Biodiesel Review - June 2009 Newsletter

If you're like most Biodiesel producers, you probably have a lot of glycerin laying around....and, like most of us, you'd probably like to find a way to get rid of it all.

One way you can part with all that glycerin is by converting a portion of it into soap. In fact, one of our customers has successfully made over 800 bars of soap from the nasty black stuff and then gone a step further and reacted even more of the glycerin into liquid soap. In this article will dig into the nitty gritty of what it takes to get started turning your nasty black stuff into bars or jars of this incredible soap!

"This Soap Is Amazing!"
If you've never tried using soap made from Biodiesel glycerin, you're really missing out. The cleaning power it packs is nothing short of amazing. I've personally seen it take out some of the worst stains out of kids clothes that commercially bought soap detergents couldn't even touch. Plus, the moisturizing attributes of glycerin found in this soap are great for the skin. We've had several customers report back that after using soap made from Biodiesel glycerin their skin felt softer. In some cases people even have reported calluses just melting away after using the soap they've made.

We don't know if it's a miracle bar of wonder or just really great soap, but we can vouch for the fact that it works; and works really well! I personally have been using Biodiesel glycerin soap in the shower for well over a year now and absolutely love it! I also keep a bottle handy in the laundry room to put on the kids stained clothes and just last night I even used it as a hand cleaner after I worked on a neighbors car & got all greasy. I was just flat out amazed at how well it cleaned my hands.

So How Do You Make The Stuff?
Believe it or not, making Biodiesel glycerin based soap is pretty easy. If you can make Biodiesel, making soap will be a breeze! Much of the same processes are used and most people report that it comes very naturally.

The Basic Method:
This doesn't go into the exact measurements of how it's made (it varies based on the type of soap you're making), but we will give you a good idea of just how simple it can be to make this incredible soap.

1) Get a big pot & heat the glycerin up to boil off the methanol.
2) Dissolve some catalyst (NaOH or KOH) and water in a bowl
3) Add the catalyst/water solution to the heated glycerin while stirring
4) Continue to stir until the mixture gets thick (if making bars)

5) Pour the mixture into the molds and smooth it out
6) Shake the molds back and forth to allow it to settle.
7) Cover the molds and allow the soap to set up overnight

8) After it's set up, remove the soap from the mold and cut it into bars
9) Allow them to cure (2-3 weeks)
10) Package them up & prepare for use
It's that easy! You'll be amazed how well it works!

How Can It Be Used?
Once the soap is made, be prepared to make A LOT MORE of it. Everyone I've ever spoken with reports that once they give a few bars out, the folks that they gave it to come back & want more and more of it. You see, this soap can be used for just about anything you can think of.

In liquid form, it makes an excellent moisturizing hand cleaner. Thicken it up a little and it makes a great shower gel and shampoo (seriously, I use it all the time for shampoo!). Get a cheese grater out & grate off a little into the washing machine and be prepared for some of the cleanest clothes you've ever seen. Use it on your hands, arms, & legs to avoid dry, flaky skin (the glycerin in the soap is a natural moisturizer). Add a cap full to a bucket of water and you have floor cleaner. It can also be used in the sink to clean the dishes too. People report back with new uses for the soap they've made all the time. Check out pictures of peoples soap here.

"My wife won't ever TOUCH that stuff! It looks gross!"
One of the biggest reasons people never get around to making soap from glycerin is because they believe that you can't change the color or the smell of the soap. This is actually incorrect. Available on the market today are several soap making fragrances that can be added to give the soap practically any scent you'd like. The color can also be changed to your liking as well through dyes and bleaching agents.

Here's just a few examples of soap of different colors.

From pink to yellow to sparkly soap, I've seen it made into just about every color imaginable and scented in every scent under the sun (my favorite scent is the frankincense and myrrh bars we stock at Christmas time).

How Can I Learn More?
If you'd like to learn more about how to make soap, you're in luck! One of the most prominent Biodiesel glycerin soap makers decided a couple years ago to write up a guide on how to make soap from Biodiesel glycerin and offer it to the world. We partnered up with him and now have this guide available on our site to purchase.

If you'd like to learn more about this guide, click here

The guide has become so successful that it has now been sold into every state in the US, several international countries, and has even been integrated into some high school and university curriculum. Biodieselers from all over the world have gotten into the soap making fun and have been reporting back on a regular basis with pictures and success stories of the soap they've made.

Once you've learned the basics, we also have a section on a popular Biodiesel forum where people have been sharing their variations on the basic recipe. Everything from green liquid hand soap to sparkly colored bars to tips & tricks on how to get your soap to do just about anything under the sun are discussed on a regular basis.
Click here to see the discussion forum on soap recipes & more!

Can I Sell The Stuff?

Once people have mastered the art of making the soap, the obvious question is can it be sold. The answer is whole-heartedly YES! There are several people (including us) that sell Biodiesel glycerin soap on a regular basis.

All you need to do is figure out a way to package the soap so that it looks nice and appealing and then come up with a way to find a market for it. Some of our customers have created websites where they sell their soap

Others have taken their soaps to craft fairs or farmers markets and have had great success. Whether you sell it to your friends & neighbors, market it at fairs & bazaar's or sell it on the web, once people get a hold of some, they always seem to come back for more.

For those that would like to learn from others on how to package, market, and sell the soap, the author of the Soap Making Guide has also put together a really cool guide on how to to get started.

The guide includes tips & tricks on how to package, label, and market your soap that you've made. It even includes special information on USDA regulations for soap sold in the United States. Several of our customers have started to use the tips & tricks learned from this guide and have successfully been selling their soap on a regular basis.

Click here to read more information on the soap marketing guide

Whether you make the soap for yourself or end up selling it to others to share in the fun, we can't think of a better way to responsibly and effectively get rid of the glycerin by-product from the Biodiesel making process. If you're interested in making soap, there are people always available on the discussion forums ready to help you and if you get the guides, the author is great at offering help & support via email.

If you'd like to just try a bar of this great soap to see what all the fuss is all about, we have a full line of various bars in different scents that you can purchase right from our website and give it a try. We're pretty sure that once you try it you'll want more and will be just as hooked on the stuff as we are. Plus, it'll help you get rid of that nasty barrel (or barrels) of glycerin you have laying around and hey, it may even earn you bonus points with those around you that "tolerate" your Biodiesel production hobby. We can't think of a better way to get rid of glycerin! Give it a try! You'll be squeaky clean sooner than you think!