Dr. Bronner’s soap is a versatile, all purpose cleaner that is a great addition to any household. But let’s face it, it’s can be quite expensive. Learn how to make a multipurpose liquid Castile soap at home. It’s easy, frugal, and very rewarding.
If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you know by now that I love making soap.
Making bars of soap is a lot of fun, and you can experiment with all sorts of ingredients, colors, and other additives to customize your soap exactly as you like. If you’ve never made a bar soap before, take a look at my easy, beginner soap recipe, which shows you exactly how to start making bar soaps and also gives you ideas for customizing the soap to suit your needs. That beginner soap recipe is a modified Castile soap recipe, just like this one.
What is Castile soap?
I call this recipe a modified liquid castile soap recipe because it uses a variety of vegetable oils. Pure Castile soap normally refers to a soap made with only olive oil.
Over the years, the definition of “Castile soap” has been extended to include other soaps made with not only olive oil, but that also add in other vegetable oils. Other vegetable oils are added to change the properties of the soap, normally to give it more lather and make it more cleansing.
Soaps made with only olive oil are on the conditioning side, meaning that they are mild, and not stripping, when used on skin. On the other hand, they don’t form as much lather and aren’t considered highly cleansing soaps.
Coconut oil in soap makes a nice lather and is very cleansing, but it can be drying on the skin when used alone.
Combining a variety of oils allows you to add the beneficial properties of each oil in the soap, making a soap that can be ideal for a number of uses.
Why make your own liquid soap?
While it is fun to make bar soaps, I find it more rewarding to make liquid soaps at home.
Let’s face it, Dr. Bronner’s Liquid Castile soap is a very handy soap to have on hand, but it can be pretty pricey. By making your own liquid Castile soap at home, you can save yourself a lot of money. (And it’s actually pretty easy to do too!)
What’s in Dr. Bronner’s Liquid Castile Soap?
Despite the fact that they call it a “pure Castile soap,” it isn’t a soap made only with olive oil. In fact, coconut oil is the main ingredient of the Dr. Bronner’s soap that I tried to copycat (and of all the Dr. Bronner’s soaps that I can find here.)
I chose to try to make a soap similar to the Dr. Bronner’s 18-in-one Hemp Baby Unscented Pure Castile Soap. One of the reasons I chose that particular soap is that it is unscented, and it allows for me to see if my homemade liquid Castile soap has a similar natural scent. (I’ve noticed that my homemade liquid coconut oil soap and my homemade pure liquid Castile soap don’t have the same scent. Both have a mild natural soap scent, but my coconut oil soap smells a lot more like the Dr. Bronner’s soap than my soap made with olive oil.
Interestingly enough, I’m seeing that the version sold on Amazon in the US appears to be different from the bottle I bought at a local shop here in Spain.
Here in Spain palm kernel oil wasn’t listed at all, but in the US it is the oil that is used in the highest concentration after the coconut oil.
In the US, the soap has this ingredient list: Water, Organic Coconut Oil, Potassium Hydroxide, Organic Palm Kernel Oil, Organic Olive Oil, Organic Hemp Oil, Organic Jojoba Oil, Citric Acid, Tocopherol
You’ll notice that the main oil used is coconut oil, and that all of the other oils are used in a lesser quantity than even the lye itself. (In the case of liquid soaps, potassium hydroxide is the lye used.)
When I made my copycat liquid Castile soap, I didn’t use palm kernel oil because I was trying to copy the bottle of soap that I had at home. I had no idea that they made different formulations of their soap here in Europe.
I tried to make my recipe as similar to theirs as possible, so I used coconut oil as the base oil for my liquid Castile soap recipe, and used the other oils in descending order, using a smaller amount of those oils than the potassium hydroxide just like theirs.
The last two ingredients in Dr. Bronner’s soap are citric acid and tocopherol. Citric acid is likely used to neutralize the soap to keep it on the mild side. (You can read more about that in the section below about superfatting.)
Tocopherol is a form of vitamin E. It is often added to soaps to help extend the life of the soaps as it can help keep any excess oils from going rancid. In the case of liquid soaps that aren’t normally superfatted, it probably doesn’t help as much in this way, but it still may somehow help extend the shelf life somewhat. (Keep in mind that while the antioxidant properties of vitamin E can help extend an oil’s shelf life, Vitamin E is NOT a preservative, and won’t prevent bacterial or mold growth.) Still, vitamin E is a nice addition to any beauty product that will be used on face and body as it helps add moisture and can help soothe skin. You can most definitely add a few drops of vitamin E to your homemade liquid soap when you dilute it to help gain some of its positive benefits when using your liquid soap.
Differences between oils in liquid soap
When I first started making liquid Castile soap, I made the pure Castile soap with only olive oil as often as I made a liquid soap using coconut oil. I figured that for face and body use, the pure liquid Castile soap would be a lot better to use because soaps made with olive oil are milder and more conditioning than soaps made with coconut oil.
I wanted versatility, though, so I was making batches of both types of liquid soap to later combine them dependent on each particular use. The nice thing about liquid soaps is that you can combine the soaps after having made them. I used a mixture of different liquid soaps, using mostly olive oil soap for general bathing and mostly coconut oil for cleaning around the house.
Since then, though, I’ve found that I use my homemade liquid soap made with coconut oil much more than I use the liquid Castile soap made with only olive oil. I even occasionally use it 100% in the shower, and don’t find it to be drying on the skin. I think part of that may have to do with me using the glycerin method of liquid soap making. I use glycerin as part of the water component of the soap. I do it to help make an easier to use soap, but I think the extra glycerin (all soaps have glycerin in them that is made during the soap making process) likely helps prevent drying and makes a more conditioning soap.
Despite its popularity here on the blog (more than twice as many people check out the olive oil liquid Castile soap recipe over the coconut oil liquid soap), I have to admit that I rarely make that recipe anymore. I find myself often making double batches of the liquid coconut oil soap, though. I think people are so used to seeing “liquid Castile soap” for sale, and assume that the olive oil soap, being called “Castile soap,” will be closest to what they would normally buy.
That’s part of the reason that I decided to come up with another recipe that would be a nice, versatile, all-purpose cleanser like Dr. Bronner’s liquid Castile soap. This new recipe would combine coconut oil and olive oil, along with a couple of other oils, to make one batch of all-purpose liquid Castile soap. Some people had no desire to make two different batches of liquid soap, and I totally understand! Don’t get me wrong; either of the other recipes is pretty multi-purpose as well, but this one allows you to make just one batch and use it for pretty much anywhere you’d want to use liquid soap.
This soap compare vs. Dr. Bronner’s Unscented Baby Mild Liquid Castile soap
Scent comparison
While this soap had a similar scent, Dr. Bronner’s has a natural fragrance somewhere between this soap and that of my coconut oil liquid soap. I think my soap smells a bit more like hemp oil than Dr. Bronner’s version, which makes me think that I used higher concentrations of hemp and jojoba oils than Dr. Bronner’s does. (This, of course, is all guesswork on my part!)
Seeing as how hemp oil and jojoba oils are the more expensive oils in those recipe, that would make a lot of sense. To save even more money, you could definitely reduce those oils in this recipe, but you’d have to run the new formula through a lye calculator first to make sure that you use the right amount of potassium hydroxide. When formulating liquid soap recipes, I usually use the Summer Bee Meadow lye calculator, as I’ve often read that it’s the best calculator for liquid soap making. Not only does it take into account the water component in KOH vs. NaOH, but it also allows for calculating in glycerin and alcohol should you choose to use them.
Color comparison
My diluted soap is slightly lighter in color than my bottle of Dr. Bronner’s. Dr. Bronner’s soap is closer in color to my liquid soap paste. That likely means that their soap is a bit more concentrated than the soap I diluted to use as a hand soap. That makes sense when you consider that Dr. Bronner’s soap is marketed as being very concentrated, and most people dilute it further before using it. If I were to dilute my liquid soap paste with less water, I’d likely be able to make a liquid soap of the same color as theirs.
I would like to say that I’ve also had the bottle of Dr. Bronner’s soap for longer than my homemade liquid Castile soap. I’ve found that my liquid soap pastes tend to get slightly darker with time, so that could be another factor that affects the difference in color.
Use comparison
When using them, both soaps lather up nicely, and neither is drying on the skin. I don’t really notice any differences while using them.
Why use Glycerin (When Dr. Bronner’s doesn’t list it)?
Adding glycerin does add to the cost of making your own liquid Castile soap, but it does have several added benefits.
When I first started developing liquid soap recipes, I remember reading about people who replaced all of the water in the recipe with glycerin. The idea was that it makes the process more fool proof and speeds up the process of making a clear liquid soap.
I wanted to make the process of making liquid soap at home the easiest I could, so I chose to substitute part of the water component for glycerin. I’ve found that not only does it help move the process along quickly, converting the soap quickly into a liquid soap paste, but it also seems to make a very nice, mild liquid soap, even when only using coconut oil. When you take into consideration that liquid soaps aren’t normally superfatted, that’s saying a lot.
When making a homemade glycerin bar soap, I learned how glycerin can be a solvent of sorts that helps make a more transparent soap. My guess is that the addition of glycerin to my liquid soap helps to make it a bit more transparent even when I don’t use excess lye in the recipe.
I also think that the addition of glycerin helps make a liquid soap paste that easily dissolves in water. I’ve read horror stories from people who have a difficult time trying to dilute their soap paste in water. On the other hand, I’ve always easily dissolved mine just by adding some water to it and leaving it alone for a few hours.
What is superfatting?
Superfatting is the process of adding more oils to a soap than what are needed to react with all of the lye used. The idea is that not only will all of the lye be safely converted into soap, but that leftover oils also remain in the soap to help leave the skin conditioned and soft.
While most bar soaps are superfatted, especially those meant for face and body, leftover oils in a liquid soap can cause cloudiness. Because most people are aiming to make a transparent liquid soap like the ones sold in stores, liquid soaps aren’t normally superfatted. In fact, they are normally made with a lye excess and later “neutralized” to bring down the pH from the unreacted lye. You can read more about how to check the pH of soap and how to neutralize liquid soaps here. (The term neutralizing is a bit misleading as it will only bring the pH down slightly to a non-irritating range. You won’t be bringing the soap to a neutral pH. It will still be alkaline.)
You’ll notice that Dr. Bronner’s liquid soap lists citric acid as one of the ingredients. My best guess is that they are using the citric acid to help neutralize their soap so that the pH isn’t too high and doesn’t irritate your skin, all while allowing for a nice, clear, transparent soap.
To simplify things, I’ve calculated all of my liquid soap recipes to be 0% superfatted. Basically that means that if the recipe is followed precisely, you shouldn’t have any unreacted oil or any unreacted lye left.That said, it’s very possible that even if you follow the recipe precisely with a well calibrated scale, that you may have the tiniest bit of one or the other leftover, but it shouldn’t be enough to throw things far enough in either direction to make a big difference. If the soap is slightly cloudy, you may have some unreacted oils, but that will also make for a more conditioning soap. I personally don’t have a problem with cloudy liquid soap, but if it bothers you, you can try making with a lye excess and neutralize the soap later. Or you could go the easy route and use an opaque soap dispenser. (There are some beautiful stainless steel and ceramic ones available.) 😉
If you do end up with some unreacted lye, as long as it isn’t enough to bring the pH high enough so that it irritates the skin, it shouldn’t be a problem. If you find the soap irritating to your skin, though, you can check the pH and try neutralizing the soap. Up until now, I’ve never had an issue with any of my homemade liquid soaps using the recipes I’ve shared with you.
Video
Dr. Bronner’s Unscented Baby-Mild Copycat (Updated Recipe)
When I originally posted this recipe, I used larger quantities of the hemp and jojoba oils. Not only does this make the recipe more expensive to make, but I also found that it made for a cloudier soap.
I had a reader comment to me that she had made all of my liquid soap recipes, and that while the others were crystal clear, this one stayed cloudy for her. Mine was cloudy at first, but then an opaque layer settled out and fell to the bottom of the jar. Neither of us found it to affect the quality of the soap, but I didn’t really find it to improve the soap either. I decided to give you an updated version of the soap, with reduced quantities of the more expensive oils. I’ve found this updated version to much clearer, and I think it behaves similarly to the soap I bought in the store.
For those who want a soap without the hemp and jojoba oils, try the last recipe on this page. I’m guessing it’s perfectly clear and cheaper to make. I’m not convinced that the hemp and jojoba oils are providing any benefit in this soap anyway. (They are likely added for label appeal.)
Dr. Bronner’s Unscented Baby-Mild Copycat (Updated)
Materials
- 28 oz. coconut oil
- 8 oz olive oil
- 1 oz hemp oil
- .5 oz jojoba oil
- 9.4 oz KOH
- 20.2 oz distilled water
- 8 oz glycerin
Instructions
- Weigh out all of the oils and add them to a slow cooker on low heat.
- Weigh out and mix together the distilled water and glycerin.
- Dissolve the Potassium hydroxide (KOH) in the distilled water and glycerin mixture in a well ventilated area. Add the KOH to the water and not the other way around. Use gloves and safety goggles when working with potassium hydroxide. the mixture will heat up and get hot. Avoid inhaling the fumes.
- Add the potassium hydroxide solution to the oils in the slow cooker and begin to slowly mix them together.
- Use an immersion blender to blend the oils and potassium hydroxide solution together. At first it will get opaque and thicken slightly, then it will look curdled. Keep blending!
- Continue blending until it gets more opaque and begins to get too thick to blend with the immersion blender. I stopped blending as soon as I felt too much resistance so as not to burn out the blender, and my soap paste turned more solid almost immediately after I stopped.
- Continue to heat the paste, stirring as best you can with a spatula or spoon every half an hour or so. You want to continue to cook the soap paste until it becomes translucent. A good way to check what your final soap should look like is to dissolve a small amount in some distilled water and see if it dissolves clear. If not, continue to process a little longer. You’ll probably end up cooking the paste for a few hours.
- Once processed, you can store the soap paste in glass jars in a cool, dark place until you are ready to dilute it to make your liquid Castile soap.
- Depending upon how concentrated you want your soap, dissolve the soap paste in distilled water. I usually use somewhere between 2-4 parts water for every 1 part of soap paste. I dissolve small amounts at a time and leave the rest as a soap paste until I need to use it. The soap paste will keep for longer than diluted liquid soap.
- You can now add in any essential oils that you want to use to add a fragrance to your soap, or you can keep in unscented. You can also add in a few drops of tocopherol (vitamin E) at this time.
- Enjoy using your homemade liquid Castile soap.
Notes
- This recipe makes 4-4.5 lbs. of soap paste which can be diluted to 10-20 lbs. of liquid soap, or 1-2 gallons, depending on your dilution rate.
- Keep in mind that liquid soap is not as thick as commercial gels and surfactants. You’ll find that this soap, like Dr. Bronner’s, doesn’t need to look thick to be a concentrated, effective cleanser.
- Find more information about diluting your liquid soap paste here.
- Read more about checking the pH and neutralizing liquid soap here.
Dr. Bronner’s Copycat soap recipe (Original version)
This was my original recipe for this post
Version 1: Dr. Bronner’s Copycat
Ingredients
- 25 oz. coconut oil
- 8 oz olive oil
- 5 oz hemp oil
- 3 oz jojoba oil
- 9.68 oz KOH
- 21.05 oz distilled water
- 8 oz glycerin
Instructions
- Weigh out all of the oils and add them to a slow cooker on low heat.
- Weigh out and mix together the distilled water and glycerin.
- Dissolve the Potassium hydroxide (KOH) in the distilled water and glycerin mixture in a well ventilated area. Add the KOH to the water and not the other way around. Use gloves and safety goggles when working with potassium hydroxide. the mixture will heat up and get hot. Avoid inhaling the fumes.
- Add the potassium hydroxide solution to the oils in the slow cooker and begin to slowly mix them together.
- Use an immersion blender to blend the oils and potassium hydroxide solution together. At first it will get opaque and thicken slightly, then it will look curdled. Keep blending!
- Continue blending until it gets more opaque and begins to get too thick to blend with the immersion blender. I stopped blending as soon as I felt too much resistance so as not to burn out the blender, and my soap paste turned more solid almost immediately after I stopped.
- Continue to heat the paste, stirring as best you can with a spatula or spoon every half an hour or so. You want to continue to cook the soap paste until it becomes translucent. A good way to check what your final soap should look like is to dissolve a small amount in some distilled water and see if it dissolves clear. If not, continue to process a little longer. You’ll probably end up cooking the paste for a few hours.
- Once processed, you can store the soap paste in glass jars in a cool, dark place until you are ready to dilute it to make your liquid Castile soap.
- Depending upon how concentrated you want your soap, dissolve the soap paste in distilled water. I usually use somewhere between 2-4 parts water for every 1 part of soap paste. I dissolve small amounts at a time and leave the rest as a soap paste until I need to use it. The soap paste will keep for longer than diluted liquid soap.
- You can now add in any essential oils that you want to use to add a fragrance to your soap, or you can keep in unscented. You can also add in a few drops of tocopherol (vitamin E) at this time.
- Enjoy using your homemade liquid Castile soap.
Notes
- This recipe makes 4-4.5 lbs. of soap paste which can be diluted to 10-20 lbs. of liquid soap, or 1-2 gallons, depending on your dilution rate.
- Keep in mind that liquid soap is not as thick as commercial gels and surfactants. You’ll find that this soap, like Dr. Bronner’s, doesn’t need to look thick to be a concentrated, effective cleanser.
- Find more information about diluting your liquid soap paste here.
- Read more about checking the pH and neutralizing liquid soap here.
Don’t want to use hemp and jojoba oils at all?…
Multipurpose Liquid Castile Soap (Coconut + Olive Oil)
Some people have been asking me for a soap without hemp and jojoba, so I decided to calculate it out for you. I haven’t personally tried this recipe myself yet, but I imagine it would make a wonderful soap.
Multipurpose Liquid Castile Soap
Ingredients
Instructions
- Weigh out all of the oils and add them to a slow cooker on low heat.
- Weigh out and mix together the distilled water and glycerin.
- Dissolve the Potassium hydroxide (KOH) in the distilled water and glycerin mixture in a well ventilated area. Add the KOH to the water and not the other way around. Use gloves and safety goggles when working with potassium hydroxide. the mixture will heat up and get hot. Avoid inhaling the fumes.
- Add the potassium hydroxide solution to the oils in the slow cooker and begin to slowly mix them together.
- Use an immersion blender to blend the oils and potassium hydroxide solution together. At first it will get opaque and thicken slightly, then it will look curdled. Keep blending!
- Continue blending until it gets more opaque and begins to get too thick to blend with the immersion blender. I stopped blending as soon as I felt too much resistance so as not to burn out the blender, and my soap paste turned more solid almost immediately after I stopped.
- Continue to heat the paste, stirring as best you can with a spatula or spoon every half an hour or so. You want to continue to cook the soap paste until it becomes translucent. A good way to check what your final soap should look like is to dissolve a small amount in some distilled water and see if it dissolves clear. If not, continue to process a little longer. You’ll probably end up cooking the paste for a few hours.
- Once processed, you can store the soap paste in glass jars in a cool, dark place until you are ready to dilute it to make your liquid Castile soap.
- Depending upon how concentrated you want your soap, dissolve the soap paste in distilled water. I usually use somewhere between 2-4 parts water for every 1 part of soap paste. I dissolve small amounts at a time and leave the rest as a soap paste until I need to use it. The soap paste will keep for longer than diluted liquid soap.
- You can now add in any essential oils that you want to use to add a fragrance to your soap, or you can keep in unscented. You can also add in a few drops of tocopherol (vitamin E) at this time.
- Enjoy using your homemade liquid Castile soap.
Notes
- This recipe makes around 5.5 lbs. of soap paste which can be diluted to 12-25 lbs. of liquid soap, or around 2 gallons, depending on your dilution rate.
- Keep in mind that liquid soap is not as thick as commercial gels and surfactants. You’ll find that this soap, like Dr. Bronner’s, doesn’t need to look thick to be a concentrated, effective cleanser.
- Find more information about diluting your liquid soap paste here.
- Read more about checking the pH and neutralizing liquid soap here.
Nishika Malviya
Can I use any of soap recipe above to use as a substitute for my face wash and shampoo??? Please reply
Tracy Ariza
You can use it in any way you use other Castile soaps. I personally choose not to use soap for shampoo because its pH is too high. (You can read about my thoughts in the post about how to make shampoo or how to make a shampoo bar.
Anyela
Hola tracy!!
Me podrÃas decir cuanto y que tipo de conservante utilizar?
He visto que la fórmula de dr bronner lleva ácido cÃtrico.
De ante mano gracias por tu generosidad?.
Tracy Ariza
Hola Anyela,
No hace falta usar ningún conservante para el jabón lÃquido.
El jabón lÃquido se conserva solo por su alto pH.
El jabón de Dr. Bronner’s probablemente lleva ácido cÃtrico porque se habrá usado en el proceso de “neutralizar” el jabón. (Realmente no lo puedes hacer “neutro” porque se separarÃa, pero sà que se puede bajar el pH un poco.)
Esto lo hacen porque normalmente se hace el jabón lÃquido con un exceso de KOH para asegurar que se quede completamente transparente. Después, se arregla, bajando el pH poco a poco hasta el nivel normal de jabón para que no se queme la piel.
Para simplificar el proceso, he hecho que la receta sea muy exacta. No tiene ni exceso de aceites (que puede dejar el jabón nuboso) ni un exceso de KOH (que puede irritar la piel).
Por eso, no le hace falta “Neutralizar” el jabón con ácido cÃtrico después.
Kent Tan
Hi, Tracy
I saw some recipe teaching to dilute the paste by adding the water with the paste in the slow cooker, and slow cook for 8 hours to dilute the paste. But the method you used is by adding the paste with water and left it for few hours, the paste will dilute by itself. What was the reason to slow cook for 8 hours if the paste can dilute on its own..i am abit confused.
Tracy Ariza
Hi Kent,
I think there are some liquid soap pastes that are harder to dissolve. I’ve read that the addition of glycerin can make a soap paste that is much easier to dilute, which is one of the reasons I always use some in my liquid soap recipes.
All of them will probably eventually dissolve without the aid of a slow cooker, but some soap pastes may be much more stubborn than mine.
I’ve never needed the slow cooker, though. 😉
Kent Tan
Tracy, thanks for the reply.
Kent Tan
Hi, doest it make any difference by using pomace olive oil vs extra virgin olive oil, and refined coconut oil vs virgin coconut oil. Or both will get the same results?
Had you tried to add Castor Oil into the recipe? Will that created better liquid soap or worse?
Tracy Ariza
Hi Kent,
I wouldn’t use pomace for this- at least not without adapting the recipe- as it has a different saponification value. You’d need to change the amount of lye used to get a similar result.
That said, you also don’t need to use extra virgin. I usually use EVOO, but only because that’s what I always have on hand in huge containers because I live in Spain. Ha! I can normally get it quite inexpensively by buying in bulk.
You can use an inexpensive olive oil, though, and it doesn’t have to be EVOO. When I go to store to specifically buy olive oil for soap, I don’t normally choose EVOO, unless there is a good as for sale.
As for coconut oil- I use refined. It’s so much cheaper that it makes it a no-brainer for me. Here virgin coconut oil is very, very expensive.
I used to make soap with it because it was the only type of coconut oil I could find, but now I use the refined instead. Either is fine. Just don’t use fractionated coconut oil (or the type with a melting point of 92º), again because of the different saponification value. It would need a different amount of lye.
As for castor oil- I’m not really sure.
In the end, I don’t notice a huge difference between the different liquid soaps, so I haven’t experimented as much as I normally would. With bar soaps, the difference between a soap made with coconut oil and one made with only olive oil is huge! With a liquid soap, the main difference is probably the color! Nowadays I usually make my liquid coconut oil soap just because it’s the cheapest one to make if using a refined coconut oil.
Adding other oils has really only made my soap cloudier.
If you do try with castor oil, you’d have to run the new, adapted recipe through a lye calculator first as the different oils need a different amount of lye.
Kent Tan
Thanks, Tracy. As i only can get pomace and EVOO. Just not sure if the end result will be the same after i adjust the recipe. But if it really make a difference, i guess i had to use EVOO. Even thought it cost more. Is the soap made with EVOO had lot more of benefits than Pomace?
Tracy Ariza
I’m just now noticing I forgot to respond to the last part of your question.
No, I doubt that you’d have a huge difference in quality in the soap. I use an inexpensive, refined coconut oil because it’s a lot cheaper. I used to use virgin coconut oil because it was the only thing I could find. It was expensive, though.
In the end, I don’t notice a difference there.
Pomace may make for a less clear soap, though, maybe? I guess it would depend on its purity. I don’t really know. I’ve never used it.
England Curry
Hi,
Thank you so much for posting this. I am super excited to try it out. I was wondering if I can substitute the jojoba oil for another oil such as grapeseed or omit it all together and add a little more olive oil?
Thank you!!
Tracy Ariza
Hello,
Any changes that you make in the oils used need to be run through a lye calculator (each uses a different amount of lye) and they may completely change the way it turns out. I’ve never used grapeseed oil, so I have no idea what to expect from it in a liquid soap.
If you are avoiding jojoba oil, why not try the 3rd recipe on the page- the one that only uses coconut oil and olive oil. To be honest, I don’t really notice that much of a difference between the different liquid soap recipes. There really isn’t a need for the jojoba and hemp oils. My thought is that they are probably added because they sound good in the ingredient list. 😉
England
That makes sense and I didn’t see that third recipe there, thank you for pointing that out to me. I think I will finally give it a shot 🙂
Tracy Ariza
Great! Yes! I hope it goes well for you!
Peter Narbus
Are Dr Bronner’s oils refined or unrefined? Thanks.
Tracy Ariza
Hi Peter,
Do you mean if you need to use refined oils to make this recipe? Or if the ones in the actual Dr. Bronner’s soap are?
I’m not sure which Dr. Bronner’s uses.
For making this soap, though, you can use either.
Justin
Do I leave the lid on the slow cooker while this is “cooking”? I didn’t see that in the instructions — not sure if it matters or not. Just wanted to make sure.
Thanks!!
Tracy Ariza
Hi Justin,
I guess I should go back and clarify that better. Yes, I tend to cover it during the cooking process. I’m not sure that it really matters, but I figure that if too much water evaporates, it will be harder to cook the paste well. It would probably be fine either way.
I know some people bake the paste in an oven rather than use a slow cooker and it works fine too, so…
😉
Misty
It matters a lot. I let the lid off and It got so hard I couldn’t really stir it. So I left it turned off and went to sleep. Got out, turned it on with the lid and I hope it works out. First time I’ve made it, been several hours and it isn’t dissolving clear. Is it supposed to have a strong smell and look like dark gold paste?
Tracy Ariza, DDS
It depends what you mean by strong smell. Yes, I think this one was more on the gold side. The coconut oil liquid soap is lighter in color.
Brynn Guadamuz
Wow you are so amazing!!! Thank you for all your research and sharing all this good advice!!! I am desperate for a recipe that holds up to Sal Suds without the SLS. Have you found a good copy recipe for sal suds? I’m on a mission to make a great liquid soap and dish soap that foams and cuts grease as well as holding a thicker consistency! I’d love any advice! I am so thankful to find your blog!
Tracy Ariza
Hi Brynn,
Thank you so much. I really appreciate that!! 🙂
I’ve actually been using a copycat of Sal Suds at home for a while now, but it does use SLS-
BUT, I don’t use it for skin care- only for general cleaning around the house.
I have my laundry detergent recipe up on the blog and it’s based on that recipe. I think, though, that I may ditch the preservative and bring the pH up with NaOH instead, which I think is what they do.
SLS is harsh for skin and hair (I never would use it for personal products either), but otherwise is biodegradable and I feel is safe, and I see no issues with it for cleaning. Is there a specific reason that you are trying to avoid it?
All of that said, I will be working on other alternatives. I want to find beneficial products for people all along the spectrum of natural and safe. 🙂
Nadine
Hi, could you please send me the link for your copycat of Sal Suds recipe?
Thanks
Nadine
Tracy Ariza
Hi Nadine,
It’s basically the recipe I have up as a homemade laundry detergent. I need to make a post about using it as “Sal Suds” and giving recommendations for the best ways to use it as a multipurpose cleaner, but for now, you can use that recipe.
Kourtney
Hello. I’ve been making castille soap for quite some time. My castille is liquidy. I haven’t been able to figure out the best natural method for getting it to thicken up to hand soap consistency. Have you ever tired to thicken yours and if so, what methods are you using ? Thank you in advance.
Tracy Ariza
Hi Kourtney,
I normally dispense mine in foam dispensers, so having it be very liquidy isn’t a problem. I do dispense also in dispensers like the ones shown in the pictures, but normally more for using on sponges to wash dishes, etc.
I was waiting to answer you until today because I was going to try to thicken some soap with xanthan gum as I do when making shampoo, but something came up and I never got around to it. I’ll try to remember to come back and let you know how it goes when I get to it. 😉
Andrea
Hey Tracy,
Did you find out how to thicken the soap?
Just about to start “bulk” production for family Christmas gifts 😉
Thank you, and keep going! You’re great 🙂
Love from Switzerland
Tracy Ariza
Hi Andrea,
I guess I should try.
It’s never been something that I’ve cared too much about as I tend to either use it in foaming bottles or in dispensers in such a way that it hasn’t bothered me.
I did try once with salt (as I had read that it could work), but that didn’t work for me.
I’d probably try with a gum like xanthan gum or something like that.
If I do give it a try and am happy with the outcome, I’ll add it to a post. I have plans to make a general post on making liquid soaps with links to all of my recipes and explaining which are my favorites, etc.
larissa
Hi Tracey! This may be an obvious but I’m going to ask anyways! when you dispense /dilute your soap in a foam dispenser, its DOES foam right? I make a foaming hand soap with the dr bronners castile soap. Now I’m wanting to make my own castile soap to cut the cost down (thank you for the helpful recipes/comments) and am wanting to make sure it’ll foam before i order everything …
Tracy Ariza, DDS
Hi Larissa,
Yes, of course!
I love using foam dispensers with this because it does tend to be on the thinner side and I don’t normally try to thicken it. I prefer to add it to a foaming dispenser instead.
Nay
I’m going to attempt to make a medicated version of this .
How long can this paste recipe be preserved for before it spoils ?
When diluting the paste , how long can it Ben preserves for ?
I’m trying to make a small batch medicated cleanser but would like to know how dad tto use it up 🙂 thank you ! This is an amazing recipe I’m excited to try!
Tracy Ariza
Hi Nay,
I’ve had some soap paste that has been sitting around for over a year, and it’s in perfect condition still. It will last a very long time, depending on how and where you store it. As long as you keep it in a cool, dry place, and avoid storing in metal containers, you should be fine.
As for the diluted paste, it also keeps for a very long time. I asked a professional cosmetic formulator about liquid soaps once, and she told me that because of the extreme pH of soap (anything with a pH under 4 or over 9 falls into these categories), it should keep without the need for an added preservative for up to a year.
Nay
Thank you so much for your quick response !!!
So i ran your recipe through a lye calculator (Im trying to fully understand everything and learn how to use the calculator) and since vegetable glycerin isnt a oil it usually isnt listed in ingredients right ?
The calculator calls for 28.2 oz of water but i noticed you had 20.2 oz of water, Is this because 8 oz goes to the vegetable glycerine ? so its considered a liquid ?
Sorry for the previous typos, i was probably breastfeeding with a toddler jumping on me haha.
im going to buy jojoba oil tomorrow but would there be another similar oil that can replace this ?
Tracy Ariza
Yes, the glycerin adds to the total amount of liquid!
You could follow the recipe that only uses coconut oil and olive oil to avoid needing jojoba oil. In all honesty, the only difference I’ve found is that that one is clearer than the one with jojoba and argan oils anyway.