Cruisers Forum
 


Reply
  This discussion is proudly sponsored by:
Please support our sponsors and let them know you heard about their products on Cruisers Forums. Advertise Here
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Rate Thread Display Modes
Old 23-04-2018, 08:42   #1
Registered User

Join Date: May 2012
Location: Green Cove Springs,& Bahamas
Boat: Whitby 42
Posts: 30
What’s the best salt water body soap

We have tried different types of body wash soaps and found some to be high in perfume and some that are like oil.
Would like to get opinions on what is the best “off the shelf” soap for washing in salt water.
macrae is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-04-2018, 09:59   #2
Registered User

Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 33
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

Quote:
Originally Posted by macrae View Post
We have tried different types of body wash soaps and found some to be high in perfume and some that are like oil.
Would like to get opinions on what is the best “off the shelf” soap for washing in salt water.
On Deliveries, where freshwater is short I always use Colgate Green Apple Shampoo. Works best used on a sponge. Not sure if it's available in your part of the world. Cheap and cheerful, but more importantly it does the job. Most shower gels work, but are more expensive for the same job.

Hope that helps.
flyingboat is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-04-2018, 10:06   #3
Registered User

Join Date: Oct 2015
Posts: 2,007
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

Quote:
Originally Posted by macrae View Post
We have tried different types of body wash soaps and found some to be high in perfume and some that are like oil.
Would like to get opinions on what is the best “off the shelf” soap for washing in salt water.
I just use diluted Dawn dishsoap. Works great. A very little goes a long way. Is cheap. Rinses easily. Saves stocking multiple products.

But of course if you need the fancy advertising budget...
billknny is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-04-2018, 10:48   #4
Marine Service Provider
 
Steadman Uhlich's Avatar

Cruisers Forum Supporter

Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 6,103
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

I have seen Dawn (liquid dish detergent) used. It is a detergent (not a true soap). It is chemically designed to lather.

I have seen Johnson's Baby Shampoo used. It is mild, and I have used it for overall body wash.

I have used Dr. Bronner's 18 in 1 Castile Soap. It comes in various scents (I like the peppermint and almond) and is based on a postassium formula using plant oils. It is a true soap, not a detergent. I once bought a gallon of it, but a small bottle should be enough for a typical voyage. A 4 oz bottle can last a long time, if you just use a few drops on a sponge. It needs to be diluted, or just use a few drops in the hand. It will leave long hair "squeaky clean" so you may want to use a conditioner afterwards (I used to have long hair and it could tangle), to reduce tangles. Some people love the peppermint (I do) but some don't. If it is stinging you, dilute it more.

You can find "Sailor's Soap" (a brand of shampoo or liquid soap) which is a liquid soap (similar to Dr. Bronner's) and sold in small 4 oz bottles for $6 on Amazon.
Steadman Uhlich is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-04-2018, 11:00   #5
Registered User

Join Date: Oct 2015
Posts: 2,007
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

Quote:
Originally Posted by Steadman Uhlich View Post
I have seen Dawn (liquid dish detergent) used. It is a detergent (not a true soap). It is chemically designed to lather.
And the point of that comment is? What's wrong with a detergent? Most all commercial shampoos are detergents and are "designed to lather" because people think (incorrectly) that suds == clean.

Quote:
I have seen Johnson's Baby Shampoo used. It is mild, and I have used it for overall body wash.
Baby shampoo contains detergent... Other than a good advertising slogan, I wonder if someone could explain what "mild" actually means?

True chemical soaps (i.e., sodium salts of fatty acids) don't work in salt water. The high ionic strength of the seawater keeps them from working as fat emulsifiers.
billknny is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-04-2018, 15:35   #6
Moderator
 
JPA Cate's Avatar

Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: aboard, cruising in Australia
Boat: Sayer 46' Solent rig sloop
Posts: 28,400
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

Hello, Bill,

Less dilute detergents are more likely to sting in your eyes than the baby shampoo. That's the main difference that I know of.

Any detergent with laurel sulfate (whatever that is, I'm not a chemist), will lather in salt water. We used to look for Joy, but Dawn seems popular with today's Americans.

We have washed our hair, our bodies and our dishes all in the same detergent. As we aged, I've found I like a body lotion afterwards, the detergents leave me with dry skin. But what I usually do, is wash my whole body with the shampoo I use, whatever that may be. The change happened when we got a boat with a below-decks shower.

Nowadays, I usually shower below, but the occasional fresh water rinse-off with hair conditioner, leaves clean hair and body after swimming, if you're clean to start with.

It will depend on the cruising grounds and water supply about showering.

PS. I sort of think that the concept of needing "fancy" stuff for washing has been sold to people by advertising, and we are free to reject it if we choose. I would not consider any media source of total truth.....

Ann
__________________
Who scorns the calm has forgotten the storm.
JPA Cate is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-04-2018, 17:13   #7
Registered User

Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: South Haven, MI
Boat: 2010 Andrews 28
Posts: 494
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

A dish soap (joy, Dawn, etc) is a no-no for washing your car. It will remove the wax. So, imagine what it does to the natural oils on your skin. I recommend the cheapest Green Apple shampoo you can find. Works great.
silversailor is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-04-2018, 18:02   #8
Senior Cruiser
 
BlackHeron's Avatar

Join Date: Jan 2016
Boat: Bathtub
Posts: 889
Images: 19
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

While we haven't tried it in salt water yet we've been using Doc Bronner's Peppermint Castile soap for years. It really needs to be diluted to work well but it is hard to meter it out just a few drops at a time. It seems they keep making the hole in the cap larger and larger every year so that you accidentally use more.

We have re-purposed some of those Dawn foaming-pump dispensers and have found that you can pre-mix the Doc Bronner's in it at a ratio of about 8 to 10 to 1 depending on how much lather you want. Then you don't need salt water to get a lather and can just lather up and then rinse off.

This method has allowed us to stretch a large 32oz bottle to well over a year for the two of us where before we started doing this we were going through one 32oz bottle every month or two. We were using (wasting) 10x the amount of soap trying to pour just enough into our hands and then mixing/lathering as we washed.

The only downside with using these pump bottles with Doc Bronner's is that you need to go through enough of it so that it doesn't go rancid inside, which it will definitely do sooner or later once it is mixed with water and sits around for a little while. It smells disgusting when this happens and it is hard to clean the pump bottle out after this so it doesn't keep smelling vile. We use Dawn in the kitchen and simply swap the pump bottles out if the Doc Bronner bottle goes rancid. The Dawn overpowers any rancid smell, and the Peppermint overpowers the smell of Dawn. For some reason the Peppermint doesn't have any power over the peppermint rancid smell though.
BlackHeron is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-04-2018, 21:59   #9
Marine Service Provider
 
SV THIRD DAY's Avatar

Cruisers Forum Supporter

Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: La Paz, Mexico
Boat: 1978 Hudson Force 50 Ketch
Posts: 3,920
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

Salt water soap....Im confused.....
__________________
Rich Boren
Cruise RO & Schenker Water Makers
Technautics CoolBlue Refrigeration
SV THIRD DAY is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 23-04-2018, 22:04   #10
Moderator
 
Don C L's Avatar

Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Channel Islands, CA
Boat: 1962 Columbia 29 MK 1 #37
Posts: 14,262
Images: 66
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

Another vote for Doctor Bronner's!
__________________
DL
Pythagoras
1962 Columbia 29 MKI #37
Don C L is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-04-2018, 08:08   #11
Registered User

Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: Damariscotta, ME
Boat: American Tug
Posts: 129
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

I've used Dr. Bronner's for years, on land and sea, and love it. I dilute it 50% water and 50% soap and it works just great. It also comes in bar form, but I prefer the liquid.
__________________
Capt. David Hipschman
Yacht Broker, Maine & New England
352-682-2921
dochip is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-04-2018, 08:19   #12
Registered User

Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: US
Posts: 219
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

Woolite
Locquatious is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-04-2018, 08:28   #13
Registered User
 
Cheechako's Avatar

Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Skagit City, WA
Posts: 25,453
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

Joy and Dawn work well in salt water, but probably a bit harsh for hair. My hair was short in the tropics so I used it anyway. Most shampoos are detergent based, they strip the oil, then you put it back with conditioner! but a few are not detergent, Ivory IIRC.
__________________
"I spent most of my money on Booze, Broads and Boats. The rest I wasted" - Elmore Leonard











Cheechako is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-04-2018, 08:31   #14
Marine Service Provider

Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Vienna, Austria
Boat: Vagabond 47
Posts: 922
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

the cheapest soap you can buy in the drugstore. Nowadays all are applicable.
moseriw is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 24-04-2018, 08:43   #15
Registered User

Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: PNW
Boat: Bruce Roberts Ketch 40
Posts: 477
Re: What’s the best salt water body soap

Dawn has worked for us.
Maka is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
salt, salt water, water

Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes Rate This Thread
Rate This Thread:

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Bar Soap in Salt Water Janice Cooking and Provisioning: Food & Drink 57 12-09-2019 20:45
Rinse free Shampoo/soap? Chattcatdaddy Cooking and Provisioning: Food & Drink 8 05-01-2009 12:17
Sea Soap bmeeder Health, Safety & Related Gear 6 29-05-2008 20:37

Advertise Here


All times are GMT -7. The time now is 23:30.


Google+
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.
Social Knowledge Networks
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.

ShowCase vBulletin Plugins by Drive Thru Online, Inc.