As a child I was often pressed into service to do laundry and clean the house when visiting my paternal grandmother. This woman was one of those “cleanliness is next to godliness” people. While I have no issues with that mentality my developing immune and respiratory system did have real issues with all the toxic chemicals she used to clean the house.

I never went home from visiting my father’s parents without a rash, a cough, or some kind of skin irritation.

That house was like a museum with plush white carpets and rooms that were barracaded except on the most special of occasions. Despite the house being a museum, rooms no one ever entered had to be scrubbed and polished from ceiling to floor.

An average weekend with her was a chemical manufacturer’s dream event. The crystal chandelier required that each of the 200 plus drop crystals be removed by hand, then soaked and scrubbed in ammonia and hand dried before being replaced. The black and white linoleum floor had to be first stripped, on one’s hands and knees, and then rewaxed with extreme care.

The museum of a living room had a round smoked glass table about 4 feet in diameter with little display areas for her porcelain figures each of which had to be scrubbed with some packaged cleaner, and then the table had to be cleaned with more ammonia based glass cleaner before everything was replaced.

Laundry was a nightmare for this grandchild, partly because my involvement began at about the age of six. She had one of those double tub washers with a ringer from one tub to the other. My grandfather wore white t-shirts and, of course, undershorts which meant the cloud of chlorine bleach that hung in the basement was so dense that I spent the better part of laundry day hacking with my eyes tearing. Scalding water was required to get things clean of course and one had to stick one’s hands down in the agitating tub just to be sure everything got a good dip in the toxic water.

Let’s not even discuss the scalding baths and being scrubbed with Ivory soap which dried my fragile skin out so much I went home with rashes and looking like a scalded lobster after every visit. I still can’t stand the smell of Ivory soap (99% pure what I always ask myself).

So, over the years every time I smelled bleach, ammonia, cleanser or any other cleaning product I would be transported back to standing on a milk carton at six years old ironing handkerchiefs, t-shirts, and even undershorts as the bleach stung my nose and lungs and my hands throbbed from the scalding bleach water they’d been immersed in tens of times each laundry day.

You can imagine that experiencing that kind of discomfort as a child and having allergies to almost everything the day I came into the world, could make a person HATE to clean anything for the rest of their life. Somehow, despite my oh so self-aware approach to life, I never GOT why I hated housework so much.

Then about four months ago I discovered soap nuts. Suddenly I looked forward to cleaning my house and doing my laundry. I looked so forward to it in fact that I started concocting new cleaning products using soap nuts liquid as the base. I even started to soak in the tub with soap nuts liquid and scrub my feet and toenails with soap nuts powder made into a paste to whiten and exfoliate them.

Soap nuts have not only made me love cleaning, they’ve also made my partner a happy soul because our ongoing “discussions” about when I planned to clean the house no longer are a part of our lives.

Clean house, happy cleaner, happy mate, and HAPPY ENVIRONMENT!

If you haven’t tried soap nuts as a natural laundry detergent or chemical free cleaner you simply MUST.

There’s only one place I recommend you buy soap nuts though. NaturOli understands that not only are they selling an environmentally friendly detergent, but that there are people like me who really don’t want to leave behind a wake of toxic chemicals for future generations to deal with. They package everything in recycled, recyclable, or biodegradable packaging.

I plan to try as many soap nut sources as possible to give you the most in-depth reviews and soap nut comparisons I can.

One of the main reasons I am doing this is that as the word of soap nuts spreads I find the mis-information is also spreading.

For example many unknowing individuals are beginning to infer that all soap nuts are created equal and that one soap nut is no better than another. This is false. I don’t think it is with intent to mislead. I believe they are only sharing what they personally believe to be true.

Why does it matter who I buy soap nuts from, you may ask. Like any living thing there is variation. If we are talking about fruit or vegetables it is common sense that there are superior varieties and inferior (or lesser) varieties. Eat a homegrown tomatoe that’s been vine ripened after you eat a hot house tomato that’s been picked green and allowed to ripen in transit or by being heated and you’ll taste the difference. Both are tomatoes and both will do the “job” of putting color into a dish. The flavor is drastically different however.

The same is only logical when talking about soap nuts. So why is it so easy for buyers of soap nuts to believe that one soap nut is just like another?

Well, we’ve become a society of reading is believing in many ways. We read an email about a terrible computer virus and we send it to everyone we know, but then someone who knows where to look discovers it’s a hoax, but thousands continue to believe it is true.

Okay, let me step down off my soap box (pun intended) and get back to the subject of soap nuts and quality.

If you read the Wikipedia article on Sapindus trees which is the Genus and you will count at least ten listed species. They all produce a fruit that has saponins.

I had read before that one species grows here in Florida where I live, but after a visit to Efloras.org I found that there is even a species that is native to Missouri where I was born and raised. They have one at Missouri Botanical Garden (go figure). Here’s a picture of the Sapindus drummondii growing at MOBOT and it even has fruit on it in the picture. I’m getting my brother to take pictures and send them to me. The tree is the State Champion and is 52 feet tall.

But again I digress. The point is that not all soap nuts will produce the same results and just because the seller thinks they are buying the top quality soap nut from an overseas supplier doesn’t mean that’s what they are getting or selling you.

Why do you care about all this?

If you get lesser quality species of soap nuts then you will get lesser results. You will need to use more soap nuts to do the same quality of cleaning and although you will be protecting the environment and your family from toxic chemicals in laundry detergent and cleaning products you will need to use more soap nuts and the cost benefits will be lost.

This is all common sense I know, but I feel compelled to help you become an informed buyer. Soap nuts are truly amazing. I want people and the environment to benefit by replacing toxic chemical laundry detergents and dishwashing detergent with soap nuts. Please be an informed buyer and don’t assume less expensive is the right way to go. If the total amount spent is less for a bag but you have to use more you’ve diluted the savings. It’s like buying on sale but using your credit card and paying interest.

I have been looking for side by side comparison pictures to help you identify what you are buying versus what you may think you are buying. This article has some pretty good pictures that may help.

http://www.articlesbase.com/skin-care-articles/kinds-of-soapnuts-483428.html.

You will notice a drastic difference between the lesser Sapindus Trifoliatus and the superior quality Sapindus Mukorossi. On that site you will even find pictures of the difference in the “suds” produced by the two species.

In closing, please educate yourself about soap nuts uses, quality, and performance.

There are a several things you may want to know before you go digging into your bag of soap nuts searching for the treasure of a seed.

First, before you introduce any new kind of plant or tree into your garden or environment check with your local agricultural department about planting it. Just because it’s a live plant doesn’t mean it won’t cause havoc to your locally or regionally indigenous eco-system. Those of you who have seen torpedo grass in New Orleans, duck weed on pods across the US, and pitcher plants in Louisiana will understand that warning. These things overtook the areas where they were planted or scattered and they destroyed many local plants and even fish in ponds by altering the natural balance of the environment into which they were introduced. In part this was because they grew beyond expectations.

Second, it will take about ten years before your soap nut tree will begin to bear fruit for you to harvest.

Third, you will need to soak the seed to soften it for at least 24 hours. This will allow the sprout to break through as the seed germinates. If you’ve ever grown an avocado from a pit you can visualize what I mean.

Fourth, it can take from one to three months to get the seed to germinate and all seeds won’t necessarily germinate. Be patient.

Fifth, once you get the seed to germinate you will want to protect it from extreme weather conditions. Remember that although soap nut trees are drought resistant you should check to see how close your growing zone is to the natural zone for soap nut trees to know about exposure to cold, freezing temperatures, and sun.

Fourth, the soap nut trees grow to about 75 meters in height so once you get clearance to plant and you have a small tree you will want to be sure you have ample room for it to grow.

I have found a link with other details about growing your own soap nut tree, and even tracked down a source for the seeds.

Exeterra Blog – How To: Grow Soap Nut Trees

Seedman.com –  Soap Nut Tree Seeds

Our goal is to be a central resource for all the available information about soap nuts online. If you find a resource we overlook please post a comment and share it with others.

What we’ll be providing is information about soap nuts, where to buy them, reviews of soap nuts suppliers, and creative ways to incorporate soap nuts into your life, for all purpose a chemical free cleaning.

Rarely are we impressed with something as much as we have been impressed by the excellent cleaning results of soap nuts. Often we find claims of online merchants for some products can be overblown marketing hype. Not true in respect to soap nuts. They are everything they are cracked up to be (pardon the pun).

What is most impressive to us about soap nuts is that they are sustainable, environmentally friendly, and completely natural. In fact soap nuts actually add the opportunity for economic growth to the indigenous people who harvest them, and better yet there is no machinery is used in the harvesting. The soap nuts fall to the ground and are gathered, deseeded, and generally packaged in the most minimal way.

A win for all involved in the use of soapnuts as an alternative to manufactured detergents, soaps, dishwasher powder or liquid, shampoos, and window cleaners.

Please visit http://soap-nuts.info often to discover all the ways you can use soap nuts in your everyday life.

If you enjoy our blog, or find the information of value to someone you know please be sure to share the link with others.