Where do you get lye to make soap?
Online Sources
- Bramble Berry.
- The Lye Guy.
- Boyer Corporation.
- Essential Depot.
- Bitter Creek Candle Co.
- Lehman’s Soapmaking Supplies.
- The Soap Dish.
Can you still purchase lye?
Craft stores carry lye for soapmaking. There is also food-grade sodium hydroxide, sold in some specialty cooking stores. You can find sodium hydroxide online. You can purchase it at Amazon as sodium hydroxide or lye, pure lye drain opener, caustic soda, and pure or food-grade sodium hydroxide.
How much does lye cost per pound?
Lye Prices Lye (sodium hydroxide) is sold as low as $5.99 per pound.
What is the best percentage of lye for soap making?
Most recipes and tutorials here on Modern Soapmaking use a 33% lye solution, as it’s typically a manageable water discount during the soapmaking process, but also hardens up a little quicker to get the soap out of the mold! A strong water discount is typically referred to as a 40% lye solution.
What can I use instead of lye in soap making?
The main way that you can make soap without handling lye is by using melt-and-pour soap. The part of it that’s real soap has already been through saponification (oils reacting with lye) and is safe to use and handle straight out of the package.
Does lye expire?
The shelf life of lye, sodium hydroxide, when properly stored is one year. After a year it is possible for your lye to work, but you should do a small batch to test whether the lye is still good. If it is actually expired, then it may not come to trace quickly or could separate after it is poured or set up.
Do you need food grade lye for soap?
In order for it to be used on food, it must meet stringent purity requirements outlined by the Food Chemical Code (FCC) written by the Food and Drug Administration. Food grade lye is highly processed with very, very few impurities. Food grade lye is the only type that should ever be used in soap-making.
What type of lye is best for soap making?
The best lye for soap making is 99 percent pure, food-grade sodium hydroxide in pellet or bead form. Purity and food-grade ratings ensure the lye contains fewer impurities. Beads and pellets make it easier to measure. However, potassium hydroxide (not technically lye) is best for making liquid soap.
What does 33% lye concentration mean?
More about Lye Concentration Lye concentration of 33% means there are 33 grams of alkali in 100 grams of lye solution. Water makes up the rest of the 100 grams. In other words, the water weighs 100 – 33 = 67 grams. Lye concentration of 25% means there are 25 grams of alkali in 100 grams of lye solution.
Can soaps be made without lye?
NO, chemically-speaking, soap itself cannot be made without lye. Soap is made by blending oils (like olive oil or coconut oil), a liquid (water, goat’s milk, etc.), and an alkali (lye). Lye is needed to convert oils into soap.
Can I use old lye for soap making?
Using expired lye can mean your soap won’t reach trace. To avoid any wasted soap, make sure to keep your lye tightly sealed in a cool, dry place. We like to mark all of our bottles in the Soap Lab with the date it is opened. That way we can replace the lye after a year to prevent it from going bad.
Does lye remain in soap?
This chemical reaction is called saponification, which combines oil and lye to create soap and glycerin. If the process is carried out correctly, there is no lye left in the soap. What this means is that while all real soaps use lye in the creation process, there is no lye leftover in the finished product.
Is lye in Dove soap?
Yes, Dove is made with lye!
What type of lye should I use to make soap?
Technical grade lye (non-food grade) is the lye of choice for soap making. Other household uses for this powerful lye are drain clog cleaning, oven grease removing and as a cleaning agent. Lye has traditionally been used as the main ingredient in soap making.
What is Red Devil Lye used for?
Function. The primary use of Red Devil Lye was as a drain cleaner. The product reacted with grease to form a kind of soap that would dissolve in water and wash away. The caustic product also decomposed proteins in substances, such as hair.
Where to buy lye for soapmaking?
Where to Buy Lye for Soapmaking Nowadays 1 Local Sources. Check your local hardware store. 2 Online Sources. Bitter Creek Candle Co. 3 Chemical Supply Company. Get together with other soap makers in your area and go together and buy a large bag of lye from a local chemical supply house. 4 Make Your Own. 5 History of Lye.
Where to buy lye for drain cleaning?
Lye used to be available in the supermarket but not anymore. You might be able to find it in some hardware stores often in the drain cleaning section next to the Draino.
Where can I buy roebic Lye?
Check your local hardware store. Lowe’s hardware stores sell Roebic Crystal Drain Opener. According to the product label, it is 100 percent lye. It is available in a two-pound container and can be found at all Lowes stores.
What can I do with light Lye?
Lye is also used for food curing, candlemaking, dehairing hides, cleaning out drains, and beekeepers use it for cleaning out old hives. Check your local hardware store.