Help me make my own anti-perspirant!
September 24, 2011 12:32 AM Subscribe
I got tired of normal deodorants and anti-perspirants -- they didn't always work, I don't like the way they smell, and the residue made my clothes discolour and eventually break down under the arms. So I started using Odaban spray, which I love. There's basically nothing in it except, I think, water and aluminium chloride. Now I want to make my own version at home, but I'm kind of intimidated by the chemistry aspects -- can you help me?
I've found a source for aluminum chlorohydrate, which I believe is basically the same as aluminium chloride, but I am clueless about how to make it into a simple minimalist spray product like Odaban. Would I mix it with water? Hot or cold, and how much? Do I need to do or add anything else?
*I know that aluminium chloride is claimed to be linked to increased risk of Alzheimer's and breast cancer, but that doesn't bother me -- I don't worry much about stuff like that, and it looks to me like the support for the link is pretty weak.
I've found a source for aluminum chlorohydrate, which I believe is basically the same as aluminium chloride, but I am clueless about how to make it into a simple minimalist spray product like Odaban. Would I mix it with water? Hot or cold, and how much? Do I need to do or add anything else?
*I know that aluminium chloride is claimed to be linked to increased risk of Alzheimer's and breast cancer, but that doesn't bother me -- I don't worry much about stuff like that, and it looks to me like the support for the link is pretty weak.
I'm not a chemist (yet), but I am 2 classes short of a chemistry degree.
Given that the chlorohydrate is extremely hygroscopic, I'd be willing to bet that the Odaban is not water but 95% pure ethanol (aka ethyl alcohol). If you mix it with water you're going to get something ranging between hissing (as noted above) and a very nasty explosion.
Is it really that cost effective to try to make your own? My advice would be: don't do it. It's not worth the risk... it's your health we're talking about here.
There are all sorts of quality assurance tests that go into things like this to make sure there are no dangerous by-products left in and that the concentration is what it's supposed to be. It doesn't sound like you have the skills to make sure it's safe to use.
posted by wxguychris at 9:41 AM on September 24, 2011
Given that the chlorohydrate is extremely hygroscopic, I'd be willing to bet that the Odaban is not water but 95% pure ethanol (aka ethyl alcohol). If you mix it with water you're going to get something ranging between hissing (as noted above) and a very nasty explosion.
Is it really that cost effective to try to make your own? My advice would be: don't do it. It's not worth the risk... it's your health we're talking about here.
There are all sorts of quality assurance tests that go into things like this to make sure there are no dangerous by-products left in and that the concentration is what it's supposed to be. It doesn't sound like you have the skills to make sure it's safe to use.
posted by wxguychris at 9:41 AM on September 24, 2011
I looked at the Odaban FAQs to suss out a little more, and there were a few things that make me think that a home-brew replacement will be difficult, ineffective, more expensive and just not fun.
First, they claim that the Al chlorohydrate breaks down upon contact with water - even moisture in the air - to form irritatants. (They use alcohol as the solvent in their product.) I don't know anything about that chemistry and I'm not going to spend the time to look it up, but if it's true it means that you can't use drugstore alcohol, which is at least 5% water (so is Everclear). Anhydrous (200 proof) ethanol is hard to get, and I'm not even sure they use ethanol - it might be isopropanol.
They also say their spray dispenser is specially designed to exclude moisture, plus it's made out of titanium blah blah blah. Maybe marketing baloney, maybe there's a real reason for the high-tech container.
They also say there's a little silicone in the product, which is a huge complication. How much? How do you compound this whole mixture? What order do you add the ingredients in, to prevent stuff from crashing out of solution? Do you need to heat it? How hot?
You probably don't have the equipment, and things like balances and pH meters are expensive. No money-savings here, if you have to buy all this stuff in order to do your project.
Basically, I think you're better off just buying the commercial Odaban spray.
One last thing: if you're determined to do it anyway, BE VERY CAREFUL HANDLING THE POWDER. Dry powders tend to "whoosh" all over the place, and chemistry newbies haven't developed the cautious instincts to keep powders under control. From the MSDS it sounds like you really don't want to inhale Al chlorohydrate or get it on your skin.
posted by Quietgal at 10:44 AM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
First, they claim that the Al chlorohydrate breaks down upon contact with water - even moisture in the air - to form irritatants. (They use alcohol as the solvent in their product.) I don't know anything about that chemistry and I'm not going to spend the time to look it up, but if it's true it means that you can't use drugstore alcohol, which is at least 5% water (so is Everclear). Anhydrous (200 proof) ethanol is hard to get, and I'm not even sure they use ethanol - it might be isopropanol.
They also say their spray dispenser is specially designed to exclude moisture, plus it's made out of titanium blah blah blah. Maybe marketing baloney, maybe there's a real reason for the high-tech container.
They also say there's a little silicone in the product, which is a huge complication. How much? How do you compound this whole mixture? What order do you add the ingredients in, to prevent stuff from crashing out of solution? Do you need to heat it? How hot?
You probably don't have the equipment, and things like balances and pH meters are expensive. No money-savings here, if you have to buy all this stuff in order to do your project.
Basically, I think you're better off just buying the commercial Odaban spray.
One last thing: if you're determined to do it anyway, BE VERY CAREFUL HANDLING THE POWDER. Dry powders tend to "whoosh" all over the place, and chemistry newbies haven't developed the cautious instincts to keep powders under control. From the MSDS it sounds like you really don't want to inhale Al chlorohydrate or get it on your skin.
posted by Quietgal at 10:44 AM on September 24, 2011 [1 favorite]
Irritatants ... yeah, those are really irritating irritants. Sheesh.
posted by Quietgal at 10:46 AM on September 24, 2011
posted by Quietgal at 10:46 AM on September 24, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
aluminium chlorohydrate is apparently somewhat different from aluminium chloride. BUT if you scroll down that second link:
"aluminium chlorohydrate is a common component in antiperspirants at low concentrations.[4] Hyperhidrosis sufferers need a much higher concentration (12% or higher), sold under such brand names as ...Odaban."
Also:
"Aluminium chloride is hygroscopic, having a very high affinity for water. It fumes in moist air and hisses when mixed with liquid water ...."
So. If I were going to do this, I'd start with very small amounts, stand from a safe distance, etc. I'd start with a lower concentration than 12% and fiddle with it a bit.
Again: I am not a chemist. I am not even a scientist. I am a random googler of the interwebs.
posted by bunderful at 8:29 AM on September 24, 2011