Comments on: Can non-foamy liquid hand soap work in a foaming dispenser?

Question: Can non-foamy liquid hand soap work in a foaming dispenser?

schmoppa — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:33:57 -0800

Is it possible to use regular liquid hand soap with one of those foaming soap dispensers?

I really like foaming dispensers because the soap pumps out pre-lathered for you, but it would be nice to be able to use any liquid hand soap you want. I've never tried replacing the less viscous foaming soap with thicker regular hand soap, but I assume that there is a reason why the foaming stuff is more fluid.

Would adding water serve to make regular liquid hand soap more fluid (and therefore work well with a foaming dispenser), or is that just going to make the soap foam up in the bottle?

By: Dee Xtrovert

Dee Xtrovert — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:38:31 -0800

I've tried it a million ways and couldn't get it to work. Finally, someone told me that the foaming soaps have some special ingredient that makes them, uh, foam. But if you figure out a way, let me know. All I made was a series of soapy messes.

By: box

box — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:43:43 -0800

I have diluted regular Dial (well, actually, the store-brand knockoff) antibacterial about 1:1 with water, then put that in the foam dispenser thing. It seems to work okay.

One hallmark of the scientific method is its emphasis on replicability. I would encourage you to perform a similar study, in order to see if you duplicate my findings.

By: box

box — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:45:53 -0800

(Also, I'm pretty sure that almost all soaps have foaming agents (surfactants, I think they're called) in them.)

By: Burhanistan

Burhanistan — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:51:18 -0800

Yeah, just dilute with water. Depending on the mineral content of your tap water results will vary.

By: phatkitten

phatkitten — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:52:36 -0800

It looks like a combo of mostly water and a wee bit of soap works, at least until it starts growing slime (according to the update at the bottom).

By: herrdoktor

herrdoktor — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:55:40 -0800

As a former procyberathlete, I used to worry about playing matches with equipment that wasn't mine. Anyway, to make a long story short, I've learned the following:
- biofilms adversely eventually affect mouse buttons, balls and pads
- foamy soap works better than regular soap at removing palm salsa
- hand sanitizers, while handy and quick, dry out hands too much resulting in poor mouse control
- hospital-grade non-soap sanitizers, while effective at killing bugs, imparts a terrible flavor to Cheetos and other corn chip snacks
- you can make your own foamy soap from liquid soap as I learned here.

I still compete with other MetaLosers, but stopped washing my hands and started using a trackball. The ball has accreted layers of funk, like a pearl, resulting in ultra-smooth performance. If you're not competing in clan matches, consider not bathing, or at least wearing gloves whilst bathing. Otherwise, give the linked method a try.

Your pal,
HD.

By: Burhanistan

Burhanistan — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:57:53 -0800

Also, I don't think any liquid soap will work well. It should be the clear kind that resembles shampoo. If you use the goopy, lush stuff then it won't foam very well.

By: rumposinc

rumposinc — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 14:59:47 -0800

I have had no problem re-using foaming hand soap containers by refilling them with regular liquid soap (like Dr. Bronner's) and water in terms of the product result. Use much less soap than you would think--a couple of teaspoons per average-sized container and make sure the solution is well mixed. If you like the foam creamier, use more soap or add a little bath oil. The problem, for me, hasn't been the foamy soap, it has been the fact that the dispenser eventually gets busted after several refills.

Then, my local natural grocery and home goods place started selling refillable foaming soap dispensers, which are much sturdier. It work great and mixes a lot of air into the soap solution.

I couldn't find an online source for the refillable dispenser (I could find them, but not from a source I have personally used) but check your local co-op, Whole Foods, etc. This is the kind of thing that is great to swap into our lives in lieu of use-once items.

By: herrdoktor

herrdoktor — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 15:00:39 -0800

Shazbot. Maybe the funk has affected my typing. I'm too late!

In all seriousness, I've tried the cockeyed.com method, and it worked well enough to last through a jumbo-sized bottle of liquid soap. No slime. YMMV.

By: necessitas

necessitas — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 15:05:40 -0800

I have the method one. I mix a bit of soap with lots of water. Comes out as foam every time.

By: selfmedicating

selfmedicating — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 15:41:19 -0800

Use much less soap than you would think

This is the key. Like 1 part softsoap to 10 parts water.

By: fogster

fogster — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 15:51:37 -0800

I hadn't tried the water trick... Otherwise it just jams before squirting out a tiny bit and making an awful noise.

I'm not sure I love the idea of 90% diluted soap, though?

By: mullingitover

mullingitover — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 16:03:03 -0800

I've been doing this for years. I mix Dr. Bronners crazy hemp soap about 75% diluted with water, and it works great in any of the foaming soap dispensers. It takes me over a year to go through a whole bottle of Dr. Bronners this way, and my hands smell minty fresh. I have a bottle for the shower, too.

By: fiercecupcake

fiercecupcake — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 16:06:48 -0800

I have successfully used dish soap (you know, Joy, Dawn, whatever, you name it) diluted about 1 parts soap to 2 parts water in a Dial foaming dispenser for YEARS. I love my foamy soap.

By: gingerbeer

gingerbeer — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 18:00:32 -0800

We've been reusing an old Body Shop foaming soap bottle for years, refilling it with Dr. Bronner's and water. It's still going strong. I would agree that the key is a fairly thin liquid soap, diluted with water. Anything will get that dilute, I would think, with enough water.

By: BleachBypass

BleachBypass — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 18:37:29 -0800

I was looking into this too, it seems like the works get gummed up after a while. Two suggestions I have read (but not yet tried):

1) Add a small bit of glycerin, to make it easier to pump, especially as it ages.

2) The intended foaming refill apparently has a higher relative concentration of "foaming agents," such as sodium lauryl sulfate. When you replace with thinned-out, regular soap, it seems as though the foaming action is lackluster. So you could boost your homemade mix with a ~tiny~ amount of SLS, found relatively inexpensively when marketed as "quilt soap." ("Tiny!," as it is normally used at a concentration of 1 tbsp into a full washing machine.) $7-9 for 8 oz, should go a long way.

3) You would probably get more mileage out of your foam if you used distilled water, or at the least, if the water is not hard water, as "anionic detergents are inactivated by too hard water". I'd imagine this could help mitigate additional bacterial growth too. Question is, are you cutting into your savings at $1-$2 a gallon?

By: piedmont

piedmont — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 20:14:23 -0800

I use one with diluted Dr. Bronners, it works really great.

By: casarkos

casarkos — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 21:49:24 -0800

I've gotten this to work with face cleanser as well, and am starting to experiment with adding essential oils and salts and such.

By: foxydot

foxydot — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 06:40:01 -0800

I use it with my dog's (rather expensive) medicated shampoo. I cut it about 1:2 with distilled water and put it in a (separately purchased) foamer. Lasts longer thinned down, and less goes down the drain if it's pre-foamed. She still gets clean and her skin is happy.

By: TedW

TedW — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 06:45:34 -0800

I do this all the time, I use 1 part soap to 4 parts tap water (I have pretty soft water where I live). A google for foaming soap recipe yields tons of information.

By: pmbuko

pmbuko — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 07:57:36 -0800

Thirding Dr. Bronner's. We use ours full-strength, but then it does seem to gum up the dispenser. I'll try diluting it next time.

By: kosem

kosem — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 17:24:09 -0800

I love AskMe. I just looked at my brand new bottle of Dr. Bronner's and my nearly empty foaming soap dispenser and thought I'd take a gander over here. Et viola!

By: leahwrenn

leahwrenn — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 07:49:15 -0800

You guys rock. I saw this thread when it was posted; it was here when I needed it; and sure enough, 1/4 dish soap to 3/4 water works a treat! Thanks!