# DIY no rinse body wash brainstorm



## powderpink (Dec 19, 2016)

For traveling I'd like to formulate (as a hobbyist) a no rinse body wash for those times I don't have access to a shower but still want to feel clean. 

I've found the ingredients of at least one commercial product:

 Deionized Water, 
Triethanolamine Lauryl Sulfate,  
Glycerin, 
Cocamidopropyl Betaine, 
Fragrance, 
Propylene Glycol,  
Diazolidinyl Urea, 
Methylparaben, 
Propylparaben, 
Citric Acid

Which seems simple enough, though, personally I'd like to include some other surfactants with a pH between 5-6, so I don't have to mess with pH too much. And because I can, and it's no rinse, I'd like to add some extracts too to make it slightly more moisturizing etc. 

I was wondering if anyone else has ever tried to formulate one before, and what percentages you'd recommend for surfactants


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## lsg (Dec 19, 2016)

I hope that I am not misinterpreting your post, but I don't think I would want any body  wash that I couldn't rinse off.    Triethanolamine Lauryl Sulfate and Cocamidopropyl Betaine are both surfactants which might cause skin irritation and itching if not rinsed off.  If you have access to a bathtub, then you could rinse off, even with a wash basin you could take a sponge bath.


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## DeeAnna (Dec 19, 2016)

I'm not familiar with TEA-lauryl-sulfate, but I know cocamidopropyl betaine is a mild low-foaming surfactant used in baby shampoos and the like. It sounds like a reasonable choice for a product like this. Any surfactant in this product had better be extremely mild since residues are going to be left on the skin. I question why you mention adding other surfactants to the formulation, especially if included mainly for the purpose of adjusting pH -- the citric acid is an effective and safe ingredient for pH adjustment. 

All that said, I'm with lsg in that I would rather take a sponge bath.  There was a craze about using dry shampoo during my high school days, and I came to the same conclusion about dry shampoo and no-rinse cleansers -- thanks, but no thanks. I learned to wash my hair in a bucket of cold water when camping, and was much happier with the results.

Edit -- You might find more concrete suggestions and recipes from Susan at Swift Crafty Monkey. For example, there might be useful tidbits here: http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/2011/04/duplicating-products-lushs-9-to-5.html and http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.com/2010/09/esters-ridiculously-moisturizing-body.html


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## GeezLouise (Dec 19, 2016)

Witch hazel. Long time ago it was an ingredient in baby wipes.


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## snappyllama (Dec 19, 2016)

I'd go for witch hazel if I didn't have access to clean water. 

For my hair, I'd go for dry shampoo and count the days until I could get a real shampoo. My personal favorite is Klorane Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk. I like this when doing outdoorsy things and wanting to grab a bite on the road home without feeling completely gross. It's also nice to remove a little hair product if I put too much in. There's a trick to it... really poof in it and then act like you're actually washing your hair - scrubbing the scalp. Then let sit for 10 minutes and brush out. 

For your product, I'd start reverse engineering it from the fragrance.... I'll bet it's 1% - so everything below that would be 1% or less (mostly just the preservative by the looks of it).  Then that glycerin has me thinking it's around 3%. I'm thinking/wild guessing the others might breakdown like this:

Water: remainder a.k.a. too lazy to math 
Glycerin: 3%
Triethanolamine Lauryl Sulfate:3%
Cocamidopropyl Betaine: 2 %
Fragrance: 1%
Preservative (Propylene Glycol, Diazolidinyl Urea, Methylparaben, Propylparaben) .5% to 1% depending
Citric Acid for pH balancing (minimal)


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## powderpink (Dec 20, 2016)

Sorry for the confusion!
For no rinse I meant more like "does not need copious amounts of water to rinse off". So you could still use a wet washcloth and/or a basin etc. (so, yes, think camping with little access to water  ). But I don't want the product to be so concentrated that it take ages for it to rinse off with bubbles all over the place. 

But I agree, I looked into it some more and I think if you'd go the surfactant route, the amounts would have to be very little, like in snappyllama's example (thanks by the way  I ended up thinking up something similar), to minimize skin irritation. And the milder the surfactant, the better.

The reason why I wanted to use other surfactants, that are around a pH of 6, than mentioned in this particular product,  is because of two things really:
1. on swift's blog she does mention that you'd need a pH measuring device  when using surfactants with a high pH, and that strips aren't as  accurate in that case. 
I'm not really willing to invest in a pH meter any time soon, so I generally stick to surfactants with a pH of around 6. 

2. I also want to add other surfactants, because swift mentioned it's best to combine anionic, amphoteric and non-ionic surfactants to increase mildness.
http://swiftcraftymonkey.blogspot.nl/2010/04/surfactants-incorporating-mildness-into.html


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## DeeAnna (Dec 20, 2016)

The blend of different surfactant types is only needed if you want to use a surfactant in your formulation that isn't especially mild and you want to tame it down. The reason why you use a not-mild surfactant is to get good bubble-age, stronger cleansing action, and possibly to control cost. 

If you are using a surfactant such as Cocamidopropyl Betaine that is already extremely mild on its own, then the idea of blending different types of surfactants for greater mildness is a non-issue.


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## powderpink (Dec 21, 2016)

Oh I see, in that case I'll just stick to cocamidopropyl betaine, saves me the headache of figuring out percentages for a mix

I just made a small test batch, starting with the following (off the top of my head, note book's not nearby):

1% cocamidopropyl betaine
1% peg-7 glyceryl cocoate
2% sodium lactate (I might try another version with glycerine to compare)
1% liquid silk 
1% caprylic triglycerides   - because I was afraid the CB might be too drying
 .5% chamomille extract    
 .5% green tea extract
1.5% FO
0.5% LGP 
q.s. deionized water

 but 1% cocamidopropyl betaine is too little, it doesn't clean very well. So the next batch will have 2% CB 
In any case, I left some of the solution on my skin to dry (just to see what'd happen if any cleanser got left behind) and didn't really notice any difference in regards to irritation throughout the day (though I should try it again with a patch).Save
Save​


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## earlene (Dec 21, 2016)

I think this is a great idea.  There are times a nice little no-rinse/little-rinse body wash would certainly come in handy.  Besides traveling in areas with unreliable water sources (it happens), sometimes even a sponge bath can be an ordeal.  

In my youth, I used to go on back-packing hiking trips. Bathing was an issue.

I also think back to when my mother was bed-bound and later my father.  Even though we had all we needed to bathe them, a nice little-to-no-rinse cleanser made with gentle ingredients sounds pretty nice.


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## Susie (Dec 22, 2016)

People have been making home made baby wipes for a long time using a home made solution.  It works well, although I might add a bit of preservative if saving for a longer period of time.  This is similar to one I have made before (since I lost my recipe) for hand wipes on a car trip:

1 3/4 c distilled water
1 Tablespoon aloe vera gel
1 Tablespoon witch hazel
1 teaspoon liquid soap-I used my own diluted, but not for foamer, soap.  Use about half the teaspoon, then try the wash to see how much bubbling you get.
1 teaspoon olive oil
Few drops of essential oils, avoid irritating ones like spices and citrus

I soaked some of those Pick a Size paper towels in a Ziploc bag, squeezed them out and put them into an old baby wipe box.


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## powderpink (Dec 23, 2016)

earlene said:


> I think this is a great idea.  There are times a nice little no-rinse/little-rinse body wash would certainly come in handy.  Besides traveling in areas with unreliable water sources (it happens), sometimes even a sponge bath can be an ordeal.
> 
> In my youth, I used to go on back-packing hiking trips. Bathing was an issue.
> 
> I also think back to when my mother was bed-bound and later my father.  Even though we had all we needed to bathe them, a nice little-to-no-rinse cleanser made with gentle ingredients sounds pretty nice.




Those were my thoughts too 
I have to wait until after December so I can order some proper bottles to store my formulations in, but I'll keep updating this thread until I find something that works.

While I wasn't really looking for shampoo alternatives, after some research, I don't have a lot of faith in things like dry shampoo. I think it'd be impossible to get all of the powder out of your hair since it's so fine...so it'll just get all over the place. As a temporary, one day thing I'd get it... but even then, not my cup of tea.

Thanks for the recipe Susie! I completely forgot about aloe vera's soothing properties, I should try to include some in my next batch.


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## Morrie (Mar 10, 2020)

powderpink said:


> For traveling I'd like to formulate (as a hobbyist) a no rinse body wash for those times I don't have access to a shower but still want to feel clean.
> 
> I've found the ingredients of at least one commercial product:
> 
> ...



What about using isopropyl alcohol as a drying agent?


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## Diane Marie (Sep 6, 2021)

Morrie said:


> What about using isopropyl alcohol as a drying agent?


Hi I realize this thread is old, I am scanning around for a head start on a no rinse spray body cleanser. Did you try small amounts of isopropyl alcohol for quick drying? Over wetness is an issue when you are bed bound and spray something on you, you do not want wet clothing. If you have any ideas or trial and error that you would like to share please do. Thank you


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