BUCKHORN CLIFFSA preparedness field manual

Hygiene and Sanitation · Formula · Book recipe 9.4

Wash Hair Without Shampoo (Baking Soda)

For days when hair smells off and a full shampoo isn't an option, or as an occasional rescue between regular washes.

Member articleHandle with careWorks without power

How it works

Dry brush
Soda wash
Vinegar rinse
Odor reset

Inside this article

What you'll need
Steps
Warnings
Storage and shelf life

The full text opens with membership.

What is in this article

  • The method at a glance: dry brush, then soda wash, then vinegar rinse, then odor reset
  • The exact numbers: wash, rinse, pre-brush, frequency, dry
  • The full materials list (5 items, with grades and substitutes)
  • The 5-step method, with every measurement in the step
  • The hazard box and the caution notes: what never to mix it with and when to stop
  • Storage and shelf life for the raw compound and the finished mix
  • A printable one-page PDF of this article

Member article

Read it in full with a membership

$49.95 per year. One price, everything below, cancel any time.

  • Every member article in fullAll 158 member pages, open: exact amounts, every step, every parts list.
  • Every recipe and resource in the bookAll 138 recipes and 33 compounds from Prepper's Chemical Survival Guide, with exact amounts, every step, every warning, and the reference charts.
  • My Manual: build your own field manualSave any page, recipe, chart, or whole field guide, arrange them in the order you want, and print one manual with your name on the cover. Or keep it as a PDF that opens with no signal.
  • All eleven field guides, on screen and as PDFsStockpile Essentials, Survival Foods, Chemical Compounds, Spare Parts, the Audit, the Logbook, Portable Solar Power, Home Backup Power, The Four Knots, The Bug-Out Bag, and Home Security and Defense. Read every one here, download the PDFs. $110 if bought one at a time.
  • A clean PDF of any articleOne click gives a one-page sheet in the field guide layout, ready to print or save.
  • Audit scores and checklists that follow youSaved to the account, so the phone, the laptop, and the shop computer all match.
  • No adsMembers read the whole site without a single ad.

My Manual · included

Build your own field manual

The most useful thing a membership gives you. Save any page on this site, recipes, charts, and whole field guides included. Arrange them in the order you want, name it, and print one manual with a cover and contents, or keep it as a PDF that opens with no signal.

  • It works when this site does not
  • Only your pages
  • Anyone in the house can use it
  • One current copy, not a pile of printouts
  • The house binder
  • A copy for the bug-out bag or truck
  • A copy for family
  • An offline PDF
Join for $49.95 per year Already a member? Sign in

Prefer paper? This is Recipe 9.4, page 44, in Prepper's Chemical Survival Guide.

Questions this answers

Tap a question for the short answer.

How do I wash my hair without shampoo?

Baking soda dissolved in water lifts scalp oils and neutralizes the odor compounds bacteria leave behind, and a diluted vinegar rinse brings the scalp back toward its natural acidity. Treat it as an occasional rescue, not a routine.

Members get the exact amounts and every step.

What's the recipe for baking soda hair wash?

The wash is baking soda dissolved in lukewarm water, paired with a diluted vinegar rinse that smooths the cuticle the alkaline wash roughs up. Dry brushing helps the wash reach the scalp, where odor concentrates.

Members get the exact amounts and every step.

How often can I wash my hair with baking soda?

Only occasionally. Baking soda is far more alkaline than your hair and scalp, so regular use damages the hair shaft, and the vinegar rinse does not fully undo that.

Members get the exact amounts and every step.

Can I use apple cider vinegar as a conditioner?

Yes, a diluted vinegar rinse can be left in as a light conditioner. The acid restores scalp pH and smooths the hair cuticle, and the vinegar smell fades completely as your hair dries.

Members get the exact amounts and every step.

Can I pre-mix baking soda hair wash and store it?

No, mix the wash fresh each time. Store the ingredients separately instead: dry baking soda keeps indefinitely in a sealed, moisture-free container, and vinegar stays in its original bottle.

Members get the exact amounts and every step.

Keep going

Read nextHygiene and Sanitation When the Water Is OffWhat to do when the water goes off: bucket toilet, hand washing, waste, body, teeth, laundry, dishes, disinfecting, and pests, with the shelf item and recipe page for every job.Hygiene and Sanitation · Guide

Related to this

Compounds and Cleaning · Compound Baking Soda Shelf life: Indefinite. Storage: Sealed HDPE or glass. INDEFINITEMULTI-USE Hygiene and Sanitation · Formula Baking Soda Field Scrub for Body Odor How to use baking soda as a dry deodorant, a scrub paste or an oil-based deodorant cream when soap and showers are not available. Handle with care Medical · Guide Baking Soda for the Body: Stomach Acid, Teeth, Odor, Itch, and the Things It Does Not Do 1/4 teaspoon in 8 ounces of water for stomach acid, short term only; it neutralizes the stomach, not the body Hygiene and Sanitation · Formula Homemade Squeezable Toothpaste (Bentonite Clay and Baking Soda) A squeezable toothpaste recipe using bentonite clay, calcium carbonate, baking soda, arrowroot and glycerin, with essential oil options.
Everything in Hygiene and SanitationNever-mix checkerShelf life tableFind a recipe by needWalk-around auditStart here

Membership · $49.95 per year

Open this page, and everything behind it

158member pages in full
125recipes with exact amounts
11field guide PDFs, 278 pages
1manual of your own, built from any page

Every recipe and resource from the Prepper's Chemical Survival Guide, all eleven field guides to read here and download, the full audit and logbook, all twelve reference charts, and no ads.

My Manual · included

Build your own field manual

The most useful thing a membership gives you. Save any page on this site, recipes, charts, and whole field guides included. Arrange them in the order you want, name it, and print one manual with a cover and contents, or keep it as a PDF that opens with no signal.

  • It works when this site does not
  • Only your pages
  • Anyone in the house can use it
  • One current copy, not a pile of printouts
  • The house binder
  • A copy for the bug-out bag or truck
  • A copy for family
  • An offline PDF

Join for $49.95 per year

Hygiene and Sanitation · FormulaSource: Prepper's Chemical Survival Guide, Recipe 9.4, p. 44 · Last reviewed 2026-09-18

Membership

Save to My Manual is a member tool

Members build their own manual from the pages that fit their household, then print it or keep it as a PDF.

Why it matters

When the grid goes down, this site goes with it. Paper does not. Membership is how you get the whole manual off the screen and onto the shelf: every page in full, every field guide, and a binder built for your own household.

The field guide library

All eleven field guides. 278 pages. Included.

The complete Buckhorn Cliffs PDF set, yours to download, print, and keep from the day you join.

$100if bought one at a time

  • Cover of Stockpile Essentials Field GuideStockpile Essentials39 pagesEverything to keep on hand, category by category, plus the 20 multi-use items.
  • Cover of Survival Foods Field GuideSurvival Foods35 pagesStoring, extending, and using the food supply. Real shelf life by the numbers.
  • Cover of Chemical Compounds Field GuideChemical Compounds29 pagesThe 33 compounds: storage, top uses, hazards, and the never-mix chart.
  • Cover of Spare Parts and Repair Stock Field GuideSpare Parts and Repair Stock40 pagesWhat to keep on hand to fix the home and land when the supply chain breaks.
  • Cover of Walk-Around Preparedness AuditWalk-Around Preparedness Audit33 pagesFifteen systems scored 1 to 5, with the printable scorecard.
  • Cover of The Preparedness LogbookPreparedness Logbook30 pagesThe household information that needs to be on paper.
  • Cover of Off-Grid Portable Solar Power Field GuideOff-Grid Portable Solar Power16 pagesSize a power station and a folding panel, pair them, wire them, keep them alive.
  • Cover of Home Backup Power System Field GuideHome Backup Power System20 pagesA battery and a hybrid inverter wired into the house: hybrid against off-grid, the wiring, the mistake to skip.
  • Cover of The Four KnotsFour Knots6 pagesWhich knot for the job, and how to tie each one in four moves.
  • Cover of The Bug-Out Bag Field GuideBug-Out Bag18 pagesOne bag per person for three days: the twelve jobs, the afternoon build, the packing plan, every item by job, and the checklist.
  • Cover of Home Security and Defense Field GuideHome Security and Defense12 pagesThe four layers from the property edge to the people inside, what to build first, the night something feels wrong, and the plan with or without a weapon.

My Manual · included

Build your own field manual

The most useful thing a membership gives you. No book fits your household exactly. My Manual does. Save any page on this site, recipes, charts, and whole field guides included, arrange them in the order you want, and print one manual with your name on the cover. It holds only what is relevant to you, and nothing you would skip.

Why it matters

  • It works when this site does notNo power and no signal means no website. A printed manual and an offline PDF still open, which is the whole point of writing any of this down.
  • Only your pagesThis site covers every household. Yours needs a fraction of it. Your manual holds the pages that match your water source, your climate, and your gear, so nobody digs through the rest under stress.
  • Anyone in the house can use itThe person who reads this site may not be the one home when it counts. A binder on the shelf, in the order you chose, is something a spouse or a teenager can follow.
  • One current copy, not a pile of printoutsEvery page prints in the same field guide layout with a cover and the print date. Change a page, print again, and the old copy is easy to spot.

What to build with it

  • The house binderYour water source, your climate, your gear. Only the pages you would reach for.
  • A copy for the bug-out bag or truckA short version that travels: water, first aid, comms, and the recipes you rely on.
  • A copy for familyHand a parent or a grown kid a manual built for their house and their supplies.
  • The shop and the barnParts lists, repair skills, and the never-mix chart, kept where the work happens.
  • A recipe book of your ownThe cleaners, fuels, and remedies you make, with exact amounts, in one place.
  • An offline PDFSaved to a phone, a tablet, or a drive in the Faraday bag. It opens with no signal.

How it works

  1. 1Save what fitsPress "Save to My Manual" on any page: a recipe, a chart, a guide, a parts list, or a whole field guide.
  2. 2Arrange it your wayOn My Account, drag the pages into the order you want. Name the manual and add your household name.
  3. 3Print it or save a PDFOne button makes a real PDF file, laid out for 8.5 x 11 inch paper with a cover. Print it from any device or keep the file. Field guides go in exactly as the PDFs are laid out. No ads, no photos.
  4. 4Keep it currentAdd a page, pull one out, print again. The cover carries the date, so you always know which copy is the latest.

Also included

  • The entire site, unlockedAll 158 member pages open in full: exact amounts, every step, every warning, every parts list. Nothing held back.
  • Every recipe and resource in the bookAll 138 recipes and 33 compounds from Prepper's Chemical Survival Guide, with exact amounts, every step, every warning, and the reference charts.
  • A clean PDF of any entryOne press turns any page into a field guide sheet for the binder, the truck, or the shop wall.
  • Checklists and audit scores that follow youSaved to the account, so the phone, the laptop, and the shop computer always match.
  • No adsMembers read the whole site without a single ad.
$49.95per year. About 14 cents a day. Cancel any time and keep the year you paid for.
Join now