Also, noticed that it leaves my underarms dry and will not smell for like two days. I started making my own soap years ago and finally settled on a formula using partially hydrogenated soybean oil, coconut oil, and a touch of olive oil. That makes so much more sense! The results are consistent and the fragrance is not overpowering. The stain will probably look worse, eeks, but at least you can easily see where you put the soap. May depend on water temperature used and water conditions in your area. I thought they were before I purchased them. I also learned about Fels Naphtha Soap and tried it. B.) Another WordPress.com blog, but this one is Copyright © 2009-2018 Debora Kapke (sharing is okay with attribution though, contact for commercial use). Most homemade laundry soap recipes call for a bar of Fels-Naptha soap, but Fels-Naptha soap is NOT a natural product so I don’t use it any more.The reasoning behind this decision is my recent discovery that Fels-Naptha includes ingredients such as titanium dioxide (a carcinogen) that aren’t so healthful for the body.. I saw both bars at the store today and was searching to find the ingredients! My sister in law makes her own detergent with Zote, Borax and Super Washing Soda. Once cool, add 15 drops of lemon essential oil and 10 drops oftea tree oil. Amazingly you should be able to use any of these on laundry, but A.) It was soft enough to rub directly onto the spot or stain with no water. Expensive liquids and powders left behind several spots and stains that both bars have busted. Experiment to see what works for you. It’s a has a light fresh scent, the smell does not stay in the clothing past a day or so. Bernadette says. Perhaps the bars are already more skin-friendly as they’re really just classic soap and not not a blend of strong detergents. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. CONSISTENCY/TEXTURE: firm but pliable, like slightly warmed candle wax In its 2007 material safety data sheet, Dial Corp. states that Fels-Naptha can irritate the eyes and, with prolonged exposure, the skin. Livestrong.com also explains some of the soap’s ingredients: “Fels-Naptha contains soap consisting of sodium tallowate and sodium cocoate or sodium palmate kernelate and sodium palmate. Your timing is perfect. Would you mind sharing your recipe? The Fels family were … Required fields are marked *. Has anyone tried making a homemade laundry detergent using Zote bar soap in place of Fels Naptha? I’ll update all the links, below, as time allows (if posssible). I still find both bars to be preferable to most liquid laundry detergents. When I found the Zote bars, I also saw a box of pink Zote pieces that said it was not to be used in HE washers. Presumably the tallow is a secondary product of the meat industry and cows aren’t actually slaughtered for the exclusive purpose of making laundry soap. Looking for a vegan suitable bar? My hubby likes them because he doesn’t have to mix or measure, just throw in one for a small load, two for a large load. We’ll be using Zote for the laundry now without mixing in anything else. I really do. Fels Naptha is my go to and is the best I've found for getting things clean. May depend on water temperature used and water conditions in your area. (Maybe a little too much fun for some of us.) You can also put smaller slices into the microwave and zap a couple minutes until the soap foams up. ★★★ Fels Naptha Vs Castile Soap Which Cleans Better In Home Made Laundry Detergent Laundry Detergent And Water Exothermic Reaction Alma Laundry Detergent Gain Ultra Powder Laundry Detergent Original 206 Oz 180 Loads Best Essential Oil … It will look a lot like shaving cream is growing out of the piece of soap. My fingers had bar soap on their mind. My arm muscles got a nice mini workout from grating Zote, but it doesn’t feel like they’re about to fall off. Fels-Naptha soap was first created by Fels & Company of Philadelphia in the late 19th century. I LOVE this tip, Kat! A body wash, however, would have a much higher water contend, and I fear oats would just provide food for mold and bacteria to grow… But I could be wrong. You are correct for the most part. Jul 9, 2020 - Fels Naptha vs Zote - the true laundry challenge- learn the difference between the two and which one cleans better after extensive testing Other tallow-free soaps include Dr. Bronner’s, Kiss My Face, Burt’s Bees, and Zum Bar. Kirk's and Dr. Bonner's are two brands that DIY … Change ), BAR FIGHT: Fels Naptha vs Zote Laundry Bar Soap, https://alightningbug.org/2016/09/23/zote-soap-in-english/, recipe for Homemade Laundry Detergent here, Check out the list of other uses for Zote, Dirty Laundry Come Clean: A Homemade Laundry Detergent Recipe | alightningbug, What kind of freak uses laundry BAR soap? She writes about making healthy decisions that honor God and happen to help the environment at, While I view Fels-Naptha as a trickier judgment call than. 🙂 Any more info and advice would be super helpful! It is most effective on oil-based stains such as body soil (aka accidents! In 1895 Joseph Fels acquired the rights to a new soap-making process that "fixed a naphtha or benzine solvent" into the laundry soap. If I could use it, I would. I will have to wait until someone is going to the USA on holiday before I can have my first Bar. Fels-Naptha does contain titanium dioxide – Livestrong.com states that the mineral contaminates oceans and lakes, yet the U.S. Food and Drug Administration deems it safe for food and cosmetics and personal care products like sunscreen and toothpaste. April 24, 2010 by farmdreams. Hi Susan, I don’t actually make a body wash from Zote or Fels Naptha. Updated 8/10/2014 to add a link to my recipe for homemade laundry detergent (above). However, brighteners probably wouldn’t actually cover most stains. It also said: “… are chemical compounds that absorb light in the ultraviolet and violet region (usually 340-370 nm) of the electromagnetic spectrum, and re-emit light in the blue region (typically 420-470 nm) by fluorescence.”, The optical brighteners are used in place of bluing, that was historically, to whiten clothes. My cloth diapers have never been cleaner! Hilary Kimes Bernstein is a Christ follower, wife, mama, and journalist. Can’t make any soap at all without chemicals. They have different properties and do different things for laundry. And they don’t fight each other, but they do fight tough stains and dirt! I started adding Zote to the mix and found that if Zote and Fels Naptha are NOT both in the mix, I itch to kingdom come from Zote. Thank you again, Kimber! I have a large one that contained flavored popcorn and it’s a great size for a large batch. I hung around until I heard the MPs coming. Ever since I use Zote for my face and underarms. Basically DIY Laundry Detergent nay sayers claim that soap is not made for washing clothes unless we’re going old school with a washing board. Pentasodium pentetate and/or tetrasodium etidronate are inorganic salts used as emulsifiers and dispersing agents. Thank you for visiting and good luck with the soap! Even though it’s been sold for more than a hundred years, I never heard of Fels-Naptha bar soap until I started making my own laundry detergent four years ago. I posed your question to Facebook fans, and received three answers: “I use Zote for a lot of things at home, but I don’t know about the septic system aspect of it, we have city sewer. When I use this pure Castile bar, it feels like such a traditional (and Italian) way of bathing. Pretty sure they mean bath soap (body bar soap) when the say toilet soap. Thank you! But it is hard for me to find a commercial liquid laundry detergent that doesn’t make me itchy. I’m all for saving some time, so I may have to give the blender a try. Really, virtually everything is made of chemicals. Until I read this Reply thread on my actual laptop/desktop computer I didn’t realize that you’d asked the commenter above you for the body wash recipe. You could use Kirk’s Castile bar soap to make a more reasonably priced bar soap and I’ll post that soon. We can not Buy Borax in the shop’s over here either. Especially considering I wash almost exclusively with cold water. Fels-Naptha, Castille Soap, Zote, and even Ivory soap are the most popular bars for laundry. Certain brands – mainly some of the softer, puffier ones – aren’t great for septic. Use Fels Naptha is clean dishes! DIY Laundry Soap {Castile Soap Laundry Detergent} In the past, I’ve tried different homemade laundry detergent recipes but I’ll be honest. It may react with the metal and cause rust or corrosion because there is moisture in the soap and soap is a base (alkaline). There were some really hideous stains at the underarm area of a cream-color, short sleeve sweater I rather like. It’s citronella, but not like a patio candle. If you have questions let me know. I’ll start flushing yeast down the drain to help our septic! Allow the soap/water mixture to cool. Make dish soap – Just like laundry soap, you can use Fels Naptha Soap to make dish soap. My own soap gelled in the bucket haphazardly, but the Zote gelled all the way to the bottom. I love liquid Castile soap, but it’s not cheap. is a plus over larger bulky laundry soap containers. Not sure yet if the new website is in English. Abby Avery. I bought a case of the soap and loved smelling the fragrance – both when I made the soap and then when I used it when washing clothes. I switched back to a natural liquid detergent but I know I’m spending more money this way. Hil, I’ve always used Ivory in my homemade laundry soap. So, really, cut maybe 1/16 off and then zap that. Using the blender makes it a total snap and I do a double batch which lasts us over a month (three people). Can I use a tin storage container (like the Christmas ones for holding goodies) to store this cleaning powder? It can always be added per-load for extra heavy loads. The white is natural and free of added color.) Works especially well for oil-based stains like the greasy chicken I dropped down the front of my shirt. Final Thoughts on Castile Soap vs. Bastille Soap. I went to my laundry room and grabbed a piece and washed my whole body with it. COLOR: comes in white and pink, both semi-translucent (The two colors have identical formulas with the exception of non-staining color added to pink. And I did a LOT of laundry each week: No paper towels, my other paper reducing products, lots of family coming & going, a hubby who works in the wastewater treatment industry, and 2 dogs + 2 cats in the house. COLOR: yellowish, semi-transparent Wacky. It can still be very economical! Put a small amount on a wet washcloth and wash your walls from the bottom up, you will be sooooo surprised!”, “I’ve only found Zote at Big Lots. The stain was darn near 100% gone except a small streak right at the seam which probably didn’t get as much Zote. CONSISTENCY/TEXTURE: hard, grates like a hard Parmesan cheese (mmm, cheese) In all my Internet research, I discovered many unverified claims that Fels-Naptha should not be used with septic systems. Feel free to ask questions. Can anyone tell me… Is Pink Zote bar ok for HE washers? I never gave a second thought about its safety, though – until I noticed an article on Livestrong.com. All bar soaps can leave behind mineral deposits if you’re not careful, though, so that part says maybe not. COST: $1.99, $1.27, $0.97 (prices from Home Depot, H Mart international grocery, and a Walmart respectively ) RESIDUE: none noticed when grated, pulverized, or powdered pieces are used. Soon I’ll post some updates on laundry bar soaps. I prefer the way it smells, and felt on a comparison of both that it washed better. I do these reviews so that people do not waste time or money on products that do not work! ( Log Out /  Copyright © 2019 Accidentally Green. I use zote soap as a “stain stick”. I read on Wikipedia that optical brighteners can be irritating for skin. I have used fels naphtha and have a septic system. in Cleaning, Laundry, Mom Stuff Hi again, Susan. I don’t know if it’s safer for septic tanks. Fels Naptha does not specify anything other than “fragrance” as far as I can tell, but it smells more like a blend of somethings to me. Aug 15, 2016 @ 09:38:23. It may be more readily available at big-box stores than Fels-Naptha. Larger slices may not dissolve all the way. Insecticidal Soap Spray – mix 1 teaspoon of the concentrate with 1 quart of water and pour into a sprayer. If you don’t use the powdery ingredients at the same time (washing soda, etc. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. I think they would be a little too drying for regular use. Thank you for the info! In addition, Borax, though a naturally … Hi HillaryI use the same recipe, but refer Ivory bar soap instead. This was from gating it, not from using it in the wash. People have been using that same recipe for years and years. Thank You!!! I did a series in March on Non Toxic Cleaning. I agree it’s great to buy American-made products. Whether or not you hear back from, Heather, above, I’ll have a recipe soon. February 2, 2011 at 12:39 PM February 20, 2013 at 5:06 pm. Guess what, though? Also they’ve changed the dye that’s used to color it. Thank you. Lots of recipes for homemade laundry detergent for sensitive skin call for one of these bars. Different people are going to be sensitive to different things — some folks have sensitivity to even the most natural of substances. It probably wouldn’t hurt to try your homemade goat’s milk soap. LOL. Moreover, we found that it cleaned better. I used it as an emergency once i thought i had body wash and didn’t. White Zote leaves a cloudy colorless film, while pink Zote leaves a pinkish film where you rubbed it. :) Also, check your toilet paper brands… we have a septic system and use a type of Scott tissue that is better for septic systems. OTHER INFO: 66% fatty acid. Even just half Dr. Bronner’s makes such a difference. I’m a little too nervous about botching our septic, so I’ll stick to liquid. This might be amusing for some, but it would be bad. Yes, Kirk’s Castile soap is the way to go. My laundry detergent is a dry powder, btw, not liquid. Fels-Naptha soap doesn’t contain naptha. From washing dishes or treating poison ivy to catfish bait. Has never harmed my septic system yet. My recipe probably won’t be the same — like I probably won’t use actual herbs in mine but use essential oils instead. I’m really impressed! Kirk’s Castile Soap is made of mostly coconut oil. FRAGRANCE: soapy, clean, similar to Dial soap In the meantime, here’s an English translation of their current website. https://alightningbug.org/2016/09/23/zote-soap-in-english/**. About 2 inches of Kirk’s Castile equals 1 Cup. When I first was your title Bar Fight my mental images were hurtled back to the Colonial Inn in Charleston SC in 1957. WHERE MADE: Mexico Since this bar is yellowish it will likewise leave a yellowish spot where you rubbed it. Castile soaps are, by definition, vegetable-oil based soaps. Thanks, Kristy. I have oily skin hand have to say my skin was left dry for the rest of the day which i loved since usually I use other oil control products. Maybe more than a whole kitchen! Or possibly just the English version of the website is gone or down for now. I have tried my hardest to rid my house of chemicals so I want to make sure that Zote fits the bill. To clean your toilet with it, melt 1/4 bar of Fels-Naptha into 5-6 cups of water. #19. Fresh out of the wrapper you can squish it with your hands like firm clay. I think the biggest reason some homemade laundry detergents don’t work is that people use too little in the wash. I’ve seen some recipes call for such a small amount of homemade detergent per load that it’s really not cleaning any better than plain water. Don’t know if it includes other ingredients that might be harmful to the septic. I wanted to let you know the link to the Zote website is no longer valid. So smallish pieces, okay? I had graying, smelling, and mildew problems, and I have soft water. https://alightningbug.org/2016/09/23/zote-soap-in-english/, Do you have a guess for what it means by “toilet soap?”. I can’t find laundry bar soap in the UK. I use my blender with zote and powder ingredients at the same time. I have used this for years. Oh no! I’ve gotten sticker residue off of a coat with this. I have a septic and would like to know as well. Tags: fels naptha, laundry bar soap, laundry soap, sensitive skin, stain removal, zote. Fels-Naptha also contains glycerin, an emollient; sorbitol, a sugar alcohol derived from fruits, corn and seaweed, a moisturizer; and sodium chloride, ordinary table salt. Any help? To use in your laundry as actual laundry detergent you’ll need to grate it with a cheese grater or pulverize it in a blender or food processor (cut into medium small chunks first). The soap portion of Zote and Fels Naptha is still soap which is good at actually cleaning away stains, grease, and dirt. I loved the scent of grandma’s. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. I think you’ll find Borax an interesting product as well. Check out the ingredient list, below. It’s way awesome fun to watch! Your email address will not be published. Individual results may vary. I’d like to try it so I’ve been researching Zote but can’t find too much info on it. In stock on August 30, 2020. The word ‘sodium’ refers to sodium hydroxide, the lye used to make soap, in this case with tallow, coconut oil, palm oil or palm kernel oil. You may want to line the tin with a plastic bag to keep the soap from directly contacting the metal. 🙂. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. Though I don’t find that the fragrance stays on the clothing for very long. Larger slices may not dissolve all the way, but they’ll be transparentish. But it kind of gives new meaning to body bar soap, no? However, I don’t use a real (bar or castille) soap in my laundry anymore, because it leaves behind soap scum on my clothes. They are emollients and surfactants, cleaning agents in other words. INGREDIENTS: for white: “sodium tallowate, sodium cocoate, fragrance, optical brightener.” (And that’s it. As with Fels Naptha Soap, now owned and distributed by Purex, Zote can be grated to make homemade laundry detergent. Fels Naptha doesn’t specify its fragrance. I’ve been using Fels Naptha for years because of my allergy to commercial laundry detergents and their chemical base. Add to laundry per directions or use in an online recipe for homemade laundry detergent. This info came from 2 plumbers. But glass is heavy and there’s risk of breaking. Hard to believe one cannot even go to a laundry cleaning site without stumbling over people tossing nasty comments back and forth… including name calling (‘crazy commie?’ ‘total kooks?’. Then I will give your homemade laundry soap a try. One wash with a commercial detergent and the problems were fixed! And thank you for tip about using hydrogen peroxide with the soap. Zote is all natural with very few ingredients and no fillers. If you’ve used my powdered detergent, you’ll already be aware that I’m not a huge fan of Fels-Naptha or Zote. Optical brighteners can make fabric look brighter and whiter. Thanks for the informative blog. I have been using the recipe from homemadelaundrysoap.net, but my cousin had to stop using it because she found out her boys were allergic to something in the fels naphtha soap that irritated their skin. Reply. Be careful to use a lighter-color bar as darker ones may have clay, charcoal, or other ingredients mixed in. The term “chemical-free” is itself pretty tricky. Thank you again. It took a few years to tweak and improve upon the very first laundry soap as found ALL over the web {you know, the one involving baking soda, washing soda, borax, and Fels-Naptha}, and those adjustments resulted in my original laundry soap recipe.Now it’s been three more years since that original recipe and, after lots of work, I’ve improved even more upon the … He eventually purchased Thomas Worsley and Company and renamed it Fels and Company of Philadelphia. Fels Naptha is a laundry bar soap put out by the Dial Corporation. Both bars do the job surprisingly well! What I would suggest for skin is Castile soap. Zote ingredients are the same as far as I know, but Fels Naptha has changed a little. Zote is a HUGE bar — more than twice the size of Fels Naptha for the same price. Clean your Toilet with Fels Naptha Soap. 1 finely grated bar of Kirk’s Castile Soap. Just bad. Both soaps can be used to spot-treat laundry stains, as a laundry detergent booster, or as a component of homemade laundry detergent itself. Find my recipe for Homemade Laundry Detergent here. Jammie Wharton I hope you’ll visit again. ), chocolate, make-up/sunscreen, etc. Store this insecticidal soap concentrate in a labeled covered jar. I have used both. Which is pretty cool if you ask me.) Just wet stain and rub bar over stain. Then I let it sit a bit and laundered with a homemade laundry soap (made with Zote, washing soda, and borax). I did hear about a reader substituting castile soap for the Fels-Naptha, and I know that castile soap is OK for septics. I like Fels Naptha and Zote. I love both of these soaps. I wish we could get Zote soap bar’s for £1 each in the UK. Even mixing Zote with my soap (I also saved and grated the slivers left over from the bath) was less satisfactory. I’m glad they use as much of the animal as they can if they’re going to slaughter at all. Note I don't make liquid detergent I just grate the soap into the boiling wash water. Not sure about the oatmeal either but I might try it. Alkalinity of 0.04% (bath soap is 0.02%) Website claims some folks use it to bathe. If you have specific spots /stains then consider spot treating with a little soap then spray on some hydrogen peroxide (like what they sell in the first aid department for use on cuts). Thank you for visiting, Connie! Coconut acid, palm acid and tallow acid are fatty acids derived from plants and animals. The soap also contains fragrance, source not specified and acid orange and acid yellow colors.”. FRAGRANCE: clean, soapy, citronella*** ), it will clump. Do you think I could use my homemade goat’s milk soap? Yes, Zote is pretty basic as far as ingredients. Those could potentially stain your laundry. Clean counters – Take a wet sponge and rub a bar of Fels Naptha Soap on it then clean your sinks and counters. AROUND SINCE: 1970 Fels Naptha: SIZE: 5.5 oz, 165 g COST: from $0.97 (at a Walmart, only price I found so far) COLOR: yellowish, semi-transparent CONSISTENCY/TEXTURE: hard, grates like a hard Parmesan cheese (mmm, cheese) May 29, 2016 @ 22:54:48. I love using the Duggars recipe, Fels Naptha, Arm and Hammer soap, and Borax! Zote Soap ~ Alternative to Fels Naptha Soap. I actually have used Zote to bathe. Your email address will not be published. Let the foamy mounds cool completely — they’ll deflate some. Now I’m experimenting with dish soap. Thank you for visiting! (And I’ll write about what and what not to use with septic systems in June.). As for optical brighteners, that’s not really a simple answer. So sorry for all my comments about not using Zote or Fels Naptha to make a body wash. I did hear about a reader substituting castile soap for the Fels-Naptha, and I know that castile soap is OK for septics.