This is something I've been curious about lately. I have pretty hard water (7-9 grains per gallon) and I have a hard time lathering US made artisan soaps. My water just kills the lather of all of the highly regarded artisan soaps I have tried (MW, Mike's, Stirling). Even if I got them to lather, they were unstable and often dried up on me quite easily. In contrast, I have tried several European made soaps and I had no issue at all. So, here's my question: Do European countries generally have harder water? My theory is that they do, and as such, soap makers have figured out how to make their soaps lather easily with harder water.
Do European countries have hard water?
- Thread starter ShaveYourSoul
- Start date
It al depends on where you are, some do and some don't. Even in the UK there are large parts of the country with hard water and large parts with soft water. I have soft water where I am, but less than 40 miles east of here the water is really hard
It is all over the place in the Netherlands. Where I live now the water is medium hard but I have lived in towns with really hard water and one with very soft water; it makes a lot of difference in how your coffee tastes.....
- Thread starter
- #5
I know that's true!
Worcestershire where I am the water is very soft. Tastes OK but I still filter it as I dont know what the mans putting in it.
I thought they used recycled American water.
- Thread starter
- #9
No they just buy that in bottles and drink it. And we buy their recycled European water
That used to be. Today all bottled water comes from China....
As I recall, water in the Highlands in Scotland was extremely hard. Serious amounts of minerals and the only way I like to taste the water there is in a glass of Scotch. You really can taste the local water in it. But I digress. I've got as much limestone in my water here in central TX as I have hydrogen and oxygen, and it does make it difficult lathering soaps without the "lather enhancers" like sulfates and propylene glycol in them. That is likely the secret. I've never tried MW, but I have a few tins of Mike's and oh, 500 or so pucks of Stirling, and I know neither of them contain the chemical lather enhancers. My solution was to invest in good Rooney Badger. I still can get more fluff if I use filtered water instead of tap, but it doesn't prevent me from getting a good shave.
I suppose I have always lived in areas with relatively hard water. Never thought much about it, really, except when I have stayed in places with soft water. When I take a shower somewhere with soft water, I never feel as if I've properly rinsed all the soap from my body. It feels slimy even though I rinse and rinse and rinse. As I have no issue making lather, and filter all my drinking water, I think I will stick with the harder water.
- Thread starter
- #13
I think part of the issue for me is also time required to make lather. I have very little of it, and I don't really care to get up much earlier than 4:30 to start my day. As such, I don't spend the time to really dial in a soap. I want easy lathering so I can get right to enjoying my shaving experience.
I hope you don't think I was knocking your soap as that was not my intent (as a fellow Texan especially). I was just curious if water hardness had anything to do with European made soaps vs American.
No, not at all! I'm very well aware that my soaps are temperamental and YMMV definitely applies to the type of water you have. I just wanted to add my experience with the water over there as well as here in Tejas. Even with soft water, most "natural" type soaps won't lather as fast as the commercial stuff, including those from Europe. What's on the ingredients label is the biggest factor.
It depends on where you live in Europe. Even in Germany we have regions with different kind of water. In the area where I live, we have very, very soft water but in Munich for example, they have very hard water.
That is nothing. In February, my city water averages 17.5 grains per gallon and a yearly average of 14.9. It flows down from the Canadian Rockies and is super clean but damn is it ever hard to lather.
In Scotland the water is soft, it's wonderful to drink and shave/bathe with, here in the south of England where there is a lot of chalk the water is hard, generally undrinkable although I do and shocking to shave with.... and lets not talk about London water recycling...
...lots more product...
...lots more product...
I'm from the Highlands, living in Glasgow and we do have great, soft water. Here's a water hardness map of the UK.
