# lye straining question



## jdranch

For those who strain their lye/ milk solution, how do you strain when it is thick? When you have *stuff* that won't go through the strainer, how does that affect the soap? Thanks for any replies.


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## MF-Alpines

I've wondered about this, too.


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## Caprine Beings

I followed some advice and used the stick blender in the lye/milk solution just before pouring, works like a charm  
Tam


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## tmfinley

Yes, most of the time I stick blend and then strain. There might still be some stuff that doesn't go through but not much. There have been a few times I forgot to stick blend so there is a lot of leftover stuff in the strainer and it doesn't affect the final soap at all. If the whole mixture is super thick and is hard to strain, I just stir in the strainer lightly and the liquid will all go through.


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## jdranch

Thanks for the replies.  I've been sb and it helps. I did three different batches last night- two of the three with different *milk* (I was thawing out a gallon and used the milk that had had thawed first. It was not frozen like the first batch of milk). It only happened with the last 2 batches. They were obviously hotter than the first batch because the milk wasn't frozen. I used my spatula and tried to work as much as I could through but there was still a lot.

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## Guest

Jennifer, i don't know your recipe but your lye mix seems very thick, much thicker than any I have ever had and your milk proteins are burning when they get this yellow. If not a secret post your recipe so I can go thru it and see what you are doing
Barb


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## Jo~*

When I tried straining mine actually started smoking!!!!! Maybe my strainer wasn't ss??
JoAnn


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## jdranch

Barb- Thanks for the reply.  I don't think it is my recipe. This is the lye/ milk mix before adding to my oils. For the small batches, I believe there is 81 g of lye and 226 g of milk. My milk wasn't frozen so it did get hot (the hottest/ orangest I have ever had). It sits in an ice bath until the temp is near 100 and I stir it (not constantly though). I think sb blending makes it even hotter but...it is blended. 

ETA- maybe I am adding the lye too much at a time (25 g at a time)? It doesn't seem like much but there isn't a lot of milk either. Would sb too much make this happen? Could I be using *cream* (or milk with a high ration of cream)?


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## tmfinley

Yep, that sure is thick. I can't believe it is still that thick after stick blending. Doesn't seem right. I always add my lye all at once. But if I am using non frozen milk I stir constantly until it cools a bit. I didn't run your numbers through a calculator - I'm assuming you have that right.


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## jdranch

I use soapcalc, 5% superfat. I've made about 50 batches using these molds with the same recipe. I had one issue before (I posted here about that) that was similar but not anywhere as thick or as hot. I am going to soap now- same recipe, mold, milk (except the milk will be frozen). I don't think I will sb as much and I will stir constantly. My milk being not frozen and it getting hot was the only difference. But I don't think that should cause this...


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## Kalne

Wow.....my milk or juice/coffee/water/lye solution is liquid. Never had it get thick like that.


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## Anita Martin

Oh my goodness. Something is going haywire with your lye/milk mixture. Here's my lye/milk mix just prior to pouring into oils. Always looks like this. Always.

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## adillenal

I don't freeze my milk and I dump all of the lye in at the same time and then whisk like crazy and mine does not look thick like that. Too much lye and not enough milk perhaps??


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## jdranch

Anita Martin said:


> Oh my goodness. Something is going haywire with your lye/milk mixture. Here's my lye/milk mix just prior to pouring into oils. Always looks like this. Always.


oh my gosh- crapola! Mine has never looked that white- ever! I will have to take a picture of my regular lye/ milk mixture. I ran the recipe through another lye calc and came up with the same solution ratio. Wow, can't believe yours is that white. Lol, I don't even think my milk is that white.


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## hsmomof4

Anita,
is that an acrylic type pitcher you are mixing your lye in? If so, get something different, because the lye interacts with them and they can get hairline cracks that you hardly notice, and then, one day.... The translucent, more flexible plastic pitchers are fine, as are opaque plastic ones.


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## nightskyfarm

It's a glass one, I've seen it. My lye mixture is like Anita's, always. I also use glass for the lye/milk cubes.


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## tmfinley

A glass lye pitcher would scare me. If it decides to break that would be an awful, potentially dangerous mess.

Jennifer, I want you to know my lye mixture hardly ever looks like Anita's. It is only that white when it is really cold in the soap room and I use ice milk. I actually like my lye mixture to be hotter than that.


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## hsmomof4

I used to use glass, too, until another soaper told a story about her pyrex shattering one time when she was making soap! (It was just from the lye, she didn't drop it or anything.)


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## NubianSoaps.com

And when you get tired of all the ice and slowly adding your milk and problems...simply melt your lye with equal amounts of water, add it to your oils and blend.....then adding the rest of your fluid amount in milk at emulision, super white soap, so much faster


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## adillenal

But I am a purist and want to use 100% milk. White soap is not my object. I have experimented with half milk, half water and so forth and so on. But I have never had lye/milk get thick like the photo. That is a puzzle for sure. 

And I agree that my lye/milk solution is much lighter when I soap with cold air temps. So I guess that means I should only soap in the winter with no heat on in the soap kitchen? 

I also stir constantly and I use a plastic bucket so it cools pretty fast.

Good luck figuring that thic lye/milk solution out.


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## Anita Martin

Yes, it's glass. I like the sides because they taper down at a curve so I can run my spatula under the cubes easier. I don't mind how long it takes, which is not very long actually. I'm only making about 5 or 6 batches a week, if that much. I don't really care that it's white, although if it's whiter it takes color better, it's more that it doesn't smell bad and give me a heachache and make me have to open windows we've got sealed shut with plastic and duct tape.  

I started making soap so I'd have something to do with all my extra milk....and I have a lot when we're not feeding kids, so to use water at this point doesn't make sense for me, although I plan to use it today to make my the head on my beer soap whiter. 

My kitchen is around 60 to 70 degrees when I soap. I move the soap into the living room to gel because it's more like 80 to 90 in there. I am careful to make sure all the lye is melted before pouring, and do use the stick blender on it first. After pouring I then stir the oils/lye before stickblending to make double sure the tiny specks I can't see are dissolved. 

I used to regularly have an orange mess with undissolved crystals in the bottom of my lye pictcher, and one time ruined a batch by pouring that mess in. The orange lumps never did dissolve. And I've had issues with lye bumps on top of the soap in the past, due to soaping in a cold kitchen, but none since I changed the way I do things..thanks to advice I've gotten here...and hearing your stories of failures and successes is always a good lesson too!

But I had to ruin hundreds of dollars worth of soap to get to the point where all my soap comes out good...and even then I mess up a batch every once in a while, usually due to incorrect measuring. 

The one benefit to all those ruined batches is that we will probably never, ever, run out of wonderfully scented laundry detergent.


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## jdranch

Thanks for the additional replies.

I haven't every soaped with cream (intentionally) and I am beginning to wonder if sometimes the amount of cream in the soap makes the lye/ milk mix get thicker. I also think it has something to do with the heat too.

I got really white lye/ milk this morning by using frozen (not slushy, which I have always referred to as frozen) milk and just pouring the lye on the frozen milk cube. I soaped at 75 with oils a little under 100. It strained good- but I always try to match my oil and milk temps around 95-100.

I am also posting my *normal* looking lye/ milk mix-

ETA- For my small batches I am using glass and should not. I have had pyrex glass explode... need to find a more appropriate small container....

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## hsmomof4

Just get a plastic rubbermaid type pitcher at walmart or a dollar store or someplace like that.


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## jdranch

hsmomof4 said:


> Just get a plastic rubbermaid type pitcher at walmart or a dollar store or someplace like that.


That is what use for my bigger batches. These are so small, but I do need something.


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## cmeyer1

I was wondering why you would strain. I haven't made any milk soap yet only water. What is it your straining out.


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## jdranch

cmeyer1 said:


> I was wondering why you would strain. I haven't made any milk soap yet only water. What is it your straining out.


Welcome! 
undissolved lye


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## carlidoe

I use frozen/slushy milk and my lye and milk mixture stays creamy and white- sometimes has just a tinge of yellow. I never strain this. 

The very first batch of soap I ever made called for a TON of lye. I dumped all 12 ounces of that lye into my refridgerator temp milk and started mixing away. It scalded the heck out of my milk and stunk up my house for days. I thought that was normal so I went ahead and mixed in my oils. The finished product looked like a batch of brownies :rofl


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## NubianSoaps.com

Yep Carli, my first soap looks like oatmeal cookies with chocolate in them...and still my customers loved them! V


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## oh2bejoy

My lye/milk solution looks just like Anita's....for me, the thickness (like curdles) is what is left after I have strained it. I was concerned about lessening the strength of the lye in my soap and ending up with soft soap, so now I just add everything in (without straining).


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## carlidoe

Vicki McGaugh Tx Nubians said:


> Yep Carli, my first soap looks like oatmeal cookies with chocolate in them...and still my customers loved them! V


That's hilarious. If it had been up to the hubby and a few friends my soaping career would have ended that day.


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