What's with Ivory dish soap?

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Funkdoobiest
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What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Funkdoobiest » Tue Nov 24, 2015 8:03 pm

I clean my pap gear regularly, including my mask daily. I've always used Dawn but I picked up some Ivory dish soap the other day since a lot of posts recommend it and are against Dawn for some reason. On one hand Dawn is used on wildlife and the other it's used to strip the wax off your car and will etch paint and glass if left on too long. So I figured I'd try something more "mild" and see if I get similar results on my pap stuff. What I noticed is that the Ivory leaves a film on the silicone cushion on my mask. My cushion is the crystal clear kind and after using Ivory it is clouded. I rewashed with Dawn and it was crystal clear again. The Ivory is the classic scent.

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Julie
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Julie » Tue Nov 24, 2015 8:08 pm

Is Dawn alcohol and petroleum free? The thing is, it strips oil, etc. very well, but maybe too well for the silicone. The Ivory is milder and if you read the manual re cleaning, it calls for mild... many here use baby shampoo (without alcohol or petro) and/or baby wipes, which could be used instead of Ivory or following it. Any alcohol or petro. might be too strong.

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Wulfman...
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Wulfman... » Tue Nov 24, 2015 8:09 pm

I don't know. I've always used Dawn (original blue version) and have never considered using anything else.


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Funkdoobiest
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Funkdoobiest » Tue Nov 24, 2015 8:17 pm

Interesting, I never thought to look whats in Dawn, I mean it's dish soap, right? I just looked up the msds and would you believe 2 of the ingredients are Sulfuric Acid and Ethanol?

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hegel
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by hegel » Tue Nov 24, 2015 8:21 pm

Ivory...99% pure...bullcrappy.

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Julie
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Julie » Tue Nov 24, 2015 8:32 pm

Ethanol = alcohol... it's what gets the oil off birds. Nice for the birds, but no so much for silicone.

Funkdoobiest
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Funkdoobiest » Tue Nov 24, 2015 8:43 pm

Yeah, thanks for bringing the alcohol to my attention. I've known alcohol is not good for silicone but never thought it was in dish soap. I was even more surprised to see sulfuric acid though.

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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by chunkyfrog » Tue Nov 24, 2015 9:05 pm

I never liked Ivory--absolutely HATE the 'fragrance'.
Both the bar--Castile soap with air whipped inside and the liquid--detergent,
completely different, but doctored up to give color and scent like the bars.
Just for giggles, microwave a bar, and see what happens.
Like popcorn! Such a hoot.

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mariejeanne
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by mariejeanne » Tue Nov 24, 2015 11:34 pm

I use Dr Bronner's bar soap. Works great.

Funkdoobiest
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Funkdoobiest » Tue Nov 24, 2015 11:50 pm

Boy, I wish I never got into this. What I didn't know . Most dishwashing soap has some nasty ingredients. Most baby shampoo even has nasty ingredients, not as bad as dish soap for silicone as baby shampoos don't have alcohol or sulfuric acid, but they do have other questionable ingredients. Did you know that no tears shampoos have numbing agents to prevent tears? And I thought it was just such a gentle soap.

Anyway, seventh generation seems to be the only soap at Target that doesn't have some totally objectionable ingredient like alcohol. Better yet would be plain old castile soap. I will be experimenting. I like the idea of a castile soap with tea tree oil as a natural anti bacterial. Anyone have any other recommendations please post tem.

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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Wulfman... » Wed Nov 25, 2015 12:00 am

Funkdoobiest wrote:Yeah, thanks for bringing the alcohol to my attention. I've known alcohol is not good for silicone but never thought it was in dish soap. I was even more surprised to see sulfuric acid though.
It's never had a negative effect on any of the mask seals/cushions I've cleaned with it. I used my original mask seal/cushion for over 6 years. I replaced it in 2011, but got curious and put it back on that mask again this year and it still seals just fine.
In fact, I broke out a (new/unused) mask from original packaging some months back and it's just now starting to get broken in and sealing better.......but still not as good as my 10 1/2 year old one. And, I've been using the same set of headgear to compare the three I've been testing.

I'm not buying the "alcohol is not good for silicone" argument.


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Funkdoobiest
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Funkdoobiest » Wed Nov 25, 2015 12:48 am

Den, i too have used Dawn on the same mask for 4 years with minimal degradation. I boiled my cushion and looks as good as a new one i jus bought but the new one does seal a little better. The differencein seal could be from boiling, i don't know. What I do know is that alcohol will remove minor amounts of silicone when icaulk my shower. It also makes the old caulk swell and curl making it easier to scrape. Mineral spirits dissolves silicone. Perhaps the nasties in Dawn arent enought to make a difference, or maybe you can get 25 years out of a cushion by using a gentler soap.

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Wulfman...
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Wulfman... » Wed Nov 25, 2015 1:25 am

Funkdoobiest wrote:Den, i too have used Dawn on the same mask for 4 years with minimal degradation. I boiled my cushion and looks as good as a new one i jus bought but the new one does seal a little better. The differencein seal could be from boiling, i don't know. What I do know is that alcohol will remove minor amounts of silicone when icaulk my shower. It also makes the old caulk swell and curl making it easier to scrape. Mineral spirits dissolves silicone. Perhaps the nasties in Dawn arent enought to make a difference, or maybe you can get 25 years out of a cushion by using a gentler soap.
In looking through my computer archived files, I found a MSDS sheet for Dawn Ultra that I saved about two years ago. I also re-searched for any others (found one on Grainger's site) and printed it to a .pdf file, too.
I have no plans of changing dishwashing soap after all these years......just to wash my masks, etc. I also figure if it's good for cleaning crude oil off of wildlife, it's OK to use for everything else (like I've used it for many years).

Years ago (when I started), I kept seeing users claim that they needed to replace their masks or mask cushions every so many months and I decided to do my own "longevity" tests with some of mine. Other than maybe getting a little softer, I can't seem to wear them out (whatever that means) and they keep sealing pretty darned good. But, I also think part of the sealing depends on the condition of the headgear, too. I've only worn out one set of headgear in 10 1/2 years, too. The first lasted four years but I haven't been able to wear any of the others out since then.

I dunno. Like I've said with other issues........do what you feel comfortable with. I know lots of folks on the forum have and still use Dawn and others use other brands.

All in all, I've probably got more stocked-up supplies (masks, cushions, headgear, hoses, etc.) than I'll ever use up in my lifetime. In recent months and years, I've decided to start using some of them. I purchased all of them out-of-pocket, so I figured I'd be more frugal in using them.


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Jay Aitchsee
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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Jay Aitchsee » Wed Nov 25, 2015 5:42 am

I think the ingredients of any soap or detergent would sound harsh. After all, the earliest soaps were just a mixture of something like Lye and animal fats. I use Dawn. The bird thing sold me.
Oh, and soaps tend to leave a film when used with harder water and detergents less so. (a generalization)

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Re: What's with Ivory dish soap?

Post by Pugsy » Wed Nov 25, 2015 8:37 am

Wulfman... wrote:I'm not buying the "alcohol is not good for silicone" argument.
I don't really buy it either.
I think that the old warnings were probably in place more to CYA for those people who take things to the extreme ...and we all know that some people will. If a little cleaning is good then a lot of cleaning is better type of thing. They can't seem to grasp the term "moderation" or common sense even but I figure if it lets them sleep better who cares.

While I wouldn't soak my equipment in alcohol...I don't think that a quick wipe or washing with a product that contains a little alcohol is going to make much of an impact on silicone life.

For me...when I wash any of my gear...it gets washed with whatever I happen to have handy and it's usually something scented because I like the aroma that I get briefly after the wash.
And I get months and months out of my nasal pillows...always have no matter which model mask.
It let's me sleep better and that's all that matters to me. I am happy with my routine or lack of routine as some people might think but it works for me and I am the only one I have to please.

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