I have an alternative to replace pricey hand wash pumps. I use value supermarket brands of shampoo instead! I buy the cheap shampoos from the supermarket. Store branded hand wash start at about £1 a bottle.
To begin with I was buying 500g Asda value shampoo for 30p until I saw in Tesco that they have a litre bottle of value shampoo for just 40p.
I refilled an old pump dispenser with the shampoo and added a few drops of Tea Tree oil for its antibacterial qualities. A shake and a stir and then it's good to go! I use this to wash my hands so I have a pump by each sink in my home.
On one photograph you can see how much of the shampoo was used to fill up the pump dispenser. My bottle (that was part of a Xmas present) is a standard 300g. So my 40 pence shampoo bottle will refill the bottle well over three times!
I also use the shampoo to hand-wash my special jumpers and on occasion, to wash my smalls.
I bought one bottle of the foaming type of hand soap, and since it was emptied, have filled it with 1/3 hand soap, shampoo, even bubble bath, and 2/3 hot water. Shake well before each use, and you have foam soap. The foaming soap works well, and one refill bottle lasts a lot longer.
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To make liquid soap and hand sanitizer go further, I tightly wrap a rubber band around the neck of the pump so the pump doesn't go all the way down. This helps control the amount being used per pump.
I just love some of the Body Shop liquid hand soaps, but find that they are so strong scented, very thick and creamy, and too expensive to waste. I found even one pump put too much soap into my hand.
To make liquid soap and hand sanitizer go further, I tightly wrap a rubber band around the neck of the pump so the pump doesn't go all the way down. This helps control the amount being used per pump.
Here is how I save money on soap. I do not have a brand loyalty, so when I see soap at rummage sales and garage sales, I buy it, often at 10-25 cents a bar. Often it is something fancy from a gift set. I have not paid full price for years.
Several years ago after getting a dog I noticed how much liquid hand soap I was using. It was getting really expensive so I knew I would have to think of some frugal way to have an easy way to wash my hands many times a day.
Before using a bar of soap, open wrapper and let your bar of soap dry out for a week or so. This really makes it last much longer.
I have small children who usually use more soap than they need. I think that foaming soap dispensers help to reduce the soap consumption.
My husband likes to use "body wash" liquid soap. When he is finished with a bottle of it, I drain it overnight into a small pump bottle and use that for my hand soap by the sink in my bathroom.
Look for any liquid soap that is inexpensive to use as a refill to your hand soap dispensers. I've found liquid bubble bath and shampoos that are much cheaper per ounce than the prepackaged liquid soap refills.
In this economy, I am reworking all the closets in my home and trying to organize and be more frugal. Using my cord ties to bind up long computer cords etc., I came across an idea that actually works in my bathroom.
When a cake of soap wears down to a small piece, don't throw it away. Lather up the new cake of soap and the small piece of soap and while they are wet, press the two together.
Did you know that you can multipurpose many bath and body products? For instance, I like to purchase scented bubble bath at the dollar store and use that for my hand soap. It's not only cheaper than hand soap but, and here is what I like, it comes in so many more scent choices.
Using Dial soap, I drop the one almost used-up into the shower while I bathe, along with the brand new bar. Once they are softened, the used-up bar fits nicely into the indentation on the new bar.
Even an old 'used' scented soap looks inviting at a party when you shave it with a cheese slicer or veggie peeler then place it a nice bowl. How pretty!
Often, there is a little bit left at the bottom of a liquid soap dispenser where the manual pump cannot reach. In order to get to this soap, just fill the container about 1/3rd full with water and slowly agitate the bottle to dilute the remaining soap into the water.
Buy the 8-bar package of soap, remove individual bar wrappings and place bars in an open (mesh if available) container and let set for a minimum of 30 days. You won't have a shower that looks like a 'bubble bath'...
To keep perfectly good soap slivers from washing down the drain, simply reuse them. This page is about making liquid soap from the remnants of soap bars.
This is a page about stretching liquid hand soap. Stretching the liquid hand soap you use is one way to cut household expenses.
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