Long lasting soap

[Megan]

I hear people talking about long lasting soap bars and I'm wondering specifically how long is long lasting. How many days, used by how many people? Like if one person used their soap in the shower as a bar (not in a loofa) and showers once per day, how long should the soap last to be considered long lasting. I know the answer might be different for different people.

 

[ulrurunaturals]

I hear people talking about long lasting soap bars and I'm wondering specifically how long is long lasting. How many days, used by how many people? Like if one person used their soap in the shower as a bar (not in a loofa) and showers once per day, how long should the soap last to be considered long lasting. I know the answer might be different for different people.

Long lasting is relative. The harder the bar is physically. After curing the longer it should last in the shower with proper care ....(not leaving it under running water. Etc) letting it dry out etc. However I have made a batch of soap worth hydrogenated palm oil and wow what a difference in bar hardness. I had made the ultimate long lasting bar...like so long lasting anyone using it on a formulation would not have returning customers for a while. Also depends if the person using the soap has hard water or soft water and has the bar been chealated etc. and did you use sodium lactate in your formulation. If you are wanting to use " long lasting"in your product description I wouldn't. I would just make it as long lasting as you poss can with the right additives. let the soap speak for it's self

 

[cmzaha]

My bars will average approx 30 showers. Yes we have tested many many bars. Longevity is more related to the solubility of the bar not hardness. A coconut soap is very hard but also very soluble so it will not last as long. A bar balanced in Oleic, stearic, palmitic, myristic and lauric will last longer than a bar high in myristic and Lauric acids such as CO, Babassu and Palm Kernel.

 

[psfred]

My balanced bars, a little on the small side, last me a month or so each, one shower per day. I think they last as long a commercial "soap" does, at least for me.

As noted, high amounts of coconut oil will result in less "life" while high stearic/palmitic acid will result in slower consumption. Less lather, too, so that's something to consider as well.

Castile for me does not seem to last as long as commercial soaps, but my bars were somewhat smaller and I've not actually tested it. Better soap though.

 

[Alfa_Lazcares]

Can i ask how big were the bars @psfred and @cmzaha? I have a feeling mine last less, but they are between 100 to 150 grams (i can not cut same size bars!)

 

[shunt2011]

My soaps are 5-5.5 oz. they last at least a month being used daily. Mine are high lard. A balanced bar is key. Too much CO as stated will not last as long.

 

[Megan]

I need to do actual testing for my bars. They don't seem to last super long, but I shower twice daily most days. My recipe isn't super high in coconut, it's mainly Olive and rice bran oils. I do have one batch that I made that I use as hand soap that feels like it lasts forever (unfortunately I hate the scent and can't really do much fun with the batter).

I don't

Long lasting is relative. The harder the bar is physically. After curing the longer it should last in the shower with proper care ....(not leaving it under running water. Etc) letting it dry out etc. However I have made a batch of soap worth hydrogenated palm oil and wow what a difference in bar hardness. I had made the ultimate long lasting bar...like so long lasting anyone using it on a formulation would not have returning customers for a while. Also depends if the person using the soap has hard water or soft water and has the bar been chealated etc. and did you use sodium lactate in your formulation. If you are wanting to use " long lasting"in your product description I wouldn't. I would just make it as long lasting as you poss can with the right additives. let the soap speak for it's self

I don't care about using the wording long lasting, but I wanted a bar that has some staying power, just so I would have satisfied customers. I am experimenting with sodium lactate but I'm not in love with it. I will probably continue to work with it to see what a difference it makes.

 

[DeeAnna]

Soap high in oleic acid (rice bran, olive, avocado, etc.) is also highly soluble in water. Maybe not quite as much as a soap high in myristic and lauric acids (coconut oil), but still high. Most people don't realize that.

You need a good % of fats high in stearic and palmitic acids (lard, tallow, palm, butters) to offset the solubility of the other fatty acids commonly found in soap. When people talk about a balanced bar, they mean a soap with a good blend of properties. Not too soft, not too hard, insoluble enough to last awhile and be mild to the skin, soluble enough to lather well, etc.

IMO, a person can tweak a good recipe into a nicer one by the use of additives, but I don't think you can turn a below average to average soap into an excellent one by additives alone.

 

[SaltedFig]

I need to do actual testing for my bars. They don't seem to last super long, but I shower twice daily most days. My recipe isn't super high in coconut, it's mainly Olive and rice bran oils. I do have one batch that I made that I use as hand soap that feels like it lasts forever (unfortunately I hate the scent and can't really do much fun with the batter).

If you are showering twice a day, especially with a soap high in oleic acid (which your olive/rice bran soap would be), then the soap will not be drying fully between uses. Once an olive soap has absorbed water, it easily loses mass the next time you wash with it. A simple fix for this would be to rotate your soaps, so that the soap has enough time to dry between uses.

This will not happen to the same extent with a soap made with more of the harder fats and butters, but it is still a good idea to rotate your soaps if you are showing frequently (or multiple people are using the soap).

I don't care about using the wording long lasting, but I wanted a bar that has some staying power, just so I would have satisfied customers. I am experimenting with sodium lactate but I'm not in love with it. I will probably continue to work with it to see what a difference it makes.

Customers? This thread is a good resource: https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/are-you-ready-to-sell-your-soap.16002/

Your soap is very young for an olive/rice bran recipe (at the most it can only be 10 weeks old, given that you first made soap in July of this year).

A young soap will not last nearly as long as a well aged soap. This is particularly so for an olive/rice bran soap such as yours; the soap will not last nearly as long as the same soap aged for 8 months or more (soaps high in oleic acid, such as olive/rice bran soaps, need a fairly long cure before they are at their most long-lived).

As a general rule, any soap used before it has been fully cured will dissolve quicker than a well aged soap.

If you want an additive to decrease the solubility of your olive/rice bran soap, you could add a little salt to your water before you add the lye, but it may not be as necessary if you rotate the soaps between uses and age the soap a little more.

 

[cmzaha]

Can i ask how big were the bars @psfred and @cmzaha? I have a feeling mine last less, but they are between 100 to 150 grams (i can not cut same size bars!)

My bars average 5.4-5.7

@DeeAnna, I also know Oleic adds to solubility, which is why my soaps all include high palm, or tallow/lard mix. Palm is used for my vegan soaps and my tallow/lard for non-vegan

 

[Megan]

If you are showering twice a day, especially with a soap high in oleic acid (which your olive/rice bran soap would be), then the soap will not be drying fully between uses. Once an olive soap has absorbed water, it easily loses mass the next time you wash with it. A simple fix for this would be to rotate your soaps, so that the soap has enough time to dry between uses.

This will not happen to the same extent with a soap made with more of the harder fats and butters, but it is still a good idea to rotate your soaps if you are showing frequently (or multiple people are using the soap).



Customers? This thread is a good resource: https://www.soapmakingforum.com/threads/are-you-ready-to-sell-your-soap.16002/

Your soap is very young for an olive/rice bran recipe (at the most it can only be 10 weeks old, given that you first made soap in July of this year).

A young soap will not last nearly as long as a well aged soap. This is particularly so for an olive/rice bran soap such as yours; the soap will not last nearly as long as the same soap aged for 8 months or more (soaps high in oleic acid, such as olive/rice bran soaps, need a fairly long cure before they are at their most long-lived).

As a general rule, any soap used before it has been fully cured will dissolve quicker than a well aged soap.

If you want an additive to decrease the solubility of your olive/rice bran soap, you could add a little salt to your water before you add the lye, but it may not be as necessary if you rotate the soaps between uses and age the soap a little more.

I'm not selling right now. I'm just saying, I want to create a product that I can sell, that people will like. I tell people I'm in product development right now.

 

[ulrurunaturals]

I'm not selling right now. I'm just saying, I want to create a product that I can sell, that people will like. I tell people I'm in product development right now.

Well soap is highly subjective dependont on the person buying/and or using it ....people can't tell these properties just by looking at it......you can tell people your sopa is this or that toll you are blue in the face ...and it prolly still working t make a different in how it is "percieved " liked or disliked etc....I've had that experience. I can tell some one my bar will condition thier skin. And has a scent tjat lasts but people won't buy uless they are " looking" or in the market..... It's a sad fact but true...that why when i make soap I don't make it with the end seller in mind I make soap I'll use untill it's used up and of they wish to buy they may. But I do say "limited quantities cause once it's done it's gone cause i use what I create.

 

[amd]

Most of my soaps last about a month, according to my customers, and my soaps are labeled at 4.0 ounces (113g) but typically weigh 4.3-4.7 ounces. I really couldn't tell you how long my soaps last, there's 7 bars of soap in the shower right now and I still add a new bar every other week or so... but there's 4 of us using that shower, so hard to say who is using what how often. I know that my husband has been hitting the apple pie and the green apple bars pretty hard, which I find amusing because I intentionally put in a very manly smelling soap just for him and Noodle (youngest stepson), but I seem to be using it more than them! Noodle mostly uses body wash, but he will sometimes use bar soap if it is either unscented or a very strong masculine scent - apparently he does not like anything in between. Anyways... I will vouch that how long your soap lasts depends on a) what it's made with b) letting it dry between uses and c) using a shower poofy or rag to lather up. At our house we use our hands because I am a soap hoarder and have 5 boxes of soap just for personal use, so we don't need to conserve it.

 

[Deborah Long]

@amd

I am a soap hoarder

This cracked me up! Me too! lol

 

[amd]

I am ridiculous about hoarding soaps, lotions, face masks, etc. I always have been. Even before I discovered handmade soap I had a "million dollar stash" of BBW products. Every time they had had a buy 3 get 3 sale I went in even if I didn't need anything... 'cuz ya know, have to try ALL the scents. When I moved last summer, I threw away two boxes of lotions that I hadn't touched in years. I still moved a box, 'cuz I do need lotion 2 or 3 months a year, just not every day. Even when I was a kid, I collected soap. My grandma always put a bar of soap in everyone's stockings and I would walk around "do you want that? can I have it?"

 

[Zany_in_CO]

I'm wondering if size matters?

The longest lasting bar in the house right now is a Savon de Marseilles (type) bastile. It was a gift from a soaping buddy that was made 3/22 and 6 weeks old when it arrived. It weighed 100 grams (3.5 oz).

I've been using it daily to wash my face -- soaping up with my hands and rinsing with a washcloth. I just attached the last bit to another bastile I had on hand. 3/22 to almost 9/22 is a looooong lasting bar.

 

[Dean]

there's 7 bars of soap in the shower right now .

That must be one heck of a soap dish!

 

[Obsidian]

Soap lasts me forever but I do have more than just a few bars in the shower lol.

My hubby goes through a bar in roughly 2 weeks but he is hairy and rubs the bar directly on his pelt.
He also uses a scrub brush to clean off the grease and oil from work.

 

[Lin19687]

My bars, high palm over 6oz, usually about 6.5 oz.
I only get the end cut, so a 3" sq (basically) and about 1/4 thick. Last me about 2 weeks in the shower. Just me but occasionally DD might use it.

Had my Favorite customer (because she keeps me in business) tell me that a normal bar lasts a little over a week . After a short talk I asked if she uses a scrubby, and she said yes. Said she is overzealous with it . made me feel much better. And no she is not getting 3 wk old soaps, she is getting between 7 and 10 wk olds.... I know this because I know what she bought

So sometimes you just don't know how someone is using it. When people ask how long I tell them MY experience, used just on the skin, once a day and a sliver of the soap I use. Not sitting in water and no scrubbies at all

 

[lsg]

I found this info for using SoapCalc numbers to figure longevity (Longevity = Hardness - Cleansing). For more info click on this link https://classicbells.com/soap/soapCalcNumbers.html