Sodium Hydroxide can be switched to Potassium?

by Naoko
(UT)

Hi again. This is my question #2 for you...
I'd like to make shampoo more than bar soap because I'm having a hard time finding good shampoo that also does NOT tested on animals. So I wanna make it myself. I've found few recipes to make shampoo bars, but if possible, I'd like to have liquid soap. I'm sure Sodium and Potassium are different, therefore, amount will be different... But I am wondering if I can simply switch them and make liquid shampoo, not a bar soap shampoo..? Is it possible? Authors don't mention about it, maybe there's a reason or not?

Thank you for response for the last question and it was very quickly and I was very surprised! Thanks again for taking your time and sharing your knowledge.

Answer:
Hi Naoko,

Unfortunately it's not that simple to just switch out the sodium hydroxide for potassium hydroxide.

Liquid soap making involves a few steps that aren't present in bar soap making. The first step is very much the same as bar soap making...combining the ingredients and bringing them to trace. After that the process changes considerably.

Potassium hydroxide produces a soft soap...not a liquid soap...at least not at first. It's more of a soft paste. It needs to be cooked, solvents are added and then it's diluted into a liquid.

Catherine Failor's book "Making Natural Liquid Soaps" gives step-by-step instructions on how to make liquid soap, shampoos, bubble baths and more. You'll find this book a great resource with tons of recipes.

Good luck,

Cathy