Soaps in hard water behave differently than in soft water. But the behavior in hard water is not good. Are you wondering why? Because soaps in soft water act as a cleaning agent while those in hard water don’t. Besides, soaps in soft water form more suds compared to when in hard water. The reaction between the minerals in the hard water and soap attributes to the less formation of suds. As a result, soaps have been made specifically to suit hard water. You could be wondering what these soaps are and the best one to buy. No need to fret, continue reading as in this article, all you need to know about bath soaps for hard water will get discussed. We shall also tackle questions like the best bath soap for hard water on the market today and factors you should consider before buying one.
Do you find sticky substances on your showers, tubs, and sinks? It is because of another cause of hard water! Soap in hard water forms a curdy precipitate that deposits and sticks to the surfaces. It gets termed as soap scum. The curdy precipitate also holds to your laundry and sometimes builds up. As a result, you get to see your laundry becoming rough, grey, scratchy, yellow, and dingy. You are not left out either; this soap scum gets to stick on you. The curd precipitate is visible while you wash your hair or body. Though soap scum does not come with any harm, its sight and feel are disgusting. Also, extra work and chemicals get used to removing the scum. As a result, unique soaps for hard water has gotten invented and floods on the market today. It might be an uphill to pick one, which led to our research for the best bath soap for hard water. They include;
Our List for the Best Bath Soap for Hard Water
- GENTLE CASTILE SOAP Kirk’s castile soap is both gentle on the skin –...
- NATURAL FORMULA Kirk’s bar soap, made with 100% premium coconut oil,...
- VEGAN BAR SOAP Vegetable-based vegan bar soap creates a gentle & creamy...
1. Kirk’s Original Coco Castile Bar Soap Soothing Aloe Vera 4 Ounces (6 Pack)
Are you tired of struggling with dry skin? Then you should embrace the Kirk’s Original Coco Castile Bar Soap Soothing Aloe Vera. Impressively, this soap restores the natural moisture of your skin. As a result, you get to enjoy a soft, hydrated and healthy skin. What’s exciting is the fact that this soap is hypoallergenic. You need not worry if you suffer from any skin reactions. Besides, it gets made with 100% natural Aloe Vera and coconut oil.
You could get concerned about the safety of this soap, but it shouldn’t bother you. It gets made free of animal products and is 100% safe for animals and humans. It is also friendly to the environment since it is biodegradable and gluten-free. You will love the creamy lather this soap foams in hard water. Thanks to the pure coconut used in its making. If you love clean and fresh scents, then you will like Kirk’s Original Coco Castile Bar Soap Soothing Aloe Vera. Though the fragrance is familiar, it’s never overpowering. The fact that this scent has been proven in many DIY recipes and has gained trust for generations is impressive.
If you are an active and creative type, this soap is ideal for making at home. It gets made using five ingredients, but you get free to add your preferred scent or leave it as fragrance-free. Kirk’s Original Coco Castile Bar Soap Soothing Aloe Vera comes with many uses. You can use it to wash your body and other things and parts of the house. It gets suited as a multi-purpose soap. Interestingly, it handles the toughest cleaning jobs of your home and is pocket-friendly.
Pros & Cons of Kirk’s Original Coco Castile Bar Soap Soothing Aloe Vera 4 Ounces (6 Pack)
Pros
- Restores the skin’s moisture
- Hypoallergenic
- 100% Aloe Vera and Coconut oil
- Free from animal products
- Gluten free
- Animals, environment, and human-friendly
- Creamy Lather
- A clean and fresh scent
- Ideal for DIY recipes
- Trusted for generations
- Multi-purpose
- Affordable
Cons
- It doesn’t last long when not cured long enough
- MOISTURIZING LATHER THAT WON'T DRY YOUR FACE, BODY, OR HAIR: Our bar soaps...
- MADE WITH ORGANIC OILS THAT ARE GENTLE & EFFECTIVE: We don't add any...
- NO SYNTHETIC PRESERVATIVES, DETERGENTS, OR FOAMING AGENTS: Our Pure-Castile...
2. Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile Bar Soap – Baby Unscented, 5oz. Bars (Pack of 3)
Do you have a baby? Maybe you know someone who does and is looking for the ideal soap for his or her baby. Look no further; Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile Bar Soap got made for babies and sensitive skin. You will love the fact that this soap comes with no fragrance. Since babies’ smelling sense has not yet developed strong enough to handle all scents and in various concentration, they get ideal for babies. The ingredients are fair trade certified and contribute to the top-notch quality of this soap. You will get excited after seeing the lather from this soap. It is smooth and soft, thanks to the organic hemp oil used in its making.
Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile Bar Soap is gentle and perfect for moisturizing the skin attributed to the vegan and organic ingredients used. As a result, you or your baby gets to enjoy an emollient but rich lather. If you need a perfect soap for your face or body, this soap is ideal. You need not worry about the safety of Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile Bar Soap. It contains no preservatives and synthetic detergents. Therefore, you can use every wash to nourish your skin.
The fact that this soap comes with many uses will make you fall for it. On its own, you can use it as a face or traditional body scrub. Alternatively, you can dilute this soap and add it to various recipes like in laundry wash or pest spray. Though powerful and gentle, it qualifies as an ultimate multi-purpose cleaner. Safety and quality are top-notch, as the USDA National Organic Program certifies this soap as organic while Vegan Action certifies it as a vegan. You shouldn’t worry if it’s harmful to animals and human as it is cruel free certified. More so, it comes with a “leaping bunny” as its logo to represent its friendliness to the animals.
Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile Bar Soap comes with a 100% biodegradable recycled packaging. Besides, Dr. Bronner’s get committed to fair trade practices, ethical sourcing, and environmental protection.
Pros & Cons of Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile Bar Soap – Baby Unscented, 5oz. Bars (Pack of 3)
Pros
- Ideal for sensitive skin
- Great for baby’s skin
- No fragrance
- Fairtrade certified
- Vegan certified
- Cruel-free certified
- Smooth and soft lather
- Organic hemp oil
- Moisturizes skin
- No preservatives and synthetic detergents
- Multi-use
- Gentle but powerful
- Top notch quality and safety
- Ideal to use as a traditional or face scrub
- Suitable to use in various recipes
- Animal and environment-friendly.
Cons
- Not ideal for some hairs
- INFUSED WITH OLIVE OIL & VERBENA: Olive oil is known to be a perfect skin...
- ALL NATURAL: The Bar is made with 100% Natural Ingredients. Its Suitable...
- DEEP CLEAN, MOISTURIZE & HYDRATE: Soap will moisturize and hydrate your...
3. Olivia CARE Hard Top Gift Box of 4 Soaps, Verbena, 20-Ounce Boxes
It gets made by Olivia Care, a company based in the USA and renowned for producing proven and safe products for over twenty years. You, therefore, have no business worrying about its safety and quality! The fact that all ingredients are natural will excite you. It is an animal, human and environmental-friendly. Security is therefore optimal with Olivia CARE Hard Top Gift Box of 4 Soaps. If you suffer from any allergic reactions on your skin, you need to worry when using this soap. It is hypoallergenic. Could you be the type that doesn’t like colored soaps? Then this soap will interest you. It comes with no colorant and is free from Paraben.
Your skin gets protected and well moisturized, thanks to the hydrating lather from this soap that gently cleans the skin. The extra antioxidants and subtle scent attributed to the pure essential oil from Verbena will make you loyal to this soap. Interestingly, it comes as a pack of four in a beautiful gift box, making it ideal for giving as a present to a loved one or friend. The four soaps come in an oval shape, each weighing 5 oz. Each bar soap gets enriched with 100% olive oil, lavender, green tea, mandarin, and Verbena. With this soap, you get treated to pure therapeutic essential oils from Provence in France.
The fact that Olivia CARE Hard Top Gift Box of 4 Soaps get enriched with Vitamin E and Calcium makes it ideal to use in all body parts. It is also great with all skin types. You can also use it while showering or bathing; your skin gets strong but feels gentle on touch.
Pros & Cons of Olivia CARE Hard Top Gift Box of 4 Soaps, Verbena, 20-Ounce Boxes
Pros
- Top-notch quality
- Safe to animals and human use
- Environment-friendly
- Pure natural ingredients
- Four soaps in a pack
- Hypoallergenic
- No colorant
- Free from Paraben
- Ideal for protecting and moisturizing skin
- Suitable to gift someone
- Hydrating lather
- Antioxidants
- Subtle Scent
- Oval-shaped
Cons
- Some users prefer various colors
The above list may have given you an idea of some of the best bath soap for hard water, but you may get concerned why these soaps are special. Continue reading for insight.
Why are Bath Soaps for Hard Water Special?
Bath soaps for hard water get formulated in a particular way to enhance lathering and rinsing off with ease even with the mineral contents available. Additives and detergents exchange manganese and calcium ions found in the soap just like a water softener would do. Though shampoos, body washes, and laundry boosters come in handy, water softener works out best in reducing the hard water build up during washing.
Hard water gets found in aquifers found deep beneath the surface. Due to the water getting exposed to minerals like limestone, manganese, and calcium for a long time, it becomes hard. The water hardening process entails the dissolving of ions by these minerals into the water. But this shouldn’t worry you as they are not harmful. The problem is that, after bathing or washing, your hair, bathroom fixtures, or skin get left with some deposits. Unfortunately, when these deposits get into contact with the soap, a sticky and hard to remove film gets formed.
Because the minerals found in the water binds with the elements found in the soap, it does not lather well. As a result, the soap does not create enough foam to remove grease, body oils and dirt. But a soap made for hard water comes with additives that make the water to soften. In return, the film gets eliminated, and the lather improved. For example, Castile soap which gets made with a high concentration of essential oils like coconut. You may need to know the ingredients found in these soaps that enhance their usefulness in hard water. They include the following;
What Ingredients Get Contained in Bath Soap for Hard Water?
Unlike the traditional bath soaps, Sodium stearate and mineral ions do not bid with the detergents found in Bath soaps for hard water. Today, bath soaps for hard water come in different colors, shapes, and scents, making them appealing when washing or bathing. Also, they come with moisturizers responsible for softening the skin. Even though you get to dig deeper in your pockets while buying these soaps unlike the bar soaps, you get to enjoy value for your money. Alternatively, you can use a water softener if you can’t access the soap.
Regarding to our hairs, the clarifying shampoos are the best to use on our hairs when washing them with hard water. They get made to remove buildup through ingredients responsible for striping off substances found in the cuticle. What’s impressive about the clarifying shampoos is the fact that they also work on buildup left by other products. A perfect example is a hairspray. When such products get into contact with the mineral deposits, they make the hair appear rough and dull.
But these shampoos contain an ingredient called ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) responsible for binding to the minerals and removing them before they get deposited. After finishing its work, EDTA breaks down and becomes an environmental pollutant. But soaps with Ethylenediamine-N, N’-disuccinic acid (EDDS) are better biodegradables. As illustrated above, water softeners are perfect solutions to hard water. You may wonder whether they work like bath soaps for hard water. Let’s find out here in below;
Do Water Softeners Work Like Bath Soaps in Hard Water?
The mineral ions found in hard water get exchanged by water softeners with potassium or sodium ions. As a result, the deposits that form scum due to bonding with soap get eliminated from the skin, fixtures, and clothing. To recharge them, they require being added sodium from time to time. Water softer works out best at adding sodium in your home’s water. Are you or any other person in the house on a diet containing low sodium intake? Then a water softener may not act as a good alternative for bath soap for hard water. But no need to worry, in case water softeners are not ideal for your home; you can go for the packaged water softeners. For instance, use borax, which is suitable for laundry. It makes clothes clean and also acts as a special soap for hard water in case you want to bathe or shower.
Soap and hard water relate in a manner that affects us. Are you wondering how? Check out the following;
How Does the Reaction Between Hard Water and Soap Affect Us?
It is a no-brainer; hard water comes at a price. It costs us in many ways. To eliminate the hard water issue, we get forced to buy and use more soap. According to some, they have to use as much as 50% – 75% more of soap used in soft water. Thinking about it; how much soap do you waste when being turned into a curdy precipitate? Well, if the total hardness in your water gets untreated, you get bound to use more soap. If the water gets untreated to an extent, you get to use less soap.
With hard water, you will need to use more hair conditioner and a lot of your time and effort. Also, you get to use more of your precious time doing the cleaning in your house and spend more money buying chemicals for cleaning. Hard water causes clothes to turn grey, become scratchy, dingy, and rough. As a result, you get forced to stay with these clothes in this status, or you dig deeper into your pocket and buy new clothing.
But thanks to the soaps designed for hard water, such problems are now a thing of the past. Salt softeners get used in eliminating or reducing these soap problems. Alternatively, one can condition with PolyHalt to prevent the minerals found in the water from reacting with soaps. As perfect alternatives to soft softeners, PolyHalt conditions the water effectively by binding the minerals that cause the hardness, refraining them from binding or reacting with the soap. As a result, a curdy precipitate doesn’t get formed.
The soap then gets enabled to form suds, meaning that a curdy precipitate doesn’t get created and in turn no soap scum. Therefore, you get to enjoy brighter, whiter, and softer laundry for longer. Also, shampoos perform best when used in conditioned water, making your hair get clean faster. Unfortunately, we may be discussing hard water, and you could be struggling with its meaning. Before we continue, let us define hard water.
Try to read also the comparison between taking a bath or shower?
What is Hard Water?
Hard water means the water contains dissolved magnesium and calcium compounds. Sometimes, you get to find trivalent and divalent metallic elements in hard water. Originally, hardness as a term regarding water got applied when the water was hard to wash in, meaning that it wasted soap. If the water is hard, lathering becomes hard because an insoluble curdy precipitate gets formed in the water. Have you ever seen a buildup in your cooking pan? It is because of the water hardness. Water heaters and pipes suffer from scaling caused by dissolved magnesium and calcium salts. As a result, many problems crop up in the bathroom, laundry and kitchen. Grains per gallon (gpg) or (ppm) get used in expressing water hardness equivalent to calcium carbonate.
According to the Water Quality Association (WQA) and THE American Society of Agricultural Engineers (S-339), the standard for the water hardness degree is as follows;
| DEGREE OF HARDNESS | GRAINS PER GALLON (PGP) | PPM (OR MG/L) |
| Very Hard | >10.5 | >180 |
| Hard | 7.0 – 10.5 | 120 – 180 |
| Moderately Hard | 3.5 – 7.0 | 60 – 120 |
| Slightly Hard | 1.0 – 3.0 | |
| Soft | <1.0 | <17.0 |
Hard water features specific signs. You may be interested to know so that you get to identify if you are dealing with hard water or not. They include the following;
What Symptoms Indicate the Water is Hard?
- Usage of too much soap and the need for a fabric softener
- Too much effort in removing soap curd on shower stalls and bathtubs
- The buildup of scale in appliances, sinks, faucets, and tubs
- Dingy and stiff laundry
- High energy costs due to the accumulation of scale on devices and in pipes
- Mineral deposits on glassware and dishes
Hard water has been an issue for many users. Many people struggle with what they can do to solve the hard water issue. Could you be one of them? No need to fret; luckily, there is a solution. The hard water can get treated to become soft and suitable for use. Are you eager to know how you can soften hard water? Check out the following;
How Do You Soften Hard Water?
For large-scale hard water usage like in municipal operations, lime-soda process gets ideal. It involves removal of the magnesium and calcium ions from the water. As a result, ion exchange reactions happen, and forms an insoluble precipitate. Soda ash and slaked lime get combined to treat water using this process. It involves collecting the calcium and magnesium precipitates as solids, thereby eliminating the scale-forming property of the hard water.
Getting into details of the process, let’s consider the magnesium precipitate, Mg(OH)2, and slaked lime Ca(OH)2, reaction. First, slaked lime is usually soluble in water, but moderately. Therefore, for every unit of Ca(OH)2, it dissociates to give calcium and two hydroxide ions when dissolved in water. Then the magnesium ions in the hard water react with the hydroxide ions to form an insoluble precipitate. Calcium ions don’t get involved in this reaction because they don’t get affected. Instead, they get removed through a separate reaction that consists of the soda ash’s carbonate ions (CO32-).
Water hardness can also get ridden off by use of household water softeners in case of small scale usage. The process used gets referred to as ion exchange. The devices used in the ion exchange process consists of plastic or polymer beads bed that bounds covalently to anion groups like COO-. The positive sodium ion (NA+) attached to them balance the anions’ negative charge. Water containing calcium and magnesium ions gets passed along the ion exchanger. Generally, magnesium and calcium ions don’t get attracted to the sodium ions as it does to the groups of the anion. Due to this, the sodium ions found on the beads get replaced. As a result, the sodium ions take their place in the water and remember sodium doesn’t form scale.
Unfortunately, people suffering from health problems like high blood pressure should avoid sodium intake. Softening water through the ion exchange process causes a lot of sodium ions in the water. Such people should, therefore, refrain from taking water softened through this process. But thanks to the advent in technology, many techniques of softening water without using sodium ions are cropping up. If you are not allowed to take sodium in plenty, you should consider taking water softened via non-sodium ions processes.
When hard water effects strike, many people throw in the towel when it comes to dealing with them. Hard water stains get renowned for giving people problems on how to deal with them. Fortunately, we are going to discuss how to get rid of hard water stains. Check it out;
How Do You Clean Stains Caused by Hard Water?
Hard water causes deposits like mineral buildup and rust stains, and soap scum. You could have experienced cleaning these hard water effects but got frustrated. Today is your lucky day as we shall give insight on how to eliminate them. The success of cleaning stains is by using the correct cleaner. Use cleaners designed for specific surfaces — for example, plastic, tile, fiberglass, metal, grout, or stone. As a result, the cleaner will do all the cleaning work, and you won’t have to scrub much. First, to save time while cleaning, ensure all the cleaning requirements get put in one place like in a bucket, but away from children.
Ensure the storage bucket contains the following items;
- Rubber gloves that resist chemicals
- Hard water soap
- Glass cleaner
- A soft and clean rag
- Toilet bowl cleaner
- A large sponge
- An old toothbrush
- A nylon scrubber brush that does not scratch
- A grout cleaner
With the above requirements, you get to handle all the bathroom cleaning challenges caused by the presence of minerals in hard water. Unfortunately, compared to soft water, hard water is more. That’s why we find that, out of ten homes, nine has got some hard water, even though it’s at various degrees. Iron particles combine with air to form rust-colored stains. It is the reason you get to find stains under dripping faucets. Here is how you clean rust from a toilet.
How Do You Remove Rust From a Toilet?
First, close the water valve and plunge out the water in the toilet until little or none gets left. It ensures that the toilet bowl is dry to prevent the cleaner from diluting. Use soap or cleaner with diluted hydrochloric acid to remove difficult rust stains. Avoid using bleach with the product on rust as it helps in setting the stain. On the plastic base, always use a toilet brush that contains stiff nylon bristles. Avoid using in-tank cleaners with bleach and acid because they produce vapors. If already using these bleaches, flush the toilet multiple times until all the bleach residue get removed. Also, scrub slowly to avoid the cleaner from splattering on other surfaces like the carpet, vinyl, tile or your skin as it is harmful. But just in case of the splattering, you should have a bucket with clean water and rag to wipe off the spatters. Always rinse and flush the toilet after cleaning. Let’s now look at how we fresh faucet scale deposits.
How Do You Remove Scale Deposits on Faucet?
First, spray the entire faucet using a reliable multi-purpose bathroom cleaner. Alternatively, if the buildup is crusty and extremely thick, a lime-removing product gets recommended. Then scrub it until it gets clean. Use the cleaner advised on the faucet’s label. But sometimes scrubbing may not remove the hardened mineral deposits found on the screen of the aerator. In such a case, unscrew the tip of the spout by turning counterclockwise. Then soak it in vinegar for the whole night and scrub it using a toothbrush. Reinstall it after rinsing it thoroughly in clean water. You may worry about what to do if your tile gets soap scum. Stop worrying and do the following;
How Do You Clean Soap Scum from Tiles?
Whether the surface is caulk, grout, or any other, you should use multi-purpose cleaners that eliminate scum and then coat it entirely for about five to ten minutes. The market gets flooded with many cleaners that clean tiles of soap scum effectively. But if the soap scum has built up layers, use a cleaner with an effective bleach but non-abrasive. Bleach, also known as sodium hypochlorite, kills mildew and cuts through the soap scum.
Hard water comes with side effects, but thanks to the soaps designed for hard water, these effects get managed. As illustrated above, you can now get rid of hard water problems like scale deposits, soap scum, and rust. But you need the best bath soap for hard water like those illustrated above. Unfortunately, you can’t just go buying any bath soap made for water. You need to consider some factors before getting yourself one. Are you wondering what these factors are? They include the following;
Factors to Consider Before Buying a Bath Soap for Hard Water
I. Type
Hard water soaps get made with different ingredients designed to cater to a specific problem. Go for a cleanser that meets all your needs.
II. Quality
You wouldn’t go for a hard water soap that doesn’t work out efficiently in water. For example, lack of lather and doesn’t remove soap scum.
III. Water Content
Get your water tested first to know the content of the minerals available. As a result, you will get to know what soap for hard water best suits your water.
IV. Design
Soaps for hard water comes in different designs, go for what you like.
V. Fragrance
Some soaps meant for hard water come in various scents while others are odorless. Get a soap that smells what you love. If you are not the scent type of person, go for a soap with no fragrance.
VI. Color
Some hard water soaps come in various attractive hues, while others do not. Some of the colors are artificial, while others come with their natural colors based on the pure ingredients used. Choose a soap that comes with your favorite color.
VII. Availability
You wouldn’t choose a hard water soap that is scarce in the market. It becomes like an uphill task to get one. Go for what you can get with ease.
VIII. Accessibility
Consider hard water soaps that you can access easily. Some get found in specific states only and takes time to get shipped to your location. Why don’t you go for a soap found in the store next door?
IX. Cost
Depending on the ingredients and process used in making soaps for hard water, they come at different prices. Some are expensive, while others are manageable and cheap. Go for what suits your budget and meets all your needs.
Hard Water & Soap Scum Stain Removal In The Shower & Bath
Conclusion
Though hard water is not harmful when drunk, it comes with a bunch of problems. Fortunately, the side effects of hard water can get managed and eliminated by softening the water. Soaps like the ones described above have gotten made to deal with hard water. If you are not sure what hard water soap to buy, choose one of the best bath soap for hard water described above.
You may also check our review on best bath sponge here.