# no superfat



## tlt0000 (Apr 28, 2009)

I am wanting to make a soap that doesn't have superfat but I don't want it to be excessively harsh. I will be using it for poison ivy. Do I set the lye calculator to 0% superfat or do I put it at 2 or 3% or something low like that. My soap is usually around 7%

Thanks, tara


----------



## SimplyE (Jan 15, 2010)

I would def. NOT put it at 0% as you really could end up with a lye-heavy soap. You don't want it to be so harsh you cannot use it. For me, I probably would not go less than 4%. 

Every calc. has a little bit different calculation for the SAP value, so cutting it that close would be asking for trouble, IMO.


----------



## tlt0000 (Apr 28, 2009)

That's what I was thinking. For laundry soap would you set it at zero?


----------



## hsmomof4 (Oct 31, 2008)

Yes.


----------



## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

There shouldn't be lye left even set at 0%. It simply means that all the lye had butters and oils to saponify...to make it lye heavy you would have to decrease the amount of fat or raise the amount of lye in the recipe further. Like when people leave out one of their oils. My laundry soap is still really good soap, it has zero zap. Vicki


----------



## Faye Farms (Sep 14, 2009)

My 0% SF soap doesn't zap at 0% either.


----------



## SimplyE (Jan 15, 2010)

Faye Farms said:


> My 0% SF soap doesn't zap at 0% either.


Do you use this 0% SF soap on your skin? Yikes, I would be a bloody, scratchy mess.

I agree it that it "should" not zap, but it seems there would be absolutely no room for error and make for an extremely harsh body soap.

In the case of laundry soap, you would want a 0% SF as you don't want the extra oil in your laundry


----------



## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

If you really look at how little you move from on percentage to the next with your lye, you would see quickly that the difference is miniscule. In talking about this privately with someone on PM, we both agree that you could go much much lower than what the calculaters are actually saying to even get to where there is actually not butters and oils for the lye to sap with....just like how low you can actually go with your water/lye percentage. Vicki


----------



## SimplyE (Jan 15, 2010)

UR right about the miniscule percentage. I just cannot imagine using it though. However, my skin is super tempermental, and I can barely deal with 5%. 

Do you make/sell a 0% SF soap? And if so, why?


----------



## Faye Farms (Sep 14, 2009)

I only make a 0% superfat soap for laundry soap. I don't use it for anything else. But I guess the reasoning behind using it for washing if you get into Posien Ivy is that you want that drying effect of the 0% soap against the PI.


----------



## Guest (Jun 10, 2010)

I make PI soap and I do not set it to zero superfat... it still works on the PI... 
But about the above post... Vicki is correct.. the amount is so small.. and consider that you are getting some fat from the milk when making milk soaps.. so it is still superfatted..
Barb


----------



## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Mine is also laundry soap, but I use it to wash dishes and to wash pups, and to wash soap molds, so have had it on my hands many many times...I think you have the wrong idea of what super fatting (which I don't believe is even real) is. Now don't have enough fat for your lye to work, no you wouldn't want to even shred the soap to wash clothes in without gloves, but 0% only means it's exactly the amount needed to sap all the lye, nothing more and nothing less. I soap around 6 likely more with the goatmilk being all nubain right now.

If there was such a thing as super fatted soap it would not be a hard bar. If there was left over fat that wasn't saponified, the bar would have free floating oils on the top of it. Noted because of the minisucle amounts from 0% to 10% superfat, of the lye you use or don't use to get there. Vicki


----------



## tlt0000 (Apr 28, 2009)

Barb, How much superfat do you do your PI soap at?

thanks


----------



## Guest (Jun 11, 2010)

5 percent...the standard that most soap calculators do... with my PI soap, I steep the oils for a good month in the sun... I also run some of the jewelweed thru a blender and turn it to mush and add to my soap as part of my liquid... so if my recipe calls for 48 oz of milk and i have 8 oz of jewelweed mush, I only use 40 oz of milk.... Most people that have used it reports to me that it works very well... In fact jewelweed is good for All skin rashes... and bug bites, itchies or whatever
Barb


----------



## tlt0000 (Apr 28, 2009)

Would there be much difference if I made a tea out of the jewelweed instead of infusing it in the oil? When I have tried infusing herbs in oil before, I have gotten mold.


----------



## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Than the herb had mold on it to begin with. If fresh from the garden than dip them into boiling water to kill mold, bugs etc. I then but mine in a dehydrator until nice a dry. Make sure they are immersed completely in the oil and keep covered. I never have mold, with either fresh herbs or dried herbs, I keep 1 gallon jars of infused oils in my window sills to use in alot of my soaps. It's the same if you are going to use fresh herbs in cheese or other uncooked applications, dipping them in boiling water works really well. Vicki


----------



## Guest (Jun 12, 2010)

I have never had mold either, and I use the jewelweed fresh when I first get it... Now I do dry some it for later use... but yes you could make a tea out of it.. essentially that is what you are doing when you steep your herbs in oil.... you are just making an oil based tea with it.. 
Good idea Vicki, I never thought of dipping things in boiling water
Barb


----------

