Best preservatives??

[Vonna]

What is everyones take on which is the best preservatives? I want to use one but have no experience here. I think mould and bacteria are way worse for people than preservatives so I would love some opinions. I'm looking for a good all around preservative that I could use in multiple ways. Thanks!!

 

[Deda]

Why do you want to preserve?

 

[IrishLass]

Are we talking soaps or lotions?

If it's soap, it needs no preservative, but if it is lotion, it definitely needs one. Which preservative to use will depend on your formulation, though.

IrishLass

 

[Vonna]

I wouldn't be using it in my soaps just lotions, bath salts, body scrubs, etc. I want to preserve that way when I do start selling my products I know they will have the best shelf life possible and I also don't want someone to open my product a month down the line and there be mould growing. I just want to be safe. I never thought much of preservatives but when you think of what mould and bacteria can do, preservatives aren't that bad especially if you stick you natural ones like grapefruit seed extract and vitamin E. So what does everyone think?

 

[LJA]

I use Optiphen Plus in my lotions and love it. In my scrubs, I do the same but am thinking of switching to LiquaPar, after researching it more.

It can be pretty complicated, and I'm no expert, so I'd suggest reading up on the differen't ones. Personally, I don't think there's a "one-size-fits-all" when it comes to preservatives, unfortunately. The more I research, the more I'm seeing this. And I'm with you, Vonna. I'm not taking any chances on bacteria and other nasties.

Anyone else agree?

 

[kaseencook]

Grapefruit seed extract and vitamin E are generally not used to fight bacteria and mould, but are added to oils high in unsaturated fats (like canola, olive oil, primrose oil, ect.) to prevent oxidation (rancidity) as they have an antioxidant effect.

Some of the more natural bacterial/mould preservatives I have seen used in lotions and such have been alcohol/ethanol (I saw a video on You tube on this, the alcohol made the lotion slightly less firm), and well as critic acid which creates an acidic environment that is not optimal for bacterial/mould growth. A while ago I did a lot of searching for more accessible and cheap options for preserving my lotions as I did not want to spend a bunch of money and I wanted something more natural, but those two were about it. Other wise the online soap supplies places have lots of different artificial perservitives that work well in lotion applications. The ones from the soap shops will prob make the lotions last the longest and be the most trust worthy and consistent.
8)

 

[barefootbody]

I don't use any preservatives in my CP soaps, but use Tinosan & Potassium Sorbate (100% natural) in all of my other products except my salt scrubs, I use LiquaPar for them due to the high PH.

 

[IrishLass]

It can be pretty complicated, and I'm no expert, so I'd suggest reading up on the differen't ones. Personally, I don't think there's a "one-size-fits-all" when it comes to preservatives, unfortunately. The more I research, the more I'm seeing this. And I'm with you, Vonna. I'm not taking any chances on bacteria and other nasties.

Anyone else agree?

Ditto to all you said, LJA.

I just recently started venturing into making my own lotions (only 4 so far) after driving myself to confusion and almost near insanity via conducting gobs and gobs of painstaking research (there's lots and lots of opinions to wade through out there, that's for sure!), and finally getting over my initial fear (well...sort of getting over it ).

When all was said and done, I decided on some well established recipes and chose for my preservative system Phenonip in conjunction with EDTA to boost its efficacy within those paticular recipes.

As for grapeseed extract and vitamin E- from all I've read, what kaseencook said in her post is right on. They are not very good at keeping bacteria, mold and spores at bay in lotions, but they do help prevent rancidity of oils.

Citric acid helps to lower the pH, but it's really not a preservative in the sense of killing bacteria, molds and spores, and too much can cause a problem with stinging of the skin with some people.


Here are some preservatives on the more natural side that I found listed over at the Herbarie:

http://www.theherbarie.com/Leucidal-Liquid--pr-439.html

http://www.theherbarie.com/Cosmocil-CQ-pr-228.html

http://www.theherbarie.com/Geogard-Ultra-pr-406.html

http://www.theherbarie.com/Tinosan-SDC-pr-400.html

My best advice is to do as much reading on all the different B & B forums that you can (there's a wealth of info out there to glean from all the experienced handmade lotion makers who sell to the public), and go to places like LotionCrafters and the Herbarie for background info on all the different preservatives. Both of those sites have many recipes, too. You can learn a lot just from looking at well established recipes.

Also- it's very, very good to read about sanitation procedures, too- i.e. making sure all your equipment is properly sanitised before proceeding, etc.. I almost drove myself insane researching that one, too.

I'm tellin ya- lotionmaking is not for wimps! And I'm not even selling mine- they are just for me and my immediate family!

IrishLass

 

[heartsong]

x

may i suggest www.lotioncrafter.com their 'site is very informative, and if you have any questions-email them. they always answer back quickly. they could aslo suggest the best preservatives for a specific personal recipe. very nice people!

 

[Vonna]

Wow, thanks everyone! Great info and I'll definitely be looking into all of it.

 

[heartsong]

x

almost forgot! 2 aussie sites-great info and recipes!

www.aromaticsandmore.com

www.aussiesoapsupplies.com

 

[Vonna]

yeah, I'm very familiar with those companies. I've ordered things from them and also Escentials of Australia

https://www.escentialsofaustralia.com/index.php

They are really good as well. My hubby and I went to his showroom and did some shopping for my mothers day present He was very helpful. I am definitely going to keep researching though. Thanks everyone!!