What is Tallow?
You’ve heard of lard, the rendered fat of pig, but what about tallow? Tallow is derived from the fat of cows or sheep, and is rendered much the same way as lard.
Why Use Tallow for Soap Making?
We purchase grass-fed beef, and it’s important to us that nothing be wasted, including the fat. Tallow is wonderful for cooking, soap making, and skin care.
We have found that most homemade soaps made from vegetable oils melt away rather quickly. But soap made from tallow is hard and lasts a long time. That’s important when you’re trying to be frugal in this natural living journey.
Soap made with all coconut oil is also quite hard, but I prefer to use an ingredient that I’ve obtained locally when possible.
Tallow is a traditional ingredient for soap making. Homesteaders had all they needed right on the farm for making soap with tallow rendered from beef fat after slaughtering their cattle, and lye made from wood ash.
To think of purchasing ingredients for their soap making was not even considered. In addition, tallow soap cleans well, and is gentle on clothing.
What is Super-Fat?
In the process of making soap, it is important to use a lye calculator to be sure you are using a proper lye / fat (or oil) ratio. A chemical reaction occurs in the process and the final, cured product will be free of lye.
Super-fatting is the process of adding more fat than is required so that the soap is moisturizing.
For laundry, you want your soap to be 0% super-fat because you want your soap to get rid of fats and oils on your clothing. To use this soap on your skin would be drying.
A moisturizing skin soap, like this candy cane soap with all natural ingredients, could certainly be made with tallow by super-fatting by at least 5%.
Just put the percent you want your soap to be super-fatted, and the lye calculator will figure it all out for you.
How to Render Tallow
Here’s my post on rendering lard; tallow is rendered in the same manner.
Recipe for 0% Super-Fat Tallow Soap for Laundry
First, please read my post on the basics of soap making so that you can familiarize yourself with the equipment needed, the safety concerns, and the process.
At trace, swirls in the soap will stay in place.
Ingredients – by weight
- 14 ounces distilled water
- 5.64 ounces lye
- 40 ounces tallow, preferably from grass-fed cows.
Directions – be sure to read here first for more specific instructions.
- Have your mold ready before beginning.
- Carefully weigh all of your ingredients.
- Slowly add the lye to the water in a well ventilated area; continue to stir until dissolved. Cool to 120 degrees.
- Melt the tallow. Cool (or heat) to 120 degrees.
- Now very slowly drizzle the lye mixture into the tallow while stirring.
- Stir until the mixture comes to trace, and then pour into your prepared mold.
- Allow your soap to set for several hours until it is firm to the touch. Remove from the mold, cut into bars, and allow to cure for 4 weeks. (If you cut the soap into 9 equal bars, they will each be just the right size to use in the laundry detergent recipe below).
Recipe for Laundry Detergent
Ingredients
- 1 bar of tallow soap from recipe above, grated
- 2 cups of washing soda (like this)
- essential oil (optional)
Directions
Combine the cured, grated tallow soap and the washing soda. Mix thoroughly and keep in an airtight, waterproof container.
Use 1 to 2 Tablespoons per load. Add the laundry powder to your washing machine first, and allow it to dissolve. Then add your dirty laundry.
Add a few drops of your favorite essential oil to each load, if desired.
Recommended Reading:
Simple Natural Soapmaking by Jan Berry.
DIY Bar Soap Gentle Enough for Babies
Thank you for visiting Learning And Yearning. May "the LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace." Num 6:24-26
kirsten says
Susan, at what point do I combine the tallow with the lye & water mixture? Do I melt the tallow in the lye & water or combine the two after the tallow is melted?
Susan Vinskofski says
Ah. I did skip a step, didn’t I? I edited the post, but at the point where both the lye mixture and the tallow are at 120 degrees, you very slowly drizzle the lye into the tallow while stirring. Sorry about that!
kirsten says
Thank you! That makes sense. Feel free to delete my comments if you wish. 😉
Adam says
Dear Susa,
This is the best article I have read on how to make bar soap to wash cloths by hand. I have one question. that’s you saud Cool to 120 degrees or heat to 120 degrees. How to measure the temperature. We have to insert thermometer inside the mexture?
Susan Vinskofski says
Yes, thermometers are an essential piece of soap making equipment. Please see my post https://learningandyearning.com/basic-soap-making/ to learn more about making soap.
heather says
Awesome post! I love making my own laundry soap! Thanks for linking up with From the Farm…this was chosen as one of this week’s favorites! Hope to see you again this week!
Susan Vinskofski says
Thanks, Heather!
Amy Soety says
I LIVE IN PA & AM TRYING TO HELP A FRIEND FIND GOAT FAT SO HE CAN MAKE LAUNDRY SOAP. ANY HELP WOULD BE APPRECITED.
THANKS
AMY
Susan Vinskofski says
I wish I could help; I’m afraid I don’t know of a source.
Erin says
I was wondering if this type of soap is septic safe?
Susan Vinskofski says
Hi Erin, That’s a great question. Since I don’t have a septic system myself, I’ve never researched the question, so I’m afraid that I won’t be much help. The soap doesn’t have extra oils because it’s not super-fatted, but it also should not have lye left in it to damage the bacteria in your septic system.
kristie says
When I was rendering my tallow it got a bit burnt. The finished product is the color of French vanilla ice cream and has a toasted smell to it. Can it still be used for soap?
Susan Vinskofski says
Hi Kristie! Does the tallow still taste good? Do you still plan to use it for cooking? If so, I’m inclined to think that it is still good for soap making, but the soap will likely have that same smell.
Lisa says
Would it hurt to use this in place of fels naphtha in the other homemade recipes floating around? My recipe uses washing soda, borax, baking soda , oxi clean and fels naphtha. ( Although I wonder if the baking soda is even necessary)
Susan Vinskofski says
Hi Lisa, yes, you could definitely use the tallow soap instead of Fels Naphtha in your recipe. That’s just how I use it myself.
Emily says
Can this soap be used in HE washers? Since it’s not super fatted, I’m guessing there aren’t many suds, so it would be okay. Rather be safe than sorry, so I thought I’d ask to be sure! 🙂
Susan Vinskofski says
Hi Emily, since I don’t have a HE washer, I’ve never done the research, so I’m afraid that I really don’t know. It is low suds.
Marie says
This is indeed a low-sudsing soap, and can be used in HE washers. We have been using it successfully in our HE washer for about 6 months. Also, instead of fabric softener, we put white vinegar in the softener dispensing area, and this keeps all soap residue from building up. The inside of our washer (and our clothes, of course!) are squeaky clean.
Susan Vinskofski says
Thanks, Marie, for your helpful comment!
Marie says
Thank you for posting this recipe! I’ve been using it the past year for all our household laundry. Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda is no longer as easy to find as it was even a year ago. Walmart for one quit carrying it in the store. So now that I’m comfortable with the soap recipe and the process, and know that I’m going to be making it again and again, I buy it as “soda ash dense” from pool supply companies. This is sodium carbonate, the same thing as “super washing soda” —- (not to be confused with sodium bicarbonate, or baking soda). With shipping, this gets the cost per ounce down to about $.07
Susan Vinskofski says
What a great idea. We buy clay to use as cat litter at the automotive store, so why shouldn’t we get washing soda at the pool store. lol.
Mary Femrite says
is sheep tallow interchangeable with beef tallow? I was given a tub of sheep tallow and would like to use it to make some soap.
Susan Vinskofski says
Yes! You definitely can use tallow from sheep. Have fun!!!
Lisa says
Could lard also be used in place of tallow in this recipe? We butchered a hog a couple of months ago and got several gallons of lard!
Susan Vinskofski says
Lisa, lard may be used for soap making although I have not used it myself. I would run the recipe through a lye calculator and not just replace the tallow (or search for a recipe that uses lard). The amount of lye may be different. Thanks for stopping by.
Liz says
Its a shame that your ads are clickbait and tacky, makes me want to leave this site without reading the content.
Susan Vinskofski says
Thank you for your input Liz. I know that no one likes ads, but I put a lot of hours into blogging and would have to quit if I didn’t have an income from ads. I don’t know anyone who would continue going to work without a salary, do you?
Samantha says
Hello i have an interesting question to ask that I cannot seem to find the answer to. I have been trying to figure out the difference between a laundry bar of soap and a regular bar of soap (on a homemade side of things not a store bought side) i honestly don’t know much about soap making and hopefully one day i will be able to make my own. I handwash sone of my clothes and have found that using a bar of laundry soap works better than any liquid or powder. In discovering this i was wondering what the difference was between a laundry bar and reg bar was. And also what is everyone’s obsession with vegan soap does ot work better than animal fat or is it just because it is vegan? Sorry for the long comment. These questions are hard to find the answers. Thank you for your time
Samantha
Susan Vinskofski says
Hi Samantha! So, at it’s most basic level, all soaps are fat, lye and water. A chemical reaction occurs which turns these ingredients into soap. Most body soaps are super-fatted which means that extra fat is added to make the soap more pleasing to the skin. You would never do this with soap you want to use for laundry. Also, many oils and fats are used in body soap that nourish the skin. Again, unnecessary for laundry. So, basically, they are quite similar. Vegan soap is no better or worse than soap made with animal fat as far as effectiveness; it is just a vegan’s conviction that no animal ingredients should be used. Hope that helps.
Dakota says
Could someone explain what I did wrong? This is the first soap I’ve ever made.
I made a smaller version.
14 oz beef tallow
56g lye
151g water
I waited until the tallow was roughly 120°F and the lye/water mixture was roughly 130°F before I mixed them. The tallow became thick the moment I turned my immersion blender on. I blended it for maybe 10 seconds. Confused, I quickly spooned my mixture (in globs) into the mold. It’s currently hardening. Is this safe to use for laundry? Should I wear gloves to handle it, even after it’s cured? Should I melt it again in a double boiler?
Susan Vinskofski says
Hi Dakota, I generally mix my soap by hand for the first 10 – 15 minutes, rather than immediately using the immersion blender. The blender can sometimes work too quickly. But that does not mean that your soap is a failure. Yes, you can use it for laundry. Once it is cured, you will not need to use gloves to handle it.
Dakota says
Thanks for the response.
I cut the soap after letting it sit in the mold for 2 days. The edges are cream colored, while the top-center and middle are a bit darker. I think there might be a glycerin river in the one I cut. I’ll be getting some ph strips soon, just in case.
I’m wondering if the tallow I used was part of the problem. I was too nervous about asking people and bought a (possibly expensive) jar from Walmart. A brand called FatWorks. I did nothing extra to it. Just melted it in a microwave. I’ll just find a butcher next time.
Olasz says
Just wanted to suggest rethinking moisturising properties of soaps – soap doesn’t moisturise pre se, it is just moisturising as a consequence of rebuilding the epidermal sebum layer and creating a barrier on the skin that doesn’t allow said moisture to escape 🙂
This said – I do read your entries religiously and thank you for haring knowledge 🙂
Susan Vinskofski says
Thank you for your helpful input, Olasz!
Matt says
Is there an alternative to the laundry soda? I want to make everything from local sources including the lye with wood ash, so that I don’t have to buy anything from the store.
Thanks!
Susan Vinskofski says
I’m sorry, Matt, I don’t personally know of an alternative but I definitely commend you for your can do attitude!
DavetteB says
I’ve heard you can make washing soda from baking soda by baking it in the oven, but I’ve never tried it (you can google it). As for making lye from ashes, it can be done, but since it isn’t standardized you’d have to superfat to make sure you don’t have a harsh bar and since it can’t be calculated, you risk having gloppy soap (still useable for hands but too superfatted to use for laundry). HTH
Susan Vinskofski says
Thank you for your input!!!
Andrea says
Good day Susan
This is my first time making soap.
So grateful for your site and information.
I am not sure how much a bar of soap would be. I didn’t cut it into 9 parts and I don’t know if we had the same size mold. Would you know how much a bar would amout to once it was grated?
Thank you for your time
Andrea
Susan Vinskofski says
Hi Andrea, that’s a great question but I’m afraid I’ve never measured. Using an exact amount isn’t necessary, though, so I would just go ahead and use what you think is the size of a normal bar of soap. I hope that helps!
Andrea says
Okay. Will do. Thank you!
Randy says
Great tutorial!
Julie says
Hi! I was so excited to use ONLY tallow and lye to make a reliable laundry soap when you wrote ‘To think of purchasing ingredients for their soap making was not even considered.’ But then you included washing soda in your recipe. I cannot use any powders as we have a septic tank…
I have been making liquid laundry soap that works WONDERFULLY out of just potassium hydroxide, coconut oil and canola oil. We’ve used it for everything, including in our washing machine, for many years without issue. Every time we try a regular store bought soap, we realize how much better our own soap works! Though it is labor intensive, and I’ve been wanting to eliminate the canola oil…
Have you ever used just your tallow bars without the washing soda? I do appreciate your recipe at zero superfat since my lye calculator defaults to 1%.
Eva says
I am interested in trying your tallow soap for laundry.
Is it possible to cut the recipe in half?
I would like to try small amounts first.
Thank you in advance,
Eva
Susan Vinskofski says
Yes! It is certainly ok to cut the recipe in half.
Eva says
Thank you!