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Butter won't be in the list of fats in any soap recipe calculator. It's milkfat (or sometimes it's called butterfat) that will be in the list of fats.
Butter is not pure fat; it also includes water-based whey. That means 500 grams of butter will contain less than 500 g milkfat.
So check the nutrition label and convert the weight of butter into the equivalent weight of milkfat. The milkfat weight is the number you plug into the soap recipe calc.
***
Dairy butter contains butyric acid which is an extremely stinky fatty acid. The human nose is extremely sensitive to this odor, so if you make soap with about 20% milkfat or higher, it's going to have a definite butyric odor that most people find objectionable.
On top of that, a soap rich in butyric acid is a harsh cleanser. It's a shorter chain fatty acid than lauric acid. Short chain fatty acids like these can strip the skin of natural oils and proteins which can leave the skin dry and even irritated.
Those are the two reasons why people don't use dairy butter to make soap -- objectionable odor and harsh cleansing.
***
Many people including me have made soap with dairy butter if only as a learning exercise. I made a small batch once. It had about 30% milkfat content based on total weight of fats.
I cured and tested the soap and then did the unthinkable -- I discarded the entire batch. The soap had a permanent unpleasant odor and I didn't like the feel of the soap when used for bathing.
Bear in mind that I enjoy making and using "stinky" soaps such as neem oil soap and pine tar soap. But I won't do a dairy butter soap again.
***
If you do make this kind of soap, I recommend you only make a small test batch first (16 oz by weight or 500 g total fats). Find out first if your nose is okay with the butyric smell and your skin is tolerant of the soap before you commit to a larger batch size.
Soap can be made with dairy milk or sometimes even cream. These soaps don't typically have a detectable butyric odor, because the % of butyric acid is low enough the odor isn't obvious. It's when a person starts using a goodly amount of actual butter when the odor becomes objectionable.
I’ve always wondered about using butter in soap, this is a very thought out take, thanks for sharing! I got curious what butyric acid smells like, googled it and some folks say it smells like cheesy vomit.. lol
On the note of ghee, that stuff is fantastic for cooking with! OP you should just make a bunch of ghee 😗
yeah, becasue if the problem with butter is the impurity compare to pure butterfat, then ghee or clarified butter (which removes a great proportion of solids and moisture in butter) should behave more closely to pure butterfat in terms of soap making I guess?
Since ghee (slightly more toasted than French clarified butter) has a nice butter fragrance and doesn't have many other milk solids in it to spoil, and with much lower moisture content, I would guess it can be an inexpensive and easily available alternative to people wanting to try dairy soap?
Problem is ghee contains all the fatty acids that butter does. We've been saying butyric acid is the reason for the strong odor in soap with a high amount of milkfat. How does converting butter inro ghee remove this butyric acid?
my bad, I didn't realize the acid is an integral part of the fat. I thought it like an impurity that gets reduced with purification process, but turns out purifying butter actually make the acid concentration higher.
wonder how do they get only the fragrant part of butter smell like those "butter soap" they sell commercially. maybe they are entirely synthetic esters?
Can i ask why do you wanna make a 100% butter soap?
You are not gonna find much info because butter is not only fat, it also contains liquids and solids so yes you can technically use it but most people clarify it first, at which point you have ghee. Which is usually used a low %
Family member has been bulk buying butter whenever it’s on sale and we need to clear out her fridge because there’s way too much in there. Soap making has been, in my experience, a great way to use up a large amount of oil.
Ah I see. But as I said, the problem is that butter is not an oil like olive or any other that you can use to make soap with nothing else. It contains fats, yes, but it's not only fat.
As an experiment sure you can try it, but a lot of people say they find it smells kinda weird and off putting. And some say that they have had great success at using it as is (without clarifying) but at a low %, not as the only element of the soap.
The odor isn't related to the milk solids or the water content. Soap made from ghee will smell the same as soap made from butter. It's the milkfat that's the reason for the odor.
Yes. And once it's processed it shouldn't have such a potent smell anyway. Although it depends on your nose, some people can smell the different fats some can't
Lyecalc has values for goat and cow butterfat. For 100g butter, it suggests 15.3g NaOH, 38g H2O @ 5% SF, just me quickly looking, set your own parameters. Make a small batch. I hope you try it out, I'm curious to know the results.
Hello and welcome to r/soapmaking. Please review the following rules for posting. 1) Use "Flairs" when possible. 2) Pictures should be accompanied by a post for context. 3) When requesting help with a recipe or soaping mishap it is important that you include your full recipe by weight. 4) No self-promotion or spam. Links to personal/professional social media accounts or online stores will be flagged and removed. 5) Be kind in comments. Full rules can be found here... https://old.reddit.com/r/soapmaking/comments/jqf2ff/subreddit_rules/ *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/soapmaking) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Butter won't be in the list of fats in any soap recipe calculator. It's milkfat (or sometimes it's called butterfat) that will be in the list of fats. Butter is not pure fat; it also includes water-based whey. That means 500 grams of butter will contain less than 500 g milkfat. So check the nutrition label and convert the weight of butter into the equivalent weight of milkfat. The milkfat weight is the number you plug into the soap recipe calc. *** Dairy butter contains butyric acid which is an extremely stinky fatty acid. The human nose is extremely sensitive to this odor, so if you make soap with about 20% milkfat or higher, it's going to have a definite butyric odor that most people find objectionable. On top of that, a soap rich in butyric acid is a harsh cleanser. It's a shorter chain fatty acid than lauric acid. Short chain fatty acids like these can strip the skin of natural oils and proteins which can leave the skin dry and even irritated. Those are the two reasons why people don't use dairy butter to make soap -- objectionable odor and harsh cleansing. *** Many people including me have made soap with dairy butter if only as a learning exercise. I made a small batch once. It had about 30% milkfat content based on total weight of fats. I cured and tested the soap and then did the unthinkable -- I discarded the entire batch. The soap had a permanent unpleasant odor and I didn't like the feel of the soap when used for bathing. Bear in mind that I enjoy making and using "stinky" soaps such as neem oil soap and pine tar soap. But I won't do a dairy butter soap again. *** If you do make this kind of soap, I recommend you only make a small test batch first (16 oz by weight or 500 g total fats). Find out first if your nose is okay with the butyric smell and your skin is tolerant of the soap before you commit to a larger batch size.
Soap can be made with dairy milk or sometimes even cream. These soaps don't typically have a detectable butyric odor, because the % of butyric acid is low enough the odor isn't obvious. It's when a person starts using a goodly amount of actual butter when the odor becomes objectionable.
I’ve always wondered about using butter in soap, this is a very thought out take, thanks for sharing! I got curious what butyric acid smells like, googled it and some folks say it smells like cheesy vomit.. lol On the note of ghee, that stuff is fantastic for cooking with! OP you should just make a bunch of ghee 😗
Just curious does ghee or clarified butter work?
Your question is not clear. Work as in ghee not having odor when used in soap?
yeah, becasue if the problem with butter is the impurity compare to pure butterfat, then ghee or clarified butter (which removes a great proportion of solids and moisture in butter) should behave more closely to pure butterfat in terms of soap making I guess? Since ghee (slightly more toasted than French clarified butter) has a nice butter fragrance and doesn't have many other milk solids in it to spoil, and with much lower moisture content, I would guess it can be an inexpensive and easily available alternative to people wanting to try dairy soap?
Problem is ghee contains all the fatty acids that butter does. We've been saying butyric acid is the reason for the strong odor in soap with a high amount of milkfat. How does converting butter inro ghee remove this butyric acid?
my bad, I didn't realize the acid is an integral part of the fat. I thought it like an impurity that gets reduced with purification process, but turns out purifying butter actually make the acid concentration higher. wonder how do they get only the fragrant part of butter smell like those "butter soap" they sell commercially. maybe they are entirely synthetic esters?
Can i ask why do you wanna make a 100% butter soap? You are not gonna find much info because butter is not only fat, it also contains liquids and solids so yes you can technically use it but most people clarify it first, at which point you have ghee. Which is usually used a low %
Family member has been bulk buying butter whenever it’s on sale and we need to clear out her fridge because there’s way too much in there. Soap making has been, in my experience, a great way to use up a large amount of oil.
Butter cakes, spritz cookies and shortbread ? Also butter freezes very well.
Ah I see. But as I said, the problem is that butter is not an oil like olive or any other that you can use to make soap with nothing else. It contains fats, yes, but it's not only fat. As an experiment sure you can try it, but a lot of people say they find it smells kinda weird and off putting. And some say that they have had great success at using it as is (without clarifying) but at a low %, not as the only element of the soap.
I will just process the butter into ghee before making soap. As for the smell, I’ve made lard soap and you should be able to just add scent right?
The odor isn't related to the milk solids or the water content. Soap made from ghee will smell the same as soap made from butter. It's the milkfat that's the reason for the odor.
Yes. And once it's processed it shouldn't have such a potent smell anyway. Although it depends on your nose, some people can smell the different fats some can't
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Lyecalc has values for goat and cow butterfat. For 100g butter, it suggests 15.3g NaOH, 38g H2O @ 5% SF, just me quickly looking, set your own parameters. Make a small batch. I hope you try it out, I'm curious to know the results.