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/diy/ - Do It Yourself

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1730420 No.1730420 [Reply] [Original]

Sup /diy/ I hope you guys are a good board to ask. So I want to make soap totally from scratch. Render fat myself, make the lye, make scented oil etc. I've figured out most of it, the only tricky part is making the lye.

I have lots of wood to use for ashes, that's no problem but I don't have anywhere good to cook it. It's not really the sort of thing I want to do in the house and I don't have a hot plate.

So I'm wondering, can I do it cold? If I dissolve in water, strain then dissolve more, strain again etc? Can I make it strong enough to get the soap to set?

>> No.1730498

Yes. The heating of the liquid is just to quicken evaporation. There is no chemical reaction taking place. Potassium hydroxide is normally mined but evaporite dissolution, albeit slow, should ultimatum yield the same result.

>> No.1730501

>>1730498
Thanks!!

>> No.1730514

>>1730501
>Can I make it strong enough to get the soap to set?
I should add, I've never made soap and don't know how 'strong' it needs to be. I do know that if you leave a solution with KOH in it out, it will eventually crystallize as the water evaporates. I'm guessing that's how you're suppose to separate the KOH from the other contaminants in the wood ash.

>> No.1730582

>>1730514
Thanks also good to know