Why You Should Try a 50% Water Discount in Soap Making

[@futureprimitivesoap]

When using this method all you need to do is reduce the required water amount by half. That's it. If you use soap calc do not change any of the settings for this, leave them as they are, then half the water amount yourself. This is not a 50:50 ratio! Do not confuse the two. This is just cutting the water by half.

[@OlaloTaínoTarot]

thank you for clearing that Up now I have to find out if this will work for hot process! Amazing video and your soap are lovely

[@cristalcthomas2010]

By cutting the water in half how long will the cure time be now?

[@monikaykataria3838]

I have doubt that why do we need to add extra water to dry out, wt happens if we make soap with only 50/50 lye/water solution without adding extra water, so that we doesnt need to dry them for 4 weeks... I think it will be ready in a week. I m just asking, can we do this? Thanks for ur reply in advance.

[@prettharrington]

Thank you for this post. I have made 4 batches of the most beautiful soaps based on your video. The batches have had no soda ash. They all have the most brilliant luster and color, and the bars are the hardest bars I've made to date. I did notice that trace took way longer - LOL, but overall worth it. My water reduction is 23% water to the weight of oils. The key for me has been making sure the discounted water is never less than the weight of the lye. Again, thanks.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+Preston Harrington Hi Preston! That is so awesome! I'm loving the results as well. Some.of the best soaps I've ever made. So glad you're finding success too! Yes you should never have less water than the lye amount I believe. Good luck in your endeavours and have a very happy Christmas (or whatever you celebrate). Tiggy xx

[@xolveria]

sunflower oil slows thing down. i use ricebran olive oil coocnut oil and palm/soy shortening. super hard bar

[@barbaraayala7808]

I tried the 50% water discount last night and it did the same thing. It never got thick. I poured it anyway and in 12 hours I was able to take it out the mold and it came out beautiful. No soda ash or anything and the bar was actually harder than all the other soaps I've done. It was great. We'll see if there is any difference in curing time.

[@karenthorne6644]

Hey! G'Day from Australia! I tried the 50% discount and my soap worked out fantastic! Thanks for your inspiration! xxx

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+karen thorne hey! Thats awesome! Xx

[@roslynhita6149]

G'Day from brisbane ..Ive just discovered this Lady and her beautiful Soaps and Im gonna try this 50% discount thing ..

[@lucybyrd2188]

You make those waves on top look so easy. This soap is gorgeous!

[@PeiPeisMom]

I'm going to try this now. I was always afraid before, but you've convinced me to try!

[@janonthemtn]

I make hot process soap, and was discouraged to discount water. Since I do add yogurt, I tried discounting 25% and it worked out great. Thanks!

[@smithmade_essentials]

You inspired me to start using deep water discounts in my unscented batches. I love how fast my soap hardens and I've had mo issue at all with acceleration or anything. Thank you for showing that huge water discounts can be done!

[@TheLoveweaver]

Is there da reason you don't do it with your scented batches? I'm just curious. 🙄

[@smithmade_essentials]

@@TheLoveweaver I was too nervous to, but since writing that comment I've moved on to do it with those too and haven't had any issues at all.

[@JiayingJourney]

Can I know water discount to 50% and not decreasing what’s the difference and the feeling you wash is there any difference?

[@Greenfairy65]

Tiggy, I really adore how simple yet how lovely your soaps turn out. There is an elegance to it all, really. I can hardly wait til my supplies arrive!

[@nanomc3174]

Hi Tiggy, so in a nutshell, doing a water discount : Prevents soda ash and glycerin rivers Produces a harder bar of soap Cuts cure time in half, say 3 weeks instead of 4 - 6 weeks Thanks for sharing with us...

[@futureprimitivesoap]

I wouldn't say it cuts cure time in half. I usually drop the cure time from 4 weeks to 3. But it's entirely up to you and it will depend on your recipe xx

[@cheryl739]

I've seen a soaper use a higher discount on her soaps once in a while. I think she used equal amounts of water & lye. Not sure... but may have been A&N Suds and Such. She of course used a small amount of water for her TD mix and non-accelerating fragrance. She never had a problem, doing this method. Like your tops :)

[@fear2tread09]

Love the texturized top and the width of the cut. It really does make a lovely bar.

[@boop7313]

it looks so smooth and soft with a lovely sheen on top too x

[@SamCanders707]

Divine! Ha ha ha! Love the soap, love your humor, going to try a 50% discount soon!

[@xolveria]

depends what oils you are using some oil will accelerates some wont. i do the same its hard within 4 hour i can cut it :) but some FO will cause mad acelerations. so i have to be careful ;)

[@tika4113]

I always use a 50% water discount and never had any issues. I do however use frozen coconut milk instead of water.

[@gimomable]

So cool I will try doing a bigger water discount myself. Also something interesting, the city closest to me is where Vick's vapor rub was first invented and manufactured! Greensboro NC

[@joannpage6691]

Tiggy, thank you for this video. I just challenge myself to do a water discount and was so happy. No soda ash and could unmold the soap around 15 hours. First time!. Love your videos.

[@nicolethomas1530]

They look really nice. I’m going to try a water discount on my next batch. Thanks for sharing x

[@bathhousesoap]

The soap is so much more rich without the water...and no ash!

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+BATHHOUSE Soapery & Caldarium I'm excited to try it! I love how the tops look. So silky smooth! Xx

[@bathhousesoap]

I love watching you make soap, I've been a huge fan of yours forever.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+BATHHOUSE Soapery & Caldarium I'm honoured! Thank you so so much! Xx

[@nanomc3174]

Thanks so much Tiggy for sharing with us...will def keep watching....Enjoy your day!

[@futureprimitivesoap]

You're very welcome. And thank you! You too x x

[@prettharrington]

Totally going to do this! If for no other reason but to get rid of that dreadful soda ash - thanks!

[@GG-zh3yg]

Thank you so much for your video. I’m now inspired, and I’m not afraid anymore of the water discount! Yay!!!🤗

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+G G you're most welcome xx

[@nowexit]

Sodium hydroxide needs to be dissolved in a liquid no less than its own weight (ie: 100g NaOH dissolved in 100g H2O but no less) so in theory you can water discount even less than 50%. My standard is 30% discount and I've found that ash has been eliminated and no more glycerine rivers. At 30% the curing time is down to 2.5/3 weeks. You responded to my comment on the last post and told me about Sensory Perfection, I should be getting a big F/O haul from them tomorrow.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

Fido123 I had read that yes. I stuck with this for fear of it going too hard. I'm so surprised at how it turned out. Hope you like your FO haul! I used Gracefruit in the last one x

[@chetta3482]

Hi Tiggy!Tigger! Tried this for the first time this passed weekend but I only reduced by 5% not 50. Im going to try it this weekend

[@Tash_inBloom]

Hi, how it did turn out?

[@chetta3482]

@@Tash_inBloom it turned out well. I use it on most soaps now.

[@Tash_inBloom]

@@chetta3482 great! Thank you for responding! 💕

[@chetta3482]

@@Tash_inBloom you're very welcome!

[@scentreyourself1039]

beautiful....never though of doing this, what I have done is reduce the water percentage in the calculator, but this is better. Thank you

[@tiffanyfelkner8995]

Beautiful peaks! Very informative about the 50% Water Disc. Thanks for doing this.

[@sandramckelvie6913]

Hi Tiggy, If you do a ghost swirl the portion that has higher water is much thicker. Usually you would think that more water thins it down but the opposite seems true. I don't know why this happens but perhaps the extra water cools the batter.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

sandra mckelvie ah yes I remember that Aunty Clara post. I don't think I have the patience to do the 2 portions of soap. Maybe one day when I have more time on my hands to experiment. Thanks for watching xx

[@sandramckelvie6913]

No it does seem quite complicated when you read the blog and since I don't have any patience at all I just use a really easy cheat version. I will try to write it down and you can see what you think.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+sandra mckelvie ok that would be good. I don't like faff!

[@futureprimitivesoap]

sandra mckelvie do you split the lye in two, then put more water in one of the jugs?

[@sandramckelvie6913]

Ok I want to make 1000g of soap so I do 2 x 500g recipe into soapcalc. One at low water and one at high water. If you check the oils and the lye are the same in both. The only difference is the water. In my case the high water half has 82g more water (this varies with recipie as you know). All I do is make up 1000g batch with the low water then pour off half into a jug with 82g of water. You can do this by eye as the water doesn't matter. You now have 2 batters - the original low water which is fluid and the new high water which is starting to thicken. It makes a nice swirl without using colours.

[@angelazeigler2904]

I was wondering if you gel your batches? With the discount? I've just made perhaps my 9th batch and my molds are small I have been gelling half and putting have in the fridge to stop it from gelling. I find I have more Ash on the ones I don't gel but I'm super new and just learning so I'm not sure I can decide which I prefer. On my failed batches I let them to gel which caused me to even try the other way. Only both batches have came out well. I hate the wait! Being new I'm anxious to see and I am rushing to get my molds clean to make another! So I'm ready to try at a discount I feel!

[@MammaCass]

I really love all your videos I wish I had such a professional set up :) I just make soap as a hobby and film it but your vids are something else! Good to find another English soaper too :)

[@ayshajohns2487]

Hi, just need to clarify...I use 40% for HP, but have been experimenting with as low as 20 with CP soaking. Sit was not clear before. Thanks.

[@joro7392]

I’m going to try this 50% water discount. Fantastic!!

[@sheilakleinschmidt9739]

Please let us know the cure time.thanks for this video. I’m looking forward to giving it a try!

[@futureprimitivesoap]

Sheila Kleinschmidt ill try to remember to give updates on it in future vids x

[@lindazagara6991]

I am so glad I discovered your You Tube channel, Tiggy! You're so talented, and I wanted to thank you for sharing your thoughts and soap making experiences. The day after I saw this video, I tried a water discount for the first time, and I was so pleased with the results! I love watching your videos, all are well done! ☺

[@futureprimitivesoap]

Thank you very much! Nice to have you here xx

[@milciacana]

I want to try this, does this work when using essential oils as well? and why did you add the FO before trace? any reason? I usually add my essential oils after trace. lovely soaps!

[@HERBALNATURAL]

I think the batch size matters a lot!!!For small batch it won’t work . My 1 kg oils batch traced madly

[@futureprimitivesoap]

I soap small batches with no problem. I find temps, recipes and fragrance or essential.pils are the problem.

[@HERBALNATURAL]

@@futureprimitivesoap thanks for responding

[@quintadocobral2629]

Fabulous! Ive done a 30% before but 50% - WOW! it looks great X

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+Ishbel Ramsay I've had a few more goes, and it's been great. Had a fast mover today though. That was fun! Xx

[@quintadocobral2629]

Do you recon you will stick with it? Im going to try tomorrow - have you tried cured soap? it looked so nice and glossy!

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+Ishbel Ramsay thing is i used to do a 38% lye concentration with all my batches a few years ago, but i was having troubles with acceleration a lot (me being impatient and soaping too warm didn't help matters) so I went back to doing a 25% water discount, which I can manage. This is a slightly higher lye concentration (about 40%) so I will use it with one scent, one colour soaps I think. It sure makes a super hard bar, and no soda ash is great, but I ain't risking it with swirly batches right now.

[@rosideal6353]

Wow,,, I’m really impressed, can I do this with HP?

[@clarabarraza6674]

Great to know. Soap looks amazing!!

[@rebeccamorris7671]

It is gorgeous !

[@maycuarecamacho]

50% water discount meaning from the calculated lye solution I will cut 50% of water before I mix it?

[@lathersforlife7389]

Thank you for doing this and sharing it. That's good to know!

[@onepartofone]

I soap at 30% as standard but 40% I do for shaving soap. I might go down to 50% now for them.

[@Sticle]

Does a 50% water discount makes a more drying bar of soap, or is it no difference? How much superfat do you need to use for for 50% water discount? I just started making soap, so im a bit newbie. Thank you very much for making these videos!

[@coconutluxenaturals]

Amazing video Tiggy as always. One question. When you soap at room temperature how does your soap go through the gel phase? Do you insulate it? Thank you. Katherine x

[@futureprimitivesoap]

I don't do anything to make my soap gel. If it gels by itself that's it. I don't force it. I leave all of my soaps uninsulated.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

Also, soap will go through gel phase (if it wants to) regardless of temp as it heats up naturally by itself.

[@coconutluxenaturals]

Thank you for quick reply 🤗 ok I thought in cp you have to force gel. Ok that changes things. So you don't even cover the soap at all? 🙄

[@futureprimitivesoap]

No, you dont have to force gel at all. In fact, many of *us* are non gellers. There are no rules x

[@nadhirahwilliams1329]

I really enjoy your videos! If you don't mind, may I know the dimensions of your mold! Please!

[@futureprimitivesoap]

Nadhirah Williams I'm not sure what it is. I'd have to measure it. Sorry! I got it off etsy. Tap in slab mould and you may find it. X

[@amaloumimosa4587]

please tell me when you discount water youdiscount NAOH??

[@gwen525600]

WOW! I am surprised that it came out so nice. I've tried a water discount & the mix was so hard to work with. Do you think the kind & amounts of oil you used had something to do with it? I tried a 15% discount with 30% each coconut, olive & palm, 5% castor & 5% shea butter. Any suggestions on what might have gone wrong? That soap looks great. It looks smooth & creamy in the final shots you showed. You are my water discount guru! lol p.s. I LOVE that you did a quick flash of Divine!

[@futureprimitivesoap]

I would say the only thing, which may cause issues is temperature. I soap pretty cool, like a little below room temp. What temp did you use? The recipe isn't much different to my own. I split the liquid oils into sunflower and olive and use cocoa butter as an additional 2% superfat on top of the soapcalc default of 5%, so my overall superfat sits at around 7%. Any help?

[@gwen525600]

Somewhat. I soaped at 95 so that puts me over by 25 degrees. I'm only a few months into soap making so I am still learning. 25 degrees is a lot so I will try soaping at room temp with a water discount to see how it turns out. I had it backwards. I thought soaping at a mid range temp would keep my batter more fluid. OR maybe I should use more liquid oils. If I count coconut I'm using 65% fast moving oils. Maybe take out a little coconut & palm & sub sunflower. Like I said still learning! Thanks so much your soaps are gorgeous! :0)

[@Greatewall79]

Hello and thank you for this video! Just one question because the term "Water discount" is really confusing!!.... When you say "Water Discount" Do you refer to using just half (50%) of the total amount of lye + water solution called in the recipe right? Just an example: if my recipe calls for Water 200 gr + Lye 130 gr = 330 gr I will just need to use half of this total amount? (165 gr) ? Thanks!

[@futureprimitivesoap]

No. It's just a water discount. This is nothing to do with lye. The lye you require is based on the weight of your oils, so you keep that the same, obviously. When I say a 50 per cent WATER discount, I'm discounting the water by half.

[@Greatewall79]

@@futureprimitivesoap Thank you!

[@Neecysnecessities27]

I can't wait to see what that Winter Balm batch will look like. Hope you have plans to record it.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+Neecy's Necessities I did record it. It will go up shortly. You have 2 accounts I see. Didnt you just leave me a comment under another name? X

[@Neecysnecessities27]

Actually there are 3. *smh*. Don't ask. Long embarrassing story.

[@adriannaczachor1806]

I'm wondering if cutting the water in half would invalidate any safety assessments? Would I need to get a new safety assessment for a discounted water in a recipe?

[@futureprimitivesoap]

You would Ave to ask your assessor. X

[@adriannaczachor1806]

@@futureprimitivesoap thank you, I will :)

[@jenniferrobin2466]

What is a water discount is it where you take away water but still had the same amount lye that goes to your soap recipe

[@jandezeikerd8293]

I have a question, love to try this method, but how does this work with the sometimes fast acceleration of fragrance oil?

[@futureprimitivesoap]

Don't use it with a fast mover!

[@jandezeikerd8293]

@@futureprimitivesoap thanks!

[@zia.m]

Hello dear. Ive been following your vids for some time and few months back i tried making my own cp soap. My recipe includes olive oil, coconut oil, and canola oil. Everything seems to work well in the start but after cutting the soap and using it, a gel kind of liquid(gooey) starts coming out from the soap. The gooey comes from the area which is in contact with the soap tray or any surface.Ive changed my lye but still every batch i make gives out sufficient amount of gooey liquid after using it. I would be very very grateful if you can guide me to get rid of this gooey from soap. I havent been able to find any solution on the internet as alot of soap makers are unfamiliar with it .

[@dianegriffen2756]

Where is your shop Tiggy? I live in England. x

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+Diane Griffen in Evesham, worcs. details on my website. Link in description x

[@BohemienneLife]

Looks awesome!

[@haribasyal2820]

How many price per pec

[@Graycatshorts]

Hi there! Is water discount uses the same amount of Lye and less water or you cut them (water and lye amount) and then that increases the superfat? Thanks so much! Your videos are helpful, btw. :)

[@futureprimitivesoap]

You leave the sodium hydroxide alone. It's just a water discount as shown in the video.

[@christybrooks3729]

I know in a past video you said you don't really worry about ratios for colourants i believe. (I can't remember) but does a 50% water discount have a ratio of 1:1? Meaning the lye concentration is 50%

[@futureprimitivesoap]

No! A 50% water discount is just what it is. You half the water required for the recipe. It's not about ratios. So many people get confused by this. Just half the water. That's it.

[@christybrooks3729]

@@futureprimitivesoap Thanks so much for clarifying. This soap looks luxurious!

[@janonthemtn]

Can you leave links to 2 wooden soap cutters you use?

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+Jan Levine see description x

[@summerbreeze1955]

I used a 40% discount and submitted my recipe to the assessment body and they told me it has to be a 2 to 1 ratio of water to lye, confused .com?

[@futureprimitivesoap]

Submit it without the discount then...

[@deenflower8454]

Hi! I am a new soaper . can anyonr explain me how to discount water? I mean i calvulate the recipes in the lye calculator. Should i use half the amount of water which the recipe says?

[@futureprimitivesoap]

You can cut the water in half, which is what i did here, or you can cut out a 1/4 if you don't feel comfortable. Just remember to use fragrances or essential oils that don't accelerate trace too much. Good luck x

[@deenflower8454]

@@futureprimitivesoap thank u so much for answering my query

[@AnoushBotanical]

Your soap is beautiful. ~ 50% is the only way to go yet larger recipes heat up faster as do florals... Yes, 15# oils can = hard cheese in no time. Guess we should do a video of the chaos... ; ) ~ Noticing your 5m of fo for your batch and wondering if UK fo% are different than US. Do you know?

[@shelliestanberry4266]

Great! Makes me want to do a huge water discount on a fragrance I know soda ashes horribly.

[@titepollyndouglas946]

Where can I get this mould and cutter, please?

[@bakerinthehouse5346]

Tite Pollyndouglas Etsy.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

The links are in the description!

[@gwen525600]

So when you do a 50% discount do you keep the same amount of lye called for in the recipe & cut the water in 1/2? I saw this video some time ago and I keep coming back to it because it's really crazy that it works so well! lol I want to try this method but I want to know exactly what to do so I get great results. Thanks :0)

[@futureprimitivesoap]

That's it yes! Xx

[@hilaallnaturalsoaps9628]

It was very interesting thx for sharing. Why do you make a test with such a big batch ? :) did you try CPOP ?

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+הילה סבונים טבעיים Hila All Natural Soaps I live life on the edge! Yes I tried CPOP.

[@hilaallnaturalsoaps9628]

LOL

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+הילה סבונים טבעיים Hila All Natural Soaps ❤❤

[@mapleflagg7744]

Wow!!! I was pulling for you all the way with this one. I just knew it would end up soap on a stick but I was amazed at how creamy and lovely and ash free it came out. You got me wanting to give it a go but with a one pound batch of course. LOL 😊

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+Maple Flagg haha! Me too. I thought here we go. Major eff up is coming! Lol x

[@atlantia]

When you say 50% discount do you mean you are using 19% water instead of the default 38%?

[@futureprimitivesoap]

No I'm using half (50%) of the water needed for my recipe as per soap calc default.

[@atlantia]

@@futureprimitivesoap On mine it always shows 38% as default but i often drop it down to 25% as i use a lot of TD

[@dorisignatow6161]

So when you mixed your lye you did a 1:1 ratio or was it lower than that?

[@futureprimitivesoap]

Doris Ignatow no this isn't a 1:1 ratio. This is just the water amount cut in half. X

[@monicacarroll4313]

Do you keep everything the same ? If you do 20% discount do you reduce the amount of water by 25%?

[@jessy2363]

I'm a little confused. is 50% water discount the equivalent of 50% water and 50% lye or water to lye ratio 1:1? Or am I completely wrong?

[@futureprimitivesoap]

50% water discount is the water cut in half.

[@jessy2363]

​@@futureprimitivesoap thanks, I understand 50% is half but what is the original amount based on? is it a ratio to the lye or a percentage of the total oil weight ? Sorry for my ignorance.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

Whatever soap calc gives you as a default for your recipe, half that water amount

[@stephaniemorris6742]

Did you wrap your soap or just leave it out to get harder on this 50% discount batch. I have made to batches so far and put something over it but they were way to soft.

[@susantroxeldewitt1664]

I love water discounting, no soda ash.

[@ayshajohns2487]

First of all thank you for your videos, you give tips all the time and for some of us novice soapmakers they are invaluable, can't imagine all the time and effort you put into setting up, filming and posting these videos. May be a daft question, but what does 50% discount look like on soapcalc? The water as % of oils part? I put 40, not 38 there for hp and have been experimenting with as low as 20 there, but find I end up with glue very quickly at that number. It is always automatically set to 38 when I open soapcalc, but I, like most want less cure time and no ash. Thanks in advance.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

Aysha Johns hi. I'm not sure because I print off my sheet from soap calc at 38% concentration (the default). Then I just half it. I'll mess with the numbers a bit and see if I can figure it out for you, but is there really any need?

[@xolveria]

a 1:1 ratio if i remmber is 1 part lye 1 part water

[@futureprimitivesoap]

I'm not doing a 1:1 ratio. I'm discounting the water by half. That doesn't mean the lye and water are the same weight...

[@julieignacio5415]

This is GREAT!!

[@anaphylaxis2548]

...and no glycerin rivers or weird shrinkage!

[@janonthemtn]

How long have you been making soap? Do you have any videos on tips for new soapers who want to sell soap?

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+Jan Levine since 2005. And no I'm sorry but I don't give advice for selling soap. I struggled along for about 6 years before finally being able to go full time. It's a lot of hard work and constant social media. Sorry I can't help in any specific way other than to work hard at it x

[@willowspiral7886]

Those peaks are gorgeous 😍

[@22mononoke]

Love your peaks :-)

[@deegunter107]

50%? Holy cow! You're a far braver maker than I ever will be! I'm in awe!

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+Dee Gunter well, you see how simple it was! Give it a go!

[@deegunter107]

Yeah sure. Though maybe not as high as 50%, I'll definitely give it a go at maybe 20% or 25%. I'm fed up with the ash!

[@BoojiePanda]

Could of sworn I just saw Lady Divine's (R.I.P.) face flash for a second in the video. Pretty sure I'm now scarred for life.

[@futureprimitivesoap]

+Sherry Bora haha! Xx

[@momomily9229]

Some face did flash! I'm glad I'm not losing my mind!

[@BoojiePanda]

It was Lady Devine. You may not be old enough to remember who that is. ;) (Glad I came back to reply, I forgot to Thumbs Up the first time!!)