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> With fancy hand-made soaps you're paying for the image, and usually also scents and colorings that add nothing to the cleaning power I'm confused; with indus

by __jal 10y ago

> With fancy hand-made soaps you're paying for the image, and usually also scents and colorings that add nothing to the cleaning power I'm confused; with industrial soap, are the scents and colorings free? I'm pretty sure that if someone had the numbers, the marginal energy/environmental externalities of a bar of home soap compared to that of industrial soap + transport + packaging would be miniscule[1]. To look at it from a different angle, I'm also pretty sure it is more energy efficient to cook large batches of food than small. Do you suggest single people and couples not cook at home so as to benefit from the energy-saving-economies of scale? [1] Q: But what if everybody did it? A: Perhaps it would add up in that world. But we don't live there.

johncolanduoni 10y ago
> I'm pretty sure that if someone had the numbers, the marginal energy/environmental externalities of a bar of home soap compared to that of industrial soap + transport + packaging would be miniscule[1]. > [1] Q: But what if everybody did it? A: Perhaps it would add up in that world. But we don't live there. If you're comparing like with like, that shouldn't make a difference (unless you claim widespread small-scale soap production is somehow actively hurt by more people doing it). > To look at it from a different angle, I'm also pretty sure it is more energy efficient to cook large batches of food than small. Do you suggest single people and couples not cook at home so as to benefit from the energy-saving-economies of scale? You're talking about solving a huge coordination problem. They're talking about keeping on using a solution to a huge coordination problem that already exists.
- __jal 10y ago
  > If you're comparing like with like, that shouldn't make a difference (unless you claim widespread small-scale soap production is somehow actively hurt by more people doing it). No. As best I can tell, the GP post was claiming that those considering making their own soap should not, due to environmental concerns. Exploring a scenario in which everyone in the world suddenly converting to home lye soap might be an interesting thought experiment, but has nothing to do with the real world. > You're talking about solving a huge coordination problem. They're talking about keeping on using a solution to a huge coordination problem that already exists. Perhaps I am, in a world in which everyone abruptly started making their own soap last week. In this world, I'm talking about arguments that fail because they are predicated on extremely weak claims of economy of scale.
mrob 10y ago
>I'm confused; with industrial soap, are the scents and colorings free? Compared to the things people put in hand-made soaps, almost free. Search Etsy or similar for soap.

by __jal 10y ago

johncolanduoni 10y ago

> I'm pretty sure that if someone had the numbers, the marginal energy/environmental externalities of a bar of home soap compared to that of industrial soap + transport + packaging would be miniscule[1]. > [1] Q: But what if everybody did it? A: Perhaps it would add up in that world. But we don't live there. If you're comparing like with like, that shouldn't make a difference (unless you claim widespread small-scale soap production is somehow actively hurt by more people doing it). > To look at it from a different angle, I'm also pretty sure it is more energy efficient to cook large batches of food than small. Do you suggest single people and couples not cook at home so as to benefit from the energy-saving-economies of scale? You're talking about solving a huge coordination problem. They're talking about keeping on using a solution to a huge coordination problem that already exists.

__jal 10y ago
> If you're comparing like with like, that shouldn't make a difference (unless you claim widespread small-scale soap production is somehow actively hurt by more people doing it). No. As best I can tell, the GP post was claiming that those considering making their own soap should not, due to environmental concerns. Exploring a scenario in which everyone in the world suddenly converting to home lye soap might be an interesting thought experiment, but has nothing to do with the real world. > You're talking about solving a huge coordination problem. They're talking about keeping on using a solution to a huge coordination problem that already exists. Perhaps I am, in a world in which everyone abruptly started making their own soap last week. In this world, I'm talking about arguments that fail because they are predicated on extremely weak claims of economy of scale.

mrob 10y ago

>I'm confused; with industrial soap, are the scents and colorings free? Compared to the things people put in hand-made soaps, almost free. Search Etsy or similar for soap.