ATTENTION : LAUNDERESS, YOU MISUNDERSTOOD MY QUESTION!

[cleanfresh]

Hi, Launderess. Thanks for the reply, but you misunderstood my question. My question was what does the Fels-Naptha soap smell like. Not pure naptha. In your opinion, what does the soap smell like to you. How would you describe its odor. I hope that I'm stating this question in a way that you can understand exactly what I'm asking. Thanks.

 

[launderess]

Am neither deaf nor dumb, please do not shout, thank you.

Have said, far as one can tell my vintage bars of Fels smell like what one assumes "naptha" smells like. The scent is not very strong nor long lasting, and quite honestly aside from when I am grating a bar into flakes or dissloving the powdered/flakes into hot water, never really pay much attention to the scent. Laundry washed in Fels simply smells "clean", IMHO.

What is all the furore anyway?

Launderess

 

[cleanfresh]

Good morning to you, too!! No, I don't shout, but I do know HOW to get a person's attention (smile). No, seriously, I recently have discovered and am intrigued about this vintage soap. I have read about it's discovery, history, ect., but I wanted the opinion of someone who actually had some vintage Fels, to describe it's odor. And, you shared that yours "still reeked of naptha" I have read that pure naptha smells similar to gasoline. I'm really just curious about the soap's aroma. Also, naphtha and naphthalene ARE NOT THE SAME THING. They are two entirely different chemicals. Naphtha is a volatile liquid distilled from petrolatum and is used as a dry cleaning solvent (I know you already know that), and naphthalene is a volatile gas which is a distillate of coal tar. It can be made into a solid, but will sublimate or evaporate at certain temperaures. It is the active ingredient in old-fashioned mothballs and gives them their aromatic odor.

 

[launderess]

Fels soap smells nothing like petrol one puts in one's car that is for sure. Nor mothballs, so have to assume if that is/was the case Fels/Purex some how tweaked the scent with another fragrance or scent.

Launderess

 

[cleanfresh]

Thanks for your reply. Quite a few people have shared their memories of vintage Fels online. They always mention how much they liked the smell, but they never really described it in detail. One gentleman said that he used to live near the old Fels plant and he remembers a "clean aroma" always being in the air. When I researched the MSDS for Naphtha it stated that the chemical had an aromatic odor similar to gasoline. Some of the vintage ads for Fels showed women actually smelling the soap. The ads stated that they could "smell the real naptha". These ads are from the 1920's and 30's. And, you're right, the motto at the bottom of these ads is, "THE GOLDEN BAR WITH THE CLEAN-NAPTHA ODOR".

 

[rayjay]

Instant Fels Naptha

When I was a little boy. my grandmother used Instant Fels Naptha, It was a powdered laundry soap. The clothes always came out smelling very clean. They smelled like they were boiled. You had to have soft water for this soap to work effectively, or add Calgon water conditioner. I wish it was still made since I have a water softening system in my home.