can shower gel be as effective as soap?

[devilindisguise1]

I have about 2cm of soap left. I have been looking in all the shops for a week but nowhere in my town has any (well not when I go in and I have varied the times of day I go in!) so I'm wondering whether shower gel or washing up liquid would be effective?

Yes either. Bar soap too

Of course! If you compare the labels of liquid soap with shower gel and bath soak it's literally the same ingredients just in different types of bottles.

Great! I have a fair amount of shower gel, not from panic buying in the wake of corona, I just always have a fair amount! Thank you!

Yep, and washing up liquid - they are all detergents which contain essentially the same stuff.

We have been told dish soap ( washing up liquid) works well.

I use liquid soap hubby prefers bars of soap, both are fine.

I have also have tried to get liquid hand wash but I can't get it anywhere. None of the shops have it,I can't even get bar soap.
But the shops have plenty of bottles of shower gels and shampoo.
So it looks like I will have to use that when mine runs out.
I think it will still clean the hands as it's still soap.

You can make soap from drain cleaner and fat/oil, there is more to it than just mixing the two but if you can't get any shampoo/shower gel / soap etc.

Sorry to hijack, but I have another question about liquid soap:

The labels all cite different ingredients - and quite a few have additives to make them smell and feel nice. But what's the SOAP ingredient ? ie what makes liquid handwash soap? Asking so I can be sure that what I'm buying is in fact soap and not just mix of other things that foam and smell nice.

I also have no soap. I've been using fairy liquid and watered down hand cream.

If you specifically want liquid soap, Amazon has 5kg bottles of Castile Liquid Soap (you then dilute it 50/50 with water and add any essential oils to make it smell pretty). We’ve got a bottle arriving today and I dread to see if the delivery driver says anything - I use it all the time and our last bottle, bought last autumn, is running low. Promise!

the big bottles of bubble bath are fine as well.

@ItsNotAboutTheChocolate often it is sls (Sodium laureth sulfate)

I went into a shop to buy shower gel as soap. Be careful that the bottle doesn’t say ‘no soap’ on it though. So many of them did and I try to avoid the heavily scented ones as both DD and I have sensitive skin..

Yes it's fine and bar soap still seems to be available- this is actually the best thing. Washing up liquid will work very well but is harsh and you will probably end up with sore (or sorer) skin. Shampoo wold be fine too

Thanks *c

Trying again 😀... thanks Coffee.

Both will be fine - washing up liquid can wreck your skin so would go for shower gel or bath foam first.