Thickening Liquid Soap with Hydroxyethel Cellulose (HEC) - Method 2

I had previously written about using Hydroxyethel Cellulose or HEC to consistently and successfully thicken my liquid soap after your soap was already diluted.  You can see that post here.  This tutorial will show you how to thicken your liquid soap with HEC at the same time you dilute and neutralize your soap.  This method can be a bit trickier as you need to know exactly what your dilution ratio is and how much citric acid or borax you will need to neutralize or lower the ph of your soap.  I only use this method on formulations in which I do not need to be neutralized or adjusted for pH.  Any formulations that need to be adjusted are diluted first, neutralized or adjusted for Ph, then thickened via Method 1.

You can get HEC at both Lotioncrafters and The Herbarie.  I use the one from the Herbarie so I cannot verify that these instructions will work with the Lotioncrafters HEC.

The most important thing to keep in mind when using this product is that the "gelling" process is accelerated by both heat and Ph of the liquid.  If it is added to warm or hot liquid or as it heats up, it will start to gel very quickly and not give you enough time to get it fully incorporated into your soap. The higher the Ph of the liquid, the faster the gelling process will be too. The last thing you want is your HEC to be in a gelled state before you add it to your soap paste - it is much easier to use when your solution of HEC/glycerin/water is in a fluid liquid state.

Liquid Soapmaking - the 50/50 Method with Water and Glycerin

I have successfully mastered liquid soapmaking using both the water method and the glycerin method. Each method has its pros and cons - each relating to time, cost and mess.  I want a liquid soapmaking process that is inexpensive, quick and easy with little mess.

The water method is cheap and distilled water is readily available at your local grocery or drug store. Glycerin is more expensive and not as easy to come by plus you need to take into account shipping charges if those are incurred for online or phone ordering from any of the various suppliers of soap making ingredients.  Point Water.

The water method can be a very long and drawn out process.  From the time it takes to get your soap to trace to the extended cook times plus having to watch and stir every 30 minutes.  If anyone has made a 100% olive oil liquid soap from scratch, you know how looooong it takes for that formulation to trace and not separate out.  The glycerin method is much quicker in that your soap will come to trace within 15 minutes or so.  Just like with the water method, some formulations trace quicker than others.  Point Glycerin.

I find that diluting paste created from the glycerin method is much quicker than diluting paste created from the water method.  Another time saving feature.  Point Glycerin.

Thickening liquid soap with Hydroxyethel Cellulose (HEC) - Method 1

Thickening liquid soap is a challenge faced by many soapmakers.  Most liquid soaps will be water thin after fully diluted.  Still a high quality soap, but not always as easy to use.  Foamer bottles are great for hand soap, face soap - any soap that will sit next to a sink.  When formulating body washes/gels and shampoos, thin soap can be more difficult to use and wasteful as the soap will run down one's hand and arm.  Some formulations (100% olive oil soaps) can thickened with a simple 20% salt solution that works well.  Other formulations have proven more challenging in finding a consistent thickening product or method.  Some ingredients/products I have seen mentioned with varying results are Borax, Glycerin and Crothix.  I don't use Borax, have never found glycerin to thicken any of my soaps and have never tried Crothix.

The product that I have found to work extremely well and consistently for every soap formulation is Hydroxyethel Cellulose or HEC.  This product is sold by both Lotioncrafters and The Herbarie.  I use the one from the Herbarie so I cannot verify that these instructions will work with the Lotioncrafters HEC.

The most important thing to keep in mind when using this product is that the "gelling" process is accelerated by both heat and Ph of the liquid.  If it is added to warm or hot liquid or as it heats up, it will start to gel very quickly and not give you enough time to get it fully incorporated into your soap.  The last thing you want is your HEC to be in a gelled state before you add it to your liquid soap - it is much easier to use when your solution of HEC/glycerin/water is in a liquid state.

What you will need: