Foaming Hand Soap

Basics

• This page aims to go over Foaming Hand Soap, and how it differs from conventional Liquid Hand Soap
• It will then explore:
  • Existing Off The Shelf Options to determine what is cheapest (without becoming crappy) and/or what option is the most Sustainable
  • Existing DIY/OS Recipes
  • If/How One can convert Liquid Soap into Foaming Soap Solution
    • THINKING it’s just simply a matter of Dilution, but want to check

Research Temporary Trashcan Section

• The dispenser adds a bit of air which is PART OF the key to Foaming Soap
• Supposedly, especially due to being diluted, the soap is at risk of microbial growth, this MAY need to be addressed
  • Sadly due to diy soap making HEAVILY intersecting with the “Chemicals are Scary” / Anti-Science crowd, not too much info on this aspect in existing recipes
  • A sufficient amount of alcohol/ Hand Sanitizer MAY do the trick?
• Most posts are saying “3 or 4 to 1” Water to Soap Ratios, which sounds about right
• The semi-disposable Dial / Store Brand Foaming Dispensers may not like Alcohol/some solvents too which could be an issue

Experimentation by User: Eric

• Work got some of those dial brand dispensers but no refills yet
  • We DO have about 2-3 or so big jugs of something akin to store brand softsoap in the informal cleaning supply cabinet area though
  • Mostly eyeballed it / added more soap until it was feeling right, but i’ll see how that goes long term
    • GRANTED the throughput of that garage worker’s bathroom is high enough it should run out before it can rot (hopefully)

Existing Off The Shelf Options

Dial Brand

• Walmart Listing for a 221 Milliliter (7.5 Fl Oz) Bottle of Blue “Spring Water” Scented Foaming Soap ( ~$2.47 Each as of this Edit)
• Just about the industry standard
• Pretty good stuff, outside of when you need Mechanic’s Soap
• Dispensers Hold up fine with reuse, but have a habit of tipping over, especially when nearing empty; some sort of (weighted) 3D Printed Base would be a great addition
• If it still has the Antibiotic in it, that sucks a bit; Citation needed but compared to just normal soap it doesn’t due much due to lack of Soak/Dwell Time, BUT it contributes to Antibiotic Resistance in sewers/can mess with Biodigester setups
  • Also even if you are VERY concerned about all that, using some Hand Sanitizer afterwards, or the PROPER Surgical Scrub Aseptic Soap is what you should do
• A Walmart Listing for a Bulk Refill for the Same Soap 1.53L (52 Fl Oz) ( ‘’’~5.97 As of This Edit’’’ )

Ingredients

• As per the website:
  • ”Active ingredient: Benzalkonium Chloride 0.13%

Purpose: Antibacterial

Inactive ingredients: Water · Glycerin · Cetrimonium Chloride · Lauramine Oxide · Cocamidopropyl Betaine · Sodium Benzoate · Parfum (Fragrance) · Citric Acid · Zinc Sulfate · Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice · Sodium Chloride · Trisodium Ethylenediamine Disuccinate · Alcohol · Dimethyl Lauramine · CI 42090 ( Blue 1 ) · CI 17200 ( Red 33 )”

Internal Links

• Minimum Viable Soap
  • A concept for a “base” soap that only has water, the soap agent, and MAYBE a thickener/polymer etc
    • This could be turned into Liquid Hand Soap, Foaming Hand Soap, “Mechanic’s Soap”, or any color/scent the user desires etc via blend in’s
      • Simplifies logistics SOMEWHAT, akin to the Single Fuels Concept
        • If more than simple dilution with water is needed, this holds less true
• Soapmaking
  • It is a hobby for some, especially hipster Bar Soaps and “Bath Bombs”, this is an area an OSEH Type Makerspace could lean into

External Links

• An Article in “The Kitchen (Magazine)” from 2023 Titled “ I Switched to Foaming Hand Soap to Save a Little Money—Here’s How to DIY It”
• A Reddit Post in r/Lifehacks on This
  • Not exactly a perfect / credible source, but decent gauge of The Wisdom of the Crowd
  • One comment does mention adding alcohol, supposedly helps with sudsing behavior too?
• A Quora Post on this Subject
  • Ditto on the Reddit Disclaimer, albeit idk of Quora has had any drama akin to the Reddit Moderation Tool mess