Soap Nuts

Nature's Solution to Dirty!

Wow, there is a considerable amount of conflicting information on the internet regarding these soapy little gems! Since I am not a Soap Nut expert by any means, I will stick to what I know...

Why Soap Nuts Clean Stuff:
There are several varieties of Soap Nuts, and the species I purchased was Sapindus Mukorossi, that is cultivated in several parts of Asia (mainly India). Soap nuts are not actually nuts, but berries from a large deciduous tree. The meat/skin of the berry contains a compound called Saponin that is easily extracted with warm water.

Saponin is an all-natural surfactant that can be found in many different plants, like Soapwort for example (which happens to be native to North America, if you are interested in foraging at all).

Surfactants are compounds that lower the surface tension of a liquid, the interfacial tension between two liquids, or that between a liquid and a solid. Surfactants may act as detergents, emulsifiers, foaming agents, and dispersants.

Why try Soap Nuts rather than Detergents or Soap?
I have been looking for an alternative to Commercial detergents because they are FULL of nasty chemicals. Click here for more information on the topic.

All-natural Soap is a great natural cleaning alternative, however if you have hard water (like I do), it will react with your hard water and produce a precipitate, or in other words, the dreaded soap scum!

My (very limited) chemistry background is how I know the high pH of soap (from 9-11) is the reason for the chemical reaction, so I set out on google to find a "natural surfactant with acidic pH".
Voila, I found a tidbit that stated a Soap Nut Solution will have a slightly acidic pH, this could be the (non-scummy) answer I was looking for!

How I made the concentrated Soap Nut Solution: 
I kind of followed the directions here, but since my shells were not whole, and I wanted it to be really concentrated, I just put my sample bag into 5 cups of water.

I simmered it (not a hard boil) for 45 min, then let it sit with the shells in it until it was cool.

Not gonna lie - this smells terrible!

I checked the pH, and it was indeed acidic, with a pH of somewhere between 5 and 6.

Then I strained it, and put in a clean condiment jar for easy fridge storage. I ended up with 3 cups of solution. To fix the smell issue, just add a couple drops of your favorite essential oil - I will post more on this subject later.

Soap Nut Solution Uses:
I will link these to new blog posts as I try it out, so you can read my review.
- Laundry "Detergent"
- Dishwasher "Detergent"
- Natural Shampoo
- All purpose Cleaner
- Glass Cleaner
- Insecticide spray for plants
- Mosquito Repellent

How I got my hands on a sample bag:
I have been hesitant in the past because you have to buy a big bag of them. Well this company has put itself out there, and will send you a free sample for you to try!

Hold on - there is a small catch. It will cost you $2.00 for the sample (to cover their shipping costs) but they send you a $2.00 off coupon for a bag if you wish to get more! I thought that was a FANTASTIC deal! :o) *Sorry folks, they only ship to Canada & US*

Get your sample here:
http://cleanerplanet.ca/online-store/