SoapMaker 2.x Support

(Last updated January, 2010)

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Installation, Setup and Operation	Installing, purchasing, registering and upgrading SoapMaker; Setting up your ingredients database
Recipes	Recipe classes and types, units of measurement, resizing, costing, organizing, ingredients
Inventory Management	Recording costs, initial setup, exporting data
Error Messages	Error messages, what they mean and what to do about it
Known Problems	Description of known problems and how to work around them

Known Problems

If you have the Windows Vista operating system, it does not support the WinHelp format for SoapMaker's built-in Help document. Instead you should download the latest User's Manual which supersedes the built-in Help.
When selecting ingredients in a recipe, there is a keyboard shortcut which allows you to type one or two initial characters of an ingredient name, and then use the arrow keys to scroll down to the desired name. On some systems, however, this shortcut does not work for all rows in a recipe form. We believe this is a Visual Basic limitation based on the amount of memory available - the more recipes you have open, the less rows will be able to use the shortcut.
If you have McAfee virus checker installed, it could disable the Microsoft Script Engine and prevent SoapMaker from working. Click here for More information...
When making a batch causes the quantity of an ingredient in stock to become slightly negative, an error may occur when subsequently attempting to print My Shelf.

To correct this, check your Shelf for quantities that are negative and have lots of decimal points expressed in exponential notation (e.g. -1.234567E-02). If you find one like that, double-click it to open the Ingredients Dialog, and then Audit the quantity, setting it to zero.
When you set an ingredient's cost to zero after previously recording a non-zero cost, recipes using that ingredient will still show the previous cost. To work around this problem, enter a new purchase price of $0.00001 for some quantity. This will record a negligible unit cost so that recipes will show zero cost for the ingredient.
When you first select the Pre-mixed Lye option in a recipe, it will sometimes default to a ratio of 1/1 (with a slash instead of a colon) and the calculations of lye and water will not change as they should. If this happens, just retype the ratio as 1:1 (with a colon instead of a slash). Or use a different ratio if you prefer. The lye and water calculations should change when you switch between Pre-mixed and Dry lye options.
Saving a recipe which has a very long name may cause a run-time error. If you experience this, try using a shorter name for the recipe.
Re-sizing a recipe may intoduce errors if some ingredient weights are entered as small fractional amounts (e.g. 0.06 lb instead of 1 oz). This is caused by rounding errors when SoapMaker tries to do the weight to volume conversions and back again in order to fit the mold. To avoid this problem, enter your small quantites in ounces, instead of fractions of pounds.

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Installation and setup

Q: The program came with ingredients I use, but the costs are wrong.How can I correct them?

A: If Inventory Management is not turned on, all you have to do is input your own purchase cost and quantity, and SoapMaker will re-calculate your unit cost (replacing what was already there).

If IM is turned on, then there are a couple of additional steps - you have to zero the initial quantity in stock, then input your cost and purchase quantity so your unit cost is calculated correctly, then change the amount in stock to match what you have on hand. This is explained in the Help file under "Your Inventory - Initial Setup".

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Q: What is the difference between SoapMaker Lite and Professional versions?

A: The Lite version of SoapMaker has all the recipe features (including ingredient costs), but the inventory management features are disabled. The Lite version provides an affordable full-featured recipe tool for hobbyists or others who don't want to be bothered with tracking all their ingredients and every batch they make.

You can see an overview of the features available with SoapMaker 3 Lite and Professional versions on the Features page.

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Q: How do I upgrade from SoapMaker Lite to Professional version?

A: You can purchase an upgrade to SoapMaker 3 here...

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Q: How do I delete ingredients I don't want?

A: You can delete any or all of the additive ingredients. Just choose "Additives" under the Ingredients menu, select the one you don't want, and click the Delete button.

The base oils provided with SoapMaker cannot be deleted. We chose this approach to avoid a situation where someone had deleted an oil, and then decided later she'd like to try it, only to find she no longer had all the properties needed. If you find it awkward when inputting oils because of the long list, you could try using the keyboard shortcuts. Just open the Help Index and type "shortcuts" to find out more.

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Q: I have a lot of additives - is there any way I can categorize them in the ingredients list?

A: You can organize the additives list by prefixing the name of each additive with its type - for example: FO-Lilac, EO-Lavender, COL-Blue. Since the list is sorted alphabetically, all the "FOs" will be together, etc.

When entering additives into recipes, you can also speed up the process by using keyboard shortcuts. To find out how, open the Help Index and type "shortcuts".

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Q: I have two computers; can I install SoapMaker on both of them?

A: If you run SoapMaker on separate computers, the database will always be inconsistent unless you continually copy the database files between computers. For example, you may have recipes on one computer but your ingredients and costs on the other.

If you really want to do this, you'll need a second serial number to register SoapMaker on the other computer. You can request this using the same form as if you had replaced or repaired your computer. Click here for More information...

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Q: I downloaded your SoapMaker software and now I can't find it on my computer...

A: The SoapMaker installer program you downloaded is called SMinstaller*.*.exe. When you downloaded it, there should have been a dialog showing the destination folder, and giving you a chance to change it if you wanted. It's probably either on the Desktop, or in the Downloads folder, depending on how your browser preference is set. Try using the Search or Find tool in your Start menu to look for SMinstaller*.*.exe.

If you still can't find it, perhaps the download did not complete successfully. You can try again.

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Q: How do I uninstall SoapMaker?

A: If you have version 2.5 or later, just go to your Start menu and select Programs/SoapMaker/Uninstall SoapMaker. For earlier versions, use the Control Panel "Add/Remove Programs" to remove SoapMaker. You can then delete the folder C:\Program Files\SoapMaker.

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Q: I've had system problems and now I need to re-install SoapMaker. What should I do?

A: To re-install SoapMaker 2, you must still have a copy of the SoapMaker installer (SMinstaller*.*.exe). If you no longer have the installer, you can purchase SoapMaker 3 at the special upgrade prices...

If your hard drive has been replaced or reformatted, and you have a backup copy of the SoapMaker 2 installer, then after installing it, you will need to re-register your SoapMaker 2. Click here for more information...

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Q: My Add/Remove Programs control panel shows two SoapMaker programs. Should I remove one?

A: If you installed a new version of SoapMaker without first uninstalling or removing an older version, Windows may become confused and show two programs even though only one exists. If you attempt to remove the old "phantom" version, it may uninstall your only copy of SoapMaker.

We suggest you leave it as is. If you really want to clean up your system, then make sure you backup your database and be prepared to reinstall SoapMaker.

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Q: My computer was replaced or repaired and now my SoapMaker serial number is invalid. Why?

A: If you have a new computer, or your hard drive has been replaced or reformatted, we will need to give you a new serial number because the Personal ID which identifies your personal computer has changed. Click here for More information...

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Q: How do I backup and restore my database of recipes and ingredients?

A: Your database of recipes, ingredient costs and inventory could be lost forever if you experience a computer failure! To guard against this, you should make a regular backup copy of your database.

Creating a Backup copy
To create a database backup copy, just choose Backup data... under the Soapmaker File menu, and select the destination for the backup file.

Ideally, your backup copy should be on separate media from your main hard drive. For example:

a CD burner, ZIP drive, external hard drive
a flash memory card (e.g. in a digital camera or MP3 player)
a floppy disc can be used, but you will need a compression utility such as WinZip, to fit the database file onto a floppy.
you can attach the database file to an email and send it to a friend for safe-keeping.

NOTE: In order to backup to a CD, you must have a CD drive capable of writing, and a CD-R or CD-RW disc which has been correctly formatted. Depending on the type of software associated with your CD drive, and the formatting options used, you may not be able to backup to CD directly from within the SoapMaker program. Instead, you can backup to your hard drive (e.g. on the desktop), and then drag the database icon into the CD-drive window, or use a CD-writing utility.

Restoring your database from a backup copy
If your database has become corrupted, you can replace it with your latest backup copy. Just choose "Restore Data..." under the SoapMaker File menu, and select the location and filename of the backup database copy.

If SoapMaker is unable to open the backup file from a CD or other external media, then try copying the file to your desktop first, and then Restore it from there.

What if I have replaced or repaired my computer?
If you can no longer run SoapMaker on your old computer, it may be possible for a technician to recover your database file.
The path to this file is C:\Program Files\SoapMaker\Soapdata.mdb.
(If you are running Windows Vista, please see this... where is my database?)
If you can get a copy onto your new system, you can then use the Restore Data command in SoapMaker to recover it.

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Q: How do I change the currency for ingredient costs?

A: The currency you use in SoapMaker can be anything you want as long as it is decimal based. The $ sign just indicates that the number is a cost. The ingredient costs that came with the program are only examples which you can replace with your own ingredient costs.

You can change the currency symbol by selecting the International (INTL) tab in Preferences.

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Q: Can I run SoapMaker on my Mac?

A: SoapMaker requires Microsoft Windows, but you can run Windows on your Mac. For more information see this:
Info for Mac and Linux users...

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Q: Why can't I open the Help document?

A: If you have the Windows Vista operating system, it does not support the WinHelp format for SoapMaker's built-in Help document. Instead you should download the HTML version of the User's Manual available here... which supersedes the built-in Help.

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Q: Where is my database?
All my recipes are gone after using SoapMaker on my Windows Vista system for a while!

A: If you have User Account Control turned on (the defult setting) in Windows Vista, then the first time you use SoapMaker, Windows creates a copy of your database file in a special Compatibility Files folder. SoapMaker then uses this copy to store all your recipes, etc.

If you subsequently turn off the Windows User Account Control feature, SoapMaker will revert to using the original database file stored in the same folder as the SoapMaker program.

To recover from this situation, either:

turn User Account Control on again, OR
move the database copy from the special folder into the main SoapMaker folder as follows:
1. Navigate to the SoapMaker program folder...
  Click: Computer / Local disk (C:) / Program Files / SoapMaker
2. On the taskbar near the top of the window, if you see a Compatibility Files button, this indicates there is a hidden file related to this folder. Click the button - you should now see a window containing your database file Soapdata.mdb.
3. Open a second explorer window and navigate to the SoapMaker program folder as in step 1.
4. Drag the Soapdata.mdb file from the first window (compatibility files) into the second window (main SoapMaker folder) and confirm replacement.

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Q: How do I know my registration number, and what version of SoapMaker I have?

A: Open SoapMaker, and choose About SoapMaker under the Help menu. You should see the following information:

SoapMaker Pro (or Lite) ver. XX, Data ver. YY
Your Personal ID number (identifies your computer)
Your User Name
Your registration Serial Number

If you are upgrading to SoapMaker 3, and your SoapMaker 2 Data version is earlier than 3.2, you will not be able to import your data into the new program unless you download and run the free database patcher available here...

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Q: I've owned SoapMaker for some time, but it seems to have forgotten it's registration and says my free trial is over.

A: Sometimes the old version of SoapMaker would forget its registration. If you have saved your serial number, you can simply re-register it. If you do not know your serial number, you can re-register online here...

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Recipes

Q: Why do the recipe costs seem to be slightly off for ingredients I purchase by volume?

A: When converting between weights and volumes, SoapMaker considers the specific gravity (SG) of each ingredient. If you assume a SG of 1 (like water), you'll get the wrong answer for ingredients like oils that are less dense than water. You can use SoapMaker's handy conversion calculator to check your figures. There are instructions in the Help menu for determining the SG of an ingredient.

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Q: How can I make all new recipes use grams for input instead of ounces?

A: You can set the default units for both input amounts and calculated amounts in Preferences under the Edit menu.

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Q: My scale weighs in pounds and ounces, but my recipes are just in ounces. Is there an easy way to convert?

A: You can set an open recipe to calculate weights in lbs and ounces - just choose "Change units" under the Recipe menu. You can set all recipes to open this way in "Preferences" under the Edit menu.

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Q: When I resize a recipe whose weights are in lbs and ounces, is there a way I can specify the new size in just ounces?

A: First change the recipe units to ounces (Change Units under the Recipe menu), then resize to the new total ounces. You can change the resized recipe units back to lbs~oz for weighing.

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Q: Can I use SoapMaker for lotion recipes or for melt and pour soap?

A: SoapMaker is intended to be used for all your recipes, including lotions or M&P soap. When you open a new recipe you can set it's type to "non-soap". The recipe form is different for non-soap recipes; there is no lye area, water is handled like any other ingredient, and percentages are calculated across the whole recipe, not just the base oils. (The "Qualities Graph" only applies to soap recipes, as it's based on the properties of various oils when saponified.)

If you have the Professional version of Soapmaker, you can "make a batch" of lotion or M&P soap just as you would with a regular soap recipe. Have a look at "recipe types" under the Help menu for more information.

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Q: I don't see goats milk in the oil list. How can I add it to a recipe?

A: Whole goats milk contains only about 4% fat, so even if you replace all the water in a recipe with goats milk, it will have a very small effect on the amount of lye. For this reason, we did not include goats milk in SoapMaker's list of base oils. For example, if you made a tallow recipe and replaced all the water with goats milk, it would require only 1.6% more lye.

You can include goats milk as an additive, and reduce the water amount accordingly. The goats milk can be used to super-fat, or you can reduce the lye discount by one or two percent if you prefer.

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Q: What do the graph numbers mean?

A: The Soap Quality numbers displayed on SoapMaker's Recipe Qualities Graph depend on the characteristics of the base oils which make up the recipe. The base oil characteristics, and the resulting soap qualities, include:

Hardness - the degree of hardness this oil will impart to soap
Fluffiness of lather - the ability to form lots of large bubbles
Stability of lather - the ability to maintain a long lasting lather in use
Moisturizing (Conditioning) - the degree to which the soap will prevent dryness and leave skin feeling soft

The Soap Quality numbers are intended only for comparing recipes with different base oil combinations, so they do not reflect lye discount (super-fatting) or additives, even though these may affect the resulting soap qualities somewhat.

Each base oil's soap-making characteristics arise from its unique composition of different fatty acids. The base oils are rated, for each property, according to the proportion of fatty acids which have that property. For example, the base oil which has the highest proportion of fatty acids contributing to hardness is given a hardness rating of 10. An oil with half that amount of those fatty acids will have a hardness rating of 5.

The rating numbers are derived from each fatty acid's molecular weight, carbon chain length, number of unsaturated double bonds, and iodine value. SoapMaker's proprietary algorithms have been verified by comparing the predicted qualities for many base oils with the actual subjective experience of dozens of soapmakers.

For more discussion about fatty acids, see this...

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Q: When I open an old recipe, the cost/sample displayed on the recipe form differs from that shown in My Recipes list. Why?

A: The cost/sample shown in My Recipes reflects the cost when each recipe was last saved. It's intended as a quick comparison between different recipes, but may become outdated as you change the price you pay for ingredients. Also, If you change your "sample size" in Preferences, then all previous recipes in the list will have out-of-date cost/sample since it was based on the old size. If this becomes a problem, you can update your favorite recipes' cost/sample simply by opening and re-saving each recipe. We recommend in the Help file that you choose a typical sample size in Preferences and then stick with it.

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Q: How can I size a recipe to use exactly 6 oz. of lye?

A: You can use the "Resize Recipe" command in SoapMaker to make a recipe use exactly 6 oz. of lye.
For example, if you have a recipe using 100 oz of base oils that requires 15 oz of lye, then you'll want to reduce your recipe to 40%. (6 divided by 15)
Choose Resize Recipe under the Recipe menu, and specify a new base oil total weight of 40 oz. (40% of 100).

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Q: What's the difference between recipe classes and recipe types?

A: Recipe classes are like "folders". You can create any class names you want to help you classify and organize your recipes into groups or categories. The classes provided with SoapMaker are just for illustration purposes; you can use them or replace them with something meaningful to you.

Recipe types determine the behaviour of the recipe form. There are 3 recipe types:

Solid soap (the default when you open a new recipe)
Liquid soap - the lye section uses potassium hydroxide instead of sodium hydroxide
Non-soap - the lye section is disabled, and the water amount is entered directly, rather than calculated. The weight measurements have greater precision. Use the "non-soap" type for lotions, salves, etc.

When you open a new recipe, you can select the desired type by choosing "Change type" under the Recipe menu.

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Q: I'd like to input my additives as a percentage of the base oils. Is there a way to do this?

A: After entering all your base oils into a recipe, resize the recipe so the total base oils weight is 100 oz (or 100 grams). Then if you want 2% fragrance (for example), add 2 oz (or 2 gr). When you've entered all your additives, resize the recipe again, this time to the total weight (or total base oils weight) you want.

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Q: How can I include my labor costs?

A: Define an "additive" called labor_hour or something similar, and input your hourly rate as the "Purchase Price" and a quantity of 1. Use the weightless "item" unit. Now you can include as many "items" of labor_hours as you want in a recipe to see the total cost.

If you have SoapMaker Professional, you can even track your total hours worked along with your inventory. Add a "Labor budget" to your database by using the Add Stock feature in the Ingredients dialog. Or if you just want the Labor for cost reasons, you can simply ignore the "low labor" warnings whenever you make a batch, and the Labor item in your inventory will go negative with no ill-effects.

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Q: The lye amount recommended by SoapMaker is slightly different from another calculator I've used. Which is right?

A: The quantity of lye recommended for a particular recipe is calculated from the Saponification (SAP) values of each base oil in the recipe as determined by industry research. However, the SAP values for different oils can vary slightly between different manufacturers and even between different batches from the same manufacturer. The SAP values used by SoapMaker are averages of the data from a number of sources. (The values used by other calculators probably are too.)

There is no way of knowing the exact SAP value for your particular oils except to actually measure them, and this is beyond the capability of home-based soap makers. So don't be concerned about minor discrepancies between different calculators - there is no absolute "bible" of SAP values. We recommend using a lye discount of at least 4% to ensure there is some margin for error.

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Q: I have many additives. How can I organize them by category for easy entry in recipes?

When entering additives into recipes, you can also speed up the process by using keyboard shortcuts. To find out how, open the Help Index and type "shortcuts".

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Q: I purchase lye in liquid form. Can SoapMaker handle this?

A: SoapMaker supports the use of pre-mixed lye solution. However, it assumes that you do your own pre-mixing of lye and water, so there is no "pre-mixed lye" category in the ingredients database. When you enter your lye purchases into the database, you will have to treat them as if you had purchased dry lye, as follows:

You'll need to know the lye/water ratio in your purchased lye solution
When you enter the purchased quantity and price in the Ingredients dialog, adjust the quantity to reflect only the lye portion. For example, if the mix ratio is 50/50, and you purchase 10 gallons for $60, then enter a quantity of 5 gallons and the price of $60. SoapMaker will record a unit cost of 60/5 = $12 per gallon of "dry lye", and the lye cost in your recipes will be correct.

For more information, see "lye, pre-mixed" in the SoapMaker Help index.

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Q: I use a base oil which is not in SoapMaker's database. How can I add it?

A: You can add a new oil yourself if you know the SAP value. In addition, you should know the specific gravity if you plan to use the weight-to-volume conversion capabilites of SoapMaker. (To learn how to measure specific gravity, open the HELP index and type "specific".)

The Qualities Graph will not be accurate for soap made with a new oil unless you enter the appropriate numbers based on your own experience. (SoapMaker 3 enables you to enter oil properties such as fatty acid proportions, and will then calculate the graph numbers for you.)

Note that suppliers often provide SAP values stated in grams of potassium hydroxide (KOH) per kilogram of oil, whereas SoapMaker makes use of SAP values stated in grams of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) per gram of oil. So if you want to customize SoapMaker by adding a new oil, you need to know whether the SAP value you have is for NaOH or KOH, and what units it's measured in. To add it to SoapMaker you may have to convert it to NaOH, and make sure the units are grams per gram. The conversion between the two methods is given by the formulA:

SAP for NaOH in grams/gram (as used in SoapMaker)	=	SAP for KOH in grams/Kg

		1402.5

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Q: If I enter a water discount in a recipe, what is it discounting from?

A: In soap recipes, SoapMaker calculates the recommended water at 2.33 x the lye amount. If you like your mixture a bit thicker than that, you can reduce the water amount by some percentage. For example, if you specify a water discount of 10%, then the water amount will be calculated as 90% x 2.33 = 2.1 x the lye amount. If you like a wetter mix, you can specify a negative "discount".

If you generally use the same discount in all your recipes, set your Preferences so that new recipes will open with that water discount by default.

Note that, if you are accustomed to calculators where you had to discount your water to allow for liquid additives, you no longer have to do that calculation. You can have SoapMaker adjust the water for you by checking the "discount water" box next to any additive ingredient. Also, note that SoapMaker uses the undiscounted lye amount to calculate water. This enables you to vary the lye discount in different recipes without being surprised with a mix that's wetter or drier than usual.

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Q: Can I enter my fragrances per pound of oil (PPO) and have SoapMaker calculate the amount?

A: After entering all your base oils into a recipe, resize the recipe so the total base oils weight is 1 pound (16 oz). Then if you want 1/2 oz PPO (for example), add 0.5 oz of fragrance. When you've entered all your additives, resize the recipe again, this time to the total weight (or total base oils weight) you want.

For a 50/50 blend of two fragrances, start with the recipe sized to 2 pounds of base oils instead of one.

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Q: Why does my recipe cost per bar go up when I increase the water discount?

A: As you discount the water amount in a recipe, the cost per unit weight increases because the proportion of water (the cheapest ingredient) is less.

Since the recipe with discounted water has a higher cost per unit weight, the cost per bar of a given weight (uncured) will be higher. You can compensate by reducing the bar size, since the bars will shrink less as they cure compared with a recipe using no water discount.

With Soapmaker Professional, whenever you make a batch, you have the opportunity to specify exactly the number of bars made, and the shrinkage factor during cure, to get an actual cost per bar.

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Q: I'm used to using a lye solution percentage to specify water amount. Can I do this with SoapMaker?

A: SoapMaker recommends a water amount based on a 2.33 to 1 water:lye ratio. This is equivalent to a 30% solution. You can specify a water discount to achieve any desired lye solution percentage, which is displayed on the recipe form. Keep in mind that working with a fixed lye solution percentage actually ignores a couple of neat features of SoapMaker...

The water recommendation is based on the un-discounted lye amount. This enables you to adjust the lye in different recipes without affecting the water amount.
SoapMaker provides the option to automatically reduce the water amount to allow for liquid additives in a recipe.

If you want a quick way to achieve a particular lye solution percentage, click the following link to see a handy table for helping you choose the equivalent water discount in SoapMaker...

Lye Solution Conversion Table

The Lye Solution Percentage is calculated using the formula:

S =	L	x 100	where S = the lye Solution and L and W represent the weights of Lye and Water.

	L + W

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Q: My supplier of oils provides SAP values which are very different from those in SoapMaker. Can you explain?

A: There is no universal standard in the way industry sources state saponification (SAP) values. However, it is fairly common to see SAP values stated in grams of potassium hydroxide (KOH) per kilogram of oil. SoapMaker makes use of SAP values stated in grams of sodium hydroxide (NaOH) per gram of oil. The conversion between the two methods is given by the formula:

SAP for NaOH in grams/gram (as used in SoapMaker)	=	SAP for KOH in grams/Kg

		1402.5

For example, a supplier may provide a Palm oil SAP of 197.8 (for KOH in grams/Kg).
This is equivalent to SoapMaker's Palm oil SAP of 0.141 (for NaOH in grams/gram).

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Q: How can I print the graph, or email it to someone?

A: Currently there is no command to print the graph. However, the recipe's qualities are included on the recipe printout.

If you really need to print or email the graph, you can do it is as follows:

Shrink the SoapMaker main window so only the graph (or the graph and recipe) is showing
Press Alt-PrtScn to capture a screen image on the clipboard
Open a graphics or photo-editing program (e.g. Paint)
Paste the image from the clipboard
Print it if you like, or
Save it as a GIF file, and attach the saved GIF to an email

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Q: If I enter amounts by percentage and then save the recipe, the percentages are not saved. Why?

A: You have to enter a base-oils total weight before saving the recipe. SoapMaker remembers the ingredient weights and re-calculates the percentages when you open a recipe later. So if the original weights are zero, the percentages will be lost.

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Q: The costs for some ingredients are no longer showing in recipes. It used to work fine - what has gone wrong?

A: If you have re-named ingredients since using them in a recipe, the recipe will still refer to the old names which no longer exist in your Ingredients database.

To correct this, you will need to edit each affected recipe to use the new names for those ingredients, and then save the edited recipe.

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Q: Why doesn't the graph include a cleansing quality?

A: We removed the "cleansing" attribute because people found it confusing ("Doesn't all soap cleanse?"). The harder oils do make a harsher soap which "cleanses" more oils from the skin. They also produce the fluffiest lather, so you can use the "fluffy lather" quality as an indicator of "cleansing". Note also that the more "cleansing" the soap, the less moisturizing.

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Q: What blend of oils does SoapMaker use for Shortening properties?

A: Shortening manufacturers consider their recipes to be trade secrets, so we have used an educated guess to determine the properties. For US shortening, we used an equal blend of Palm, Soybean, and Cottenseed oils. For Canadian shortening, we used a 30/70 blend of Palm and Soybean.

Crisco no longer uses palm oil, just hydrogenated cottonseed and soy. Our best guess at the properties can be found in the new oils list. There are also properties listed for 100% soy shortening which is made from partially hydrogenated soybean oil.

If you know the proportion of different oils in the shortening you use, you can easily calculate the properties, and add a new oil using the Base Oil Ingredients dialog as follows...

Say you use shortening which is 25% Palm and 75% Soy. You can add a new oil called "my shortening" and calculate the properties from those which SoapMaker shows for each of the constituent oils.
For example, to calculate the SAP value for your shortening:

my shortening SAP = (0.25 x Palm SAP) + (0.75 x Soy SAP)

Do the same for all the other properties.

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Q: The volume of a drop in SoapMaker does not agree with the drop size of my pipette...

A: The drop unit of measurement is intended for very small quantites. The exact size of a "drop" depends on the viscosity of the particular liquid being measured, as well as the tool used to do the dropping. If you are using more than just a few drops in a recipe, then it would be more accurate to enter the amount in a different unit such as millilitres instead.

For example, if your pipette makes 20 drops per milliliter, and you want to use 15 drops in a recipe, calculate (15/20 = 0.75) and enter 0.75 ml. You could record the number of drops in the notes section of the recipe as a reminder when you are using the recipe.

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Q: Why isn't Lanolin included in the base oils list?

A: Lanolin is a complex substance, with only a tiny percentage of the fatty acids we normally use to calculate the numbers for SoapMaker's graph. The SAP value is 0.075 which is only about half of that for a typical soap-making oil. For these reasons, we suggest Lanolin be treated as an additive rather than a base oil in your recipes. If you prefer to add it to your base oils list, you can use the SAP value above, but it will not contribute to the graph numbers.

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Q: I want to enter a recipe which calls for 15% superfat. Do I simply set the lye discount to 15%?

A: Percentages can be tricky unless you're very clear what you mean...

If you use a lye discount of 15%, this means the amount of lye is 85% of that needed to fully saponify the oils, and the unsaponified (superfat) oil will be 15% of the total oil amount.

However, if you want to end up with 15% more oil than the amount that would be fully saponified by a given amount of lye, then the total oil amount will be 115% of the saponified amount. In this case you would need to use a lye discount of:

15

x 100 = 13.04%
115

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Inventory management

Q: How do I change My Shelf to show the units I use in recipes? When I add a new purchase to my stock I input the purchase in lbs because that's how I buy it. But my recipes use ounces. How do I change My Shelf to show ounces?

A: There's no need for you to change the units from lbs to ounces, just because you use the ingredient in ounces. SoapMaker will do the necessary conversions to figure the cost for your recipes and to adjust your inventory in fractions of a lb.

If you prefer, however, to track your stock in ounces rather than lbs, then you can specify, for example, 80 ounces instead of 5 lbs when you "Add Stock".

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Q: How do I record the price of an ingredient I bought on sale while remembering my regular price?

A: When you buy an ingredient on sale, you want to be able to use it to make batches of soap and know your actual costs for those batches. However, you don't want to lose track of your regular price for that ingredient, or to alter the cost/bar of batches made in the past, or future batches that will use the ingredient at your regular price.

Say the ingredient is Lavender EO and you normally pay $4/oz. Then you get a deal on a 20 oz bottle of Lavender EO at $2/oz. Add a new ingredient to the database - call it "Lavender EO on sale" or something similar, and record your purchase of $40 for 20 oz. In the Notes area, you can record the supplier, date of purchase, etc. Now when you want to use the new lavender, you can select it from the dropdown list in a recipe form, and you'll get the special sale cost. When you make a batch with this recipe, the cost/bar will reflect the lower lavender cost. When the supply of the cheap lavender has been depleted, and you buy more lavender at your regular price, just enter it as usual.

If you want to use the cheap lavender with an existing recipe, then open the recipe, change the "lavender" ingredient to "lavender on sale", and then save the recipe with a different name (and in a different class if you want). This will avoid changing the usual recipe's cost/bar as displayed in My Recipes list.

Note that, if you have made batches with the cheap lavender and want to keep them in your batch list, then even after the cheap lavender is used up, you'll have to keep the "lavender on sale" ingredient, as well as any recipes you used it in, in your database. Eventually, if you delete those batches, then you can safely delete the recipes and the "on sale" ingredient as well.

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Q: Why does the cost/bar shown on a recipe differ from the same recipe's batch cost/bar?

A: When you "make a batch", the number of bars made is intially calculated from the bar size specified in the recipe. However, you can then specify exactly how many bars you make, and SoapMaker will re-calculate the cost/bar.

Also, see the question below:

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Q: Why does the total cost shown on a recipe form differ from the cost of batches made with that recipe?

A: The batch costs in My Products are archival - they reflect your costs at the time each batch was made. If you have since changed the price you pay for some ingredients, or altered the recipe, then the current recipe cost may differ from the older batches made with that recipe. When you make a new batch, its cost should match the recipe cost exactly.

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Q: When first setting up my inventory, how can I record batches made before SoapMaker?

A: You can "Make a Batch" with each of the appropriate recipes, using the option to not deduct ingredients from My Shelf. This is useful when first setting up your inventory if you want to add batch records for products made before using SoapMaker. Then you can edit the batch records in My Products to reflect the actual number of bars still in stock. You can't change the "date made" for a batch, but you could add a note to each batch to reflect the fact that it pre-dates SoapMaker, and you can also give each batch a descriptive name reflecting this fact.

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Q: Is there a way to copy my SoapMaker record of purchases and sales to a spreadsheet program?

A: You can export the contents of My Shelf and My Products as CSV (comma-separated-variable) files for importing into spreadsheet or accounting programs. With My Shelf or My Products as the front-most window, choose Export... under the File menu.

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Q: When I Audit an ingredient to record a new purchase, I'm unable to change the units...

A: To record the quantity and cost of a purchase, you should be using the Add Stock section of the Ingredients dialog. Specify whatever units of weight or volume you purchased, and any quantity already in stock will be converted to the new units and added to your purchase to give the new total quantity in stock.

The Audit button is for making corrections to the quantity already in stock. You can't use Audit to change the units of measurement.

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Q: When I buy more stock, should I enter the new price right away, or wait until I use up the old stock?

A: It may help to understand how SoapMaker Professional calculates the unit cost of each ingredient...

When you use the Add Stock command to record a new purchase, the total Quantity in stock becomes the newly purchased quantity plus what was already in stock. The Value becomes the sum of the new purchase price plus the previous value. The unit cost is calculated from the new value and the new total quantity.

It's your choice whether to use up your old stock before entering the new purchase, or have the old and new prices blended to show the average value of your total stock for each ingredient. Either way, your batch costs will reflect reality.

Don't forget that, as your ingredient costs change, the $/Sample shown in My Recipes will become out-of-date. Occasionally opening and re-saving affected recipes will update the $/Sample display.

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Q: I buy bath bombs already made, and then resell them. How can I track them in my inventory?

A: If your recipe contains only items with no weight, then My Products will not track your sales correctly. To overcome this, you can do the following:

Open your Additive Ingredients dialog and add a new ingredient "bombs". Pretend they weigh one ounce each; if you purchased 100 bombs, then Add Stock 100 oz for the price you paid. Now My Shelf will show 100 oz in stock - you'll know this really means 100 bombs in stock.
Create a non-soap recipe called "Bath Bombs" - it has only one ingredient (in the Additives section) and that is "bombs". Specify the number of ounces (bombs) that you plan to package for selling at a time. Set the recipe portion size to 1 oz. (i.e. one bomb).
Now when you Make a Batch, your supplies inventory (My Shelf) will be adjusted to reflect the number of ounces (bombs) in the recipe, and My Products will show the number of portions (bombs) ready to sell. You can track the number you have actually sold in My Products, and see the cost per portion (bomb).

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Q: When I delete a batch, why can't I re-use the batch number?

A: The batch number is just a database access key - otherwise it has no meaning. Batch numbers are assigned automatically and can't be changed because this would affect the integrity of the database, making it unuseable.

if you need a "batch number" which is meaningful, you can add it to the Batch Description field which can be edited when a batch is first made, as well as for batches already made. For example, if you already have 36 batches and a new batch is to be called "special order", just call it "37. Special order".

If you want to know how many batches you have made, the My Products window shows the total number in the bottom left corner. You can use this to count total batches, or number of batches for a particular recipe or class of recipes.

The "date made" field also provides an indication of batch history.
(For recording batches made before you started using SoapMaker, see this tip.)

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Error messages

Q: I purchased SoapMaker, but when I try to register it says my serial number is not valid. What do I do?

A: The most likely reasons for your serial number not being accepted are:

You may have typed the letter "Oh" instead of the number "zero" when you entered your serial number, or
There may be a space before or after your Username; try editing it to remove any unnecessary spaces.

If you have re-installed SoapMaker after replacing or repairing your computer, you will need to re-register it...

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Q: When I try to install SoapMaker I get an error. What should I do?

A: If you are running Windows XP or later, Make sure you are logged on with Administrator privileges.
(If you don't know, check START menu/Control Panel/User Accounts)

If the installer file has been corrupted and you do not have a backup, you can purchase SoapMaker 3 at special upgrade prices...

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Q: When I try to backup my database to a CD, I get an error message...

A: In order to backup to a CD, you must have a CD drive capable of writing, and a CD-R or CD-RW disc which has been correctly formatted. Depending on the type of software associated with your CD drive, and the formatting options you've used, you may not be able to backup to CD directly from within the SoapMaker program. Instead, you can backup to your hard drive (e.g. on the desktop), and then drag the database icon into the CD-drive window.

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Q: I got an error message saying Out of Memory. What does it mean?

A: This can occur if you try to open too many recipes at once. The number of recipes which can be open at one time depends on how much memory your computer has.

If you see an Out of Memory message, you should close any open recipes and then close and re-open the SoapMaker program.

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Q: "3051 The Microsoft Jet database engine cannot open file 'C:Program Files\Soapmaker\Soapdata.mdb'. It is already opened exclusively by another user, or you need permission to view its data."

A: This message may indicate that your database file has read-only access. To correct this, follow these step:

browse to the folder C:\Program Files\SoapMaker
locate the file Soapdata.mdb
right-click it and choose Properties
make sure the Read-only box is NOT checked.

If the problem persists, it may indicate that you were not logged in to your system with administrative privileges when you installed SoapMaker. In that case, you can try re-installing SoapMaker while logged in with administrative privileges. For step-by-step instructions, see this...

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Q: "Wrong decimal symbol; Because of Soapmakers preset data, the decimal symbol must be a period."

A: SoapMaker cannot run if your system is set to use a numbering system which does not use a period as the symbol for a decimal point.

Here's how to correct it:

In your Start menu, select Control Panel (or Settings/Control Panel).
Open Regional and Language Options (or Regional Settings).
On the Regional Options tab, choose English (United States) or English (Canada). Or set the number and currency examples to use a comma to separate thousands, and a period to mark the decimal point.

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Q: "ClassFactory cannot supply requested class"... what does this mean?

A: This error may indicate that the Microsoft script engine on your system needs to be re-installed. (This can occur with some virus checkers which have been known to prevent some programs from working.)

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Q: 13 - Type mismatch... what does this mean?

A: This message could indicate that the Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) on your system are corrupted or out-of-date. You can download and install the latest version from Microsoft.

You may also see this message if your computer is set to use a language other than North American English. Use your Control Panel Regional and Language Options to select English (United States) or English (Canada).

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Q: "Provider cannot be found"... what does this mean?

A: This message may indicate that the Microsoft Jet database engine is missing or corrupted on your system. You can download and re-install the latest version from Microsoft.

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Q: ActiveX component can't create object error message:

A: This error indicates a missing or corrupted system component. It may indicate that the Microsoft script engine on your system needs to be re-installed. (This can occur with some virus checkers which have been known to prevent some programs from working.)

The error could also indicate that the Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) on your system contain errors.

If neither of the above steps resolves the problem, then re-installing SoapMaker should replace whatever system component has been damaged on your system. Please see re-install instructions...

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Q: Error reading setup initialization files

A: If you see this error when you try to re-install SoapMaker 2, it indicates that the installer file may be corrupted. If you do not have a working copy of the installer, you can purchase SoapMaker 3 at the special upgrade prices...

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Q: Invalid procedure call or argument when trying to print My Shelf

A: This is a known problem that can occur when making a batch causes the quantity of an ingredient in stock to become slightly negative.

Check your Shelf for quantities that are negative and have lots of decimal points expressed in exponential notation
(e.g. -1.234567E-02). If you find one like that, double-click it to open the Ingredients Dialog, and then Audit the quantity, setting it to zero.

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Q: Run-time error '6': Overflow when trying to register serial number...

A: This will occur if you enter an invalid character as part of the serial number (for example, the letter O instead of the number zero).

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Q: WinZip self-extractor can't create the output file when trying to open downloaded update...

A: The most likely reason for this error is that the SoapMaker progam is already running when you try to update it. Make sure you exit SoapMaker before trying to unzip the update file.

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SoapMaker 2.x Knowledge Base and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Installation, Setup and Operation

Recipes

Inventory Management

Error Messages

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Installation and setup

Recipes

Inventory management

Error messages