Making own essential oils

[The Efficacious Gentleman]

Ouch. As a doterra rep I feel that's a little mean spirited. Let's take this thread back to EO distilling and drop the YL / DT bashing.

amd, if a few bad apples are spoiling the batch or if you are one of the few good ones who buck the trend, here is a good chance to get the other side of the story from someone directly!

If the things people are saying about the organisations are not true then it should be rebutted. If they are true, then it is worthy of discussion.

But to everyone else, let's try to keep it in line with our forum standards

 

[vanessahammond]

I find lots of instructions online on how to create your own essential oils. However, I am always hesitant in making my own because I might not get it right and the result might not be as effective as I hope it would be. I found supplies from Healing Solutions, which has an extensive line of essential oils to choose from, so no worries.

 

[Arimara]

A former co-worker mentioned that a lot of plant matter goes into making a small amount of EO. I thought about it briefly but then I remembered that point. It's much more cost-efficient to just buy the EO. Getting the dried form of the herbs you like to use is better suited for lotions or whipped butters, where the properties will really shine.

 

[paillo]

Yes, you will need to make or buy a still, even a tiny one, and have a LOT of plant material, far more than just ounces. I looked into it too, but would have to convert my entire yard to lavender to be able to make a small amount of lavender EO, and with a LOT of work and time. Far more efficient to find good suppliers at good prices and go with that. One day when I retire and have an acre to spare to grow herbs to distill, I will look into it again

 

[oilcrafter]

Making your own oils can be very practical if you have the right equipment and supply of material. Vacuum distillation of lavender will pay for itself after a relatively short time if you make a lot of soap. This wasn't practical just a short time ago, but new equipment is making home extraction fun and effective. I get over 100 ml of pure oil extracts from a couple pounds of organic lavender flowers- unadulterated and just as potent as the most expensive oils out there. My machine pays for itself almost every time I make a large batch of lotions.

A lot of criticism is made of people who make their own, and it is ironic since these people know exactly where their product comes from, exactly how potent it is, and is often just as high quality as high end retail oils. The main difference is quality, price, and fun. I have learned a lot more about essential oils since making my own, I have a lot more fun making soaps and lotions, and I enjoy not paying the incredibly high prices for retail oils. I control the quality, and although I am not obsessed with the purest oils out there, I'd put mine next to any of the retail brands for comparison for use in lotions and soapmaking. I use an Extractcraft unit I got a while ago as a tester for them, and I hardly ever have it turned off any more. I only buy oils I can't reasonably or economically buy dried plant material to extract at home.

Making your own oils adds another personal dimension to your craft, makes it more fun, and can definitely save you money.

 

[paillo]

Interesting, exciting, and looks like ton of fun -- leave it to the MM innovators in Colorado to come up with this. $400 looks like a good investment, I may have to order me one of these, they're taking pre-orders now. Nice article about them here. http://www.timescall.com/business/ci_29066364/longmont-company-bringing-oil-extraction-home

Thanks, Oilcrafter, very glad to be proved wrong.

Questions. In Virginia, a grain alcohol permit is required to buy Everclear. Can I use something with a lower alcohol content? Also, I can't find any info on site about how much alcohol is needed. Got a guesstimate?

 

[DeeAnna]

I'm puzzled. Reputable sources report a theoretical max yield of 0.5 to 1% for lavender EO, but the Extract Craft apparatus has a yield of about 10%. This seems to be a bit too good to be true.

EOs are normally made by steam distillation, but the Extract Craft is an alcohol extraction (tincture) followed by the removal of some of the alcohol by stripping it off with a mild vacuum. I'm guessing the difference in yield come from the alcohol possibly extracting water based liquids that steam distillation does not and also because some alcohol remains in the tincture after the vacuum treatment.

I'm not trying to say this process is not useful, but I do question whether the product is truly an EO or a form of alcohol tincture. The poor woman's version of this would be to make a tincture of Everclear and then sit the tincture out on the counter to let some of the alcohol evaporate.

 

[DeeAnna]

To make this product as close to an EO as possible, you will have to use the high proof Everclear. The 151 proof stuff will do a water and alcohol extraction due to more water being in that version of everclear. While everclear is somewhat less flammable than butane, it's still going to be a dangerous process as anyone who has done a flambee with brandy will know.

 

[paillo]

Thanks DeeAnna!

If I buy one I'll order Everclear online.

 

[lsg]

I bought one of those little distillers that use the microwave and let me tell you that you don't get close to .25 oz from lots and lots of plant material. I tried it with lavender, rosemary and roses. I got some nice hydrosols, but only a tiny amount of EO. I personally wouldn't waste my money unless I had access to acres of plant material.

 

[paillo]

Well, I've -- gasp -- pre-ordered one, never bought anything that expensive for soaping but there's always a first... Come summer I'll have access to acres of juniper and desert sage and plan to grow a LOT of lavender and clary sage.

 

[Stacy]

As interesting as this sounds, I'm reluctant to buy anything this expensive without any independent reviews available. I see a lot of hype when I google it but not a lot of real world trials.

Nothing against oilcrafter, I just have been burned too many times with preorders to blindly invest in a miracle technology based solely on the say so of a new member of a forum (filled with a target demographic no less) that has also received a free unit to test with.

Here's hoping I'm wrong and we'll all be distilling our own EOs in a year!

 

[paillo]

Yeah, a little concerned that oilcrafter has a stake in the apparatus, only has three posts and hasn't chimed in again... I'll keep an eye out for independent reviews, mine likely won't ship until at least April and they offer full refunds before shipping, so that helps with my confidence level.