Extra Extra Pumice Soap Experiment

[Blufuz]

Hi everyone!

Today I tested an experiment of how much pumice powder can I stuff into soap.

I had followed this recipe:
https://soapdelinews.com/2011/11/di...r-own-cold-process-exfoliating-foot-soap.html
I had these conditions:
- 0 pumice
- the recipe amount
- x2 the recipe amount
- x4
- as much as I could pour in

 

[Blufuz]

Results:
- the basic soap cleaned very well! But with increasing pumice, became less cleansing, so the last one was almost unusable as a soap
- all soaps formed a film after they got wet and lost their scrubbing power, so had to be wiped down first, except the last one. So maybe better just use a pumice stone, then soap
- with x1 I could feel the pumice, but the real scrubbing only kicked in at x2.
- x4 I think works best as a foot soap
- any of the intermediate ones make for really good kitchen hand soaps, since they clean off foods and oils really quickly and don’t leave any residue, so good when washing quickly in between a messy meal

 

[Mobjack Bay]

Pumice foot soap! I wonder how this idea would work using the base for a salt bar, which might help with the lathering. I’m also wondering if adding another exfoliant that has a little more texture to it, like walnut shells, poppy seeds or citrus peel would help with the lathering and film issues. Thanks for linking the recipe. At 1/2 cup of pumice for a 10 bar loaf, the original recipe already has more pumice than I’ve ever added.

 

[ScentimentallyYours]

What does pumice do to plumbing and septic systems if one puts it down the drain in soap on a regular basis? Does it bind with soap scum and fat to clog drainage? Unlike organic items, the pumice doesn’t break down. Don’t know if it can be an issue, just wondering.

 

[Blufuz]

What does pumice do to plumbing and septic systems if one puts it down the drain in soap on a regular basis? Does it bind with soap scum and fat to clog drainage? Unlike organic items, the pumice doesn’t break down. Don’t know if it can be an issue, just wondering.

I know sand and clay is a problem because it sinks and so can eventually clog up the u bend of a sink drain, put pumice rather floats, so more easily washed away. I’ve used one of my soaps for a month now and didn’t notice anything beyond the soap scum I was getting before, so from my experience so far nothing has changed, but as I keep consuming my test soaps I’ll be sure to let you know!

 

[Mobjack Bay]

At my house, there are a lot of ways for dirt to make it down the drain, for example when we rinse vegetables from the garden or wash clothes that are dirty after gardening and taking care of the horses. We have the septic system pumped out every few yrs, which is enough to prevent any buildup in the tank that would lead to system failure. I also use sodium citrate in all of my batches and, even with hard water, we haven’t had any issues with soap scum or the plumbing.

 

[FFLinOhio]

Cool experiment.

The third soap in the pic reminds me of the mechanics soap that I saw when I used to clean car dealerships...Lava I think it's called.

How does the soap work on grease/oils etc?

 

[Blufuz]

Cool experiment.

The third soap in the pic reminds me of the mechanics soap that I saw when I used to clean car dealerships...Lava I think it's called.

How does the soap work on grease/oils etc?

I tried all the soaps on cleaning off wheat germ oil (it had started to go bad, so I gave it a second life as a soap testing oil ) and actually the less pumice the better when it came to removing that final film of oil, although they were all better than normal soap. The strength of the soap at binding to the oils I think was more important than physically removing the oil in my specific test. When I do a little more gardening I’ll try them out on dirt and see if there’s an optimal dose.

If you’re looking for a good mechanics soap, there should be an “earlene’s mechanics soap” or similar somewhere here in the forum that uses pumice, coffee grounds, and borax. Haven’t tried it yet though.

 

[artemis]

If you’re looking for a good mechanics soap, there should be an “earlene’s mechanics soap” ...

Search for Blacksmith Soap to find it

 

[Blufuz]

Should be this one:
https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/borax-hand-soap-for-blacksmith-or-other-dirty-work.61277/