Liquid soap as a washing agent is fast replacing detergents in Kenya. Since the advent of liquid soap in Kenya, detergent producers have not found it easy to cope with the competition. This is because of the simple fact that liquid soap is fast gaining grounds for laundry and dishwashing. Liquid soap has several advantages over Soaps and detergents hence, its preference for laundry and dishwashing.
How To Make Liquid Soap In Kenya
The following is a method you can use to prepare your own liquid soap at home.
The best part is that all the ingredients are available in the local market.
Materials needed:
1. Sodium lauryl ether sulfate,(Re-known chemical name-Ungerol). Quantity needed: 500 MLS.
2. Sodium chloride or iodized salt(Re-known chemical name-Normal kitchen salt). Quantity needed:500g.
3. Cocodiethanolamide or CDEA, (Re-known chemical name-Ufacid). Quantity needed:500 MLS.
4. Water-soluble dye, (Normal food colour). Quantity needed:20g.
5. Benzalkonium chloride,(Normal preservatives). Quantity needed:40mls
6. Fragrance,(Local varieties). Quantity needed:20mls
7. Distilled or de-ionized water, (You can boil tap water). Quantity needed:20lts.
IMPLEMENTS.
1. Wooden or plastic ladle.
2. Medium-sized basin.
3. Measuring spoons and cups.
4. Gas stove.
5. Pot.
6. 500 ml pet bottles.
How to Get Started:
1. Put 5 litres of distilled water in a pot and boil the water for 15 minutes. You have to use distilled water or de-ionized to avoid contaminating the liquid detergent mixture. Unboiled tap water has substances that can cause the mixture to eventually emit a bad odour.
2. While waiting for the mixture to boil, put the Ungerol iodized salt into the basin. Mix them thoroughly with the ladle until the iodized salt is completely dissolved.
3. Once the water has boiled enough and the salt has completely dissolved, gradually pour the water into the liquid detergent
mixture. Stir. Keep on stirring until the Ungerol & salt mixture is dissolved. The liquid detergent mixture becomes foamy when stirred, which means that the Ungerol is being dissolved.
4. Now add to the mixture the CDEA, benzalkonium chloride and the fragrance. Don’t add the water-soluble dye. The water-soluble dyes should first be dissolved separately in a small container before being added to the mixture. And make sure that the fragrance and dye are properly matched.
5. After putting in all the chemicals, mix until everything is dissolved. Let the mixture cool until the bubbles subside. Then add another 15 litres of cool distilled water. Once the mixture has sufficiently cooled down, the liquid detergent becomes clear. You can now pour the finished product into the PET bottles.
Cap the PET bottles containing the liquid detergent and set them aside. The yield of the liquid detergent mixture is 20 litres.