Liquid soap or foam soap?

The question of whether to use liquid soap or foam soap must be decided before purchasing dispensers. Once you have dispensers, you can only use the type of soap that the dispenser is designed for. Therefore, it is worth carefully considering the options, especially since both solutions have their advantages and disadvantages. We simply need to choose the type of soap that offers more benefits than drawbacks for our needs. 

Liquid Soap

Liquid soaps are significantly more popular than foam soaps, although the latter has been gaining a growing number of supporters recently. The range of liquid soaps is much larger than that of foam soaps. This is because liquid soap has been on the market for much longer. For these reasons, liquid soap is also cheaper than foam soap, although it is less efficient. A notable disadvantage of liquid soap is that it requires more water to lather and rinse your hands compared to foam. Another downside is the practice of repeatedly pressing manual dispensers to get more soap on your hands. Liquid soap also tends to drip from the dispenser, and when it dries, it can be quite difficult to remove. 

Advantages of Liquid Soap:

- High availability

- Wide range of options

- Lower prices

- Broader selection of dispensers

Disadvantages of Liquid Soap:

- Higher soap consumption with manual dispensers

- Greater water consumption

- Higher risk of sink contamination

Foam Soap

Foam soap, which has been on the market for several years, is not yet very widespread. However, it is becoming increasingly common, especially in places that aim to make a good impression, even in restrooms. Washing hands with foam soap is simply easier and faster, providing a better experience compared to liquid soap, which doesn't always lather well. After all, the lather is the cleaning agent. One could say that foam soap is an evolved form of soap, as it doesn't require the user to create the lather themselves; the dispenser does that. Foam is created when soap passes through an aerating system, so the soap is not diluted but increases in volume due to the air. Foam soap, due to its aeration system, is more efficient than liquid soap and also requires less water to lather and rinse hands. 

Advantages of Foam Soap:

- Much greater efficiency

- Water savings

- Easy-to-remove dirt

- Good cost-to-efficiency ratio

Disadvantages of Foam Soap:

- Higher purchase cost

- Smaller selection of dispensers

- More expensive dispensers

- Smaller range of soaps

Which Soap to Choose?

It is difficult to give a definitive answer because both solutions have their advantages and disadvantages. However, recent studies suggest that foam soap is generally a better option. Despite the initial higher cost, a foam soap refill lasts longer than a liquid soap refill, and using foam soap saves water. These factors, along with the fact that using foam soap is more pleasant, lead us to favor foam soap in this comparison. 

Ryszard Kurek