Finding a liquid dish soap that is safe for septic systems and for our family’s health is daunting since not many options are available.
Also, several big dish soap brands have now proved to have harsh chemicals filled. So we are now kind of in a tight position given the pandemic situation going on.
I have researched a lot about the contents in dish soaps of several brands because all those nasty little secrets they hide are in the bottle’s content despite having sweet, catchy titles on bottles.
And right now there are only 3 natural, health-safe, and septic-friendly dish soaps on the market. Among them, Method Naturally derived liquid dish soap is the safest one to choose from. I am using Method for several years now.
Not only in keeping the septic tank trouble-free but also in deep cleaning my greasy dishes, Method has been my go-to product.
Also, from Method’s desk, I have collected their reply when a consumer asked them –
“are Method’s products safe for septic tanks?
Method’s products are suitable for septic tanks. that’s because the ingredients in our products are readily biodegradable and do not contain phosphates or other chemicals known to create issues in septic systems.“
The three of the dish soaps I have found including Method have got several positive reviews on Amazon based on their performance and natural ingredients. These are safe to use around babies and pets too.
Top 3 Best Liquid Dish Soap For Septic Systems
1. Method Naturally Derived Liquid Dish Soap
The Best Liquid Dish Soap For Septic Systems
If you have ever used any Method product, you’ll know that they make good stuff. This liquid dish soap is no exception either.
Other Qualities:
Biodegradable content (most of them):
It has biodegradable, non-toxic, phosphate-free (hence septic-friendly), and mostly plant-derived ingredients to clean tough grease.
Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Lauramine Oxide, Decyl Glucoside, Lauryl Glucoside, Ethanol, Fragrance Oil (Parfum) Glycerin, Methylisothiazolinone, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Sodium Chloride, Citric Acid
One bottle goes a long way:
Trust me, you need very less amount of this dish soap. A bottle goes a very long way. Even living with hard water in the Minneapolis area, I am happy with the concentration of this liquid soap. It saves me precious money.
As the soap makes very few suds, please avoid the temptation of using more. I usually purchase six bottles of 18 fl oz which lasts my family of 5 members, more than a year (even if my relatives and friends come to visit me often) sometimes even longer.
Performance:
There is a general misconception about low sudsing dish soaps having less impact on grease.
But I have never experienced this, rather my pots and pans clean very well with just one small pump of this dish soap (I am an Indian living in the US, so naturally I cook curries very often which goes without saying that my pots and pans always have tougher grease).
Pro tip:
As, this dish soap is mostly plant-based, having an allergic reaction is not anticipated.
I am using this soap for years now but never felt my hands drying, still washing dishes with a pair of good rubber gloves like this is always a good habit and I will highly recommend it. No matter how natural the dish soaps or detergents we use, protecting our pretty hands should be a household rule. 🙂
Varied Fragrances:
Be it the hand gels, detergents or dish soaps, Method has a variety of fragrances to choose from. The free and clear one is for those who don’t want any odor or color in their dish soap.
I don’t mind using a colored and fragranced dish soap but I am already using a Method hand gel in Honeycrisp apple (and I am obsessed with it).
So thought of going for the odor-free one in dish soap. Also, I am a loyal user of the Honeycrisp apple All-Purpose Cleaner (Check it out on Amazon, it is a big hit). The popularity of this fragranced cleaner kind of forced Method to launch this dish soap with the same fragrance.
The liquid dish soap is available in below fragrances:
- Basil
- Clementine
- French Lavender
- Ginger Yuju
- Honeycrisp Apple
- Lemon + Sea Salt
- Pear Ginger
- Pink Grapefruit
- Sea Minerals
- Cucumber
- Lemon mint
Eco-friendly Packaging:
Method is a very popular brand because of its eco-friendly as well as pet-friendly products. I love brands that have a conscience because you feel great supporting them.
The bottles are made of recycled plastic and look pretty cute. Just to see them on the counter makes me really happy. Not to mention having a pump in a bottle of liquid dish soap is undoubtedly convenient when hands are all wet and greasy.
Issues with this Product:
Let’s start with the packaging first.
Yes, it is cute, stylish, eco-friendly and I love to show it off in my counter. But the frustrating thing is that the pumps are not sturdy at all.
I usually buy refills to save money and keep using this septic safe dish soap. Unfortunately, the pump breaks very often, mostly when you are using the refilled content.
The only way to keep the bottle last longer is to use it very delicately and it is not always possible. Clearly, you have to keep another bottle with a pump handy if it breaks suddenly.
The Smell.
The lemon mint and lemon + sea salt have a lingering smell. Mostly, any plastic thing you wash in these fragranced dish soaps, the smell stays for some days. So, those who are smell-sensitive must avoid these fragrances.
Bottom Line:
If you tell me to rate the Method Septic safe-liquid dish soap, I will give it a 4 out of 5. The packaging could have been better (which the company should absolutely look after) and the product is on the pricey side but given its overall performance, I will keep using it; because it’s effective on my greasy dishes and keeps away my septic tank from any chemical damage.
2. Ecover Zero Dish Soap Lime Zest
Second Best Liquid Dish Soap for Septic Systems
Environment and Health watchdog EWG has rated grade ‘A‘ to Ecover liquid dish soap, which makes it a worthy choice for our dishwashing as very few brands out there have got an ‘A’. Not to mention most of the brands are not easily available in the market too.
But Ecover is and it has less moisture zapping content, which means you will not feel like your hands are drying after using this.
Qualities Of this Dish Soap:
Contents are biodegradable (most of them) and have fewer health concerns:
This is the ingredients list and I get this from here.
There is no phosphate present in the ingredient list, so you can definitely use it for the septic systems.
Also, most of the ingredients are plant-derived and Ecover never tests their products on animals which makes the brand a cruelty-free one.
Cuts grease very smoothly:
If you are a previous devotee of Dawn, but unable to use it because of its big chemical content, you may like Ecover zero dish soap because of its extraordinary grease-cutting ability similar to Dawn.
This dish soap makes a lot of suds and cleans oily and greasy dishes, pots and pans very effectively. You will get a considerable shine too.
A little goes a long way:
As the dish soap is very sudsy, you will be needing very less amount of this Zero dish soap. Given its great cleaning ability, this is actually a cost-effective one for your family. I usually buy 6 packs of Ecover dish soap and it lasts me (5 members in my family) for more than a year.
Fragrance:
If you are not a fragrance person then Ecover has a fragrance free dish soap too. There are only two fragrances available of this dish soap – Lime Zest and Geranium.
Both of them smell beautiful. They are not strong at all. So whatever you serve in the dish, the smell of the dish soap will not overpower your menu, rather your dishes have a sweet smell that will linger in the air of the kitchen. My personal favorite is the Lime Zest one because of it’s refreshing fragrance.
Issue with Dish Soap:
Recently, the price of this dish soap has been increased. So, buying in bulk from online saves more dollars.
Also, not all of the ingredients are biodegradable or safe to use, but if you are washing the soap residues properly then the concerns can be avoided. Ecover dish soap does not come in good packaging too. So, you may prefer to empty the content in a convenient and easy to use bottle like this.
Bottom Line:
No doubt this is definitely a septic friendly liquid dish soap and pretty affordable too. Although it does not perform well like the Method or Citrasolv, it still can be a great choice when you don’t want to spend much on a septic-safe liquid dish soap.
Clearly, if you want a soap that will not dry out your hands, do deep cleaning, last you long and have fewer health concerns along with septic-friendly nature, Ecover Zero Dish Soap is a must buy.
3. CitraSolv/ Home Solv Natural Dish Liquid Soap
If you’re looking for an organic dish soap that is tough on the grease, gentle on your hands, and dishes too, this is a great option. Citrasolv (Home Solv) is a septic-safe, cruelty-free and vegan brand.
It is a very small brand compared to the big market players but has a wide range of natural products related to laundry, dishwasher, body soap, etc.
There are no artificial dyes/colorants or fragrances added. Everything is scented with natural essential oils – smells pleasantly of lavender and citrus (because of the Bergamot).
Qualities of this dish Soap:
Septic-friendly And Natural Ingredients:
Ingredients: Natural cleaning agents (coconut & vegetable based), sodium chloride (salt), citric acid, essential oil blend (valencia orange, mango tangerine, lemon verbena, lavender bergamot), preservative (less than 0.002%) and water.
When one of my family members first ordered this I was skeptical as we were a loyal user of a premium dish soap brand for generations and this seemed like another hipster/millennial fad product, with ‘natural’ written in the label to increase its sale.
We used it anyway and then when the last bottle ended we switched back to the previous premium brand and suddenly we started to notice the differences. I will discuss them below.
Performance:
I must say this is one of the very few liquid dish soaps that does not leave my hands cracked, itchy or peeling. And at the same time creates less suds yet clean like a premium dish liquid soap.
The best part is it’s very easy to rinse the soap residue of Citrasolv which saves my time and water. I have used numerous natural or natural-ish liquid dish soaps that created heck lot of suds and cut the grease but at the end left my hand itchy.
Also, not always you remember to put your gloves on. So performance-wise other than being septic free this dish soap is tough on grease and gentle on my hands.
Fragrances:
I have personal experience with the Lavender Bergamot. The smell is wonderful without overpowering the senses or lingering on washed items.
I’ve used it for every kitchen purpose under the sun as well as cleaning up after DIY projects. Home Solv natural liquid dish soap is also available in Valencia Orange (sweet & juicy) and Lemon Verbena (fresh & invigorating) fragrances.
Recently they have launched an odor and color-free liquid dish soap although it is not easily available.
Cost-effective purchase:
So, I made a huge St. Patrick’s Day dinner. There were a lot of dirty, greasy pans, plates, bowls, cups and silverware.
I planned to hand wash them instead of running a load in the dishwasher since I needed to burn some calories after the big dinner. I filled the sink with water and five drops of this Citrasolv dish soap.
Not only did it clean all the dishes effectively, but also the water was still clean enough that I took down some dusty dishes from the back of my cabinets and cleaned them as well. My partner was helping me so we just had a washing fiesta.
It was fun and I loved the fact that such a less amount of this dish soap cleaned all my dishes.
Issue with the dish soap:
The packaging of this liquid dish soap is a great issue. I always prefer a squirting bottle because it is easy to use and convenient when your hands are wet and slippery or you are wearing your gloves.
So pour the dish soap in a bottle of your choice and use it well. Also, this brand is not easily available in the market. Clearly, have to buy online but I don’t think it is a con as you get it at a more affordable price when ordered in a bulk.
Bottom Line:
Citrasolv natural dish soap does not contain phosphate so it’s absolutely septic-safe. The soap itself has a nice lather and rinsing takes less time, effort and water. It works just as well as any mainstream brand. Usually “natural” alternatives have a bad rap for not being as effective, but that is not a problem here. The soap works great in cutting grease and giving the dishes a wonderful sweet citrusy smell. If you take care of the packaging then this is a great product indeed.
How to choose the best liquid dish soap for septic systems?
There are many available liquid dish soap brands that claim to be septic safe. But are they really? The truth is there is no such dish soap in the market that is 100% septic friendly or natural.
Then how to know which liquid dish soap can at least keep your septic system somewhat safe? Certainly, there are some qualities that define a septic-safe dish soap.
So, what are some must-have qualities to look for in the best septic safe liquid dish soap?
Look for those dish soaps that have a higher percentage of plant-based ingredients in their content.
Also, phosphate kills the good bacteria of our septic tanks, so you must avoid those dish soaps that are filled with it.
Other than that if you are getting great cleaning ability, good fragrance, cost-effective price, and convenient packaging then grab that dish soap. It is definitely going to be the best liquid dish soap for dishes, septic tanks, and your pocket.
This goes without saying that every brand has some cons along with its advantages. I have listed the top 3 dish soaps that worked for me in keeping my septic safe, my hands non-itchy, and my dishes clean.
Hope this helps 🙂
