I purchased the Lysol No Touch Hand Soap System months ago and I’m just getting around to writing a product review. In the early fall, I paid $9.97 at Walmart for this automatic soap dispenser and I used the mail-in rebate form clipped from a SmartSource coupon insert to try it for free.
Approximately 8 weeks after I mailed in my rebate form with the UPC (Universal Product Code) and original receipt, I received a full refund, including taxes and postage paid. The starter kit includes a soap dispenser, a Lysol Healthy Touch hand soap refill, and 4 AA batteries. The setup is incredibly easy. Pop in the batteries, remove the lid to the soap and snap the bottle into the dispenser. Turn on the device and that’s it!
There are both pros and cons to this device. Yes, they talk about the “germy pump” in their advertising, but after you wash your hands, you don’t touch the pump again. So even a germaphobe like myself has trouble with that angle of advertising. But it’s a definite benefit that the automatic dispensing eliminates the need to push down on a soap pump, making it easier for children, older people or arthritis sufferers to wash their hands. For parents and caregivers, this also means not having to dispense soap every time a child has to wash their hands, which helps increase independence.
A major drawback is the cost of the soap refills. It is really expensive at the price of $4.99/251 mL! And it’s not very environmentally friendly since you are expected to throw out the plastic container each time you run out of soap and replace with a new refill. There is no way of controlling how much soap is dispensed so you end up wasting quite a bit as well. I usually use about a dime’s worth of liquid soap but the No Touch dispenses about a quarter’s worth.
Fortunately, it is fairly easy to refill the Lysol Healthy Touch soap container yourself. Here’s how:
- Remove the top of the empty container with a dull knife and fill with the soap of your choice. (Clear hand soap such as the one made by Softsoap has a thinner but similar consistency.)
- Snap the top back on, insert into the dispenser, and you’re back in business.
Obviously, Lysol does not endorse or recommend this method, but they should be listening to their customers. There are a ton of comments on their official website and no responses to any of them. Lysol needs to address the refill issue by lowering the retail price of the Healthy Touch soap, offering coupons, or addressing the environmental issue in some way. If the manufacturer, Reckitt Benckiser, doesn’t respond appropriately, they’re going to find the No Touch Hand Soap system discontinued faster than you can say, “Ready Brush toilet cleaning system“. Anyone remember that contraption? This was a toilet brush integrated with toilet bowl cleaner. The aerosol canister was inserted into the handle and you pulled the trigger to spray the cleaner into the bowl. It was expensive and bad for the environment in so many ways that I never bought a single refill. I think I could write an entire post about all the cleaning invention disasters that I have tried over the years!
The discontinued Lysol Ready Brush. I still use the brush but never bought any refill canisters.
I’m not sure if I will continue using the Lysol No Touch once the novelty wears off. However, if you are interested in purchasing this device, the Try It Free offer is over but there is a $5 coupon available on the Lysol website that you can print and redeem. If you’ve already tried it out, I’d love to hear your opinion. Leave a comment below!
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