Optiphen in goat milk lotion???

doindairydos · Jan 7, 2012

Hi all....I'm new to the soap making forum and I hope I can find some help.
I have a dairy goat farm and make soap & lotion from my milk. All of the ingredients I use in my soap and lotion is all natural except or the Germal plus that I have to put in the lotion. I really want to use something a bit more natural in my lotion to preserve it. But I need to make sure that it is safe for my customers to use. I don't want to sell them a product that is going to grow harmful bacteria once they get it home.

I purchased Optiphen a while back, but was told that it was not the best option when using milk in you lotion. So I have been afraid to try it. The recipe I am making calls for .5 oz of germal per batch.

If I were to try the Optiphen in this recipe, does anyone out there know how much Optiphen vs Germal plus it would take.

I have tried to find out who the maker of Optiphen is, but I can't seem to find them. All I can find is distributors.

Any comments concerning this issue is welcome.

Thanks All

IrishLass · Jan 7, 2012

Optiphen is made by ISP (International Specialty Products). Here is their MSDS sheet that I got off of Lotioncrafter's site:

http://www.lotioncrafter.com/reference/ ... tiphen.pdf

IrishLass

Stinkydancer · Jan 14, 2012

I use Optiphen in my Goat Milk Lotion and have for years with no issues.

The problem is that people add Optiphen in at the wrong time and it has be known to break emulsions this way.

I always add mine in at the end when the lotion has cooled a bit.

Can I ask why people said not to use Optiphen with GM out of curiosity?

phoenixL · Feb 5, 2012

Optiphen Plus in Lotion

I have made a lotion using optiphen plus for the first time. I added it at the end of the oil phase since it says oil soluble but the oil is still a bit hot. The end result seems to be fine though I am not sure it will break the emulsion after a few weeks. I'll wait and see. I have one big issue with it though, it smells pretty bad. Despite me adding about 10-15 drops of essential oil for 9 oz of lotion, it still has optiphen plus chemical smell. Did I do something wrong? How can I get rid of the smell?

lsg · Feb 5, 2012

I have never noticed a chemical smell, but then I usually scent my lotions and creams.

phoenixL · Feb 5, 2012

lsg said:
I have never noticed a chemical smell, but then I usually scent my lotions and creams.

How do you scent it? I am guessing you are using essential oils? If so , how many drops do you use. When do you add optiphen plus?

lsg · Feb 5, 2012

Yes, I do use essential oils. I just made a 574 gram batch of skin cream today. I added about 1/2 tsp. geranium essential oil. I add the Optiphen Plus after the lotion or cream has cooled down, but is still liquid enough to blend well. I usually figure 1% of the total recipe and add that amount of Optiphen Plus.

phoenixL · Mar 15, 2012

I just want to post the update after I tried testing out with the optiphen plus based on the suggestions on this thread. Once I added the optiphen plus after the lotion is emulsified and once it’s cooled down, I no longer have the weird smell. I used to have that smell before when I added during the oil phase or water phase.