Solid Soap Vs Liquid Soap: Which One Should You Use To Save The Environment?

The soap bar has always found its place in your bathroom. It has played its role in cleaning and disinfecting and has also saved the environment. However, it has always stayed quite humble at the same time. Now, what everyone is keen to know in today’s times is whether the stuff they use in everyday life is eco-friendly or not.

So, even soap bars have been dragged into this compared to liquid soaps. Some of you might be using liquid soaps at home instead of soap bars. The question that arises here is, what should you prefer? What should you opt for between solid soaps and liquid soap to save the environment? Find out.

Washing With Soap

You bathe every day, and therefore, you might not have ever thought of giving this daily habit that much importance and attention. Not only you, but this is also the case with almost everyone you see around you. You enter the bathroom, open the shower, apply soap on your body, rinse, dry, and finish your shower. You come out, get dressed, and start your day.

The only exception in this daily routine is that liquid bars have replaced soap bars. Now, understand one thing. Technically speaking, the body wash contains detergents. They contain added chemicals. People tend to label soaps as detergents as well. But if it’s written soap on the label, it’s a soap. No detergent, nothing. Just soap.

Land and Water Usage

In terms of water usage, liquid soap gains a bit of ground. When you use liquid soap, you use 30% less warm water than solid soap. It must be warm water, for which you have to incur an energy cost to warm the water. However, the chemicals in liquid soap need wastewater treatment at a higher level if you compare them to solid soap. The advantage that liquid soap has over solid soap is canceled out.

Liquid soap is a better choice than solid soap as far as land usage is concerned. Soap bars have ingredients that are usually extracted from vegetable oils. These oils are derived from farmed crops. The impact is different from one place to another and depends on the agricultural practices. As a result, this leads to a higher environmental cost. So, liquid soaps have a slight advantage here.

Transportation

In the case of transportation and use during travel, solid soap fares better than liquid soaps. Solid soaps are more efficient. Liquid soap packaging is not travel-friendly and is heavier to carry than solid soaps. Soap bars need less space as they are packed in piles. The sellers are also advantageous as less space means they can store a higher number of soaps. Shipments are also fewer. So, soap bars are a clear winner here.

Packaging and Disposal

Packaging and disposal are aspects where liquid soaps lose out to solid soaps yet again. Wastewater treatment in the case of liquid soaps is higher. Plus, more plastic packaging than solid soaps is a clear disadvantage. This implies that the packaging cost is higher in the case of liquid soaps. Moreover, excess plastic packaging is harmful to the environment.

Disposal is also a big issue. Solid soaps don’t need that much packaging. All that goes into it is a paper label or a plastic coat. That’s it. However, that too is a bit problematic. But much less when you compare the packaging and the associated costs in the case of liquid soaps. That’s because disposable soaps, as the name suggests, are disposable, and one need not look for ways to pack and carry them around after use.

If you look at this topic from an environmental perspective, solid soaps are better than liquid soaps. The packaging of liquid soaps is hard to dispose of after use. Besides that, recycling is an issue as well. In addition to that, liquid soaps consume more energy. That’s harmful to your pocket and the environment too. Nowadays, soap bars are getting popular once again.

If you favor liquid soaps, you can be a little responsible and improve their overall performance. Just refill your old bottles with liquid soap instead of buying a new bottle. Doing so will reduce the number of plastic bottles that add to landfills. So, make sure you make a conscious decision when you pick a soap the next time you go shopping.