soap shelf life?

[Lazarus Long]

I'm still pretty new at wet shaving and haven't tried all that many soaps. I have a few now that don't get used very often and at the rate they are going it will probably be a while before i use them up. Does shave soap go bad just sitting around?

My only experience with soap going bad is with Kirk's Castile soap. After unwrapping, it eventually hardens and quits lathering.

With the tallow soaps apparently on the way out, if I find one I like a lot (MWF is a contender), is it pointless to stock up if it will just go bad? Any down side to keeping the inventory in the freezer?

 

[sneefy]

Search results for query: Shelf life

www.badgerandblade.com

 

[VerbaVolant]

...Does shave soap go bad just sitting around?...

It depends on what one would understand by "go bad". In my experience, yes, soaps "go bad just sitting around". How fast? It depends largely on the environmental conditions they happen to be "sitting around".
Triple milled soaps last the longest but I will consider five to six years as their shelf life. After that time they will suffer some level of degradation, mostly scent related.
In my opinion, a soap is "gone bad" when I can detect a change in one of their characteristics. To give you an example. I have several pucks of MWF, DR Harris, Wilkinson sticks, La Toja sticks, Haslinger and others, that have lost their scent to some degree after that time. The ones that kept their scent are Tabac, Williams and Arko.

...With the tallow soaps apparently on the way out, if I find one I like a lot (MWF is a contender), is it pointless to stock up if it will just go bad?...

Yes, if you are not setting realistic expectations and planning.

...Any down side to keeping the inventory in the freezer?...

I do not know and I will not go that far as to freezing soaps. More experienced members here can pitch in and share their experience.
The only shaving related items I refrigerate (not freeze) are aftershave balms.

Good luck and enjoy the journey.

 

[lasta]

I've only had two soaps gone "off". Stirling which developed white spots and odd smell after ~5months (but still worked fine), and Mike's which started oozing brown oil after 1 year, so I stopped using that.

But most, I would say indefinite. If you are worried, look for soaps that have preservatives in the ingredients (ie non-artisan offerings). And develop a good habit of letting it dry before closing the cap.

 

[Atlantic59]

Shelf life depends on the soap. Soft artisan soaps with a lot of added oils/fats tend to have shorter lives than hard milled soaps. Try not to put your soaps away wet. Leave them open to the air for a few hours after use so they can dry out. All soaps will benefit from being kept in a cool, dark place.

 

[Galaktus]

If you look on eBay, there's a healthy market for decades old shaving soaps. I'm taking 30-40 years, and beyond. You won't get much scent out of them, but they will shave just fine.