Teach Soap

I am new here on the forum and am so excited to have a place where I can possibly get a few answers about some concerns. I have been making 100% all natural bath and body care for the last year, and I am just starting to make liquid soap and selling in foamer pumps for hand soap applications. I use Soap Queen's Coconut Lather Recipe diluted to 30%. Then I use an 9oz foaming bottle. I use 2.5 oz of soap and 6.5 oz distilled water. I have been scenting with fragrance oils and/or essential oils directly into the soap before diluting in the foamer bottle with distilled water. Depending on the essential oil/fragrance oil used sometimes it clouds, then clears after a couple hours of sequestering. However, some of them will recloud if flipped or stirred no matter how long I sequester. Is there a better way to mix the oils to scent the soap? Should I scent larger batches of soap, sequester, and then dilute in foamers? I don't care about the look of the cloudiness, but I want to make sure that my hand soaps are completely mixed and scented throughout. I do adjust the ph with citric acid at 30% dilution. Perhaps I should not adjust ph since I end up diluting with so much water in the end product. Also, I am concerned about whether or not I need to use a preservative since there is at least 75% water in my end product. I only use two water soluble preservatives in my products, tinosan and leucidal, and optiphen in my oil solubles. I don't think any of them will stand up to the ph of soap. Customers will not ever touch the end product as the bottle is always kept closed. Any thoughts or guidance would be greatly appreciated!

Some scents will naturally cloud your product, since essential oils are oil soluble only. Anytime there is any water, or water added to a product you will need a good preservative. How do you adjust the pH with citric acid? Do you have a pH meter? How much do you superfat your liquid soap?
Here is a sticky I posted on preservatives. I had Tinosan and Leudicidal fail. viewtopic.php?f=5&t=5032

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

I used a ph meter and adjusted with Failor's method of citric acid/water solution added to diluted soap paste. My final ph was 9. I did not superfat this recipe at all. I am thinking about adding glycerin at 1% to boost emollient properties after dilution.
Thank you for the sticky about preservatives. I have noticed that Dr. Bronner's doesn't have a preservative, which led me to wonder about adding one to my foaming products. Do you know of one that is paraben free but will work in soap's ph range? I want to be as natural as possible but still safe.

Liquid Germall Plus might be an option for you. It is not natural, but it is paraben free and works well in shampoos and body washes.

_________________
Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.