Can We Revisit Grease Cutting Soap?

HorseCreek · Apr 5, 2015

Ok, My farmer husband and rancher BIL have been asking for a grease cutting soap. Probably a bar soap, but may try a cream later when I make cream soap. These guys get dirty, everything from plain old dirt to manure to diesel to engine grease to sticky zerk grease to loctite to various glues... you name it they get into it! This soap needs to work in cold or hot water, and well water or softened water.

Obviously first thing that comes to mind is high CO... dryness isn't really anything to worry about. They don't care if it makes their hands dry.. just has to get the grease off.

Next thing would be scrubbiness... I already make a coffee ground soap that my hubby uses in the shower and loves. Pumice of course is another option.. I love pumice soaps. I have some walnut shell, apricot seed, and poppy seed also.
Other things I've thought of is orange EO... where does d-limonene fit in? How much of a percentage can you use?
I'm not sure I want to delve into turpentine or the like... surely I can make something that doesn't require petroleum products.

Anything else you guys can think of? (I have looked at a couple threads on the forum)
Has anyone heard of the Captain Cra-Z soap? Any ideas what goes into that?

TIA!!!

Obsidian · Apr 5, 2015

I made my hubby a 100% coconut soap with fine pumice, it works really well and he is a millwright so he is often covered in grease. I used 20% SF so it wouldn't be drying.

Lindy · Apr 5, 2015

I make a pumice soap that is really popular with mechanics and then a lemon poppyseed soap for gardeners.

Seawolfe · Apr 5, 2015

I accidentally made a 5% SF salt bar with 80 % CO and 80% salt, and it was remarkably good on grubby paws, and surprisingly not drying to my hands.

I just made some 100% CO paste for LS, and I'm tempted to add a little bit of water and something scrubby to make a loose sort of scrubby paste.

Dorymae · Apr 5, 2015

I would say pumice (medium grind not really fine) with activated charcoal. The charcoal seems to take away some of the gas, oil, diesel smell.

The Efficacious Gentleman · Apr 6, 2015

I would also consider making a variation on the coffee soap. I made mine so scrubby that The Admirable Lady struggles to use it on her hands. You can get the co higher or even 100% co, but I would still look at the coffee as water and either pumice or a mix of pumice and coffee as the scrubbies

mx5inpenn · Apr 6, 2015

I've been wondering about something for a while now. My brother is always working on vehicles and always washes his hands with sugar before soap to take off the grease. Anyone ever try a sugar bar? I've added sugar for bubbles, but am wondering if you can make one like a salt bar, but with sugar instead.

Obsidian · Apr 6, 2015

There was a member who made a sugar bar awhile back, I got a bar from her so I could try it out. It was scrubby and worked well for feet but I didn't care for it. All that sugar left my skin feeling not so clean, the bar was sticky and it melted away fast. I'd use coffee before sugar.

mx5inpenn · Apr 6, 2015

Thanks! I'm planning a coffee bar for him, just thought if sugar would work I'd try that since he already uses it. Guess I'll stick with coffee.

DeeAnna · Apr 6, 2015

Another thing to keep in mind is that fat loosens ground-in grease. I've found the anhydrous emulsified sugar scrub I make for my face works surprisingly well to clean greasy dirty hands without drying them to a crisp. The ingredients in a scrub like this are a blend of fats, emulsifier (e-wax), scrubby stuff (pumice or walnut shell for a heavy-duty version), and a water soluble preservative.

The trick is to get just the right amount of emulsifier that will let the product rinse off but leave a very thin residue of the fat from the skin. I've found lard (or tallow or palm) gives longer lasting protection to the skin than other fats I've tried. This can be a lifesaver for hard working hands.

shunt2011 · Apr 6, 2015

I agree with a pumice/coffee soap but I'm with DeeAnna, I just recently made an emulsified sugar/pumice scrub with 15X orange and it's pretty nice. Have my machinist husband and co-workers testing it out.

DeeAnna · Apr 6, 2015

I'm looking forward to hearing what your menfolk have to say about the scrub, Shunt. My DH doesn't get greasy-dirty very often, but I do. I was trying out different formulations to get the emulsifier % just right, so I brought some to the shop and was using it on my hands just to test it out, and -- shazam! -- the light bulb went on about it being a nice hand scrub as well.

It's slightly weird to use a product that is normally considered a "facial beauty product" to clean grubby hands, but it's all about perceptions, I keep telling myself. Maybe I'm a little dense about seeing these possibilities.

Add a little French green clay to give it a "not girly" look, substitute a solid scrubby like pumice or walnut shell or coffee, and use a nice neutral to manly scent -- and it would play very well with the fellas. I also like how it helped soften and prevent the cracking and painful hangnails I get from what I do in my day job.

HorseCreek · May 7, 2015

shunt2011 said:
I agree with a pumice/coffee soap but I'm with DeeAnna, I just recently made an emulsified sugar/pumice scrub with 15X orange and it's pretty nice. Have my machinist husband and co-workers testing it out.

How did the testing go??

shunt2011 · May 7, 2015

HorseCreek said:
How did the testing go??

They like it but prefer the pumice only version. Maybe I'll try salt next. My only fear is that the salt may burn a bit if they have scratches on their hands. Might give it a go this weekend.

cmzaha · May 7, 2015

Obsidian said:
There was a member who made a sugar bar awhile back, I got a bar from her so I could try it out. It was scrubby and worked well for feet but I didn't care for it. All that sugar left my skin feeling not so clean, the bar was sticky and it melted away fast. I'd use coffee before sugar.

That was probably me...like everything it is subjective. I did not find it anymore sticky than a sugar scrub. It lasted me a month and the bar was left in the shower, never got sticky or sweaty. Even the several months the bars aged on my rack they never sweated, and we have been having more humid than dry weather. I even have customers ask for them and going to make another batch with orange eo and fragrance. I used turbinado sugar so they were a bit scrubby, but I find sugar dissolves easier than salt

Can We Revisit Grease Cutting Soap?

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