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Storing, Handling And Using Essential
Oils
By Mireille Gautschi
Pure Essential Oils are a natural
product and contain no preservatives or additives. A few of them
can also be quite dangerous if not handled correctly. Some basic
procedures should therefore be observed in order to ensure safety
but also the quality of the oils in storage.
Storing essential oils:
Many Essential Oils are flammable
and/or act as strong solvents. Eucalyptus Oil for example can
be used to remove glue from old stickers or to strip paint.
Essential Oils are best stored
in amber glass bottles with a tight lid. It is also advisable
to fit bottles that don't have a dripolator (orifice reducer)
with a child proof cap for safety reasons. Sun light (UV) and
high temperatures are the main enemies of essential oils. Amber
glass bottles offer good protection from UV. Essential Oil containers
are best kept in a dark, cool place with temperature fluctuations
kept to a minimum. Keep essential oils safely locked away from
children at all times.
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Stored at low temperatures, some
oils will tend to solidify. This is no cause for alarm as they
will turn liquid again once they reach room or in some cases
body temperature. Most likely to solidify are the absolutes,
vanilla, rose otto and fennel.
Under good conditions essential
oils can be stored for periods of 6 months to several years.
Some oils like myrrh, sandalwood, frankincense and patchouli
will even improve or "mature" with age, very similar
to a good wine. The shortest shelf life have all citrus oils
with grapefruit generally being the first to deteriorate. Once
these oils start to turn cloudy or smell rancid they should be
disposed of. |
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Handling and using essential
oils: When taking essential oils from the bottle, avoid contaminating
the oil. Don't touch the top of the bottle or the inside of the
lid. If you are using pipettes to transfer the oils, try to obtain
disposable ones that you can throw away after use. Never use
the same pipette for different oils. Used pipettes can also be
stored for a short time in clip-seal plastic bags to use again
later.
Avoid contact of essential oils
with the skin as they can cause irritation. Using latex gloves
and wearing protective glasses is recommended when handling essential
oils. Essential oils must never be used internally. For application
to the skin, dilute the essential oil with a good quality carrier
oil e.g. jojoba, almond or olive oil. 3% essential oil with 97%
carrier oil is a safe ratio.
Diffusers and oil lamps need
only 2-3 drops of essential oil to scent a room for many hours.
The cup on the oil lamp should be 3/4 filled with clean water,
add to it the 2-3 drops of essential oil. Only then light the
candle in the burner. Remember some essential oils are highly
flammable, so be careful when using an essential oil lamp.
Observe these points and you
will get a lot of enjoyment out of your essential oils. |
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