite Oliva 12oz
KOH 3.36oz
Agua 7.5oGlicerina 2.5oz
Por alguna razón por más que batí no llegué al estado de “apple sauce” sino que me quedó más gelatinosa y empecé a ver que se separaba el aceite y en el fondo de la olla se hacían como rios líquidos… Sabes que pude hacer mal? La idea es aprender de los errores. Gracias por tu ayuda! Me encanta tu página
Hola Nancy,
No me suena nada la receta esta, y he buscado en los comentarios de esta receta y no lo encuentro.
Sea como sea, nunca he hecho un jabón líquido con esa combinación de aceites. Tengo pensado hacer un jabón líquido con varios aceites para los que no quieran hacer 2 jabones distintos como yo, pero hasta ahora no he probado de hacerlo. Estoy muy contenta con mi sistema de mezclarlos una vez hechos.
Eso dicho, he mirado con una calculadora de jabones, y parece ser buena la receta. A mí me sale que hay que usar 1.66 oz. de KOH, pero eso sería para salir exacta la receta.
Con 1.68, quedaría un poco de KOH, algo común en recetas de jabón líquido para que salgan transparentes. (Después, si causa irritación el jabón, se podría “neutralizar.”)
Sin haber probado con ese jabón en particular, no sé la textura “normal” para ese jabón.
Verás, si miras el proceso de hacer jabón líquido con aceite de coco, la textura era completamente diferente y la pasta de jabón se hizo muy duro en seguida y casi no lo pude remover.
Igual no has hecho nada mal y la receta necesitaba más tiempo de calor y removerlo de vez en cuando hasta que se quedara translucido en algunas partes.
Hi Tracy,
I found your idea to do separately olive oil and coconut a grea idea. So I did the same and it came out well.
I wonder if you have already tried different % combinations to use for toilet cleaner, shampoo, dishwashing liquid, etc using these as base?
Hello!
I’m happy to hear your soaps turned out well! 🙂 Yay!
I don’t really measure anything out, to be honest. I just add a lot more coconut oil soap when I’m doing cleaning. For washing clothes, I only use coconut oil soap. For the shower, I make a mixture of around 50%/50%. I’d probably use more olive oil castile soap than that if it were for just me, but my husband likes the lather and the “clean” feeling that the coconut oil soap gives, so it’s really a matter of your skin and preferences. I use the same for hand washing for the same reason. We use it up pretty quickly, so you can keep experimenting.
For dishes, toilet, etc., you could even use pure coconut oil soap too, or you can add in some of the olive oil soap to help use it up more quickly. I find that I use the coconut oil soap much more, so it gets used up a lot more quickly.
Perhaps I should come up with a hair shampoo idea that combines the olive oil soap with conditioning ingredients or something. 🙂
You can read more about how I dilute and combine it in my post about diluting liquid soap.
Hi Tracy, I was wondering if I could use this instead of Dr. Bronner’s Castile soap. I buy the one without sent and use it for my stain remover recipe and other cleaning stuff. Also in my hand soap foam dispenser. Can I just use the olive oil or the coconut one, or combination?! since Dr. Bronner’s is a combination. This looks like a great recipe and I would also want to safe some money:) Thank you
Hi Klara,
Yes, Dr. Bronner’s is a combined soap that uses more coconut oil than olive oil. Having made both types, I can totally smell the coconut oil in the unscented version that I bought to compare. 🙂
I’d suggest using the coconut oil one if you are going to be using it for cleaning mostly. For hands, I prefer using a combination with some of the olive oil one to make it milder, but you could use just the coconut oil one.
I’ve found it really convenient to make both to add different combinations for what I need for each situation. I use the coconut oil one for cleaning and adding to detergent for washing fabrics, etc.
That said, would you be interested in me posting a combination recipe so that you only have to make one for most general needs?
I could make it a priority to try to come up with a new recipe and make it, film it, and post it as soon as I can get to it.
I’m seen other articles where castile bar soap was turned into liquid castile soup without adding other ingredients, including KOH. (essentially dissolving the cut up bar soap in water…I’m simplifying of course). What would be the difference in usage or functionality between the two methods?
Hello,
I have tried dissolving bar soap into water, and have never been satisfied with the results. I have tried with both homemade and several store bought soaps. Usually I end up with a clumpy mess that ends up separating into a thick, opaque layer and a very thin, watery one.
Functionality wise, I would guess that you would end up with a soap that “works” either way.
The difference I see is that with KOH you end up with a true liquid soap base, that will dissolve into a translucent soap that doesn’t separate. As I’ve mentioned, in cold weather it will likely turn cloudy and thicken up too, but I still personally quite prefer it to a dissolved bar soap.
I recently dissolved a bar soap I made for my dog, and much preferred using it as a bar rather than use it as a liquid on her. I really needed to use a lot more of the liquid, which was very concentrated, than what I used when using the bar itself. I’m not really sure why, though. In any case, it’s just one more example of why I don’t like dissolved bar soaps.
From reading the comments, I can see that people drastically different experiences while making this soap. One this that people need to consider is that a lot of olive oil sold in stores (especially in the US) is adulterated. That means it has been mixed with other oils to make it cheaper (and it usually listed on the label) or it is a blend of olive oils from a variety of locations. In Spain, you are pretty lucky to be able to get EVOO or VOO from a local manufacturer but in the US it can be a challenge. I would suggest that people research the source of the oil that they are using to find out if it is pure.
Hi Sara,
I’ve been wondering if that could be one of the problems, myself.
With soap making, the type of oil used makes a huge difference for the calculations to turn out correctly, so obviously if you are using a mixture of oils, you aren’t going to have a same results as somebody who uses pure olive oil. For some oils, you’ll need more or less KOH.
I think there are a lot of factors that could be contributing to people’s different experiences, but, yes, if they aren’t using a pure olive oil, that could mean the difference between things turning out perfectly, and not making soap at all!
I think the temperature outside and the temperature of each person’s slow cooker could also have a huge difference of how long the process takes, which could make people give up too early too.
I need to make this again soon, so I can make a video of the process and get a better feel for some of the nuances in the process. Hopefully I’ll be able to give some more ideas about things that could go wrong.
I really appreciate your insight, though, to help with one more possible problem area. Thank you!
Tracy HELP!!
Followed your recipe…down to the letter.
Everything was going well; even though it took a bit longer due to winter weather to move thru rhe different stages.
Got it to trace after the mashed potato stage, covered the crockpot and brought all my tools inside to wash and put away. I came back out to give the soap a quick stir and it was completely solid!!
Did my best to chisel it into chunks with 2 heavy duty wooden spoons.
What happened?!
It is still in the crockpot (uncovered) but it resembles whole potatoes that weren’t cooked long enough to mash! Just big chunks!
What should I do?
The coconut oil recipe went so well!
Theresa
Hi Theresa,
I just came to the blog for one quick look on my way to bed, and decided I should at least try to help you out with an answer, even though I have to admit that I don’t know what is going on to make your experience so much different than mine.
Mine never got hard at all, and stayed soft enough to use the blender the entire time (unlike the coconut oil soap).
If it were me, though, I’d actually keep going with it to see if it goes translucent like the other one. I’ve read of other people who have done mixed recipes (ones that use coconut oil and olive oil) that end up with a very solid stage in the middle that they break up as well as they can throughout the process. I assumed that it had to do with the mixture of oils that they were using, but it could just be differences in environment, etc.
I really need to try both recipes again soon. I haven’t made these as often as the bar soaps because I end up with a rather large batch and have enough to not have to make it again in a long time. It’s been so long now that I barely remember the process.
I wouldn’t worry too much about trying to stir it that much. I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you!
How much soap paste does this make? Also How much liquid castile soap did you end up with one batch of this recipe?
Hi Rebekah,
To be honest, I don’t remember exactly how much I ended up making. It would depend somewhat on how much water has evaporated out, etc. I plan on making it again soon to record video of the process, and I’ll weigh the final amount of soap paste.
The amount of soap made is even more dependent upon how you decide to dilute the soap paste. I find that I usually end up dissolving it with about 1 part soap to 3 parts water (or more). I usually mix it with the coconut oil liquid soap, though, so it’s hard to quantify it. I will say that I’m still using a batch from over a year ago.
HI Tracy, this is so informative! Thank you for sharing ! I REALLY wanna make this , like right now ! But I am a little unsure how to convert the measurement units in your recipe into metric measurement. Is it safe to just convert the weight of potassium hydroxide into grams straight and treat it like any other matter such as salt or sugar for example… As for the liquids (water , glycerine, olive oil), are those fluid ounces or just ounces (weight)?
Hi Abigail,
I’m sorry to have taken so long to get back to you, but you caught me on a holiday weekend here in Spain. We just celebrated 3 Kings Day and my son finally goes back to school tomorrow.
I can try to remember to convert to grams in the morning. I personally also prefer grams for the very reason you stated – Ounces tends to confuse people with liquid ounces and regular ounces. All of the ingredients for this soap were just “regular” weight ounces. I’m not really sure why I went ahead with using ounces this time as I usually formulate my soaps in grams. It may have had to do with the soap calculator I was using at the time because I ended up using different ones for formulating my liquid soaps.
I’m off to bed now, but I’ll try to convert the amounts in the morning! If you want to go ahead, any grams to ounces weight converter should work.
Hi Abigail,
Not sure if it shows up on your computer/tablet/etc the same as mine, but there is a drop down that allows you to convert it right on this page! I thought that was rather clever of Tracy to add that option but being a bit bias as I think Tracy is the absolute Bees’ Knees…here it is for your reference if it is not present on your device for one reason or another:
Ingredients
184.84 g KOH This is not lye (NaOH) that is used in bar soap!
907.18 g olive oil
327.44 g water
226.80 g glycerine
Good luck
Theresa
Thanks so much, Theresa!
Yes, I spent a bit more money on this specific recipe plugin because it did have the ability to convert to metric. I don’t like it as much for recipes which started with cups, but for this sort of recipe it is perfect! I sort of forgot about it when I answered the comment last night.
Thanks for helping out and saving me a bit of time on the conversions! 🙂
Have a great week!
Tracy
Glad you didn’t mind me posting a response to another reader.
I was just trolling/stalking/always on….I mean posting my question on your site when I saw Abigail’s question. I guess the secret’s out that I absolutely adore you and admire and so appreciate all the info and work you put into your recipes that you share with us!
I will definitely work my way up to using paint for the shirts soon!
Have a great week yourself!
Theresa
Hello! I am making this recipe as we speak (well, as I’m typing this ?) and am pleased to report that after a very slow start to my own concoction thickening up, I upped the heat setting to high on my 4 qt Crock Pot (I cut the recipe in half due to having such a small Crock Pot) and it almost immediately thickened to the desired 2nd “pudding” stage. I’m under the impression that the colder weather may have something to do with it; though I am actually letting it rest for a few minutes between blending sessions. It’s moving along nicely, as I stand with a sleeping baby girl wrapped up on my chest while I soap tonight, as always!
Thanks for the feedback, Jana!
I was wondering why more people seemed to be having more problems with it thickening up now that it’s winter. I was suspecting the same thing, but it actually surprises me since you are making it in the slow cooker either way. It could also have something to do with the fact that different slow cookers emit different amounts of heat. Who knows? It’s good to know that turning up the heat helps speed things up.
I need to make this recipe again soon. I want to get the process on video to help people better understand the stages. Soon luck with it, and enjoy your baby girl. I miss having my little guy strapped to me, but have to say no when he wants to be held too long as he weighs way too much now. Now I’ll stick with snuggling on the couch/bed. 🙂
Yes, thank you.
I will rebatch the soap with the coconut oil and go from there since it will be impossible to know how much lye is actually in any given small amount.
I also wanted to tell you how much I enjoy your posts and appreciate the thoroughness with which you outline your process. When I come across an idea I’d like to try on Pinterest, I find myself searching thru your site first to see if you have posted on the same thing since I would completely trust your calculations over the mass of other ‘bloggers’. I definitely then do purchase any supplies I may need thru your affiliate links as well!
Even my grandson (3) is going thru the same likes as your son at the same age…I am in the process of making the Wall-e & Eve shirts for him as he is obsessed with them now ?.
May the new year bring you and yours peace, joy & prosperity!
Theresa
Great! Yes, you’d have to do the whole batch at once to get things to be precise. Otherwise it would be more of a guess, which you probably don’t want to do if you want to use it for face and body.
Thanks again for your sweet comments. If there is ever anything specific you are looking for and would like to see on the blog, I’m all ears. I do like a challenge, as you may have noticed. 🙂
Have fun with the Wall-E shirts. I’ve actually made a few of each of them; as he outgrows them I need to remake them in a new size. My son still likes Wall-E and we just put together the cutest Wall-E Lego figure that he got for Christmas. I stopped posting a lot of the kids stuff on the blog as most of those posts aren’t as popular, but maybe I should start adding them again for fun. This last year we did a Paw Patrol Party.
I haven’t been making as many shirts for him lately as his school has uniforms, and it sort of takes the fun out of dressing him in cute things. He only gets to wear his other clothes on the weekends. I’m not a big fan of uniforms, as I tend to think that they crush kids creativity in a way. (Plus, I’m always fighting the ones at our school made out of polyester, which I really think should be illegal, and my son wears a modified cotton one due to his atopic dermatitis.) Anyway, I guess that was off topic, but sometimes you just gotta vent. 😉
Have a great week!
Hello Tracy,
Well, I finally got around to ‘rebatching’ my soap. The holidays are always filled with a lot of traveling and we just got back from Santa Barbara spending a January Christmas with the in-laws.
I decided to add the 14.5 ozs of coconut oil and it is currently in the crock pot now. It is pretty solid (a very thick mashed potato consistency) and I am going to let it cook for a bit more to allow more time for me to make sure that it is completely ‘stirred’ together and homogenized. I think that I will let it dry out a bit without molding it since it really looks too thick to mold and store is the way I did the ‘play doh crumbles’ that I made the first time when I used the lye instead of the potassium hydroxide.
Question: After reading your post on making the bar soap; do I now have to let it cure for the weeks you recommended for the bar soap before I use it? Remember that my plans are to grate up this batch and dissolve to use as a ‘liquid’ soap.
My grandson loves his Wall-E shirts (I too make him shirts in several sizes to allow for his growth spurts ;)) I actually took the easy way out and printed several Wall-E pictures onto Iron-On paper then heat transferred it onto his shirts! Not enough hours in a day, especially around the holidays! My grandson also loves Paw Patrol now…and robots. We’ll see what his interests are when his birthday rolls around in September.
Theresa
If you are going to use it as a liquid soap, there is absolutely no need for you to wait. You can use it right away.
The heating process will allow for the saponification process to finish right away. If you were making it into bars, the wait period would mainly be just to allow for the drying of the soap so that it holds its shape and you don’t use it all up as quickly.
As for Wall-E— if you don’t have a lot of time, you should try out the Wall-E galaxy t-shirt. It really is super quick and easy, and older kids love to help out with it. I was thinking of making a new one soon just to make video for it. This year I want to go through older posts, make videos and update anything outdated, and that was one of my very first posts. 🙂
That said, I can appreciate the iron on method as I’ve used it myself a few times. I have a hard time finding good iron on transfers that hold up well, though, which is what I don’t like about that method. The paints hold up better to washing/drying and feel softer.
Ah-yes, my son also loves robots. I guess we’ll be birthday planning at right about the same time as my son’s birthday is also in September.
Happy New Year Tracy!
Hope your holiday was a good one over there in Spain! Here in San Diego, we enjoyed some much needed rain and got to experience some crisp weather, which I do enjoy around the holidays (even though it was in the 70s for much of the Christmas week).
Just wanted to update you on the outcome of my goof-up when I added lye instead of KOH to this recipe thinking it was one and the same.
Per your suggestion, I went ahead and diluted some just to see how it would turn out (I didn’t measure, just added some of my play-doh crumbles (hehe…soap) into a large mason jar and filled with distilled water. Being impatient, I ended up heating the sealed jar in a pot on top of the stove top. Well it still took a while to dissolve but it turned into a beautiful shade of almost golden-hued (still clear) liquid soap. I have to admit, I found myself admiring my jar of liquid soap for quite awhile until my husband asked me why I was staring at the mason jar! 🙂
I then put the jar on a shelf in the garage and as the weather was getting colder, I saw that it turned considerably thicker and more opaque until today when it became solid and white just like your picture of the coconut oil soap even though I did not add any coconut oil!
I should have weighed out the soap I was diluting but didn’t really think about it since this was just an experiment. It was VERY thin liquid when it first dissolved. I wish I could send you a picture!
You mentioned something in one of your replies about ‘cooking off the excess lye’ as I was reheating the soap…how would one be able to tell? Do I just scoop some out, use and see if it irritates my skin (or worse burn?) Isn’t there a more scientific/exact way to do this?
I am still hesitant to actually use this since I am unsure about the excess lye. I will definitely be ‘cooking’ the soap more as I am rebatching it into a usable liquid soap and would like to know how I can calculate whether or not the lye is sufficiently neutralized. I am hoping to use the final liquid castile soap in household cleaning recipes as well as some face washes.
Thank you in advance for any help you can offer.
Theresa
Hi Theresa,
Thank you, and Happy New Year to you too!
So, in the end, you decided to not add either coconut oil or olive oil?
You will most definitely have a lye excess then based on the calculations I did. If you want to neutralize it into a useable soap (for your skin- I’m guessing that it should be useable for cleaning as is, but it should be a very harsh soap), you’d need to add the amount of oil I told you to add in the other comments. Just cooking it won’t neutralize the soap. Cooking it will make the saponification process complete more quickly if you have the right amount of ingredients being used, so it will help complete the chemical reaction between the oils and lye to make a soap. As of now, your oil will have all been used, but you will have leftover lye.
I would put all of the soap together, and cook it with the extra oil. I calculated it to use up all of the lye, so you would end up with a soap that you could use for your body (and even face) too. If you want to use it for your face, I’d probably add the higher amount of suggested oil I gave you (14.5 oz. vs. 14 oz. of coconut oil- or however much olive oil I calculated).
Does that make it clearer?
Good luck!
Happy new year! I would love to try this recipe but I’d be looking to make a gallon of it. Do you neoprene to have the quantities necessary for each ingredient to do so?
Hi Jennifer,
Thanks! Happy New Year to you, too! 🙂
Are you looking to make a gallon of the finished soap?
It really will depend on how you end up diluting the soap, but this recipe should make you over a gallon of finished soap.
I’m going to be making these recipes again soon so that I can record video of the process, and I’ll have a better idea of how to quantify it then, but I’ve been using a mixture of a batch of this soap and a batch of the coconut oil liquid soap for well over a year now.
Hey there!, so I’m about to try this recipe and was wondering about preservatives and antioxidants. If I were to add a soap similar to my product line to sell, would this be safe for the consumer so as to not go bad or grow any bacteria? I saw you mention Dr. Bronners soap which i’m a fan of and it looks like they use tocopherol and citric acid..any thoughts on those ingredients?– thanks!
Hi Brian,
I don’t really know anything about what is needed for commercial soap making. I haven’t really even considered it because here in Spain they make it basically impossible for an individual to legally make and sell soaps. You would need to make a huge investment to legalize it, one that is really out of the reach of individuals in general.
I will say that tocopherol is a good antioxidant that helps keep oils from going rancid, but isn’t really a good preservative per se. I think the citric acid in their soap was mostly used for neutralizing the pH of the soap and not so much for preservation. I sort of doubt that it would work as a preservative at all in soap because of the normal alkaline pH of soap (normally in the 9-10 range). It’s alkalinity in itself probably helps inhibit bacteria to a certain extent.
In any case, I’m still using batches of liquid soap that I made over a year ago, and I don’t really notice any change in them. I do keep the soap mixture pretty thick and only fully dilute small batches at a time, though. I’m not sure how long they should last, but it obviously depends upon how much water is in the final product, the final pH of the soap, what sort of water is used, etc.
The addition of certain essential oils may also help inhibit bacterial growth.
I wish I could have a more concrete answer for you.
Hi Tracy. I’m having the same problem as another poster in that my soap is not doing anything after 20 minutes of blending still very liquidy). I’m curious if I used the wrong measurement of KOH. You say ounces, and I assumed weight ounces since my KOH is flakes. Did I assume incorrectly? Should I have used a liquid measurement of ounces? If so, how would I do that since it is a “dry good”?
Hi Paige,
No, you assumed correctly. I’m wondering if the cold temperatures of winter is causing problems for some people, even when using a slow cooker to heat the soap? Or maybe it’s an issue with different olive oils or KOH (Maybe not all KOH is of the same concentration. I’ve heard about that being a problem with NaOH in bar soaps.)?
I think what I’m going to try to do is to make the recipe again after Christmas, filming myself throughout the process, to have a video that shows what the soap should look like through the various stages. That will serve the dual purpose of seeing what it’s like to try to make this recipe in the cold of winter to see if that affects the recipe for me.
I’m not sure what other suggestions I can give at this point. Did it end up solidifying? Does it seem like soap if you dissolve it after hours of stirring?
What is the ratio for dilution please?
Dalton
Hi Dalton,
I don’t use a specific dilution ratio, and I explain why and how I dilute my soaps in the post about how to dilute liquid soaps. (In the end, it’s probably roughly one part paste to 3 parts distilled water, more or less depending on the temperature of the house, etc.)
Hi, i don’t have a slow cooker or crock pot, could i make this on the stove?
Thank you
Hi Jessica,
I’m guessing that you could make this on the stove, but you would have to be very careful about it because the soap can burn. Keep in mind that it needs to be cooking several hours, and you would have to be around a lot more to make sure things aren’t burning. Perhaps you could try doing a double boiler setup in the later stages to help prevent that, but I’ve never tried it to know how well it would really work.
Thank you for replying to me.. I want to let you know how it worked out. I made a batch using a double boiler set up and i’ve been using the liquid soap for everything… Really everything i’m getting ready to make my second batch this month. At the time i didn’t have a stick blender so i used a hand whisk. My mixture didn’t get passed looking like mashed potato but after 4-5 hours at that stage i tested it and it looked like it was ready so i went ahead and diluted it anyway and as soon as it was diluted it looked exactly like yours. it’s stayed a clear liquid, i’ve used it for household cleaners, hand soap dishwashing liquid, face wash recipes, even my friends have been taking some to use. Looking forward to making batch 2!!
Hi Jessica,
Thanks so much for your comment!
I’m so glad it worked out for you.
I suspect that it just takes a little longer without the stick blender, but because it’s cooking for so long, it’s probably easier to get by without it than it would be for a bar soap.
I need to make a new batch soon, too. I use up the coconut oil soap a lot more quickly than this one because I use it a lot for cleaning, and I’m almost out. 🙂
Ive measured everything perfectly but it’s still pretty liquid-y after about 10 minutes on medium with my hand mixer. Any advice?!
Hi Carla,
I’m not really sure. I can’t remember right now exactly how long it took to thicken up. I do remember that when using only olive oil, the paste never got as thick for me as it did with the coconut oil liquid soap. I’ve received comments from people who have had the opposite problem, and their soap paste has gotten a lot stiffer, but this is the first time I’ve heard about the soap not thickening.
You posted this at midnight my time, but I had to get up with my son and noticed your comment and wanted to respond right away to see how it was going. A couple of hours have passed, so perhaps things have improved with heat and time?
The only other thing I can think of is- Are you sure you are using KOH potassium hydroxide? I received a couple of comments from people who used NaOH instead, the lye they were using for bar soap, and you can’t use it in the same way as you would KOH for liquid soap. That said, I suspect that if anything, you’d end up with a more solid mass rather than a liquid if that were the case. I hope things have thickened up since you wrote. If not, perhaps with a few more details, I can try to help you out in the morning.
Well- I ended up with a whipped version- I added a smidge more olive oil when that happened and it seems to be working better now, 6 hours in. I used KOH, yes. I think it might be too cold in my house for this? The slow cooker didn’t seem to heat it up enough so I have it on low on a gas range. I think it’s finally about done! How did you store the end result? I’m using it for home made cleaners and well, I have A LOT more than I needed.
Hmmm. Interesting.
With some of the other issues, I was going to suggest that the cold weather may be a factor, but then because it is in a slow cooker, I ruled that out. I hadn’t really considered the variance in slow cookers, though. Mine gets pretty hot, almost too much so for making bone broth for hours at a time. Even on the low setting, the broth is simmering the whole time. I remember reading a discussion once about how people were complaining that newer slow cookers don’t really have a low “low” setting, and that bone broth can taste burnt when making it in the slow cooker for as many hours as is normally suggested.
If you added more olive oil to your soap, your soap will probably end up being more cloudy and won’t get as clear in the warmer weather. If it hasn’t separated, which can happen if you add too much oil, then at least you should be able to use it fine as soap anyway. Soap making is normally a pretty precise science, where you have to be careful about getting the measurements exact, or you could end up with either unreacted lye (too little oil) that could burn your skin, or your soap could separate with too much oil. With bar soaps, with too much oil, you normally end up with a really soft bar of soap that takes months to hard, but also can go rancid more quickly. If you only added slightly more oil, and it didn’t separate, your soap should be more conditioning in the end, so it should be quite gentle for using instead of shower gel. It may not be as cleansing, and may have more of a slippery feel when using it. You can add some coconut oil soap to help balance that out if it bothers you.
For cleaning around the house, I personally prefer the coconut oil liquid soap. Pure castile soap made with only olive oil is conditioning, but not as cleansing. You can definitely add this one to your house cleaning mix, though, to use some of it up if you ended up with a lot.
Mine ended up getting pretty thick and solid, though not as much as the coconut oil soap paste. I have part of the pure paste in a jar in a cool, dark closet so that it will keep longer. I then have 2 really big jars of partly diluted soap paste on top of the cupboard in a bathroom we don’t use very often. One of the jars has coconut oil soap and one has olive oil soap. I combine those together depending on how I want to use the soap, and then finish diluting by adding more water to the mix. That’s also when I add in my essential oils. You’ll find that in the winter, the soaps won’t get clear anyway, unless your house is heated a lot more than mine. My house is pretty cold all winter, and my soap gets thick and a lot more gloopy, and then it thins out and gets clear when the weather warms up.
You can read a bit more about how I store and dilute the soap here. I hope that helps, and that the soap works out for you.
Theresa,
I did the same thing on the same day, only with the coconut oil soap (Tracy provided great feedback in the comments under the coconut oil soap recipe)! It was a mess. I trashed the batch and made a new one today with the correct ingredients, and it worked well.
My daughter was so excited, she asked to make the castille soap, so we did! Our hand mixer burned out before getting to the mashed potato stage, so I had to use my spare. It moved through the stages quickly, and after an hour of cooking, the paste is a bit solid. I had to chop it up with a stainless steel serving spoon.
But it’s Soap! Bubbly and slippery on our hands! I’m letting it sit in the warm crock pot to see if it loosens. Then I’ll dilute some and jar the rest.
Again, Tracy, thank you for generously sharing your expertise!
~Annmarie
I’m so sorry to hear about your hand blender, but I really appreciate the feedback because it helps me know how to edit posts to prevent people from having problems in the future. I use a really inexpensive hand blender that I bought at an ALDI-like store, and it has held up amazingly well through all of the hard work I put it through. So, I guess I just sort of assume that if my blender held up through it all, everybody else’s would too. 😛
There is a lot of variance in olive oil, so perhaps different types of olive oil will make more of a solid soap base than others. (Or maybe it’s more of a temperature issue? Who knows?) Since you have already tried the coconut oil soap, though, you’ve already worked with a more solid paste, so I’m glad it didn’t scare you off.
Just a heads up…my liquid soaps are pretty gloopy and even the slightly diluted ones have almost solidified by this time of year, so if yours aren’t super clean and clear looking, don’t worry about it. Wait to see what happens when it warms up in spring. In any case, as you said, “but it’s soap!” 🙂
Mine still works really well, even though it’s not as pretty as it is in warm weather. hahaha
Oh, and yes, the castile soap is a lot more “slippery” feeling. That’s kind of how the conditioning oils feel. That’s why I like adding in a bit of coconut oil soap to give more of a “squeaky clean” sort of feeling.
I’m really happy these are working well for you.
I’ve been playing with more solid soaps lately myself, and have decided that I actually like bar soap better for washing my dog! (Who’d have thought it!) I’ll try to share that post and recipe soon, but first I need to get the seasonal posts out. 🙂
DAG NAB IT!!!
I didn’t realize that I used sodium hydroxide instead of potassium hydroxide until the very end!
Now I have a crock pot full of pastey, crumbling muck (was wondering why it was not going back to a creamy state after it began the translucent streaks)!
Is there anything I can do to salvage this into something usable or is it best to dump the entire batch which would be such a shame & waste ?
Hi Theresa,
I’m so sorry that happened to you! I’m about to go to bed, but I saw your comment at the last minute, and I wanted to respond to you before I went. First, let me say that I’m going to update both liquid soap recipes tomorrow to make sure it doesn’t happen to more people.
Meanwhile, I’d like to say that while you won’t have ended up with a liquid soap, you’ve basically made bar soap that you can dissolve into a “liquid soap”. It won’t be the same as a “real liquid soap,” but will be useable. I’ll run it through a lye calculator tomorrow to see what sort of bar soap you’ve ended up with. Depending on if it ends up being lye heavy, superfatted, or whatever, you’ll be able to use it for different things. I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.
Tracy
Thank you for taking the time to respond!
I’m hesitant to use my ‘soap’ (resembles dry, crumbly play doh) for anything since the lye content is so high. This is my first attempt at making liquid soap so needless to say I don’t know what I’m doing and will wait on your response once you’ve had a chance to run it through the lye calculator.
Thank you again Tracy, not only for the response but for the great recipes as well.
Annmarie – thank you for your comment! Heading over to the coconut oil recipe now to read all the comments/feedback. My hand blender got very hot during this process and to be honest, I haven’t attempted another soap recipe but I will definitely check to see if it still works before I do ?
Hi Theresa,
I’m sorry I forgot to write again with the calculations. I ended up doing the same for the coconut oil recipe, and I guess I got confused and thought it was the same one.
For this recipe, if you were making a solid bar of soap, with NaOH instead of KOH, you would want to use somewhere between 4-4.1 ounces of NaOH to get the soap into a good zone for using.
You used 6.52 ounces, if you followed the recipe above, meaning you used about 2.5 ounces too many for the amount of oil.
If you want to neutralize that lye, you’ll want to melt the soap with 20 more ounces of olive oil. you may need to add more water to get it workable, but should use as little as possible.
If you are willing to risk the ingredients, you should end up with a usable bar soap.
You can pour the soap into molds like silicone baking pans or something like that and allow it to harden. I’ve made rebatched soap before, and it isn’t as smooth and pretty as newly made cold process soap, but despite being a little more rustic looking, it still makes a nice soap.
When you add in the oils, you can add in any scents you like or exfoliants, colorings, etc.
You’ll probably end up with a lot, so you may as well have fun with it and experiment. 😉
I hope that helps, and I’d love to hear how it goes.
Oh- if you want to add more cleaning power and lather to your finished soap, instead of adding 20 ounces of olive oil, you could add 14.5 ounces of coconut oil instead!
Just as thought- as with a bar soap you won’t be able to combine them after the fact.
Thank you Tracy!
You are without a doubt one of the best! And I mean it sincerely! I’m definitely a newbie in this arena and spend most of my time reading and doing reasearch!
The time you must spend gathering your ideas, notes and taking pictures all before you even begin to write your tutorials are so evident in your work…and so greatly appreciated!!
As far as my fail pie crust, play doh, I mean soap; I am definitely only using this batch for household cleaning and will rebatch with the coconut oil for the added cleansing power!
Question- Once I rebatch and mold this soap, since I will only be using this for household cleaning, will I then have to melt/dissolve this down even further to use as a ‘liquid’ castile soap for cleaning purposes?
Essentially would I then be following those recipes out there that outline how to turn a bar of castile soap to liquid castile soap?
Not trying to cut corners, it just seems like a double step. Or is this step necessary to neutralize the lye first and then further dissolve as needed?
Thinking about using some of this in my homemade laundry detergent in addition to making solutions to use in spray bottles just to use it all up but don’t want to risk the skin contact if the lye content will just irritate our skin.
Thank you, Theresa!
You don’t know how much I really appreciate messages like this one!
Yes, I do try to take a lot of time to research as much as I can, and take the time to get things right before posting. Even then, I do miss things, but I try to fix everything as soon as I can and help people out as much as I can.
I get really frustrated with blogs that post recipes that just don’t work as if they did, and have heard of cases where they haven’t even tried the recipes themselves! That really bothers me. (I’m struggling with that right now as I’m about to post my recipe for Spanish turrón- after years of trying to get a good recipe, because none of the online ones worked for me- and by the comments on the posts, I wasn’t the only one with issues.)
If you are planning on dissolving it for use like the recipes online that make a liquid soap out of bar soap, then you don’t have to worry about getting it into molds. I’m not sure if it would be better for you to let it dry out slightly before trying to do that or not. You may be able to go ahead and dissolve it right away. Because you are going to be heating the soap anyway, you’re basically doing a warm process soap procedure, so, depending on how long you are cooking the new soap, you may end up using up all of the lye without having to wait at all.
If it were me, and I wanted a liquid soap, I probably would still mold up some of it to keep it as bar soap that I could later grate and dissolve into liquid soap. It just keeps better without all of the water. Plus it takes up a lot less space! 😉
I’d probably dissolve part of it right away and see what happens with it.
For cleaning, it should be fine. You could get away with a tad less oil if you are only planning on using it for cleaning. I told you to use 14.5 oz. of coconut oil to put you in a safe zone for using on skin, but if you only want it for laundry, I’d probably only add 14 ounces of coconut oil then. In that zone, you won’t have as many leftover oils, so it won’t be conditioning to the skin, but it will probably have more cleansing power. In the 14.5 ounce range, though, your soap will be more versatile. Up to you! 🙂
Good luck- can’t wait to hear how it goes.
Hi Tracey,
any chance I can replace the potassium hydroxide with sodium hydroxide? I can only get KOH in bulk lots where I’m from but can get sodium hydroxide in smaller quantities. Sodium hydroxide is also known as lye and caustic soda. I cant find any recipe’s for olive oil liquid soap, only coconut based ones. I’m sooooo keen to try this but keep getting brick walls
Lauren
Hi Lauren,
Well, yes and no…
Sodium hydroxide is what is used to make bar soap. Potassium hydroxide is used to make liquid soap.
So, you will end up with soap, but it won’t be a liquid soap.
I had to buy the KOH online because while I can readily find sodium hydroxide in just about any store, KOH isn’t something that is readily available.
I think I tried once to make liquid soap at the beginning using a mixture of the two, or sodium hydroxide only maybe. I can’t remember what I did or what happened with that batch, but I remember having to start over because I wasn’t happy with it. I sort of learned my lesson about KOH/NaOH the hard way.
I think there are ways to at least make a creamy sort of soap with NaOH, but it really doesn’t turn out the same. I guess it’s more like grating down a solid soap and making it into a liquid soap of sorts. A lot of people do that and are happy with it, but I’ve tried several times and hate the outcome personally.
Thank you, its so awesome to ask a question and be answered honestly and with correct info. I’ve done a bit of research and I can only get 25kg of KOH locally. Looks like I will have to purchase on eBay, most online suppliers wont even freight it here for some reason. I don’t know why but old fashioned Castile soap is so appealing to me lol
Thanks, Lauren!
I love to help out however I can! 🙂
I’ve done a lot of eBay-ing here over the years. I have found soap supply stores online, though, for KOH. Those sorts of stores always have lots of fun things to buy, and I always end up buying a few too many things, that turn into new posts on the blog. hahaha
I love castile soap… and really love the liquid soap with coconut oil that I just finally got up on the blog this week because it’s so great for adding later and for cleaning around the house.
Good luck with your soap adventures!
Hello, this is great. Would you be able to use this for diy shampoo?
Hi Connie,
I have to admit that I still haven’t tried using soap for my hair. I’ve been wanting to do more research and try to come up with a recipe that could be used for hair, or to give using this castile soap myself before making the suggestion for others.
What I have seen online is tips for people who do use castile soap for washing their hair.
First, you should dilute the soap a lot. Second, you should do an acidic rinse after cleaning your hair.
Maybe I should give it a try and write about it on the blog.
My husband and I use the bar soap I make on our hair. After washing my hair, I spray a mixture of ACV and distilled water on my hair and then rinse with cool water. I have long hair so this helps to soften and detangle.
Hi Dana,
That’s great!
I haven’t ever really had luck with either soap nor apple cider vinegar in my hair.
I have tried lots of different “no poo” protocols, the best of which is what I do lately- basically washing my hair with cleansing conditioners. I also wash with my homemade conditioner.
I’m working on making a gentle shampoo with more natural surfactants lately. I should be getting it up on the blog soon.
I always find it interesting how we all react differently to different products. That’s why I’m always looking for different alternatives for people to try. 🙂
Hello,
I love your blog. Just a quick question when using coconut oil. What kind of coconut oil do you suggest? Is it the virgin coconut oil? Refined, Bleached, Deodorized (Processed oil, odorless, colorless) or can a plain coconut oil (with nutty smell) would do?
Thanks!
Hi Chris,
Honestly, I don’t find that it makes that much of a difference in soap. I used to always use virgin coconut oil (which has a coconut smell/flavor) because that’s what I had at home for cooking and everything else. I would buy in bulk from Germany because I couldn’t find coconut oil here in Spain at all.
Now that the health food stores are finally starting to carry different types of coconut oil here, I have tried with several types. There was one that was expeller pressed (doesn’t have a coconut smell/taste) and I have used that in the last couple of batches. I’m not sure I notice a difference at all. I tend to use olive oil a lot with the coconut oil in soaps, so if anything leaves a scent, it’s usually the olive oil. That said, the essential oils tend to cover any scent of the oils.
What is important, though, is to use a coconut oil that solidifies around room temperature, or under 76ºF. There are coconut oils that have been treated so that they won’t solidify as easily, like fractionated coconut oil, that will change the recipe completely.
Going to make some this week. Coconut oil here is plenty (Philippines). Olive oils here are prized and really expensive. Lookin forward to your coconut recipe. Thanks!
Hi Chris,
Here in Spain I have the opposite… Lots of wild olive trees, and olive oil is cheap and plentiful.
Not that I’m complaining, because I love olives, but I’d love to be in an area where coconuts were plentiful. I’m in love with them.
I’m working on the coconut oil soap recipe as we speak. I’m hoping to get it out in the next day or two! 🙂
I think it’s really funny. lol
Hi Chris,
I just wanted to let you know that I finally got the recipe up for the liquid soap made with coconut oil! 🙂
id love the recipe for the liquid coconut soap? when are you going to share the love with that one?
looking forward to making my first batch of liquid castile soap next week with a friend
Hi Lauren,
Thanks for the reminder!
Every once in awhile I need a reminder and a friendly kick-in-the-butt to get a post out. I’m going to add it to the top of the priority list for this week and see if I can get the post out in the next few days. Sound good? 🙂
I hope it goes well for you!
Is it possible making liquid castile soup from solid one? If yes, how?
Hello Baruch,
It is possible to grate and dissolve bars of soap into water, but I’ve never been happy with the results. (You can either melt them into the water over the stove or just allow the soap to dissolve by itself overnight.) A lot of blogs will teach you this method, but I have tried with many types of bars of soap, both homemade and store bought, and don’t like the resulting “liquid soap.”
In my experience, it ends up either very liquid-y, even when you use a large concentration of bar soap to water, or it gets goopy and opaque. It doesn’t make a nice liquid soap like this one.
I personally think it is a waste of a nice bar of soap because you end up using a lot more soap than you normally would, but a lot of people are happy with that method.
Hello Tracy!
I am about to begin making my own soap using your recipe. I am so exited, been looking forward to start days ago!
I have a few questions:
-I have been looking for your pure liquid coconut oil soap but couldn’t find it. Perhaps you haven’t yet uploaded the recipe?
-Would you share with me your experience on how do you dilute the soap resulting from this recipe? And how do you use the dilutions?
I choose your recipe over many other on the net because I liked the way you explained how you use it. It seems very practical!
Looking forward to your reply 🙂
¡Hola Beatríz! 🙂
Yes, you are right. I still haven’t gotten around to posting the liquid coconut oil soap recipe. I had a busy summer in which I didn’t post as much as I wanted to, and right now I’m concentrating on getting my fall/Halloween posts out before it’s too late. It’s definitely on my “to-do” list for as soon as possible as I’ve been working on more fun soap recipes. If you are interested in making it soon, though, I’m happy to try to look for it and send it to you privately.
As for diluting the soap…
I really don’t measure anything out when it comes to the dilutions. Let’s see if I can give you an idea of my system, though.
Right now I have two small jars of the paste in a cupboard, one of the coconut oil and one of the olive oil soap. Then, I also have two large glass jars in one of my bathrooms in which I added some distilled water to some of the paste to get a thick liquid soap. I have that as sort of a middle point for mixing up the soaps I need because it’s easy to further dilute the thick liquid soap than the paste, so you can mix up batches to use immediately. (I hope that makes sense.)
I actually just made a new batch of soap for our shower just around 2 hours ago, so I’ll tell you what I did this time. 🙂
I took some distilled water and filled an empty plastic soap bottle to around halfway. I then took a big syringe to add some olive oil and coconut oil soap until the bottle was full. I added around 2/3 olive oil soap and 1/3 coconut oil soap, but I don’t measure it; I do it by eye. I think that’s a good combination for shower. We’ve been using that sort of combination for a few batches now and the whole family likes it. Today I added a few drops of lavender essential oil to give it a scent. Each time I’ve tried different essential oils.
I will admit that when I mix up the soaps together, they tend to get cloudy (I’m not exactly sure why) and don’t stay as clear as the individual soaps in the picture. I don’t have a problem with that, but some people really want a clear soap, so I think it’s worth mentioning.
I’m about to start experimenting with using the coconut oil soap, mainly, for washing clothes. I hadn’t gotten around to trying it yet because I was finishing up a batch of homemade detergent. My batch is almost used up, though, so I’ll be trying it out soon.
I also want to try it for my dishwasher, but I haven’t tried that yet either.
So far, we’ve just been using it mainly in the shower and as a hand soap. My hope is that by the time I get my coconut oil soap recipe up, I’ll have done more experimenting with more cleansing applications and I’ll be able to comment on those more.
If you do give it a try, I’d love to hear how it goes for you! I’m also happy to answer any questions as best I can along the way.
I checked out your website, and I like the idea. I like the idea of trying to make the world a better place little by little. Keep it up!
Tracy this is pure genius! Best tutorial for making the real deal liquid castile soap from scratch!
Thanks, Krystal! 🙂
Hello Tracy.
Thank you for the great post,it is so inspiring :).
I am making the soap today,but after cooking for 12 hours the clear test in still milky,the (KOH) was milky as well when I started,after 2-3 hours of dissolving. Is my KOH not good or it might be from the water? I used mineral water,not distilled 🙁
Thank you 🙂
Hello Latinka,
Well, it could be due to a number of factors.
If your water is hard, that can affect your outcome.
Also, my recipe was made pretty precisely so that beginners wouldn’t “need” to neutralize their soaps. Most liquid soap recipes use a “lye excess” meaning that not enough oils are used, and leftover lye will remain in the soap. This is done to help ensure a clear soap, but means you have the added step of needing to “neutralize” the soap. It’s possible that if there was an excess of oils in your soap, that the final soap may not turn out perfectly clear.
That doesn’t mean that your soap won’t work, though, and is purely cosmetic.
If it were me, I’d just save what you have and give it a try.
My guess is that you have made a perfectly useable liquid soap that may just be a little cloudy. With some luck, in the heat of the summer, your soap will turn transparent.
Mine is cloudy this time of year, but clears up as the weather gets warmer.
Thanks alot for this article it has been eye opening. So I was wondering if you can possibly send a formulation sheet to use so we know the percentage of each ingredient. This is so we know the quantity to use for smaller and larger batches.
I hope to get a reply soon.
Hi Susan,
I’m sorry I missed this before, but you may notice that I have changed my recipe card so that you can adjust the amounts up or down quite easily to adjust the size of your batch. (Just change the number in the “servings” box!)