Hi all,another new face...Im in Brisbane,and Im a soapmaker.Have been reading a LOT about bdg soap & Im wondering if anyone local would have any bdg to spare.Happy to swap for finished product! Something I've wanted to try for a while.Also if anyone's interested in making bdg soap would love to share ideas etc.

Lisa in Brizzy

Indeed! Compounded by the fact I have a sketchy idea of the BD process at best n I'd really have NO idea what it was I was actually getting Apparently the bdg has to be de-methanoled(very scientific term that),also need to know whether NaOH or KOH was used. With soapmaking NaOH makes bar soap,KOH liquid soap.What reasons do you guys use a different reactant? I know I know I should go do some research .....Do they have Biodiesel for Dummies???

Hello Gekko
If you take what we call glycerine it will be a mixture of soap, glycerine and methanol and also some water. If it is solid it was probably made with NaOH. If it is not solid it was probably made with KOH.
Yep, methanol content would be my concern.
The NaOH/KOH is a catalyst in our reaction not a reactant.

Lisa,

if you would like to drop me off some containers (open top paint tins or veggy oil tins work well as the hole in the top is the same size as the rest of the drum) I can happily fill them for you. I reguarly make about 30 litres of stiff by broduct each week. occasionally it stays runny and sometimes this is due the temperature of the day though. To get the methanol out of the soap is very simple. you can either leave it open to the air for a few weeks or simple boil it off. you just need to get the gloop above 60 degrees celsius and she boils off. the easy way to tell if it is boiled off completely is to light it with a match. stand back though and do it outside away from the house. when it is in full swing evaporating, a saucepan full of soap will throw a flame about 2 foot high and last for 20 mins or more. when the flame goes out, you have pretty much got rid of the methanol. I have found that the soap always goes hard after this.

You are welcome to have as much as you like. I live on the north side of brisbane not far from Northlakes. Send me a message you are interested.

__________________
Regards,

Cade.

2001 100 series Landcruiser
100% Bio, 120,000 Km and counting

Don't worry about the methanol content - when you heat the glycerol to make the soap, any residual meth will boil off. I use mine regularly to make hard soap and have no problems at all. I make my fuel utilising NaOh. Try this recipe: Making Glycerin Soap from Biodiesel By-Products | Permaculture & Alcohol Can Be A Gas

Just to clear up a few misconceptions.
Methanol and Glycerol are both alcohols and "like to be with each other", they are hard ot seperate.
Typically 30% or more of the byproduct layer is methanol. If sitting it in the sun for a few weeks would cause the methanol to evaporate that means the contents of your container would reduce by a third or more. I have never seen a reduction of content anywhere near that when sitting in the sun.

On another forum a fellow had some tests performed that showed when distilling the methanol the by-product layer was no longer considered a has-mat (Methanol reduced to less than 5%) when the pot temp was around 126 deg C and the methanol was not completly gone until 200- 260deg C .

I would be cautious if I were trying to make soap from byproduct for human use

Yeah removing the methanol is one thing Im concerned about,but a lot of people use bdg for soap,there's even a couple of businesses in the states selling it. Im still keen to try,if it doesn't work out then all Im down is a dollar or so.More out of curiosity than anything,but the whole idea of total usage,no waste,appeals as well.

I've been using my soap for years and I don't think I have any medical problems associated with it (other than a slight twitch in one eye and skin that glows in the dark, plus emphysema, he he ). Go ahead and make it; it is quite safe,

Many people smoke. No one would think that proves it's safety.

In the USA soap manufacture is specifically excluded from any FDA regulation and is not even required to list it's ingredients on the packet.

Would it surprise you to know that in the USA the skincare and cosmetics industry does not need to submit it’s products to any US governmental regulatory body to prove that they are safe before they put them in their skin care and anti aging products and cosmetics generally?
The skin care and cosmetic industry is unregulated and is expected to regulate itself. There is no requirement for the industry to prove the safety, let alone the efficacy, of their products.

Yes, I am aware that one of the Leaches on another biodiesel forum has apparently run into hard times flogging biodiesel products and has teamed up with a home soap manufacturer and has launched a hard sell campaign selling home made BDG soap and "Kits" to make BDG soap at home in time for christmas.

I do not even make soap from the waste product I produce, I surely would not use soap made from someone elses waste product that I had no idea what it had come from or how it had been produced.

I recommend you do some serious research before taking someone's word for it.

Lisa,

I quite understand any reservations and the concerns about the soource and contents of any biodiesel byproduct. I can supply you with at least 150-200 litres of the stuff made with KOH and with the methanol removed. If interested please let me know by PM.

Matt

I can show you a sample and you can have it for next to nothing, some assistance in containers to move it and moving them will be necessary. Otherwise its a waste product to me but I would love it if someone could make use of it. My biodiesel is next to perfect and the byproduct is goos as well. No rubbish but pure vegeoil and some chip bits.

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Biodiesel Bandit

Landcruiser 98 B100 (100,000km and still going)
Peugeot 306 xtdt B100
Peugeot 2004 2L 307 HDI Does not like B100