belassi
Forum Replies Created
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Holy cow you are not talking about growth hormones I hope?
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^^ That ^^
Thanks Perry. -
In case anyone is interested, the “whatever’s in the first packing case” formulation turned out to be:
Water Q/S 100%
AKYPO RLM-45CA 10%
TEA Q/S for pH = 5.5
Stepan APB 10%
CAPB 9%
Plantapon LGC Sorb 2%
Glycerine 1%
Silsense DW-16 soluble silicone ester 1%
Fragrance 0.2% (Poison)
Methyl parabens 0.3%Notes. The RLM-45CA is highly acidic and so can be mixed with the Stepan APB without causing problems. Under no circumstances mix TEA with APB because ammonia will be produced. Keep pH less than or equal to 6.
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So what have you done so far, to prepare for launching your new company?
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By the way - can’t you even get ALS? It’s usually available.
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^^ Fantastically good analysis. ^^
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It’s unfortunate that you can’t source alternates. Yes, I know where Uganda is. Nearest I have been was Bukavu in the DRC, I installed an FM radio station there, I arrived back at it on the Monday after broadcasting test music all weekend, with the Zaire Minister of Information, to find the Ministers of Information of Uganda and Rwanda waiting for me to explain why they were suddenly hearing a new radio station on air. I’m very familiar with the DRC, Congo, Nigeria, The Gambia, Senegal, and Niger.
Thinking about this, I suggest you see if you can band together with like-minded people to maybe import. -
I had better add the reason why we don’t make dog shampoo: we can’t compete with the prices the vets pay. They aren’t interested. The same ingredients we use in human shampoo, and for the same reasons, can be used in dog shampoo, but the vets won’t pay for that.
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We don’t make dog shampoo as such but I use our ALS blend on the dogs with excellent results.
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You can try increasing the two PEGs to say, 2% each, but apart from that, given the materials, there’s not much I can suggest. If SLeS is causing you problems, I’m surprised you can tolerate SLS.
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I don’t think you have enough active surfactant material in that formula. And 2% Lamesoft PO-65 if that’s what you have, is too high, 1% is recommended. First, increase the total ASM to get, say, 14% and then retest. Are there no other surfactants available?
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There are so many surfactants … where are you? Do you have access to BASF or Stepan distributors?
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That’s typical of those surfactants. Sorry.
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Marketing is different here because not many people buy on line. We used to use expos, market events and so forth but now we have enough customers and we don’t really want to grow the business as we’re both retired.
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Thanks. I’ll try McKernan and Escowill on Monday, they’re local to me. I’ll let you know if they have stock.
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We’re not equipped to do contract work, it’s only our own brand.
pH with some surfactants is really interesting. Your experience doesn’t surprise me. For instance, our first sulphate-free product (now discontinued) was based on AKYPO RLM-45 which is a pure carboxylic acid as supplied and requires neutralising. As the pH is adjusted, the viscosity changes radically.
Right now we’re shut down for personal care because we are moving. I am working on sourcing the materials to make sanitiser, about 600 litres. -
In San Antonio, TX, there is a large store that specialises in products from India and it sells Dettol.
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Where exactly are you finding these formulae?
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It’s more an organic process. But I do various things, such as:
foam test (graduated cylinder and time)
note type of bubbles (eg fluffy, small/dense)
flow - long, short, medium?
pH limits?
type? (anionic, amphoteric, nonionic)
thickening?
cost?
Then it becomes a matter of seeing what synergies exist between them. There are several well known synergies with sodium cocoamphoacetate, for example.
SLS/SLES/CAPB was the first combo I tried but rejected after comparison with ALS/ALES/CAPB systems. Finally I found an ALS-based blend that outperforms anything I came up with, so I use that plus CAPB for most things. Our market is specialty shampoos. -
@Agate - Absolutely. I found it much easier to learn emulsion technology than to make shampoo. I wasted a lot of surfactants learning. Each surfactant has different properties and it’s not until you know them that you can properly formulate.
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Terrible idea. Soap pH is way unsuitable for pets not to mention the soap scum problem. NO, the pH can NOT be ‘adjusted’.
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I advise you not to try this, if it’s true that the third surfactant needs a pH > 6. You will get the ALS breaking down and your product will smell of ammonia. Use another surfactant such as sodium cocoamphoacetate. pH max 5.5 for ALS to stay stable.
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Glucamate VLT is the absolute best but it’s not cheap.
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It’s not becoming a beverage that concerns me. It’s the fact that methanol is highly absorbed by the skin and is a terrible toxin.
There is a study here for ethanol. A max blood level of 30mg/L was measured and it should be noted the UK drink-drive limit is 80mg/L. -
no alcohol? no problem.