Making Soap in a World Without - Part 1 of 5

LYE from hardwood ash

So the SHTF has happened.  The dust has settled, and you are moving on with life as you know it.  Items we used to take for granted suddenly become luxuries.  A BIG one will be soap.  Feeling clean, cleaning your clothes, washing dishes or just washing your hair will suddenly not be something you can just go do because your stockpile of soap will eventually run out.  You can trade and barter for it, but that will last only so long and will use valuable resources.  Learn to make your own.

To make lye you need 2 ingredients:  Water and wood ash.  This lye is combined with an oil to make soap.  When the lye and oil react, it is called saponification with the end product being soap.  

Where in the world do you get lye when there are no retail stores?  You make it.  (Lye is less commonly known as NaOH, sodium hydroxide or KOH, potassium hydroxide)

KOH Lye via cooking:

Ingredients:

Hardwood Ash

Water

2 Large pots that are NOT aluminum

Skimmer 

1. In a large pot, NOT aluminum as the lye will eat through it, begin heating water.
2. Place your hardwood ash in the pot and stir.  
3. Continue to heat the water to boiling.  As the solution boils, skim off the "stuff" at the top.  This is the lye.  Place your skimmings in another NOT aluminum pot.
4. When you have skimmed all the solution you can, heat the straight lye in the pot until it becomes dense enough to float an egg.

 You are now ready to make soap.  Tomorrow I will post a recipe of how to make hard bar soap using your lye and animal fat.

CAUTION:  

• Lye is VERY caustic.  
• DO NOT make this without a mask, especially if you have breathing issues.  
• DO NOT make this around small children.  
• DO NOT leave unattended.  
• DO NOT store within reach of small children.

The recipe above is just one of many ways to make lye for soap making.
Please feel to comment or ask questions.