Orange Peel Tea Toner

[Dean]

Will a tea, made of fresh orange peel, to be used as a skin tonic/cleanser go bad if not refrigerated? If so, what natural preservative do u recommend?

 

[lenarenee]

You have a mix of organic material and water; yes it will go bad. I have no idea how to preserve it. Maybe check Swift Crafty Monkey blog??

 

[BattleGnome]

I think the current consciousness is that there is no truly natural preservative system that actually works. The last I looked into it the most promising preservatives had major flaws (mostly extreme light sensitivity).

I will admit that was over a year ago and new stuff could have come out/been challenge tested that I’m not aware of

 

[Dean]

I filtered the tea/toner with cloth and then a coffee filter.

1. How long will it last at room temp b4 it goes bad?

2. How do I tell its gone bad?

3. Did any of the EO from the peel make it thru the filter? BTW its bright yellow if that helps.

 

[shunt2011]

I would keep it in the fridge and use it in a few days. Color from the tea and peel will cause it to be colored. Without a preservative it will grow ickiest before you can see it more than likely.

 

[Obsidian]

I'd think it would go bad within 24 hrs at room temp. Be careful using this before going outside, orange oil can cause a reaction with the sun that will make skin blister.

 

[Moose Wrangler]

I make a lot of herbal teas that I let steep overnight, sometimes I make them in the afternoon but typically early evening. It's not usual but I have on occasion gotten busy and strained it over 24 hours later.

You do need to refrigerate it if you're not going to immediately use it all but it *should* be usable/good for the first day. This will partially depend on the conditions its in.

To my knowledge there's no hard and fast rule for how long it will continue to be good. I can always tell when my teas go bad by the taste, there's a point between good and about to be bad that has a distinct flavor but I'm not sure I could adequately describe it. I can generally keep my teas in the fridge for a week but I usually drink them all before that.