OK, I see that the concern with soap scum is not An issue with minerals or a foam in lye water. Coffee filters would work for that, but Obviously not for preventing soap scum in the bathroom!
Skin irritations due to handmade soap
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Skin irritations due to handmade soap
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Skin irritations due to handmade soap
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What EOs are you using? Some are fine at 2%, others are irritating at 2%, for example clove.
Of course it works. Why wouldn't it? It doesn't stop it completely, but does help a lot in my experience.
My suggestions:
Check your lye: Is it pure? (no other chemicals, debris, etc. mixed in) Are you still using the same NaOH/caustic soda/lye that you started out with? (same container you had from the start? same brand? same source?)
Check your oil sources: Are you purchasing from grocer or market? Are you purchasing from soap supplier?
Start testing for which is the culprit (the offending ingredient):
STOP using all essential oils for the next several batches. No added fragrances and do not add anything new.
Eliminate specific oils ONE at a time: Make soap without ONE of the oils (do not add new oils as this is a test to eliminate the offending ingredient.) Example: make soap without pomace olive oil. (remember, no fragrances for awhile yet.) Let it cure, then start testing it and ONLY this one soap for handwashing, bathing, etc. Use it exclusively for at least 2 weeks; personally I'd test it longer. Keep careful notes about symptoms - do they change, improve, get worse, go away?
Repeat the oil elimination testing until you have made soap without each of the oils in your recipe, where you use all the other oils, but only eliminate one of them. This includes eliminating Coconut oil from one of the test soaps. You may be concerned your skin won't get clean without CO, but it will; it may not bubble as much, but it will get clean. Do not substitute any other oil during the testing phase; this is just to identify whether the problem is a specific oil in your formula.
AND if you identify a culprit (a particular oil), then go on to the next phase. Say you discover that it is the Coconut Oil (or it could be another one), you can test percentages. Some people are okay with low percentages of CO, but not high percentages. So try your recipes with lower percentages and carefully watch for symptoms. Another possibility, if it is a particular oil, is your source (if you only use one source or supplier for your oil.) So try changing vendors and see if that has any impact; if not, then try the different percentages and see if there is any percentage in your formula that does NOT produce symptoms.
HOWEVER, if everyone is having a bad skin reaction, it doesn't seem very likely that everyone is allergic to the same ingredient. What seems more likely is that the soaps are lye heavy (and until you do a zap test, you are not really going to know if this is the problem or not. Click this link and follow the instructions: How To Properly/Safely Conduct The Zap/Tongue Test
If none of the soaps that your are using show up as lye heavy, then I'd suspect a contaminant or skin sensitive ingredient that has to be common in all the soaps you have given to each person who has a skin reaction. So investigate your records to find the common denominator.
Check your lye: Is it pure? (no other chemicals, debris, etc. mixed in) Are you still using the same NaOH/caustic soda/lye that you started out with? (same container you had from the start? same brand? same source?)
Check your oil sources: Are you purchasing from grocer or market? Are you purchasing from soap supplier?
Start testing for which is the culprit (the offending ingredient):
STOP using all essential oils for the next several batches. No added fragrances and do not add anything new.
Eliminate specific oils ONE at a time: Make soap without ONE of the oils (do not add new oils as this is a test to eliminate the offending ingredient.) Example: make soap without pomace olive oil. (remember, no fragrances for awhile yet.) Let it cure, then start testing it and ONLY this one soap for handwashing, bathing, etc. Use it exclusively for at least 2 weeks; personally I'd test it longer. Keep careful notes about symptoms - do they change, improve, get worse, go away?
Repeat the oil elimination testing until you have made soap without each of the oils in your recipe, where you use all the other oils, but only eliminate one of them. This includes eliminating Coconut oil from one of the test soaps. You may be concerned your skin won't get clean without CO, but it will; it may not bubble as much, but it will get clean. Do not substitute any other oil during the testing phase; this is just to identify whether the problem is a specific oil in your formula.
AND if you identify a culprit (a particular oil), then go on to the next phase. Say you discover that it is the Coconut Oil (or it could be another one), you can test percentages. Some people are okay with low percentages of CO, but not high percentages. So try your recipes with lower percentages and carefully watch for symptoms. Another possibility, if it is a particular oil, is your source (if you only use one source or supplier for your oil.) So try changing vendors and see if that has any impact; if not, then try the different percentages and see if there is any percentage in your formula that does NOT produce symptoms.
HOWEVER, if everyone is having a bad skin reaction, it doesn't seem very likely that everyone is allergic to the same ingredient. What seems more likely is that the soaps are lye heavy (and until you do a zap test, you are not really going to know if this is the problem or not. Click this link and follow the instructions: How To Properly/Safely Conduct The Zap/Tongue Test
If none of the soaps that your are using show up as lye heavy, then I'd suspect a contaminant or skin sensitive ingredient that has to be common in all the soaps you have given to each person who has a skin reaction. So investigate your records to find the common denominator.
A pH test CANNOT tell you if the soap is skin safe. It's not remotely sensitive enough to tell you that. You need to test for free alkalinity to determine whether a soap contains excess lye ... or do a zap test. The pH test alone isn't enough.
Thank you for the link and information. I read about citric acid and the dreaded orange spots in an article from caveman chemistry several years ago. The Dreaded Orange Spot. He concluded in experiments that adding citric acid by itself did not do much to prevent discoloration. Based on that information, I decided to use BHT, Because it is safe as a food preservative and so should be equally safe in soap. So far, results have been good. I don’t think we can possibly put enough chelators into our bar soaps to prevent soap scum forming from hard water when bathing. I ordered the book Scientific Soapmaking last night. In reading posts in the forum, I realized that my oils may vary in free fatty acids, so I would like to learn to titrate oils to match the precise amount of sodium hydroxide. Depending on oils used, they can vary from batch to batch in free fatty acids, so it’s possible when changing sources for oils that we can end up with too much lye in a formula that worked perfectly before.
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I have Cedarwood, lemongrass and tea tree EOs.. and i have never added more than 8gm of EO in a batch.
I buy my lye from a soap supplier .. and Thank you for the detailed response.. I would definitely follow your suggestions and tried to rule out the culprit..
The only time my soap has caused a pins and needles feeling was when I failed to properly emulsify the soap batter. Never made that mistake again. 
Looks like you've got plenty of advice already.
Looks like you've got plenty of advice already.
Greetings,
while I am not an expert soaper, I do have extremely sensitive skin that throws a fit at the least provocation. I can‘t get near citric acid with my bare skin, not in soap, not in anything. I would eliminate that, and settle on spraying down the bathing area with a vinegar solution to combat the scum. I agree that going back to a very basic recipe without fragrance is the best choice. Then change one ingredient at a time. You might need a topic steroid cream to heal the dermatitis as the reaction sometimes just carries on even after the trigger is removed. I use plain Shea butter when I want a break from steroidal creams. Sending good wishes in your soaping, don’t give up.
while I am not an expert soaper, I do have extremely sensitive skin that throws a fit at the least provocation. I can‘t get near citric acid with my bare skin, not in soap, not in anything. I would eliminate that, and settle on spraying down the bathing area with a vinegar solution to combat the scum. I agree that going back to a very basic recipe without fragrance is the best choice. Then change one ingredient at a time. You might need a topic steroid cream to heal the dermatitis as the reaction sometimes just carries on even after the trigger is removed. I use plain Shea butter when I want a break from steroidal creams. Sending good wishes in your soaping, don’t give up.
Lemongrass EO in any amount is a known skin sensitizer for a good number of people.
Thank you and yes I have been consulting a dermatologist and applying the prescribed steroid for over a year now.. dermatitis doesn't seem to leave me..
.. I am going to back to square one now in soaping now...
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Thank you and yes I have been consulting a dermatologist and applying the prescribed steroid for over a year now.. dermatitis doesn't seem to leave me..
I know there are many soap makers that sell their soap as a "cure" for skin ailments like dermatitis, but soap can't cure anything. Any relief a person might experience from a bar of soap or a syndet. bar has to do with what ISN'T in the bar. You're next step may be to make your own syndet (detergent) bar, or look for some in the store made without colors and fragrances. There are some modern detergents out there now that are so gentle on the skin.
If the doctor thinks that any soap irritates your dermatitis, then consider washing with just plain water, or oil cleansing. Good luck!
penelopejane
Well-Known Member
@Nivisoaps It is entirely possible that your family could all be sensitive to the same ingredient. I'm sensitive to most EOs and so is all my family (to varying degrees). Also colours like spirulina is a huge irritant for me even when the colour fades. It is like an all over rash that I have to scrub off.
I can't tolerate coconut oil in soap at rates higher than 10% and my skin much prefers no coconut at all. Yes it gives me a rash at high percentages.
Pomace is made by using chemical to extract the olive oil. Even if you used that previously with success, it is possible that a new batch was made with different chemicals that you now react to.
Personally I test a 100% pure olive oil (not pomace) soap with no additives except salt or colours well cured and see if you can really tolerate hand made soap at all.
Unfortunately testing is your only option. I know it is slow but there really is no alternative.
I can't tolerate coconut oil in soap at rates higher than 10% and my skin much prefers no coconut at all. Yes it gives me a rash at high percentages.
Pomace is made by using chemical to extract the olive oil. Even if you used that previously with success, it is possible that a new batch was made with different chemicals that you now react to.
Personally I test a 100% pure olive oil (not pomace) soap with no additives except salt or colours well cured and see if you can really tolerate hand made soap at all.
Unfortunately testing is your only option. I know it is slow but there really is no alternative.
@Nivisoaps Sodium gluconate could be an alternative chelator to citric acid.
