DOES IT MATTER THE LAUNDRY PRODUCT TYPE MY FAMILY USES?
Have you or someone in your family ever had hives or rashes after wearing freshly washed clothing? Due to a lack of information about the type of product you or your family should be using, this is can be a common issue. Many commercial laundry products can smell good, like morning dew or spring rain, but they’re likely to be filled with harmful chemicals like surfactants (chemicals that help water penetrate the fabric), phosphates, and even possible carcinogens, which irritate our skin, invade our lungs and endanger our long-term health. Isn’t it amusing? However, it is true!
As a result, it is suggested that families always be on the lookout for the type of laundry products they want to buy. People with sensitive skin should frequently use gentle cleansers, lotions, and laundry bar soaps. However, switching to a pared-down hypoallergenic alternative with fewer ingredients can help if you or someone in your family has an allergic reaction to certain laundry products. But not to worry: your clothes, bedding, and towels will stay as clean, soft, and new as ever.
Well, to answer the big question. Yes, I believe that when someone heads down the laundry aisle at their grocery supermarket in search of the right kind of laundry product for a household, it may take a little investigation to choose the right brand. However, when buying a laundry product for your family’s use, it is important that they read the laundry product ingredients. This way, they will prevent toxic chemicals while still meeting the needs of each member of their family, which is highly important for children and those with delicate skin.
Having said that, certain members of a family, such as infants, who have highly sensitive skin, maybe allergic to some of these additives. When handling laundry for a baby, the most important thing to remember is to wash everything before it comes into contact with the baby’s skin.
This is why many new parents purchase special laundry products for washing their infant’s clothing. These special detergents are usually scent-free and contain fewer ingredients that could irritate sensitive skin.
What type of laundry detergent is the most effective for a family?
After all, being said, you may be thinking to yourself, “Which is the best laundry product to use?”
Well, each product has its own set of benefits and drawbacks. The product you choose will depend on personal preference and which you find most convenient to use and effective based on the brand and the types of laundry loads you do. Here are the most common forms of laundry products there is.
POWDER
Photo credit: Cleanipedia Town
Powder detergent was the first form of laundry detergent to be produced, and it is usually less costly than liquid and single-dose equivalents. This type of detergent works best on outdoor stains like dirt, clay, or turf, so it’s ideal for your child’s sports jerseys, gardening clothing, and more. To prevent clumping, the powder must be kept in a fully dry environment. Even, if you prefer to wash in cold water, keep in mind that certain powders cannot dissolve entirely, and this can cause unnecessary residue to accumulate on your clothing.
LIQUID
Photo: Tracy Ariza The Things Well Make
The most common form of detergent is a liquid detergent, which works especially well on oil and greasy stains. It can also be used as a pre-treater, and there’s no need to worry about it not dissolving. However, don’t forget to use the right amount: The lines on the measurement caps are there for a reason, even though they are still difficult to see. If you use too much, the pump can oversuds, the soap may not drain out until the operation is over, or it may even shut down. If you use so little, your clothes will not be clean. Trust us when we say that using the recommended volume yields better results.
BAR SOAPS
Bars are as good or even better than other washing products primarily because they are cost-efficient and because they contain wonderful natural ingredients that should be the priority of any family.
The extract of the bar soaps consists of natural purifications agents such as oils, lye, and fat along with other active ingredients for each type of skin, such as dry skin, oily skin, or allergic skin. This incredible laundry product does not require several steps in how it is used or how much to apply to a laundry making it more appropriate more suitable for vast purposes rather than just clothing.
SINGLE DOSE
Single-dose packs are handy, but they cost a bit more on average. You won’t have to think about having too little or too much detergent because the liquid or powder detergent is already pre-measured. For average-sized loads, one pack is recommended, and two packs are recommended for heavy or highly soiled loads. For really small loads, one pack can be too many, and you never want to split them. Bear in mind that some packs can have difficulty dissolving in some machines, particularly at lower water temperatures, so add the packs before the clothing.
Few newer devices have dedicated parts in the dispenser drawer for these packets, allowing them to melt more easily and with less water. Last but not least, keep your packets out of reach of girls, pets, and anybody else who may be tempted to eat them or use them for anything other than laundry.
TAKE AWAY
That extra minutes spent in the grocery store glancing at the back of laundry products’ packing, could very well help make a difference to whether or not you run the risk of a family member having an allergic reaction and suffering by merely putting on freshly laundered clothes.
For people starting this investigative research for the first time, browsing the internet should be a high priority. Any word or ingredients you don’t know or understand Bing or Google knows better and it’s always available to assist you.
It is also advisable to purchase a wide range of laundry products as it plays a different role in all forms of cleaning.
soap making: all you need to know!
I know you must have one day sat to think about the magic behind soaps. How a small object could perform the huge function of removing tough stains leaving only sparkles right?
Here, I am going to break down the process of what’s behind that uniqueness in soaps, that uniqueness that changes the appearance of anything or anyone that comes in contact with it in an instant. But before we hop right into that, the big question is:
What exactly is a soap?
A fatty acid of a salt.
A Cleanser and lubricant.
A surfactant and emulsifier.
In a simple term, soap is a cleaning agent and cleaning agents are objects with the potentials of removing stains, not just stains, deep and tough stains. Soaps wouldn’t be soap all by itself. The chemical mixture making up soap produces that unique quality in combating tough stains.
Dating back to 2800 B.C, the ancient people of Babylonia were the first people on earth to produce soap. Their recipe for achieving that was animal fats, wood ash, and water. Ever since then, there has been a huge scientific revolution in the production of soap.
Although, the basic recipe of soap hasn’t changed after then. It remains the combination of fat with an alkali, a basic ionic salt, and water.
The only added procedure is the scientific process called saponification. Saponification is the mixture the ingredients go through to produce soap.
What are the various types of soap?
- Kitchen soap
- Beauty soap
- Perfume soap
- Medicated Soap
- Laundry soap
1) Kitchen soap: these are washing soaps used mainly for dishes and kitchen utensils. They are mostly in liquid forms and always have in them perfume additive.
2) Beauty soap: Beauty soaps are designed specifically for beauty purposes. Beauty soaps mostly contain chemicals with the potential to resuscitate dead cells in our skin. Also added to beauty soaps are perfume additives that produce nice skin fragrances after wash.
3) Perfume soap
Perfume soaps are produced with perfume additives above every other ingredient. The back door intention of producing a perfumed soap is to produce attractive fragrances after use.
4) Medicated soap
Medicated soaps are similar to original soaps. Unlike original soap, medicated soaps are produced with antiseptics and disinfectants.
They have added ingredients like triclosan or triclocarban that can penetrate bacterial cell membranes and kill the bacteria.
5) Laundry soap
Laundry soaps are watching engines. Unlike other soaps, washing soaps tend to boost fabrics and restore loss features to clothes.
They are specifically designed for laundering purposes.
How exactly does soap work?
From a chemical reaction called saponification. Soaps are sodium, produced from the hydrolysis of fats. Found in each soap molecule, is a long hydrocarbon chain, which is sometimes referred to as ‘tail’ and carboxylate, which is also referred to as ‘head’.
In water, the sodium ions float free, leaving a negatively-charged head. The organic part of natural soap is a negatively-charged polar molecule. Its water-loving (hydrophilic) carboxylate group interacts with water molecules, via ion-dipole interactions and hydrogen bonding.
The water-fearing (hydrophobic) part of a soap molecule does not interact with water molecules. The hydrocarbon chains are attracted to each other by dispersion forces and cluster together, forming structures called micelles.
In these micelles, the carboxylate group forms a negatively-charged spherical surface, with the hydrocarbon chains inside the sphere. Because they are negatively charged, soap micelles repel each other and remain dispersed in water.
Oil and Grease fall into the category of substances that are nonpolar and insoluble in water. So when soap and soiling oils are mixed, the nonpolar oil molecules are broken up by the nonpolar hydrocarbon portion of the micelles.
This engagement then produces a different type of micelle, having nonpolar soiling molecules in the middle. Thus, grease and oil and the ‘dirt’ attached to them are caught inside the micelle and can be rinsed away.
Soap making ingredients
The essential requirements for soap making are three items:
To create a soap you need oil, water, and lye. Although, other chemicals may come in later to key in a certain result. But the three chemicals listed above are the foundation for any soap making process. The chemical reaction between these ingredients turns into soap.
➢ Animal fat or vegetable oil.
➢ 100 percent pure lye.
➢ Distilled water.
➢ Skin-safe fragrance oils (optional)
➢ Colorants (optional)
➢ Preservatives (optional)
1) Animal fat or vegetable oil
Excluding petroleum oil, the soap making process starts with any oil, be it animal, vegetable, or fat. Traditional soaps were specifically made with the most available oils/fats. The tallow is an excellent recipe for soaps. However, the technical advancement experienced by commercial soap industries over the years replaced a huge portion of tallow previously used for soap production with vegetable oil.
Every chemical mixture has its own unique effect on the end product of a soap. Different oil comes with different foamy bubbles. For example, the end product of a soap developed from Olive oil is always hard, with bubbles that are small and slick.why coconut oil, on the other hand, produces big fluffy bubbles and not too hard soap.
The Importance of oil in soap making process
Oils are an extremely important component in the soap making process. Without oil (or fatty acids of oils), the saponification reaction can’t take place. Saponification is the reaction from mixing these oils with an alkaline. Commonly this is Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) or Potassium Hydroxide (KOH).
2) Pure lye.
Iye is an important ingredient in the soap making process. No Iye, No soap. The reaction between the mixture of Iye and oil through a process called saponification produces what is called soap. Immediately the reaction is completed every Iye is converted into soap.
Traditionally, the two types of lye used for soap making are :
• Sodium hydroxide.
• Potassium hydroxide
Potassium hydroxide is used to make liquid soap. why Sodium hydroxide is used to make solid soap. The combination of both produces a cream soap.
3) Natural water
Water is used to produce the Iye solution that is mixed with oil to give you soap.
The variability of water is based on the specific soap recipe. But the quantity must be enough to allow a smooth mixture of the iye and oil to give the expected result, which is soap.
4) Skin-safe Fragrance Oils (optional)
Fragrance oil blends may include essential oils or artificial compounds that are produced in a laboratory but have the same molecular structure as those found in nature. Fragrance oils are synthesized from aromatic chemical compounds which are then blended to produce the required scents. Soap scents, such as jasmine, lilac, or roses are usually made with fragrance oil as an essential oil.
5) Colors
Color is the ingredient used for changing the physical looks of an object. Any ingredient used for changing the physical look of something must be approved by the FDA. FDA stands for food and drug administration. In soap or cosmetics, the FDA must approve all colorants for the specific use. For example, some colorants are not approved to be used on lips, others may also not be approved to be used on eye products. In addition to color additives, there are some other ingredients that may affect the end product’s physical look. For example, the addition of French green clay to soap production will cause it to have a green color, cinnamon will turn the soap brown and paprika will turn it orange. These ingredients aren’t referred to as colorants, because the root intention for inclusion isn’t to change color, but rather to add features, but they, in turn, add to the coloration of the soap.
6) Preservatives
Every soap needs a form of preservative measure to keep in good shape and avoid loss of properties for a long time. Some liquid soap, which has a high proportion of water, may require preservatives. Although, soaps, made from oil, lye, and water, don’t generally require preservatives.
Tools used for soap making
➢ A small bowl that is large enough to hold the lye.
➢ A rubber glove.
➢ An apron is also useful.
➢ A wooden spoon.
➢ A mold.
➢ An accurate measurement scale.
➢ Plastic film or parchment paper.
The soap making process
There are two processes of making soaps. The two processes are :
★ The Cold process
★ The Hot process
Although, the differences between both processes aren’t much.
Steps on how to produce soap, using the cold method soap making formula.
➢ Set up your mold and line it with a plastic or parchment paper. Put on your goggles and gloves for safety measures.
➢ After setting up your mold, you have to carefully measure your lye in line with other additive and put it in a small bowl. Add the lye slowly into the little bowl until the right amount is measured.
➢ Make sure the water is rightly Measured in the small Pyrex measuring cups. Use cold water.
➢ Slowly pour the lye into the water while stirring with a stainless steel spoon. As you pour the lye into the cold water the water will heat up.
➢ Make sure you Stir the lye till the solution is clear before letting it cool.
➢ While your lye is cooling, measure the fats you are using. ( It is pertinent to note that Scaling your recipe is very important for the purpose of moderation.)
➢ Put your fats in a stainless steel pot, or Pyrex. You can use a slow cooker if you plan to cook the soap later for a hot process.
➢ The fat and the lye should be quite close in temperature and about 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
➢ Gently and slowly pour your lye solution into the fat. Make sure it doesn’t splash. Gently mix with your spoon or silicone spatula. The solution will start turning milky right away.
➢ Rinse your lye containers and spoons. Tidy any bits that have fallen or splashed.
➢ Using your mixer, you can start mixing the fat/lye mixture. Make sure you mix at a pace that you can control easily to avoid splash. Your pot should be the right size so you can diligently mix the iye and fat.
➢ After a minute or so the mixture will start thickening.
➢ If you are mixing by hand it will take much longer for you to reach the soft trace stage. ( All vegetable oil soap is slower than part of animal fats.)
➢ At this point, it is the perfect time to add your scent or color if you are using any. It is also the time to add any extra oil you want to make your soap more moisturizing.
➢ At this stage, you should start putting the soap into the mold. Tap it a few times to get rid of bubbles. You need to be very careful when doing this because all the lye is not used up yet and the soap can be quite corrosive.
➢ Cover the mold with plastic wrap and leave in a warm spot for a day.
➢ By the next day, your soap is formed. Check your soap. It should have hardened up. If it’s hard enough, take it out of the mold and cut it in bars. If it’s soft still, let it sit in a warm place some more.
Steps on how to produce soap, using the Hot method soap making formula.
The hot method soap making formula is otherwise known as the quick method because it allows for immediate usage of produced soap. In the hot method soap making formula, the saponification process is fully complete immediately after cooking. The mixed ingredients become harder as soon as it is cooled, immediately giving the expected result.
They aren’t obvious differences in the finished product, except for the rough top of soaps produced with the hot process soap making formula.
➢ The first stage is to mix all ingredients.
➢ After the mixture of all ingredients, put it on the coker and turn it on a low setting.
➢ Don’t mix it or do anything to it after it has started heating.
➢ Peek occasionally and you will see a ring of jelly-like translucent goop gradually forming on the top.
➢ When the whole batch is translucent turn off the cooker and lets the soap cool.
➢ When it is comfortable to touch but not cold, you can mix in other additives like scent or colorants.
➢ Work quickly to mix this together, then spoon the soap into your mold. Tap your mold as you fill it to get rid of bubbles. If it’s cold enough, it will start to immediately, if it’s too hot and soft it will burn off any scent you add.
➢ The soap gets hard immediately its cool enough. Harder than cold process soap and can be used immediately.
The most important difference between the hot process soap making formula and the cold process soap making formula is that :
• Hot water is used for soap production in the hot process soap making formula.
• Cold water is used for production in the Cold process soap making formulas.
Recent Posts
Does Laundry Soap Boost Your Fabrics
You may tend to ponder, what really are the residuals or long-run results of laundry soap effectiveness? Does it boost or deteriorate the quality of your fabrics each time it demands a physical point of touch?
This is a necessity to analyze before choosing what kind of laundry soap an individual or a family at large would need.
However, it is always advisable to have a full knowledge of whatever engagements you are having in all aspects of life so you can boldly spell out in full the pros and cons of its effects.
At this junction, I think it’s important to have a full break down in details of what laundry soap is really all about. Soaps for laundry are cleaning agent which plays a vital but secret role when it comes to any form of cleaning.
These magnificent agent aids in getting rid of tough stains and toxic contaminants leaving individuals and environment awesomely clean.
You may tend to wonder what sort of magic spells this form of products could be made of!
Well every laundry soap manufacturer has its secret unique formula for their products which could be made of several chemicals unknown not to many and combined into one body to form a laundry solution.
Several types of laundry soaps are differentiated by its features, features that are separated by ingredients which with Proper application of the needed ingredients will produce the expected result which is cleanliness in its fullest.
Now back to the big question, does laundry soap boost your fabric?
The answer to this question is a bit dicey because to keep the condition of some fabric, silk, and wools, in particular, it requires some sort of actions that can’t be found in all soaps.
A creative director Nameg once said “Individual clothes demands individual treatments”.
There are several contents and additives with different functions that improve the effectiveness of laundry soaps. These additives work collectively with others to give laundry soaps an overall quality. In essence, there are loads of laundry products that are formulated to boost fabrics.
Aside from choosing the grounds of stains removal, it is also important to have in mind that laundry soap is a tool for increasing a fabric life span. There are some essential ingredients to always look out for in any product before making a choice.
Once these ingredients are contained and combined with little additives known as laundry boosters, the entire life span of a fabric is boosted. This is why MEMA laundry soap has tons of recommendations across miles. It has just the spell to do the trick, from taking off difficult stains to boosting them and adding finesse as a fragrance! More reason it’s highly recommendable.
Lastly here’s a quick reminder, before the application of laundry soap, all dark fabrics’ clothes should be washed with cold water. Soaking a dark fabric with hot water could reduce its physical touch. Laundry soaps containing enzymes are better options to boost a fabric and also to remove an oil stain.
Recent Posts
How Soap kills Covid19 in its Little Way
Early this year, the world woke up to the news of a virus that has continued to ravage every country, town, and world cities.
Today, every health institution in the world, including the WHO, has been thrown into intensive research to arrive at a cure for the coronavirus. Countries like France have come to promise a cure which they have pledged will be ready in eight months from March 2020.
We have also seen the positive development in the production of the COVID-19 vaccines, as well as the embattled cure from Madagascar.
Though there are high hopes that the cure will arrive soon, but for now, the little we can do is to stick to the preventions as advised by the World Health Organization (WHO). Of all the precautions they had advised, the commonest ones are maintaining social distancing and hands-washing.
But in as much as maintaining social distancing is a great way to start, washing of hands has been said to be quite beneficial because it can also prevent other illnesses that can be transferred through the exact means.
Well, this piece is meant to deliberate more on how soaps help us in its little way to prevent the COVID-19 virus. But also note that the fact we are emphasizing on hand washing does not mean that social distancing is not important.
How Does Soap play a vital role in the Prevention of Coronavirus?
It is also important to note that viruses are often small adhesive nanoparticles domicile in the palm’s crevices. Therefore making use of just water washes off only the dirt, so sometimes, chemicals are needed to get rid of both viruses and bacteria. This is why soaps are very much recommended while washing your hands at these moments in time.
But unfortunately, not all Soaps can do the trick; it is advised that people need to wash their hands with either antiseptic or medicated Soap each time they are out from a public environment.
This is the sure way to be certain that coronavirus infested hands are safe and the spread of the pandemic is reduced to the minimal.
In addition, to obtain a successful result, you must spare at least 20 seconds of your time performing this task; scrubbing your hands thoroughly with soaps because viruses such as the COVID can cover themselves with what looks like an oily lipid membrane. Therefore taking time to wash gives room to the chemicals from these soaps to penetrate the lipid membrane, just like a nail piercing a tube tire, it punctures these oily protective shield leaving the virus vulnerable in its shrinking RNA sack. You have to remember that even while this oily membrane can be broken with alcohol, washing your hands with Soap has proved to be tougher on shrinking bacteria and viruses on human skin, a characteristic attributed to the double nature of soap molecules.
The virus has a characteristic of a hydrophilic, stretching its head out to bond with the incoming water approaching its surface. Its tail is retracted inwards, protecting itself from the incoming water. So, scrubbing every part of your hands while washing is a sure way of getting rid of these viruses for good. Again, it doesn’t matter if the water is hot or cold; all you need is to be thorough in scrubbing and making sure your hands are soapy.
You also have to know that the skin is naturally wrinkly; hence, it takes time for soaps to sink in every tiny little fold, down to where these viruses are stuck. So for the Soap to effectively do its job, it needs a few moments to soak in its chemical elements. It’s like showing up in a new neighborhood full of strange faces; you are bound to take your time and relate with the environment before you can be able to make an impact.
So that’s how it works, the Soap takes time to circulate its chemicals round the skin for at most 20 seconds before effectively doing its job.
Finally, we must accept that the coronavirus pandemic is here; it is up to us as individuals to find ways of either coping with it or surrendering to it. But at the same time, we have to stick to some of the health experts’ simple guidelines which one of them is washing your hands (right) with soap and water. Keep going safe before a permanent solution comes in. Good luck!