This shower steamer recipe mixes 1 cup of baking soda with half a cup of citric acid, scents it with about 60 drops of eucalyptus and peppermint oil, and binds it with a light mist of witch hazel. Packed into a silicone mold and dried overnight, it makes twelve slow-fizzing steamers.
This is the base recipe, and the place to start if you have never made shower steamers. It makes twelve steamers about the size of a large coin, takes half an hour of work, and dries overnight. Once you have made it once, every other shower steamer recipe on this site is a variation on it.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (about 220g) baking soda
- 1/2 cup (about 110g) citric acid
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch (optional, for a slower fizz)
- 30 drops eucalyptus essential oil
- 30 drops peppermint essential oil
- Witch hazel in a small spray bottle
Tools
- Large glass, ceramic or stainless steel mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Silicone mold with 12 round cavities, about 4cm across
- Gloves
- Airtight jar for storing
A note on the essential oils before you start: the amount below is deliberately strong, because a shower steamer is made to be smelled rather than touched. Do not use this recipe as a bath bomb.
How do you make this shower steamer recipe?
1Set out the ingredients and tools
Measure everything before you start mixing. Once the witch hazel goes in, the mixture starts to set, and you do not want to be hunting for the mold with a bowl of damp powder going stiff beside you.
Use glass, ceramic or stainless steel for the bowl. Some plastic bowls hold on to essential oil smells for weeks. Put on a pair of gloves too, since citric acid stings any small cut on your hands.
2Whisk the dry ingredients
Tip the baking soda, citric acid and cornstarch into the bowl and whisk for a full minute. You are breaking up lumps of baking soda, which sit as hard white specks in a finished steamer, and spreading the citric acid evenly so every tablet fizzes the same.
Press any lumps that survive through the whisk wires or against the side of the bowl with the back of a spoon. The mixture should look like fine flour with a few glinting citric acid crystals through it.
3Add the essential oils
Add the eucalyptus and peppermint oils a few drops at a time, into different spots around the bowl, and whisk between each addition. Oil dropped into one place makes a damp clump that you then have to break up by hand.
About 60 drops across the whole batch is a good standard amount, which works out at five drops per steamer. That is strong in a closed shower and gentle in an open one. If you want to change the scents, rosemary shower steamers swaps in a herbal blend, and scents and blends has more.
4Mist with witch hazel until it holds
This is the step that decides whether the batch works. Spray two or three mists of witch hazel over the powder, whisk or mix by hand straight away, and repeat. Stop the moment a squeezed handful holds together in a clump and breaks cleanly when you poke it, like damp sand for a sandcastle.
Too little liquid and the steamers crumble when you unmold them. Too much and they start fizzing in the bowl, which uses up the reaction before they ever reach the shower. If you hear a faint crackle or see the powder swelling, stop spraying and keep mixing. The crumbling shower steamers page covers the dry side of this in more detail.
5Pack the mold tightly
Overfill each cavity, then press down hard with your thumb or the back of a spoon until the top is level and the mixture feels solid. Top up any cavity that sinks, and press again.
This is where most soft, crumbly steamers are made. Loosely filled cavities dry into tablets that are mostly air. Packed hard, they dry into dense tablets that fizz slowly and hold their shape in your hand.
6Dry overnight, then pop them out
Leave the mold somewhere dry and away from the kitchen sink for at least 24 hours. A humid kitchen slows drying, and the steamers can start to react with the damp air. They are ready when they feel hard and sound slightly hollow when tapped.
Flex the silicone and push each one out from underneath. If a steamer cracks or sticks, leave the rest another few hours. Then store them in an airtight jar. If yours swelled or fizzed while drying, the table below explains why.
If it goes wrong
| Problem | Likely cause | How to fix it |
|---|---|---|
| The steamers crumble when you take them out of the mold | The mixture was too dry, or it was not packed hard enough | Tip the crumbs back into a bowl, mist lightly until a squeezed handful holds, and pack again firmly. Nothing is wasted. |
| They swelled or grew bumps while drying | Too much liquid, or a humid room, set off the fizz before they dried | Mist more lightly next time and dry them away from the kitchen sink or kettle. Swollen steamers still work, just with less fizz. |
| The scent is faint in the shower | Too little oil, or the oils faded while drying uncovered | Store them in a sealed jar as soon as they are dry, and add another 10 to 20 drops to the next batch. |
| They stick in the mold | They are not fully dry in the middle yet | Leave them another few hours. A steamer that pops out cleanly is hard all the way through. |
How do you use the finished steamers?
Put one on a shelf or a corner of the shower floor where it gets splashed but not blasted, and let it fizz while you shower. A steamer this size is meant to last roughly eight to ten minutes, depending on how much water reaches it.
The scent fades faster than the fizz, so use them within a couple of months and keep the jar out of the bathroom between uses.
Can you change the ingredients in this recipe?
Some, yes. The baking soda and citric acid are the recipe. Everything else can move.
- No citric acid? Cream of tartar works in its place with a softer fizz.
- No cornstarch? Leave it out. It makes the fizz a little slower and the tablets a little harder, but the recipe works without it.
- No witch hazel? Plain water from a spray bottle works, but it sets off the fizz more easily, so mist even more lightly.
- Different mold? Any silicone mold with cavities around 4cm works. Bigger cavities need longer to dry. The silicone molds page covers sizes.
Every other recipe in shower steamers starts from this base.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use water instead of witch hazel in shower steamers?
Yes. Water works as a binder, but it sets off the fizz more easily than witch hazel, so mist even more lightly and mix quickly between sprays. Rubbing alcohol is another option some people use, because it evaporates fast.
How many drops of essential oil go in a shower steamer?
This recipe uses about 60 drops for twelve steamers, or five drops each. That is strong in a closed shower. Go lower if you are sensitive to scent, and never use this amount in anything meant for the bath or your skin.
Do shower steamers need cornstarch?
No. Cornstarch slows the fizz slightly and makes the tablets a little harder, but the recipe works without it. Leave it out if you do not have any, and pack the mold firmly.
How long do homemade shower steamers take to dry?
At least 24 hours in a dry room. They are ready when they feel hard, pop out of the mold cleanly and sound slightly hollow when tapped. A humid kitchen can double the time.
Can I use menthol crystals in this recipe?
Yes. Dissolve about half a teaspoon of menthol crystals in the essential oil before adding it. Menthol is strong, so wear gloves, keep it away from children, and try one steamer before making a whole batch.
