Skin irritations due to handmade soap

[Nivisoaps]

Hi all,.
I have been making soap for over a year. Initially my family liked my soaps, they said it is all good but it lasts only for a week.. later after reading and experimenting I learned to make harder soaps using other additives and by changing oils based on fatty acid profile.. but by now some of us have developed dermatitis...but I kept making and using my soaps hoping that it will get better.. but now I feel like after the shower my skin starts to hurt like pins and needles.. I can't figure out where I am going wrong .. mentioned one of my recipe below..
Castor oil 5% ,cocobutter10% ,coconut 24% grapeseed oil 2%, olive oil 17%, ricebran oil 5%, palm oil 35% ,olive pomace 2%,citric acid 1% sugar 3% . Superfatted 5%, and used 40% lye conc( 70.70 gm of NaOH in 106gm of water)

I even tested this particular recipe in lab and the results came out good but still the soap just flared up my husband's dermatitis..what do I do now, kindly help

 

[Arimara]

Which one of the oils did you change? I also ran this through the soapy calculator. Unless you're allergic to one of the oils, which should not be used at all, I'd lower that coconut oil percentage to about 15 and reallocate that 9% to the rice bran oil.

 

[Nivisoaps]

Which one of the oils did you change? I also ran this through the soapy calculator. Unless you're allergic to one of the oils, which should not be used at all, I'd lower that coconut oil percentage to about 15 and reallocate that 9% to the rice bran oil.

Yes, I understand that coconut oil percentage could be striping but can it go the level of giving allergy and skin irritations... and i do have other soaps with less percentage of coconut oil.. Also we have hard water so other soaps with less coconut oil don't lather well..

 

[MrsZ]

Did you use any fragrances or essential oils that could be causing irritation?

 

[TheGecko]

they said it is all good but it lasts only for a week..

This is a red flag for me. Unless you are making tiny little bars of soap like you find in hotels, a well-cured, standard 5 oz bar should last a person who bathes every day at least a month. If you're making standard bars, then the only conclusion I can draw is that you aren't curing your soap.

First thing I would recommend is for everyone to STOP using the soap...consult with your doctors and get the dermatitis cleared up.

Second...what was your original recipe?

 

[Nivisoaps]

This is a red flag for me. Unless you are making tiny little bars of soap like you find in hotels, a well-cured, standard 5 oz bar should last a person who bathes every day at least a month. If you're making standard bars, then the only conclusion I can draw is that you aren't curing your soap.

First thing I would recommend is for everyone to STOP using the soap...consult with your doctors and get the dermatitis cleared up.

Second...what was your original recipe?

I usually cure my soaps for two months as it is better that way... And in the first 6 months I used 30% coconut oil, 30% palm oil and 30% ricebran oil...

 

[ScentimentallyYours]

Do you have pH test strips or another way to measure the pH in your finished soap to see if your lye ratio is correct? I had used containers of lye that listed the weight and I just did my recipes for that weight. I had a similar problem to what you describe. It turned out that when I went back and weighed the sodium hydroxide in the containers, they were overfilled. My formula was actually lye heavy. I believe your first step prior to changing anything in your recipes is to purchase pH test paper or another test kit to find out if your recipes are lye heavy. Hope this helps!

 

[Nivisoaps]

Did you use any fragrances or essential oils that could be causing irritation?

Yes initially I bought essential oils online and later realised they are not original so I stopped and started buying from authorized dealers..

Do you have pH test strips or another way to measure the pH in your finished soap to see if your lye ratio is correct? I had used containers of lye that listed the weight and I just did my recipes for that weight. I had a similar problem to what you describe. It turned out that when I went back and weighed the sodium hydroxide in the containers, they were overfilled. My formula was actually lye heavy. I believe your first step prior to changing anything in your recipes is to purchase pH test paper or another test kit to find out if your recipes are lye heavy. Hope this helps!

I had the same doubt too.. so I started double checking my NaOH before using it.. and i did check my pH using pH strip.. they all turned out to be fine.. I have bought pH meter to check the pH of the soap accurately but I am yet to test them....

I had the same doubt too.. so I started double checking my NaOH before using it.. and i did check my pH using pH strip.. they all turned out to be fine.. I have bought pH meter to check the pH of the soap accurately but I am yet to test them....

Also if they were lye heavy it should have turned out when I tested my soap in a lab.. the result said the soap has 0 lye ..

 

[ScentimentallyYours]

Also if they were lye heavy it should have turned out when I tested my soap in a lab.. the result said the soap has 0 lye ..

Hi all,.
I have been making soap for over a year. Initially my family liked my soaps, they said it is all good but it lasts only for a week.. later after reading and experimenting I learned to make harder soaps using other additives and by changing oils based on fatty acid profile.. but by now some of us have developed dermatitis...but I kept making and using my soaps hoping that it will get better.. but now I feel like after the shower my skin starts to hurt like pins and needles.. I can't figure out where I am going wrong .. mentioned one of my recipe below..
Castor oil 5% ,cocobutter10% ,coconut 24% grapeseed oil 2%, olive oil 17%, ricebran oil 5%, palm oil 35% ,olive pomace 2%,citric acid 1% sugar 3% . Superfatted 5%, and used 40% lye conc( 70.70 gm of NaOH in 106gm of water)

I even tested this particular recipe in lab and the results came out good but still the soap just flared up my husband's dermatitis..what do I do now, kindly help

why are you using citric acid in your soap? Does citric acid change the action of sodium hydroxide? I don’t know, I’m just asking. Sodium hydroxide has an extremely high pH and it seems that citric acid would neutralize the action of the sodium hydroxide. Any chemists out there?

 

[Megan]

why are you using citric acid in your soap? Does citric acid change the action of sodium hydroxide? I don’t know, I’m just asking. Sodium hydroxide has an extremely high pH and it seems that citric acid would neutralize the action of the sodium hydroxide. Any chemists out there?

Many people use citric acid as it functions as a chelator. It does neutralize some NaOH, which people may or may not account for in their recipe.

 

[Nivisoaps]

why are you using citric acid in your soap? Does citric acid change the action of sodium hydroxide? I don’t know, I’m just asking. Sodium hydroxide has an extremely high pH and it seems that citric acid would neutralize the action of the sodium hydroxide. Any chemists out there?

I use citric acid as it is a chelator and it would avoid the formation soap scum especially in hard water areas..

 

[Arimara]

You do know that all soaps that are made with sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide that are not syndets are going to have a pH level at or higher than 8, right? I really hope I'm not coming off as rude though, I'm not trying to be.

Back to the problem, what type of containers are you using? If those check out, maybe got back to the original recipe(of which, it added up to only 90%) but add one extra oil at a time at 10%.

Yes, I understand that coconut oil percentage could be striping but can it go the level of giving allergy and skin irritations... and i do have other soaps with less percentage of coconut oil.. Also we have hard water so other soaps with less coconut oil don't lather well..

Anything/everything can give allergic reactions if our bodies see it as a threat. Saponified coconut oil can be very striping of our skin's natural oils so finding the balance for our skin's tolerance is key for a more balanced soap. As for the hard water, that is a fight that I unfortunately have no advice on. You're using citric acid, which is ok to start but depending on resources available and how hard your water is, you might also want to consider looking into other chelators.

 

[Nivisoaps]

You do know that all soaps that are made with sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide that are not syndets are going to have a pH level at or higher than 8, right? I really hope I'm not coming off as rude though, I'm not trying to be.

Back to the problem, what type of containers are you using? If those check out, maybe got back to the original recipe(of which, it added up to only 90%) but add one extra oil at a time at 10%.



Anything/everything can give allergic reactions if our bodies see it as a threat. Saponified coconut oil can be very striping of our skin's natural oils so finding the balance for our skin's tolerance is key for a more balanced soap. As for the hard water, that is a fight that I unfortunately have no advice on. You're using citric acid, which is ok to start but depending on resources available and how hard your water is, you might also want to consider looking into other chelators.

Yes I do know that home made soaps have hig

You do know that all soaps that are made with sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide that are not syndets are going to have a pH level at or higher than 8, right? I really hope I'm not coming off as rude though, I'm not trying to be.

Back to the problem, what type of containers are you using? If those check out, maybe got back to the original recipe(of which, it added up to only 90%) but add one extra oil at a time at 10%.



Anything/everything can give allergic reactions if our bodies see it as a threat. Saponified coconut oil can be very striping of our skin's natural oils so finding the balance for our skin's tolerance is key for a more balanced soap. As for the hard water, that is a fight that I unfortunately have no advice on. You're using citric acid, which is ok to start but depending on resources available and how hard your water is, you might also want to consider looking into other chelators.

Yes, i do know that the ph of home made soaps range from 9-10.

 

[Megan]

Pins and needles makes me think that you are sensitized to something in the recipe, either an oil, or the fragrance. Or that you have developed an allergy....although I would think it is unlikely that your whole family would develop the same allergy. What essential oils are you using?

I also would recommend zap testing your soap, rather than relying on pH strips. The lab result should be correct, but it's an easy way to double check. You can search the forum for the safe/correct way to zap test.

Also, also, I personally think your new recipe is more complicated than it needs to be, you have olive and olive pomace (why both?) and I don't think the 2% grapeseed will make much of a difference for you either. I would only use one type of olive and put the grapeseed into either olive or rice bran. Your coconut is high, but unless you really are developing an allergy, I wouldn't think it would be causing so many issues. To combat it, you could increase your superfat to 7-8%...

 

[ScentimentallyYours]

I will check with my husband who worked in the water department of an engineering firm to find out about hard water, chelators, and sodium hydroxide. I’ll get back to you on that. Also, is it possible to filter the light water through some thing like a coffee filter to avoid soap scum? I’m just now getting back into following these issues on the forum and so I may be out of touch on the soap scum issue.

 

[Nivisoaps]

Pins and needles makes me think that you are sensitized to something in the recipe, either an oil, or the fragrance. Or that you have developed an allergy....although I would think it is unlikely that your whole family would develop the same allergy. What essential oils are you using?

I also would recommend zap testing your soap, rather than relying on pH strips. The lab result should be correct, but it's an easy way to double check. You can search the forum for the safe/correct way to zap test.

Also, also, I personally think your new recipe is more complicated than it needs to be, you have olive and olive pomace (why both?) and I don't think the 2% grapeseed will make much of a difference for you either. I would only use one type of olive and put the grapeseed into either olive or rice bran. Your coconut is high, but unless you really are developing an allergy, I wouldn't think it would be causing so many issues. To combat it, you could increase your superfat to 7-8%...

Yes i get it, this was one of the recipe that i made like 8 months ago.. i am trying to fine tune my recipes recently like u mentioned above.. i have developed allergy for sure and it is not going to go away immediately .. i even stopped making soaps in the interim but i just couldn't let it go so i started again.. But i just could not decide what that i am doing so wrong that is not safe for the skin..

i have recently made a batch with palm 30%, coconut 20%, olive pomace 30% castor 5%, shea butter 15%.

 

[Obsidian]

I'd simplify your recipe and not use any scent until you determine what is going on. Maybe try this, should be long lasting and mild.

50% palm
20% coconut
25% olive or rice bran
5% castor

SF 5%, no other additives.

Also, some people simply can't use lye soap and need a gentle synthetic instead.

 

[Nivisoaps]

Did you use any fragrances or essential oils that could be causing irritation?

yes the EO that i used initially are not good so i threw all the soaps and then i bought from authorized dealers and started using them.. Also i usually use about only 2% of the total oil weight. i run them through fragrance calculator and use less than prescribed amount to be on the safer side.

 

[ScentimentallyYours]

I will check with my husband who worked in the water department of an engineering firm to find out about hard water, chelators, and sodium hydroxide. I’ll get back to you on that. Also, is it possible to filter the light water through some thing like a coffee filter to avoid soap scum? I’m just now getting back into following these issues on the forum and so I may be out of touch on the soap scum issue.

Wait… are folks using chelators in an effort to avoid soap scum in the tub and shower??? Is there evidence it works with ANY bar soaps?

 

[Nivisoaps]

Wait… are folks using chelators in an effort to avoid soap scum in the tub and shower??? Is there evidence it works with ANY bar soaps?

yes , as far as i know .. there are lot of articles available in the net regarding the same..

https://www.ultimatehpsoap.com/post...tremely affordable,, and long-lasting lather,