Welcome!
We are here today to discuss soapmaking safety and what you need to make soap safely when using lye.
Here is the list of soapmaking supplies and equipment that every soapmaking should have. You might be wondering if soapmaking is safe?
Making your own soap from scratch is an extremely satisfying and money making hobby. You will need to keep in mind that there are real dangers present.
That's why this list of the best safety equipment for soapmakers will be very helpful. I've been making my own soap since the early 2000's and have some valuable information to share with you today.
If you are wondering about what safety equipment you need to make soap, these safety items are must-haves to help keep you safe while making your amazing soapy creations!
Is this your first time making soap? Or maybe you have hundreds of batches under your belt and just now realizing how important safety is.
It's time to keep safety in the soap room a top priority. Sometimes we soapmakers get used to things and then stop respecting lye.
This article is an important soap safety reminder to everyone who makes soap with lye.
To make soap with lye you need to have a respirator or mask, protective eye wear and proper gloves & clothing to protect your hands & arms.
If you are making your own soap from scratch using the cold process method with lye, read this safety article first.
Lye is a corrosive substance. It can be dangerous so handle it with extreme respect and learn about the proper safety equipment before making soap.
Back in the day I would have just recommended having a window open and wearing some eye protection. My thoughts have changed on this after making soap for over 20 years.
A full-face mask with a respirator will offer you the best face and lung protection out there when you are working with lye.
If you are making large batches, working with lye on a daily basis, or need protection for your employees, having a proper respirator is a must have when you are mixing lye water.
Most of us soapmakers know what lye smells like and how it feels when you are stirring it and breath it in.
Not good. And we should always pay attention to how soapmaking could affect our lungs when we are baking batches year after year.
When looking for a full face for soap making, you are looking for one that protects from fumes, as well as one that feels comfortable on your face.
A respirator mask that has an organic vapor respirator with organic filters is best.
Also, the proper full face mask will have an N95 or N95 equivalent rating, which means that it will block at least 95% of small particles; small meaning around the size of 0.3 microns.
After you are finished mixing the lye water and all of the fumes are gone, you can switch to safety goggles.
Protect your eyes and keep safety eye wear on during the soapmaking session. Getting a splash of lye water or fresh soap in your eye can cause blindness.
Safety glasses that wrap around your head and have a safety strap at the back are best.
Then they won't fall off when you are looking down while stirring your soap. These are a great pick because they have the safety strap and also fit tight against the face which is super important.
These also have ventilation channels to allow breathability so that they won't fog up.
If you have any kind of long hair or hair that goes into your face, tie it back.
Tie it so that strands of hair aren't accidentally dipping into your mixture and then rubbing on your face. It happens and it stings! Keep your hair away.
You can get bulk hair ties here on Amazon and keep them with your soapmaking equipment.
Please don't make a batch of soap and then use that same pot for dinner. Just don't. Always have dedicated soapmaking supplies.
Keep everything together in the large pot and then just bring it out when you want to make soap, and everything is together and ready for soapmaking bliss.
A stainless steel pot is a must have for large batches of soap. Look at local thrift stores first before purchasing a new one.
The important thing here is to look for a pot that is large enough to hold your basic equipment to keep things tucked away.
Use silicone spatulas for stirring soap. Don't ever use wood because over time, the wood will splinter and you don't want splinters in your soap.
These are great because it comes with several sizes so you can use one for mixing soap and then others to mix up any other ingredients. And they are super easy to clean.
Use glass containers to mix your lye water, essential oils, fragrances and colorants.
This set is great because it comes with several sizes so you can use one for your lye water mixture and other things like herbs, colorants and essential oils.
Use an instant read thermometer so you know exactly the right time to mix your oils and lye water together.
Usually, the oils and lye water would be around 120 - 130 F.
The oils and lye water solutions do need to be at the proper temperatures before mixing them together so an instant-read thermometer is perfect for soapmaking.
Using a thermometer will help keep away common problems like lye crystals forming or little lye pockets within your soap.
All kinds of bad can happen when your lye water and oils don't mix properly. You can get splitting when the soap is curing, lye crystals and even worse, lye pockets.
Just make sure you only use it for soap and nothing else. Keep it with your other soapmaking equipment and safety gear.
This one is great because it's stainless steel.
When you mix the lye into the water, it produces fumes. You never want to breathe these in.
You can purchase a fan and face it to blow everything outside an open window and that will carry all of the fumes away from your space.
Wear an apron to protect your clothes. And an apron that doesn't have any pockets that can hide little bits of lye is best.
Etsy has lots of cute soapmaking aprons that can also be customized. This Etsy shop is a top seller.
A set of markers will help label your soapmaking equipment so that no one will mistake their use. These will write on pretty much any surface.
It's especially important to mark your lye mixing containers.
Mark them good and all over with huge LYE DON'T DRINK letters. Let's be safe out there in our world of soapmaking.
Keep rags and paper towel handy just in case there is a spill that needs to be cleaned up right away. Check out these pink shop towels on Amazon. They work great and they are washable.
We hope you found this list of soapmaking equipment helpful! Please Pin this to your board so that you can find it again later.
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James K. Mulbah
November 25, 2021
THIS LESSON WAS HELPFUL THANKS.