The Dispenser is essential to the foam.

Foaming hand soap is hand soap that has air pumped into using a special foaming hand wash dispenser. That’s all! Many think foaming hand wash is a special soap, but it is not. It is easy to make and can be very affordable, especially to refill your existing foaming had soap dispensers.

Air is the magic that causes liquid soap to become a luxurious foaming hand soap. A standard pump dispenser will never make foaming soap, it does not have the capabilities.

When you look at a foaming hand soap dispenser, you will notice a round chamber than connects the tube to the neck. Inside that chamber is where the liquid soap is mixed with air before being pumped out.

Is foaming soap as effective as liquid soap?

Hand washing with soap has been proven to be as, if not more, effective than using hand sanitizer. They are not recommended. Even the Food & Drug Administration states that regular soap and water is as effective as antibacterial soaps at preventing illness.

So, skip the antibacterial soaps and use natural soaps instead. They do all the work you need plus they will be much more gentle, even helpful, to your skin.

How to make foaming hand soap.

There are many options to make your own foaming hand soap, some easier than others. Some are less wasteful than others.

You can dilute any liquid soap with water and add it to a foaming soap dispenser and get foaming hand soap. You might need to adjust your soap to water ratio to find what works in your foaming pumper. To much soap and it will not work well. To much water and you may not get the silky bubbles you desire. If you use Dr. Bronner’s soap (or other soaps), try a couple tablespoons in your pumper and fill with water. Adjust the amounts as needed depending on your size container.

If you are looking for a zero waste liquid hand soap sans plastic packaging leaves no plastic waste behind, check out this concentrated foaming hand soap refill .

Simply cut the small, concentrated bar into small pieces, drop a piece into tap water (or directly into your foaming soap pumper), let it dissolve completely, usually takes a couple hours, and you are done. The hand wash is ready to use.

This foaming hand soap concentrate comes in several scents, made with essential oils but if you are sensitive to scent, the company makes an unscented version. You can use it unscented or add your own essential oils for a scent you enjoy.

Complete natural ingredients. Plant-based ingredients are vegan and certified cruelty free. One bar dissolves top makes one-gallon of foaming hand soap refills. You can refill LOTS of soap dispensers with a gallon of liquid soap.

You can even use your own foaming hand soap dispenser for dish soap. Dilute the same way you do the liquid hand soap. You may find you use less soap and get many more washes from your dish soap when used in a foaming pumper.

DIY easy holiday foaming soap dispenser.

Do you already have a shower gel or scented liquid hand soap? Often we buy a special holiday scent but don’t use it up before the end of the holiday season. Try that first.

If the gel is thick you may need to dilute it with more water and let it dissolve for a bit longer than a liquid castile soap or use hot water to speed up the dissolution time. A couple of tablespoons should work well. Start there and adjust as needed to get the bubbly consistency you like.

For best results, fill the dispenser container with water first, leaving a little more than an inch from the top of the bottle to make room for the pumper to fit into properly without it causing the excess soap to spill out. Once you’ve added the water, then add in the couple tablespoons of shower gel (or liquid soap of your choice).

Can I make foaming hand soap refill at home like Bath & Body Works?

Short answer is YES! You can buy the any of their liquid soaps, even their gel formulas, add some to your foaming soap dispenser with water and you have the same foaming hand soap sold in their stores. If you already own a foaming hand soap dispenser from their store, keep refilling it. They are manufactured to be reused 100’s of times!

Finding a specialty or holiday scent at Bath & Body Works is easy and they have the biggest selection to choose from. Most of their scents sound like food, so don’t go shopping there for hand soaps on an empty stomach. Toasted, Iced, Vanilla, frosted this and berry that, provide you with more options than you probably need.

But they use fragrance to scent their soaps, so read the labels first if choosing certain ingredients is important to you.

If you want to go the more natural route for your hand soap, look for liquid soaps scented with essential oils or natural fragrance derived from plant sources.

Where can I buy liquid hand soap refill?

Many stores now offer soaps specially marketed as foaming hand soap refill. These brands include Jr Watkins, Blueland, Method brand, Bath & Body Works, and WasteFreeProducts.com All these brands are available online and many in big box stores, like Target.

If you are concerned about dyes and fragrances, be sure to read the labels first. Most come packaged in plastic bottles, leaving excess waste when the bottle is empty.

Decide what is important to you.

There are companies who use clean ingredients and skip the plastic waste. Do your research when choosing hand soaps, you will be washing your hands with it every day. Ask questions of the company if you do not see their answers you seek on their website.

Is there a plastic free foaming hand soap dispenser?

There is! Well, the pumper part is plastic but this foaming soap dispenser lid can be screwed onto any glass jar with a standard size canning jar neck size. It comes in two colors: black or white. I have not found one yet that fits a wide-mouth jar neck size. Most come with a water-proof label to apply to your glass jar. Reminding you, and guests, what’s inside the pumper.

Check your local gift stores too, they might have some very cute refill bottles that fit your décor perfectly.

What ingredients are bad in hand soap?

We wash our hands several times a day and touch our face, eyes, and mouth way more than that! When deciding on hand soaps, whether it is a foaming hand soap or not, the more natural the better. Choose a hand soap without phosphates, sodium benzoate, dyes, chlorine bleach, potassium sorbate, and fragrance. These ingredients in soap have been linked to environmental damage and hormone disruption. Natural bars and foaming soap without toxic chemicals are available HERE.

For the love of animals, look for cruelty free soap from brands that are third-party certified.

We hope this has been helpful and you enjoy making your own foaming hand soap at home.