# Smelly castile soap?



## AshleyR (May 4, 2009)

Does all unscented castile soap have a funky smell?

I've only ever made one batch of 100% olive oil soap and from the get-go it had this not-so-pleasant odour. It kinda smells like a soap made with lard.

I used Gallo brand olive oil.

Does all castile soap smell funny? I'm thinking about making a new batch to sell when I go into business in a couple of months, but I really don't want it to turn out like the last batch.

 :?:


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## LJA (May 4, 2009)

I can't say I noticed a smell in mine.  Hmmm.  I use the Sam's Club brand of OO.


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## Dixie (May 4, 2009)

Mine don't smell bad. Maybe it is the brand you used and maybe the bad smell will also go away as it cures.


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## AshleyR (May 4, 2009)

Dixie said:
			
		

> Mine don't smell bad. Maybe it is the brand you used and maybe the bad smell will also go away as it cures.



It seems to have gotten worse over time!  I wonder if it's DOS. I did notice some discoloured spots on it - not orange, but various shades of white. Maybe the oil was bad from the get-go.... hmmmm.


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## ChrissyB (May 4, 2009)

HI Ashley!
Yep, I'd say that was your problem, the oil was probably bad to start off with.
Get some fresh oo and make a new batch. The batch of unscented castille that I made (Okay I cheated, I did 95% OO, 5% Castor), smells like a powdery sort of smell,it's quite nice. I haven't used it yet, it's been curing for about 3 months, I wanted to leave it to six months and see how it turns out.


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## Guest (May 4, 2009)

I use Filippo Berio olive oil and my castile soaps have barely any scent at all, just a plain "soap" smell (for lack of a better way to describe it).  

I don't use extra virgin olive oil because it does give the soap an olivey smell, as well as a greenish-yellow tint.


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## Guest (May 4, 2009)

I just made a castille a couple of days ago and it just smells like soap. I would suspect the olive oil too.

Kitn


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## Lindy (May 4, 2009)

Hey Ashley - no bad smell with my Castille and it truly is 100% OO - I buy mine from Voyageur - they ship it Greyhound to save on shipping - that's where I get my CO too....


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## SimplyE (May 4, 2009)

Ditto to all of the above.  I have to say that when I first tried it with EVOO, it had a bit more of a smell, but not much.


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## nrj (Jul 9, 2012)

I just made my first batch of liquid castile soap also, and it has a less than pleasant odor.  I used Ottavio OO, coconut oil and hemp oil.  The recipe I used said to turn down the heat when the soap got too thick to stir so as to not burn the soap...could that be why it smells bad?  It didn't look burnt, but might that affect the smell?  Also, what is the purpose of letting it age?  My recipe said to let it sit for 4 weeks, and some of the comments I read referred to letting it sit for 3 to 6 months...I'm pretty new to this, would someone shed some light please and thank-you?!


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## Genny (Jul 10, 2012)

nrj said:
			
		

> Also, what is the purpose of letting it age?  My recipe said to let it sit for 4 weeks, and some of the comments I read referred to letting it sit for 3 to 6 months...I'm pretty new to this, would someone shed some light please and thank-you?!



I'm assuming the comments saying 3-6 month cure was for bar castile soap, not liquid.  Bar castile soap gets better with age.


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## Tfitzp02 (Sep 30, 2019)

nrj said:


> I just made my first batch of liquid castile soap also, and it has a less than pleasant odor.  I used Ottavio OO, coconut oil and hemp oil.  The recipe I used said to turn down the heat when the soap got too thick to stir so as to not burn the soap...could that be why it smells bad?  It didn't look burnt, but might that affect the smell?  Also, what is the purpose of letting it age?  My recipe said to let it sit for 4 weeks, and some of the comments I read referred to letting it sit for 3 to 6 months...I'm pretty new to this, would someone shed some light please and thank-you?!


Castile soap is 100% one type of oil.  Typically its olove oil but some make castile coconut oil soap.  What you made is Bastile soap if it contains 70% or higher oliver oil and remaining percentage other oils.


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## Relle (Sep 30, 2019)

Tfitzp02 said:


> Castile soap is 100% one type of oil.  Typically its olove oil but some make castile coconut oil soap.  What you made is Bastile soap if it contains 70% or higher oliver oil and remaining percentage other oils.


The person you are replying to hasn't been here for 7 yrs, so won't see your post. This is an old thread and the people are no longer here.


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## Cjennmom (Sep 30, 2019)

I made Castile soap this month but it wasn't pure olive oil - the recipe I have was a mix of lard and olive oil.  It came out white and odorless.


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## DeeAnna (Sep 30, 2019)

In the consumer world "castile" means any kind of veg oil soap. For example, Dr Bronners and Kirks soaps are labeled as castile soaps, and that's accepted by common usage and by law.

Soap makers are purists, however, and most define a castile type soap with the original meaning of a 100% _olive oil_ soap. When people talk about castile here, this is usually what they mean.

I don't use the word any more because Castile with a capital C is a specific soap that is made in a specific place, and the generic word "castile" means too many things to too many people. Calling it a "100% olive oil soap" leaves no room for confusion.

I have never heard of a soap with animal fats being called a castile soap. I think that usage is going to confuse just about everyone.

***

A gentle suggestion -- The etiquette here on SMF is to start a new thread if you want to hash over a topic you find in an old thread like this one. Then current members aren't tempted to help people who haven't been around for ages. By all means give a link in your new thread to the old ones that sparked your interest, such as this one. But please do start a new thread.


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## Cjennmom (Sep 30, 2019)

Thank you for the tip, but I did not start the the responses - I got this in my email notifications because people had been writing in it.



DeeAnna said:


> In the consumer world "castile" means any kind of veg oil soap. For example, Dr Bronners and Kirks soaps are labeled as castile soaps, and that's accepted by common usage and by law.
> 
> Soap makers are purists, however, and most define a castile type soap with the original meaning of a 100% _olive oil_ soap. When people talk about castile here, this is usually what they mean.
> 
> ...


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## DeeAnna (Sep 30, 2019)

I was providing a tip for new people with no names mentioned. If you can benefit from my tip, good. If it doesn't apply to you, then just ignore it.


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