# Soap without Lye



## Rosies (Jun 18, 2008)

I want to make a very gentle bath soap and don't like lye so I need to know if I can make it without the lye. If so do I substitute something else for the lye?


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## Moriha (May 1, 2008)

If you dont like lye, do melt and pour, 
all "soap" has lye and it is compleatly safe after saponification and curing
but you can't make homemade soap without lye sorry.


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## berkshire bee (Jan 28, 2007)

Rosies, making soap with lye is not hard to do. I was a little hesitant at first, but it can be done very easily and safely. The variety of soaps you can make is fantastic and the possibilities are endless. If there is anyone nearby that gives classes, consider giving it a try.


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## Grant (Jun 12, 2004)

I was under the impression that, by definition, soap is the combination of fats/oils and lye, that without lye, you cannot have soap.

At the farmer's markets where I sell my beeswax soap, I get the same question asked a million times, "Is this lye soap?" And then they think the ONLY lye soap is white and odorless.

And yes, it's not that hard. 

Grant
Jackson, MO


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## Monie (Feb 13, 2008)

To get a "gentler" soap, be sure to use an oil that requires less lye. For instance, coconut oil, while providing an awesom lather, requires more lye for saponification than canola oil. BTW, lather is not a requirement of "good" soap.

Once you do start making your own soap, you will be in for a treat, as your soap will contain glycerine. This will make your skin feel soft and supple. Soap manufaturers use salt to leach the glycerine out of their soap. Then, they turn around and sell the stuff, and double their money from one product.

I have a friend who regularly requests my soap, beacuse she has "really dry skin", and my soap makes her skin feel soft and so much better. 

Here's a link to a great lye calculator.
http://www.thesage.com/calcs/index.html


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## Hillside (Jul 12, 2004)

Lye is sodium hydroxide. You don't need to use sodium hydroxide to make soap, you can substitute a different caustic such as potassium hydroxide, but you will still be using a strong caustic chemical. Without the caustic hydroxide, you will not make true, natural soap.

The thing to remember is that with a properly made soap, the reaction that takes place completely consumes the lye so that the lye ceases to exist. The lye and oil are reacted to make the soap. That's why soaps have to age -- to allow the reaction to come to completion. Mild soaps are made with a slight excess of oil, to make certain the lye is completely used up. If you don't use the proper proportions of oil and lye, you can end up with a soap that contains excess lye and will be very harsh. 

I don't sell soap, but I do make my own. I like to superfat with grape seed oil. It's a very light oil that soaks into the skin very quickly without feeling oily. Whatever oil doesn't soak into the skin is completely washed away by the soap.


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