Kris10Tackles Posted April 15, 2023 Share Posted April 15, 2023 I’m back with a new question! As I was doing some wool washing, I noticed my bottle of wool wash was getting low and I happened to look at the ingredients. I stopped in my tacks when I read Sodium Hydroxide. All of other ingredients are normal soaping oils and so with the addition of lye how is it liquid and can I figure out how to make a batch for myself? ingredients: coconut oil, palm kernel oil, mountain spring water, usp lanolin, sodium hydroxide, castor oil, olive oil, jojoba oil, avocado oil, hemp seed oil, essential oils. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted April 16, 2023 Share Posted April 16, 2023 It could be as simple as a bar soap that has been diluted into lots of water. what type of wool are you washing? Raw fleece for spinning? Wool clothing? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olivebaneweb Posted April 18, 2023 Share Posted April 18, 2023 Sodium Hydroxide, also known as lye, is commonly used in soap making to saponify oils and create soap. In the case of wool wash, it is likely used as a pH adjuster to make the product more effective at cleaning wool fibers. If you're interested in making your own wool wash, I recommend doing some research on soap making and experimenting with different recipes until you find one that works well for you. Just make sure to take the necessary safety precautions when working with lye! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris10Tackles Posted April 18, 2023 Author Share Posted April 18, 2023 On 4/16/2023 at 4:54 PM, TallTayl said: It could be as simple as a bar soap that has been diluted into lots of water. what type of wool are you washing? Raw fleece for spinning? Wool clothing? That’s what I was wondering but didn’t know if that was actually a thing. It would be for my wool sweaters… because of course that is also one of my other hobbies. 10 minutes ago, olivebaneweb said: Just make sure to take the necessary safety precautions when working with lye! Lol yes, I’m familiar with lye (both kinds) and have been making soap for about a year and half. Still learning but very familiar with the safety requirements. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted April 21, 2023 Share Posted April 21, 2023 You knit? I bow to you. do you spin too? I would think bar soap would be rather hard on the wool fibers. Maybe it is so diluted that isn’t an issue for that bottle? You can make a small batch of your bar soap using those oils and see if you come close. Bar soap diluted for laundry can get a weird slimy/snotty consistency. You might be able to dilute enough that it will have a better feel. the ingredient list, if all ingredients are listed in correct order, show it has quite a bit of lanolin in it. The lanolin is higher in the list than lye, so that gives you a starting point for your formula. Coconut oil is very cleansing, as i palm kernel. From a fatty acid profile, both coconut and palm kernel are interchangeable. You could use one, the other or both and achieve a similar end product. if that is a liquid, then the water in the list is for the bar soap, not a liquid. The other oils are minimal likely 3-5% or less. Probably label appeal moreso than functional. You can easily make small batches of single oils, then grate them into water at different proportions to test them in different combinations. I can picture you as a mad scientist 👩🔬 We use different cleansers for prepping our raw fleeces for spinning. bar soap can sometimes clean too well, leaving the fibers in rough shape or sticky. Plain old coconut oil bar soap cleans up some filthy tips! Orvus paste is often used on natural fibers. It’s a shampoo for live stock that is primarily sodium laurel sulfate. Not sure why people think it is “gentle”, but quilters seem to love it too. it’s not too much different than Dawn blue original in cleansing abilities. Used very sparingly I bet either can gently cleanse a garment. We all use oo much detergent, don’t we? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris10Tackles Posted September 1, 2023 Author Share Posted September 1, 2023 On 4/20/2023 at 9:18 PM, TallTayl said: You knit? I bow to you. do you spin too? I would think bar soap would be rather hard on the wool fibers. Maybe it is so diluted that isn’t an issue for that bottle? You can make a small batch of your bar soap using those oils and see if you come close. Bar soap diluted for laundry can get a weird slimy/snotty consistency. You might be able to dilute enough that it will have a better feel. the ingredient list, if all ingredients are listed in correct order, show it has quite a bit of lanolin in it. The lanolin is higher in the list than lye, so that gives you a starting point for your formula. Coconut oil is very cleansing, as i palm kernel. From a fatty acid profile, both coconut and palm kernel are interchangeable. You could use one, the other or both and achieve a similar end product. if that is a liquid, then the water in the list is for the bar soap, not a liquid. The other oils are minimal likely 3-5% or less. Probably label appeal moreso than functional. You can easily make small batches of single oils, then grate them into water at different proportions to test them in different combinations. I can picture you as a mad scientist 👩🔬 We use different cleansers for prepping our raw fleeces for spinning. bar soap can sometimes clean too well, leaving the fibers in rough shape or sticky. Plain old coconut oil bar soap cleans up some filthy tips! Orvus paste is often used on natural fibers. It’s a shampoo for live stock that is primarily sodium laurel sulfate. Not sure why people think it is “gentle”, but quilters seem to love it too. it’s not too much different than Dawn blue original in cleansing abilities. Used very sparingly I bet either can gently cleanse a garment. We all use oo much detergent, don’t we? Ooof, for some reason I never saw this reply. 😔 I also almost to the end of my purchased bottle of wool wash. It’s really time to start thinking ahead. I went back to Twig & Horn site today and saw they now have wool soap in bar form. 💡💡with the thought of I can totally do that! Instructions say to fill a basin, lather your hands and then gently squeeze into suds through your garment. Add more soap as needed. Soak for 15 min. Rinse lightly, if desired (rinse not necessary. Block. Dry. Enjoy. Okay easy enough so I looked at the ingredient list for the bar… Sodium palmate, sodium cocoate, water, glycerin, lanolin, salt, olive fruit oil, coconut oil, rice bran oil, avocado oil, citric acid. 🤔At first wondered why only two were listed as saponified. Then it dawned on me, are they using a melt and pour base and then adding in the extra oils? It also looks like they reformulated their liquid wool soap and are using KOH but I think I’d much rather use a bar form. I do knit (even though it’s been a minute) but I don’t spin but that sounds like it would be really fun! Lol a mad 👩🏻🔬with no background in science 🤪. Maybe it’s time to change that as I really want to understand the whys. 🤔 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NightLight Posted September 3, 2023 Share Posted September 3, 2023 Couldn’t you make liquid soap and dilute heavily for wool wash? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris10Tackles Posted September 5, 2023 Author Share Posted September 5, 2023 On 9/3/2023 at 5:05 AM, NightLight said: Couldn’t you make liquid soap and dilute heavily for wool wash? I could but I like the idea of a solid bar and just lathering what I need per wash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris10Tackles Posted October 18, 2023 Author Share Posted October 18, 2023 Winter is coming (I know, I know those of you in the Midwest are laughing at me and my coast nor Ca “winter”) and it’s I’m finally ready to forge ahead on a wool wash soap. My jar of lanolin arrived yesterday. I’ve played around with quantities in the Soap Genie App and I think I might have a jumping off point. i did notice the addition of glycerin in the newer version of Twig & Horn’s wool wash bar. So at least I know if I’m not completely happy with this bar I can always shred it down add some glycerine. You know, options. Hopefully I won’t have to do that but we’ll see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted October 18, 2023 Share Posted October 18, 2023 both palm kernel and coconut have very similar properties in soap. You could likely use one or the other. Have fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris10Tackles Posted October 19, 2023 Author Share Posted October 19, 2023 9 hours ago, TallTayl said: both palm kernel and coconut have very similar properties in soap. You could likely use one or the other. Have fun! Oh man I wish I would have seen this earlier 🤦🏻♀️. I only did both because that was on the label of the wool wash I already have. But now it makes me wonder why they used both if they are similar? it’s funny it’s only a small loaf, and I’m planning to cut into 8 1/2 bars. Between me and the two friends I make soap with I’m like um I need to find more people in my circle who wear wool lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TallTayl Posted October 19, 2023 Share Posted October 19, 2023 I’m sure it will be fine. 🌞 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris10Tackles Posted October 19, 2023 Author Share Posted October 19, 2023 7 minutes ago, TallTayl said: I’m sure it will be fine. 🌞 I just un molded and cut it. It felt good and cut easily, it wasn’t over sticky or soft. It definitely has a slightly different feel but it probably should with the lanolin. I can’t wait to actually try it out and wash something! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris10Tackles Posted October 19, 2023 Author Share Posted October 19, 2023 Look how cute they are 🥰😆 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kris10Tackles Posted October 19, 2023 Author Share Posted October 19, 2023 lol I couldn’t wait. I washed two of my sweaters. It worked great… just like the bottle I have. I’m so happy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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