Shave Soap/Cream Expiration

[Jester8]

Hello-

Out of curiosity, have any of you ever had a soap or cream go bad on you? I have 3 creams/soaps with one on the way for delivery and on most of the tubs there is a 12 month expiration symbol found on the side or bottom of the tub.

I am new to this and I dont want my soaps getting rotten on me. I guess this mostly pertains to those of you have a large collection of soaps. So just wanted some info.

BTW I can see how it is so easy to keep ordering different soaps/creams/croaps with the wide variety that is available on the market. So much better than the canned gel/foam I was using before jumping into this process.

Thanks in advance!

 

[tonich]

Shave on!

 

[Jester8]

Shave on!

That sums it up nicely, thanks! I wont worry about it then!

 

[TheVez2]

I have decades worth of soap. I also have many vintage soaps that are many decades old. I don't worry about it.

Expiration dates are required by regulations. They don't really expire. I bought a tube of Godrej cream that was 2 years past its expiration date at an Indian Grocery once, perfectly good.

 

[pauls51]

I wouldn't be worried at all. I've got a 20 year old Palmolive stick that I occasionally use still!

 

[malocchio]

I just shaved with Palmolive cream from the 1970's,perfect shave...The worst that can happen is the cream / soap will go rancid,it will smell bad,but will not "make you sick" in any form.

 

[banksman]

Expiration dates don't mean anything in my experience. I have used vintage soaps 20 years old and the performance is as good today.

 

[ZergoZatgai]

I would only worry if you were using a mayonnaise scented product.

But seriously, I have heard that some creams can separate and get a little odd if left to sit for a very long time once exposed to air, but I haven't been at this long enough for that to be a worry. I know that Cella makes 1 kg blocks which should keep any shaver busy for quite some time. Marco has a thread about long term storage for that here http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php/177782-How-to-safely-store-P-160-and-Cella-kilo-bricks

 

[Lann Rasuir]

I had the same query in mind but glad that it isn't a problem. I see many years of great shaving ahead.

 

[phillylion]

Since I have so many soaps/creams, I can't use them up by the expiration dates. And I've never seen any of them go bad or separate.

 

[Jester8]

That's good to know gents. Wow, 35 year old soap and it still is good! Nice. Worst case then, if I get tired of them I can gift them away!

 

[polanalyst]

Ditto! I am currently using T&H West Indian Limes and Grafton cream that is well over a decade old - and whilst it has hardened somewhat and requires large doses of water to re-activate, its performance remains superb! Same I might add for an old C&E Sandalwood puck as well!

 

[Burgundy]

I've had opened soaps go off over the course of time. All were soft soaps - mostly artisanal - kept in a dark, cool, dry wardrobe. Cella actually went rancid. I took from that not to have too many products on the go at any one time.

 

[FireDragon76]

I store tubes of shave cream in a small drink fridge at 48F. I've had them last for years that way. I gave a tube of Proraso Green to my dad that was still like new despite being 5-6 years old.

On the other hand, I had a bottle of Kiss My Face Unscented I tossed out after about the same length of time. I had used most of it up, but the remainedr turned yellowish. It was not refrigerated. You could still shave with it but it didn't seem to perform as well as when new. It could have been my imagination.

I would just store shave cream in a cool, dark place if possible and if the cream is paraben/preservative free, you might want to use it up quicker.

 

[BSAGuy]

Not here.