Why Zote Soap Is a Must-Have for Preppers

Estimated reading time: 8 minutes

Zote soap is a unique soap made from natural ingredients. This simple soap bar was originally created as a low-sudsing laundry bar for handwashing clothes, but this soap has so many essential uses that it’s become a must-have for preppers. 

In this article, we’ll take a look at the simple Zote soap. First, we’ll talk about why this soap bar is so great for preppers and why it is so great for your skin and laundry. Then we’ll talk about some of the different ways you can use Zote soap around the house. But first, let’s look at what Zote soap really is. 

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What Is Zote Soap?

Zote soap is a Mexican soap company that created the bar soap for people who need to handwash their clothes because they don’t have access to a washing machine. Zote soap is great for handwashing because it is low-sudsing, meaning it doesn’t create a lot of foam and is easier to rinse out of your clothes.

This bar of soap is made of simple and natural ingredients, including beef tallow, coconut oil, salt (sodium chloride), glycerin, citronella, and sometimes, pink or blue dye. 

This soap is considered to be extremely gentle. It’s also inexpensive, readily available from stores like Walmart and Amazon, and has a long shelf life. This bar soap is excellent for preppers because of its versatility and long shelf-life. You can stock up on this soap and know that it will be safe and effective for a long time. 

Why Zote Soap is Great for Your Skin

Bodywash 

Zote soap is so gentle many people use it on their skin and hair. 

It can be used as a body wash and shampoo. Because it is low-sudsing, this soap will rinse away easily. You won’t need to use a lot of water to get clean, making it great for off-grid living or even camping where you might not have easy water access or when you need to conserve water. Just wet the bar and lather up! 

Acne

It is said that Zote soap can reduce acne, as well. First, wash your face, then make a little paste of Zote soap and water, put it on the blemish for five minutes, and then rinse away. It should gently reduce the size and painfulness of the blemish. 

Shampoo

Zote soap can also be used to wash your hair. The citronella will rid your hair of excess oil, while the coconut oil will help moisturize your strands. Just wet your hair, then wet the bar, and get some onto your hands. 

Wash your hair as usual and rinse it clean. 

Hand Wash

Instead of trying to store expensive liquid hand soap, you can easily replace it with inexpensive Zote soap. Keep a bar at the sink for easy handwashing and getting lots of grease and dirt off your hands. When water or hygiene products are scarce, handwashing becomes even more essential, and this soap will get your hands clean without drying them out. 

Skin Irritants and Rashes

This interesting soap can be used to reduce the itch and pain of skin irritation. Use it on areas affected by poison ivy and mosquito bites to reduce inflammation and itchiness.  

To reduce skin irritants, you can use the bar as a body wash or rub the bar onto the affected area. It should soothe both the inflammation and the itch. 

Why Zote Soap is Great for Laundry 

Of course, Zote soap was initially intended for laundry, and this is where the soap really shines! One of the benefits of Zote soap is that it is very gentle. Since there are no harsh chemicals or artificial fragrances, it may be a better choice for people who have allergies.

But, of course, if you are allergic to dyes, you can always choose the white Zote soap. It’s also great for baby laundry and delicate items. 

There are a number of ways to use this soap for your laundry needs. 

• Pre-treat. You can wet a bar of Zote soap and use it as a stain remover or pretreatment before you start your laundry. You just need to wet the bar and the stained area, rub in the soap and allow it to sit. Zote soap is said to continue optical brighteners to lighten up stains. You might want to test your garments before you treat them, though, to make sure it is safe to use Zote soap on them. 
• Soak Diapers. If you use cloth diapers, you can dissolve some Zote soap in a bucket of water and soak your diapers before laundering to help remove stains before they set in. 
• Handwash. Zote was made for handwashing. One of the most critical parts of Zote soap is that it is a low-suds soap, meaning that it will rinse out of your clothes quickly and with less water than a very sudsy soap. You can scrub the bar directly on wet clothes to clean them or use it with a washboard for clean, fresh-smelling clothes. 
• Grate your Zote soap bar with a grater and add the flakes to your washing machine in place of traditional laundry soap. 
• You can use Zote soap as a fabric softener, too. Put a small chunk of soap in a sock and tie a knot so that it stays inside. Then, toss it in your washing machine on the final cycle to soften your laundry and give it a citronella scent. 

Dish Soap

You can use Zote soap in a pinch to make your own dish soap. This soap makes an excellent degreaser, too. Grate part of a bar of soap into boiling water and then let it cool.

Then, you can use it just like you would use liquid dish soap. Remember that it isn’t very foamy, and you’ll need to make sure you rinse the dishes well to any soap residue.  

DIY Cleaning Product 

You can make a natural cleaning product to use around your home. Just grate some Zote soap into boiling water and then let it cool. You can use it to clean counters, floors, and just about any other surface. 

You can use Zote soap to clean your tools, gardening tools, dog, and floors. 

Pest Repellent 

Another reason Zote soap is so good to have around for emergencies is because it makes an excellent pest repellent. Zote contains citronella, which is a superb bug and rodent repellent. So if you wash your clothing in Zote, they will retain a bit of that citronella scent, which will help keep mosquitos and other bugs at bay. 

You can also rub a little bit of Zote soap on your arms, legs, or clothes to keep the mosquitos away when you’re outside. Wash your dog with Zote soap to keep ticks off of them. 

On the other hand, if you have trouble with rodents in your home, you might place slivers of Zote soap anywhere you see rodent activity. The intense fragrance may be just the deterrent you need to send those rodents on their way. 

Pesticide

As a prepper, you always want to be prepared to grow your own food. But what about the pests that attack our vegetable plants? You can use Zote. 

Melt some grated Zoat soap into water, and then strain it. Next, pour the mixture into a spray bottle and spray it on your affected plants – this works exceptionally well for squash bugs and spider mites! Allow the soap to stay on the plants for about five minutes, then rinse the plants off with water.

The bugs should die in minutes. It’s probably best to do this in the evening so the sun, combined with the soap, doesn’t burn your plants. 

Catfish Bait 

Surprisingly, Zote soap has been used as catfish bait for a long time. You can simply slice off pieces of the soap and attach them to your fish hook or, better yet, melt the soap with a little bit of bacon fat, water, and garlic cloves. Then, mix the melted ingredients together and pour them into molds to create your very own catfish bait. 

Air Fresheners and Sachets 

It’s important to keep moths and rodents out of your clothes and other essential stored items, especially if you are prepping. It would be terrible to need your preps and find bugs or rodents have destroyed them.

Use some Zote soap in place of sachets in your drawers and closets to make your clothing and other items smell fresh while keeping pests away. Bonus, you won’t have that chemical mothball smell! 

Lubricant 

The coconut oil and beef tallow in Zote soap can act as a lubricant for items such as stuck zippers, squeaky drawers and doors, and just about anything else that sticks or squeaks when you open and close it. 

Zote soap is pretty easy to find at your local big box store, Walmart, or even Amazon. This inexpensive soap has so many uses you’ll want to stock up on this prepper soap for daily use and in case of an emergency. 

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