Earlier this year Procter & Gamble (www.pg.com) changed the formula for their Zest bar soap. Consumers with dry skin may rejoice but those who live in hard water areas will sorely miss the original Zest. Long known for its ability to rinse clean from your body and your bathtub, Zest is now infused with Vitamin E and other moisturizing agents.
When I first moved to the Cleveland area I noticed the bar soap I’d always used left behind gummy deposits on my skin and in my bathtub. I had to scrub my tub every time I showered or the drain would soon clog. Finally I saw a television commercial for Zest.
“Hey, Cleveland! It’s hard to get clean in hard water; and you’re in a hard water town. Clean with hard water Zest and you’ll know what I mean; you’re not fully clean until you’re Zestfully clean!”
I immediately bought Zest bar soap and used it for years. Unfortunately, there’s no chance of getting “Zestfully clean” in a hard water town now. My local grocery stores stopped carrying the original Zest bar soap this summer so I tried at least a half dozen new bar soaps. Every one clogged my drain with gummy soap residue and left soap film in my bathtub after every shower. Then I tried liquid soaps. Most were too strongly scented or so laden with moisturizers they wouldn’t rinse clean.
I finally discovered some bath and shower products that rinse away clean in hard water and also contain gentle and natural ingredients. As an added bonus, these products contain no animal ingredients and are cruelty free.
For me the demise of hard water Zest bar soap was a blessing in disguise. I now use bar soap, shampoo and liquid soap that are as gentle on my skin as they are on my tub and drains.
For hard water use, the best clean-rinsing liquid soap and shampoo I discovered is Kirk’s Original Coco Castile liquid soap and Kirk’s Original Coco Castile shampoo. The liquid soap is actually excellent as both a soap and shampoo; so if you don’t like having a lot of bottles cluttering up your shower you can use the liquid soap for both body and hair.
Kirk’s Castile soaps are mildly scented. The scent is not overpowering or excessively feminine. It’s more like a fresh, old-fashioned clean scent, reminiscent of cloves. The ingredient lists are short and all products are cruelty free. Kirk’s Castile soaps are not tested on animals and contain no animal ingredients. You can order Kirk’s Castile soap products through their website (www.kirksnatural.com) or through amazon.com (www.amazon.com). The best prices I found for Kirk’s liquid soap and shampoo are offered by a company called Pretty Like Me (www.prettylikeme.com).
If you need to get clean in hard water but don’t like using liquid soap, you might want to try Clearly Natural glycerin bar soaps (www.clearlynaturalsoaps.com). The company’s 100 percent natural soaps work great in hard water, rinsing clean from both skin and bathtub. And the bar soap is super gentle. It comes in 12 different fragrances and, like Kirk’s Castile soaps, it’s cruelty free. I like the unscented bar best. Clearly Natural glycerin bar soaps are available from many online retailers including Pretty Like Me (www.prettylikeme.com and the online pharmacy, drugstore.com (www.drugstore.com).
