Hello everyone. I am trying to make a mud bath but finding the dirt seems to be the most challenging part. I've gotten everything else, but I just don't know what dirt to use and where to find it.

What types of dirts do you recommend and places to get them? I've heard mixed things about all different types of dirt.

How about kaolin clay.

We see this kind of question fairly often. Is it possible that people are overthinking it? I mean, it's mud. It's pretty straightforward, no?

High clay content and low sand content is what you want.

If you want it like the super smooth and shiny kind of mud, you'll want clay in bulk like from a pottery supply company. There are all sorts of colors it comes in and you can experiment with making your perfect mix.

If you want it like the chunky, earthy kind of mud, just hit up the home improvement store of your choice for bags of topsoil. Dead simple. Note that this will contain some rocks and sticks, though, just like outdoor mud typically does.

I personally prefer the latter and that's what I've used in my own mud baths over the years.

Bentonite clay has been recommended a fair few times on here, as its much more absorbent than other clays so you'll get more mud per kg of clay powder.

Used it myself (MS Clayzee Colours), really easy to mix and its very smooth and slippery.
It also waters down quite well so cleanup and disposal is pretty easy compared to gunge etc.

That's what I thought but it's not easy. You really can't buy 200 gallons of dirt. Packaged dirt is also super specific and treated. I'm looking for the most natural soloing that doesn't have rocks in it.

Yes! That's what I found. I ended up with screened fill dirt. The area I live in has good clay content and the fill dirt doesn't have sand in it. So I got some of that and now I'm doing mud experiments to find the optimal mixing process.

I looked into this but it's so expensive. I need like 200 gallons for my bath. I have used it before, food grade too so I could do head dunking which was fun.

Ok wow 200 gallons is a big mud bath

So that into account and wanting to keep cost reasonable I think Bentonite is your best option. Bentonite will soak up 10x is volume in water so it will fill your bath with less raw material. Texture is super fun and slippery however a bit translucide and stick less to your body and clothes vs Kaolin for example. Bentonite will take a good 24h to absorb it's water volume.. so plan ahead mix a day or two before.

On the topic of planning.. you are in for a very big mess How do you intend to dispose of the mud after you are done? If you are using your actual bath it may be hard to dilute the clay enough in the bath in order to have it go through the pipes without risk of clogging. Theres many solution but sharing about your planned setup we could chip in ideas so it doesn't turn into a back breaking burden that makes you never want to do it again. People doing large setup like this will often try to keep it running for a couple months.. 200 gallons of wet clay will weight over 3000lbs (more than a small car) keep that in mind..


Looks like a ton literally of fun

Let me know if you need more pointers.

Cheers!

I use Sodium bentonite clay myself and can send you some links to get some in larger quantities that is affordable. Sodium bentonite can go a long way due to it being an expanding clay around 20 times in water. Sodium is the way to go and not calcium bentonite as it doesn't expand when water is added. If you're interested in the links just let me know.

Definitely got to try some kaolin clay.

The very best is ball clay and kaolin clay. You can get it in several shades of brown. It is expensive. We get a couple of pallets. We have a 500 gallon vat in our mechanical room. We basically plastic off our mud / clean up area. The door stays locked to the room in case company comes over. Two things the bags create a ton of dust when mixing and the mud is super slippery. I mix the mud while my husband carries the bags. For clean up I would recommend a squeegee or something to push the mud off your body before hitting the shower. Our mud usually last us 3-4 months. We have a commercial drywall mixer we use to slop it up. We also keep it covered so the mud stays mud and doesn't turn back to dirt. Keep organic things out. My husband wears a condom when we are in it. Our room stays about 72 degrees and the mud will usually be between 69-72 degrees. I would love it hot but we aren't there yet. Again use caution when bathing in clays, they are very slippery. The mud vat we have is plastic. If you use a tub just get in and out slow, do not bang your head!

Also working on my wam room in the basement. I have a small room heater to keep the temperature very warm Also storing my slime in plastic bin (110l) so much smaller than yours.will switch to clay in a month or 2. But I think I've managed to keep my slime warm with a water bed heater under the plastic bin. The temperature probe going in the bin. Currently at 92F.. When it's time to use it I scoop the slime in the inflatable pool I have next to it. Pretty sure that system will work the same way with clay.

Cheers

I need to mention. If you succeed in your quest the clay will be very beneficial for your skin as well as satisfying your fetish but can and will dry your hair and skin out. So as a frequent mud bather you may need to invest in decent lotions or all out baby oil. Warm baby oil applied by my husband is my first choice!

Hi MGK

I have a couple 1500 gal tanks with mud in, some extra thoughts that I haven't seen covered yet:

* Consider how long you want to keep the mud. Natural mud is more likely to get stagnant faster. Pure clay I've found to be easier to manage

* Compaction. A 'thick' clay like PA RedArt doesn't absorb much water and can turn solid as a rock with enough depth. Bentonite (325) absorbs something like 25X its weight in water IIRC result is that moving in it can be like moving in butter , and you have pretty much neutral buoyancy with it, so sinking and submerging is easier.

* The amount of water in your pit controls a lot of the feel, and if you do go the clay route make sure to let the powder have a week, preferably 2, to absorb. Mix regularly

Honestly? The cheaper way to do it? Find a rock and dirt place near you and go to it and check out the dirt yourself! Put your hands in it- feel of it and you will know what will work well for you once water is added! I made a mud pit this year and we filled it with a silty like white clay at first and then emptied it and just went and found a rock and dirt place and picked out the dirt that we felt of-and knew it would melt with water. And it was amazing! It was a few hundred dollars and a couple hundred for them to deliver but? It made some of the coolest mud! it was totally different than anything else! So? Look in your area!

Extremely expensive if making a mud pit or using a lot of it! I love kaolin- but? It can be really high.

This is exactly what I did. I just went to a construction soil supplier and I got some. It's working great thus far!