Best oil for cleaning properties?

[Shiningdown]

Hello I was hoping someone would have some advice on which oil would make the best cleaning properties. My hubby is a mechanic, so his hands need super cleaners. He said the moisturizing isn't important as long as the soap removes the grease easier. I tried googling it but wrong topics always come up. Some help?

 

[Relle]

First of all soap doesn't moisturise, it's a wash on wash off product. Here is a previous thread for a mechanics soap from the forum- 3 pages of reading.
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/mechanics-gardeners-soap.54058/

 

[DeeAnna]

And here's another. https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/borax-hand-soap-for-blacksmith-or-other-dirty-work.61277/

The soap itself doesn't need to be super harsh to clean heavy grime. It's also the additives in the soap that can make a real difference.

 

[Shiningdown]

First of all soap doesn't moisturise, it's a wash on wash off product. Here is a previous thread for a mechanics soap from the forum- 3 pages of reading.
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/mechanics-gardeners-soap.54058/

If it's not moisturizing, what do beauty bars do? Or adding Shea butters and such to soap? I'm sorry but I swear I've read articles talking about the different oils and their uses. I just can't find it again.

 

[Saponificarian]

Beauty bars clean, gently. But all they do is clean, same with soap. Adding Shea might make a difference or not, Soapers can’t seem to agree on that point but I can say that you don’t need Shea Butter to make a great soap. I make Shea Butter heavy soap because it is local to me and if it’s in season, it’s even cheaper than Palm oil. So use whatever oil you have around you to make soap

 

[KristaY]

When I make cleansing bars for mechanics & gardeners hands, I usually increase the cleansing properties by increasing the coconut and palm kernel oils. I also decrease the superfat to about 1%. But I think the biggest benefit is including something that mechanically helps remove the grime like poppy seeds, ground walnuts, pumice, etc. I also include either activated charcoal, bentonite clay or another clay to help neutralize the odors. It can be very drying to the hands but it certainly helps remove the grime and and odors caused by working in those types of environments.

 

[Shiningdown]

Beauty bars clean, gently. But all they do is clean, same with soap. Adding Shea might make a difference or not, Soapers can’t seem to agree on that point but I can say that you don’t need Shea Butter to make a great soap. I make Shea Butter heavy soap because it is local to me and if it’s in season, it’s even cheaper than Palm oil. So use whatever oil you have around you to make soap

Thank you for your time I am just starting out and trying to understand why some say add expensive oils to soap, like flaxseed or pumpkin carrot seed. I thought they indeed help,but just starting, I don't know much. I know there's a lot of deception in some posts and some posts are honest and true tho I don't really know why some ppl post false information. I've read posts on making bar laundry soap and regular hand and body soap, but if there aren't any real reasons to add the expensive stuff other than making bubbles I'd rather not buy all the more expensive oils if I don't have to. So soap is just soap? No soap is really better than another

When I make cleansing bars for mechanics & gardeners hands, I usually increase the cleansing properties by increasing the coconut and palm kernel oils. I also decrease the superfat to about 1%. But I think the biggest benefit is including something that mechanically helps remove the grime like poppy seeds, ground walnuts, pumice, etc. I also include either activated charcoal, bentonite clay or another clay to help neutralize the odors. It can be very drying to the hands but it certainly helps remove the grime and and odors caused by working in those types of environments.

Thank you for your time! Charcoal and exfoliation is wonderful advice! I'm glad you knew what I was talking about, the drying skin He doesn't mind just wants clean hands without spending a long time trying to achieve it. Lol. Thank you

 

[Saponificarian]

I don’t think Soapers knowingly post bad information. It’s more like we say here in Nigeria ‘half education is calamity’ because you think you know when you know just enough to do yourself and others harm without the knowledge to correct your faults.

Those Soapers don’t know that the information they are putting out there is bad and some would rather doggedly hold on to their beliefs simply because it serves their purpose or because they believe they know better. Example is the belief that hot process soap does not need to cure before using it. While it is safe to use as long it’s not zapping anymore, same is true of cold process soap but it doesn’t become a good/great soap until it has cured.

You have great Soapers here and all that I learnt about soaping, I learnt at the feet of the gurus here and I am still learning so come here and ask questions if you are confused and people here are always willing to help.

 

[BattleGnome]

Also remember that people want to sell you things. SoapQueen has some great tutorials but she is a supplier first and will always have something “special” in her posts that she’ll have conveniently just listed to the sale page. Other blogs will have affiliate links for the same reasons.

 

[Lin19687]

I would go to your Library and take out a couple books on Soaping.
There you will learn a bunch and see if there are differences between the books .

Most libraries have at least 2-4 soaping books.

 

[lsg]

Finely ground pumice is great to use in mechanics bars. Coconut and palm kernel oil both, have a high cleansing value. I have a recipe for a soap called Mechanic's Dream. Pm me and I will share it with you.

 

[DeeAnna]

I think a lot of the hoopla about adding exotic oils and fats to soap is often a blend of some wishful thinking and the sheer fun of exploring new things. I think when most people say something like "Ooh, you must try X in your soap, it's da bomb!", their enthusiasm is not meant to deliberately mislead or misdirect others. It's well meant, even if unrealistic.

My long-time friend Renae always put shea butter in her soap mainly because her soap-making teacher recommended shea recipes as being mild and longlasting. I started making some some years after her, and I used shea in a few of my first recipes based on Renae's advice, but soon switched to no-shea recipes. I gave her some of my no-shea soap to try. She tried it and later asked me for the recipes. She was surprised they didn't have shea. She dropped the shea in her soap and had good results too.

I think there are fads that flow through the soaping groups on the internet (including here.) When I first started on SMF, the hot thing was adding food purees (pumpkin, cucumber, etc.) to soap. That was followed by a fad about pumpkin seed and/or hemp oil. It's all about people just having fun, for the most part.

 

[Rune]

This is just thoughts, but I think increasing the superfat levels could work well for a mechanic's soap. In my experience, the only way to clean motor grease off hands is to use either butter or oil first, on dry hands, and really work it in, and then wash that away with soap. Only soap does not work too well/not well at all. But maybe a high-superfat soap will work better, the superfat to loosen up the grease, and the soap to wash it away? For example a coconut soap with at least 20% superfat and some exfoliation added, perhaps.

 

[DeeAnna]

@Rune -- You have a good point. This is the theory behind oil cleansing methods to clean the face -- apply an oil to dissolve hydrophobic (water hating, aka fat loving) materials such as oily dirt and oil-based makeup on the face. Some oil cleansers also include an emulsifier so the fat becomes water-soluble when the face is then rinsed with water. The dirt, fat, emulsifier rinses off cleanly, leaving the skin clean but not stripped or dry feeling.

 

[cmzaha]

So soap is just soap? No soap is really better than another

You do not need expensive oils in soap to make very nice soap, But, believe me when I say, "Not all soap is created Equal"...

 

[Shiningdown]

This is just thoughts, but I think increasing the superfat levels could work well for a mechanic's soap. In my experience, the only way to clean motor grease off hands is to use either butter or oil first, on dry hands, and really work it in, and then wash that away with soap. Only soap does not work too well/not well at all. But maybe a high-superfat soap will work better, the superfat to loosen up the grease, and the soap to wash it away? For example a coconut soap with at least 20% superfat and some exfoliation added, perhaps.

Thank you for your replies! Yes ,I do think I will try both soap types, 0 superfat and one with a higher SF. I didn't think about it until you mentioned it, but a lot of mechanic cleansers ARE oily! Almost like an oily petroleum. There must be something to it true? Thank you for your advice!

 

[DeeAnna]

I make an emulsifying sugar scrub that most people use on their face, but I use on my hands. The scrub gets my hands clean without drying the skin to a crisp. My day job is working with leather so my hands get dye, glue, paint, waxes, solvents, and other gunk on them. I don't want to use a harsh, drying cleanser, because my hands are already dry from the kind of work I do. I can't afford to make matters worse, so this scrub works good for me.

 

[zanzalawi]

Great discussion! Thank you all

I had a mechanics bar recipe to try this weekend but I think I’ll do some more reading before I try it

Emulsifying oil face washes now make sense to me, thanks deeanna [emoji1] sometimes I just need it all spelled out for me