Can Bath Bombs Get Moldy?
Molds are fungi that can grow in colonies. They reproduce quickly by throwing off spores that create new mycelial filaments, which means mycelia grow out of dead or living organic matter and form a fruiting body to release spores.
We call it the most common type of mold yeast or mold fungus.
Many different molds are commonly classified as filamentous fungi, with filament being the equivalent of their branching structure and reproductive structures called hyphae.
Yes! The moisture inside your bath bomb is not enough to grow mold, but if you’re leaving your bath bombs in wet environments like standing on a bathroom floor or next to the sink, they will start growing mold. While the ingredients in a bath bomb can’t go bad, they can get exposed to moisture over time and start to grow mold.
Mold growing on your bath bomb is a great sign that it’s way over its expiry date, and you should get rid of it.
If you have an old bath bomb that seems a little too moist or smells funny (like mildew), don’t use it.
Old bath bombs can also be a little powdery. If you are looking at an old bath bomb and turning white from the powder, don’t use it, as it is most likely bad.
Some bath bombs can also turn white if dried out by the sun or caught in the rain. If you have a white bath bomb, just discard it.
Bath bombs that turn white from mold can also have a strange scent, but this can result from mold on the surface of the bath bomb you have.
Some people say their lemon bath bomb smells funny when their skin starts tingling because of the touch of mildew on the surface, but this does not necessarily mean mold is growing on your bath bomb.
How Do You Get Mold Out of Bath Bombs?
Start by using clean, fragrance-free soap to wash the moldy items. Not only will this help prevent any contamination from spreading, but it also means that your final product won’t smell like a cleaning agent.
Next, fill a bowl large enough for the pieces with hot water and dish soap.
Put the pieces into the bowl; If you’re using a 5-gallon bucket, wear protective gloves and goggles. Then, let them soak for one hour.
Remember to change the water every 20 minutes or so. You’ll have to use your judgment on how many times you need to change it based on how heavily contaminated the bath bombs are with mold.
After soaking for an hour, remove the bath bombs from the soapy water. Put them into a colander or strainer, and rinse under cold running water.
Give them time to air dry on a clean paper towel to prevent mold spores from spreading throughout your house. This should take about 2-3 hours.
Next, you’ll want to seal the bath bombs in a container and let them sit overnight to eliminate any remaining moisture you might trap. This will also help prevent your moldy bath bombs from being inadvertently handled.
After several hours, put the bath bombs in a large bowl and crumble them up with your hands.
You need to soak the bath bombs again for about an hour, so place them in a bowl with enough soapy water to cover them.
Again, change the water every 20 minutes. This time, use a sprayer or hose to mist the moldy bath bombs without getting any of them into your eyes or on your skin.
Change the water and repeat this several times until the bath bombs look less moldy.
What Will Happen If You Use an Expired Bath Bomb?
Putting an expired bomb in your tub will leave you with a delightful mix of toxic ingredients that don’t have the same pH balance for human skin.
Some of these ingredients are toxic to humans, like the acid in glycerin and some formaldehyde-releasing chemicals. Some, like citric acid, can irritate.
And other compounds found in bath bombs are hazardous waste. If you have concerns about getting poisoned by your bath bomb, here’s what you should do:
Take out the bomb immediately. Avoid using other chemicals in the tub. Consider buying new bath bombs or fillers, especially if they have the label “polymer-based.”
Colorful soaps and bath bombs look a bit more festive around the holidays. However, even though they are more attractive than usual, shoppers may need to be aware of what could be lurking in them.
Exploring the dangers of toxic bath bombs is part of a larger project that aims to analyze and identify chemicals found in “additive-rich consumer products“.
The project includes investigating the risks of bath bombs, cold creams, and soaps.
Bottle-shaped bath bombs are typically air-filled and have a bubble bath, scent, or synthetic oils. However, there are other hidden ingredients inside the bottle.
The mixture can contain plasticizers and other synthetic chemicals.
Why Do My Bath Bombs Have Warts?
This is usually due to clumps in the dry ingredients or not thoroughly mixing in the fragrance oil.
Make sure you strain your bath bombs before filling them up and ensure that the dry ingredients are well mixed and there are no clumps.
If your batch still has warts in it, there might be another issue at hand. You can try increasing the fragrance oil or adding more essential oils to see if this helps.
If you have warts in your bath bombs, you can remove them by placing the bath bomb in a mesh strainer and gently rubbing warts off with a wooden spoon or something similar.
Try to keep warts from touching the good bath bombs directly, as it could cause contamination.
You can also leave your bath bombs in a warm place for a few days, and warts will shrivel.
Another way to get rid of a wart is to put a bit of alcohol on a cotton swab and rub the wart away. If you try this, ensure no moisture is left on the bath bomb, or it could cause it to fizz or leak in your package.
Once you have gotten rid of warts, make sure that you dry off your bath bomb before packaging it up.
Remember not to pack too many bath bombs into one bag, as this can cause them to fizz out and leak.
How Do You Store Homemade Bath Bombs?
| Instructions | Description |
| Low Humidity Level | Like a bathroom cabinet, store your homemade bath bomb in low humidity and lower temperatures. The less moisture you have in your area, the longer the bath bomb will last. |
| Avoid Containers | Avoid storing homemade bath bombs in containers generally because they’re moist and can mold after a while. |
| Use A Box | If you store your homemade bath bombs in a box, ensure the container is generally sealed. Storage areas like a cabinet are generally good but should be low-humidity areas. |
| Avoid Storage Under Heaters or In Direct Sunlight | Because your homemade bath bombs contain little water and ingredients such as Epsom salts and citric acid that can build up under heaters or in direct sunlight, avoid storing them in these places. |
| Limit Exposure to Air | Avoid exposing homegrown bath bombs to the air because they can dry out or deteriorate easily. You should also limit their exposure to other household materials, like paper towels and baby wipes. |
| Keep The Top of Your Homemade Bath Bombs Sealed | When you store homemade bath bombs in jars without lids, make sure you put a lid on it and keep it sealed so humidity won’t get into it. After a while, the jar can get uneven, and that’s not good for your bath bomb. |
Why Unused Bath Bombs Lose Their Fizz Over Time
Loss of Calcium Carbonate
When they come into contact with air, bath bombs’ active ingredient (calcium carbonate) begins to lose its fizz.
This is due to the reaction of the carbon dioxide and water that the bomb releases in its fizzing process.
Loss of Sodium Bicarbonate
When the fizzing stops, the sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) remains behind, which creates a problem.
Loss of Fragrance Oils
To mask the odor from the sodium bicarbonate, some bath bomb makers add fragrance oils. But oil and water don’t mix, so these oils become trapped inside the bomb.
Loss of Silica
After a while, the carbon dioxide released in the fizzing process starts to cool and change into carbonic acid.
Now, the resulting carbon dioxide and water that the bomb produces contains far less of the substance silica, which is responsible for its fizz.
Loss of Baking Soda
When the carbonic acid becomes more diluted, the bicarbonate used to make the bomb loses its ability to absorb the carbon dioxide. This is why the final result is less fizz.
The Effects of Heat
Heat also bizarrely messes with bath bombs. When you put a bomb in water, it starts to bubble and fizz as soon as it comes into contact with air.
This is because the carbon dioxide inside it reacts with water to form carbonic acid. The reaction releases heat, which is something else bath bombs comprise.
So, removing a bomb from your tub loses its fizz almost immediately. And by doing so, many bath bomb makers have also lost some money since only some of their bath bombs retain their fizz for a long time.
This is why, even though bombs are very cheap, it’s best to keep them in your tub, at least until their fizz starts to fade out.
How To Tell If Your Bath Bomb Has Expired
| Factors | Description |
| Discoloration | If a bath bomb is air-exposed, it will, over time, change its color. White bath bombs will turn gray or brownish after their expiration date. |
| Rust | A white bath bomb will turn rust-colored due to oxidization if you keep it for long periods without being adequately sealed or used. |
| Slight Change In Texture | Bath bombs will lose their shape or unnecessary bubbles if they expire. If you don’t use a bath bomb, it will also lose its shape in the water while dissolving. |
| Different Smell | Some bath bombs have an unusual or strong scent that goes well with your favorite scents, but this scent change may indicate their expiration date. You can detect this by opening the container and sniffing it before use. |
| Creating A Chalky Layer | A chalky residue will appear if you leave a bath bomb in water for too long. This may indicate that the product has expired and that you should dispose it immediately. |
| Leaking Chemicals | If the bath bomb container is open and the bath bomb starts to leak, this is a rare occurrence. This may mean it’s not fresh anymore, so you should throw it away when you notice. |
| Dissolving Too Quickly | If the bath bomb disappears before the water starts to turn colors, it may mean that it’s old, and you should dispose it immediately. |
| Distributor Information Missing | Sometimes, Bath bombs have a sticker with the distributor’s name and address on their packaging. You can use this to get in touch with the distributor if you notice anything wrong with your product. You should discard the product if this information is missing. |
What Are Shelf Lives Like For Bath Bombs?
| Ingredients | Shelf life |
| Citric Acid | 2-3 years. |
| Epsom Salts | 2-3 years. |
| Rose Petals | Expiry date varies depending on flower type but typically lasts one month to 6 months when dried and three to 1 year when freeze-dried and sealed airtight. You can indefinitely store it in a vacuum sealer for maximum freshness. |
| Calcium Sulfate | Two months to 2 years |
| Sodium Bicarbonate | 1 year |
| Sodium Chloride | 1 to 2 years |
| Glucose | 2 to 3 years |
| Coconut oil | 1 to 2 years |
| Cornstarch | 1 to 2 years |
| Glycerin | 1 to 2 years |
| Mineral oil | 2 to 3 years |
| Mica shimmer | 8 months to 1 year |
| Potassium nitrate | 2 years to 3 years |
| Sodium bicarbonate | 2 years to 3 years |
| Sodium lauryl Sulfoacetate | 2 years |
| Sugar | 1 year |
| Vegetable glycerin | 1 to 2 years |
| Vinyetas extract | 6 months |
| Witch hazel | 1 to 2 years |
| Sucrose | 1 to 2 years |
What Can You Do with Expired Bath Bombs?
| Dispose | -You can put these in the garbage with your food scraps -Burn them for heat like you would a candle -Mix them into some mud from the garden to make fingerprints on the walls -Use your old bath bombs to wash out containers and dishes, like old rice bowls and water glasses -Fill up a cement footer or use it as a filler for potting soil outside your house -Add it back into the garden as fertilizer or compost |
| Give Them Away | -Give them to your friends who will use them for their baths |
| Melt It Down | -Cast it into trinkets like earrings and bracelets |
| Smash It Up | -Use it in a YouTube prank video or make a domino effect out of them |
| Use Them as A Tool | -Use them to clean your tub or sink; this can help remove soap scum. |
| Make A Candle Out of It | -To make a candle out of them, you will first need to drizzle some wax down the side of an old glass jar, then line the inside with old newspapers. Then, smash up your bath bomb and fill in the spaces between the layer of wax and newspaper. This can create a nice-smelling candle. |
Can You Use Vinegar in Bath Bombs?
Yes! First, it’s important to note that you’ll want to ensure your bath bomb is at the correct moisture content before adding any liquids.
There are a few ways to troubleshoot this issue, including weighing the ingredients or checking the feel of your dough.
Add 3 to 4 tablespoons vinegar to a cup of distilled water, and mix thoroughly. You will want this solution to test your bath bombs for proper moisture content.
If you are using an oil-based bath bomb, such as a blended oil or mineral oil and citric acid, the testing method is a bit more involved as you must apply the testing solution to the bath bomb after mixing it.
The bath bomb should not have cooled before testing, which will cause crystallization, making your testing solution ineffective.
The correct testing method used as a bath bomb is cooling, and you must also allow the bath bomb to cool completely before applying it to your skin.
You can mix your solution with the ingredients if you use an alcohol-based bath bomb, such as dried vodka, glycerin, and citric acid.
We add water to the test solution as needed so that a proper test run will yield a result.
Conclusion
Molds in bath bombs may appear sometimes, and they can be challenging to spot. Handling old bath bombs with care is essential as they are more likely to contain dangerous molds and can cause serious health problems.
