Fels-Naptha good and cheap

[alfredo]

This soap has been around longer than I've been around. It's just soap, pure and simple, but it's a favorite because of that. My mom kept some down in the laundry.

In the army they took 1 lb coffee cans and punch holes in them. the can is suspended under the hot water. Doing it that way made for a nice soapy dishwater.

Chocolate on white shorts is no big thing for Fels. Spray on spot removers don't do much better. Much cheaper, and much more versitile.


http://www.soapsgonebuy.com/Fels_Naptha_Soap_p/d1001.htm

On the page look for the other uses.
http://www.soapsgonebuy.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=D1001&Show=ExtInfo

Powdered Laundry Detergent 1 cup grated Fels Naptha Soap 1/2 cup washing soda 1/2 cup 20 mule team borax Mix and store in airtight container or bag. For normal loads, use 2 tablespoon. For heavy loads, use 3 tablespoons.


Recipe for tanning hides submitted by a gentleman in Indiana…. Did you know that Fels-Naptha makes a great leather tanning solution??? It's much safer than almost any other (chromium or solvent) method for tanning. In 1980, a friend and I tanned 30 deer hides....some for leather, and some with the hair on for rugs, with great success! The hides with the hair on, STILL retain the hair to this day! Use 1 bar per gallon of liquid....we reduced the bars to shavings first, over low heat (we did this in a big cast iron kettle over a campfire), then allowed it to cool. It turns into a runny "gel". Then the hides need to be fully immersed for 1-2 months, depending on ambient temperature. Just thought I'd pass this along, as I'm preparing to do some tanning again just now.

[yy4me]

1. Smells great too. In the "old days" my grandmother used to

shave bits of Fells Naptha into the old wringer washing machine as it filled with water. She always had the whitest sheets and cleanest smelling clothes. I had forgotten all about Fells Naptha, think I'll pick up a bar and try it again. Thanks for the reminder that this product is still around.

(geeze, I'm losing it, this was to have been a reply to the previous poster, Sorry 'bout that.)

[Longhorn]

2. I moved it for you.

:hi:

[NMDemDist2]

3. you are the best darlin!

how you feeling??


:pals:

[Longhorn]

4. Aw, thanks!

I'm feeling great! I got the latest scan results yesterday and the tumors are all gone, greatly reduced, or no bigger. I see the doctor tomorrow and I'll find out if I will resume treatment after our vacation next week and if it will be the same. I was hoping for completely gone, of course, but this is the next best news.

Thanks for thinking of me! :hug:

[NMDemDist2]

5. that's wonderful!!!

:hug:

I'm so glad :bounce:

[eleny]

17. Such delightful news!

:hi:

[Longhorn]

20. Thanks, Hon!

:hug:

[hippywife]

6. From an environmental standpoint

it sounds more like a step backwards.

[alfredo]

7. But you don't need to use much for stain removal. It lasts for years.

No aerosol cans, no plastic container used or needed. It does fit well with the frugal part of this group.

[hippywife]

8. Still more chemicals

into the water. And petrochemcals at that. They have already determined that water treatment plants do not remove many chemicals and pharmaceuticals from our drinking water, aside from what it's doing to all the wildlife. So you only use a little bit, and as it catches on again, you have tons of people using a little bit, and some using a lot. It starts adding up. And for what, so our undies are sparkly white?

Sometimes there are things worth paying for and other areas where being frugal is of benefit such as reusing and repurposing items to keep them out of the landfill rather than buying new.

Being frugal doesn't necessarily mean being cheap to the point of still more damage to our environment.

Sorry, 'fredo. :hug:

[NMDemDist2]

9. i was wondering about that, I have a septic system and am very careful

what I use to clean

I read the MDSwhateverthingie and still didn't understand if there were phosphates in the stuff

:banghead:

[alfredo]

10. Removing stains ensures the clothes are used instead of being discarded.

There's no way we can have zero impact

There is no Naptha in Fels-Naptha.

[hippywife]

11. Strange that they would call it that

if it has no naptha in it, don't you think?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fels-Naptha

However, the MSDS for Fels Naptha from the National Institutes of Health, under "Chronic Health Effects" says,

"Chronic toxicity testing has not been conducted on this product. However, the following effects have been reported on one of the product's components. Stoddard solvent: Repeated or prolonged exposure to high concentrations has resulted in upper respiratory tract irritation, central and peripheral nervous system effects, and possibly hematopoetic, liver and kidney effects."

Stoddard solvent is another name for mineral spirits, which are, like petroleum distillates, a mixture of multiple chemicals made from petroleum.

[alfredo]

12. That's why they say not to have prolonged exposure to the skin, just

like they say for any cleaning product. Natural soaps have lye in them, nasty stuff in any book. Anyway, using it for stain removal will be its primary use in our house. So little is used at a time, I believe that one bar of Fels-Naptha could last the rest of our lives.

The area stained is wetted, the bar is rubbed on the stain. The soap is then worked in the fabric and allowed to sit for a minute, then added to to the wash. So little is used the impact is minimal.

It is not heavily perfumed. If it was, I wouldn't have it in our house because I am sensitive to perfumes.

My wife dropped some chocolate onto some new cream colored shorts. It's right on the crotch. Either the stain comes out, or she won't wear them in public again. The potential damage of a extremely small amount of Fels Naptha has to be weighed against having to buy a new pair of shorts.

[kestrel91316]

13. I'm with you. The teeny amount of Fels in the gel you need to get

the job done on those shorts is MINISCULE. Probably 1/10 the harm to the environment of standard laundry detergent in the plastic jug, especially considering the energy needed for manufacture.

I make my laundry soap from Zote, but eventually I will make my own homemade soap (fats plus lye) and use THAT as the base. But I have another 2 gallons of the Zote gel to use up first, lol. 5 years' worth......

[alfredo]

14. I'm thinking of making my own soap. How could I use the peppermint

that grows around my house? A touch of peppermint in the soap would be nice.

[kestrel91316]

15. You probably would need peppermint essential oil to have

any scent of it in the final product. Not just some leaves.......

[alfredo]

16. What about extracting the oil using the oil used in the soap?

Steam extraction might work, but buying distilling equipment is expensive, and in Kentucky, hazardous.

[kestrel91316]

18. Way outside my field of expertise, lol. I buy those little bottles of

essential oils in the store.......

[alfredo]

19. That'd be much easier and cheaper.

[murray hill farm]

21. I have been making my own soap for years.

It is remarkably easy to do...does not take much time..and one batch gives you soap for a year..ha! Just go online and check out the many sites for home made soap. Do not go for the commercial kits, etc. or think it is easier to rebatch, etc. It is not. Much easier to make your own lye/fat soap..and I put whatever herb I have around in mine...or oats or teas or whatever. Mint would really be nice although I have not tried it, but will on my next batch. Making your own soap is one of those really feel good things to do.