Bath Soap Slivers

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churchilllafemme
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Bath Soap Slivers

Post by churchilllafemme »

Anyone who uses a bath soap or shampoo bar ends up with a sliver that is too small to hold in the hand for use and gets thrown out. Does anyone know how slivers could be combined so that they could be used up more completely instead of being wasted?
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EL Alamein
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by EL Alamein »

In our house the sliver is used until it's malleable when wet and slapped on the next cake of soap.

Chris
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churchilllafemme
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by churchilllafemme »

EL Alamein wrote: Wed Dec 04, 2019 6:48 pm In our house the sliver is used until it's malleable when wet and slapped on the next cake of soap.

Chris
I think it would have to be quite tiny before becoming malleable.
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by brothers »

EL Alamein wrote: Wed Dec 04, 2019 6:48 pm In our house the sliver is used until it's malleable when wet and slapped on the next cake of soap.

Chris
Interesting idea. Sounds plausible. I should try it next time.
Gary

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drmoss_ca
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by drmoss_ca »

Gosh, I thought everyone did that with soap. Many years ago I did see an ad for a 'money-saving device' of doubtful quality - you dropped in your remnants of soap cakes and it crushed and swaged them into a new bar of soap. They would need to be soaked and/or warmed first to soften them. A sturdy box with a screw down or lever operated top plate to do the squashing. It was the kind of thing that went along with those devices to roll up the end of toothpaste tubes to get the last bits out; the instruments of a waste-not-want-not mentality that younger generations have largely abandoned.

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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by Rufus »

Our regular bath soap is Cussons Imperial Leather, which has the label firmly embedded in the bar. Even when you get the bar down to the smallest sliver the label remains firmly in place. Thus, in order to combine the sliver with another cake you’d have to cut out the label, which would destroy the sliver; just not worth effort.
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by EL Alamein »

Maybe it's the soaps we're using? Just supermarket fair but I've been successful doing it to the likes of the old formula Musgo Real bath soaps as well.

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John Rose
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by John Rose »

Soap Saver bags.
Crocheted...
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Or finer mesh:
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I have no doubt that you could easily sew some out of athletic mesh fabric. I'm thinking an old hockey jersey from a thrift shop.

I've had some success with sticking slivers of Caprina Fresh Goats Milk Soap onto new bars.
Use both during a shower to soften them up, then squeeze them together and leave the combined bar overnight.
Some soaps turn brittle towards the end of their life, but not Caprina.
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by brothers »

I understand the concept when dealing with a bar of bath soap that costs $$$. Ultimately it all goes down the drain regardless of the high falutin' pedigree. :lol: Been there and done that. Nowadays I get a kick out of cracking open a brand new bar when the time comes.
Gary

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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by churchilllafemme »

brothers wrote: Sun Dec 08, 2019 2:28 pm I understand the concept when dealing with a bar of bath soap that costs $$$. Ultimately it all goes down the drain regardless of the high falutin' pedigree. :lol: Been there and done that. Nowadays I get a kick out of cracking open a brand new bar when the time comes.
For me it is not a matter of cost or saving money; it's just a question of wastage and landfills.
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by brothers »

The recycled bar of soap slivers goes down the drain eventually and enters the solid waste system or septic tank along with the waste water.
Gary

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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by blantyre »

I also run the soap down to a thin sliver and then “weld” it onto the next puck, assuming it’s something similar. I have been using the Martin de Candre bath soaps for a few years now and the weld seems to work ok.

I have noticed that once I get down to about 10% of a bar the performance drops off noticeably - less scent and less density in the lather. I don’t know if this is all due to less area for lathering or if the soap really loses active ingredients when the surface area:volume goes up? In any case, it’s always nice to start a new bar - enough scent to make the whole bathroom smell good for the first week or so. This make m skeptical about combing a whole lot of slivers into one new puck - might be ok but I suspect the performance would be disappointing.
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by drmoss_ca »

I've noticed something like that, Rick. When Woods of Windsor stopped making shaving soap, I grabbed all the examples of what was a decent tallow soap with a lovely scent. I have an embarrassing quantity and I often use if as a bath soap. But after a while the outside becomes hard and waxy, and it barely lathers. If I scrape off the outer layer, it works again. I'm guessing the recipe had a wax which does not saponify as superfat. This would not matter if the surface is being constantly abraded with a shaving brush, but it does mean that as a bath soap it has limitations.
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by Gene »

I have a small Woods of Windsor puck, and a larger new one - I was just wondering if I could blend them into on plastic tub and keep on going. Doesn't feel like something I could squish together, though - how to handle this?
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

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Gene wrote: Mon Aug 31, 2020 6:53 am I have a small Woods of Windsor puck, and a larger new one - I was just wondering if I could blend them into on plastic tub and keep on going. Doesn't feel like something I could squish together, though - how to handle this?
That would be like rebatching soap. A microwave will just burn the soap unless you are extremely careful. Best way is to make yourself a double boiler with a small pan or bowl inside a larger pan filled with water. Heat the larger pan on the stove, so the water boils (but careful not to let splashes of boiling water get on your soap inside the inner pan or bowl). This way your soap will not be heated above 100ºC. When soft, mush it together and then press into a mug, bowl or other mold. The other way is to grate both pieces small, and then press the crumbs into your mug or bowl.
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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by brothers »

Thinking about it, I'm going to save my tiny little wafers of Palmolive bath soap as they run out instead of throwing them away. I believe in a few months (years?) I could accumulate enough to grate them together and make a new bar.
Gary

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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by Gene »

drmoss_ca wrote: Mon Aug 31, 2020 8:30 am
Gene wrote: Mon Aug 31, 2020 6:53 am I have a small Woods of Windsor puck, and a larger new one - I was just wondering if I could blend them into on plastic tub and keep on going. Doesn't feel like something I could squish together, though - how to handle this?
That would be like rebatching soap.
Ah - thanks for the help!
Gene

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Re: Bath Soap Slivers

Post by John Rose »

EL Alamein wrote: Wed Dec 04, 2019 6:48 pm In our house the sliver is used until it's malleable when wet and slapped on the next cake of soap.
That's what I do.
blantyre wrote: Mon Aug 31, 2020 5:10 amI have noticed that once I get down to about 10% of a bar the performance drops off noticeably - less scent and less density in the lather. I don’t know if this is all due to less area for lathering or if the soap really loses active ingredients when the surface area:volume goes up? ...
I find that with Caprina Fresh Goat's Milk bar soaps, the performance does not drop off near the end. Once the old sliver is fully welded onto the new bar (after about 5 showers) I can't tell which side had the old stuff on it. It's still creamy.
I wouldn't say that for other commonly available brands.

:-k I suppose the experiment of welding only slivers together would indicate whether it's just the diminished volume to surface area ratio that results in diminished performance.
:idea: Maybe we can get a grant from the National Research Council of Canada to study that.
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