It's a first world issue? Washing your hands is far more important than whatever you use, and however you store it! lol More important, don't undo the result with a dishtowel that's been "hanging" around........forever!

wait a minute, it seems that everyone is taking about hand soap dispenser,... so no one does their dishes by hand anymore?!?

I had one installed in the early '80s and loved it until the dispenser broke. I re placed it several times and then i gave up on it. I think I didn't press straight down on the top all the time. I would never have one again. I did use it for dish soap not hand soap.

I'm with the "no's". I have one and hate it. Mine is the opposite of other people's -
Instead of clogging it drips. I can't stand to walk up to my sink and see a soap drop sitting in it. Just put a new sink and counter in my vacation home and went without the dispenser and am perfectly happy about it. If you do get one, I would be sure to shell out for a very highly rated one.

My sink is in my island and there's no way I wanted a soap dish or anything else to clutter the countertop. We have a built in soap dispenser and love it. It isn't difficult to refill. All you have to do is lift the pump out and add soap. I love mine.

yes...just put one in with my new sink and love it. i use dawn with olay for dishes and hands.

I have it at my house and at our design studio. Love it.

We've had a soap dispenser for years and the only problem we've ever had was filling it. One day, I decided to do a search - easy ways to fill a soap dispenser- and came across a Bob Vila suggestion. You go to the hardware store and buy some tubing that will snuggly fit over the soap dispenser "straw" (I took that with me when I went). Attach that to the straw, then the other end of tubing goes directly into the soap refill bottle. I kept the lid on and the tube fits right through the hole. It's easy to do and mess free even when changing it out. Plus, you don't have to fill it so often.

Okay we decided we will get a moen one then

There is a company that makes a very unique soap dispenser/ refiller . It fits under the counter and holds a quart of liquid at a time. If I can find the product brochure I will post them for you.

Here's a link to their website. http://krevare.com/

I don't like them built in to the counter top. I prefer a decorative bottle dispenser sitting on the counter that I can change if/when I want to or hide if/when I want to.

I prefer my counter top as much clutter free as i can get it.

I say no, we put one in and I regret it frequently. It's another fixture to clean around, refilling is annoying (if you decide yes then buy a nevermt it does help) and it can leak. I prefer the flexibility of a freestanding soap dispenser that I can clean under or change out. A waste of money and drill hole in our countertop in my house.

I found out you can take the pump off the top and fill your soap from the top instead of unscrewing the container under your sink. It's been pretty easy to fill -wish I knew that years ago! I like the idea of buying longer tubing to attach to the Costco sized bottle underneath too. I use mine for dishwashing liquid, not hand soap and ours has not clogged.

You could change a built-in soap dispenser every 6 months for twenty years and still have less time and expense than having me buff out countertop damage from a freestanding one.

I just don't get it, Joseph -- what about that soap dispenser is causing problems that standing dish-soapy water, the underside of my sponge holder, or anything else that sits on my counter doesn't cause? Since when is stone so delicate in the face of water?

I keep dish soap, hand soap and hand cream in a bin in the cupboard under my sink, along with dishwasher soap tabs and cleaning brushes, etc. I have never seen a soap dispenser in the kitchen of any private home where I've lived or visited, so this discussion is fascinating for me.

I've had a free standing soap dispenser on my granite for the past twelve years, granite still looks like new, what's the problem? I gave up on the built in dispenser a long time ago, I even had my contractor change out the original one, never again.

" Since when is stone so delicate in the face of water?"

It depends on the stone and we aren't just talking about water here, there is soap involved. Trapped soap. Some folks will have a freestanding soap dispenser on stone with no problems; others won't. Do as you please, but you have been warned.

@Joseph, following up on acm's question, warned about what? Not disagreeing I just don't get it. What damage happens from freestanding soap dispensers that you would have to come in and buff out? I've had free standing for years without any damage. And I can't imagine one staying in the EXACT same spot long enough to do any harm.

My granite has darkened a bit as well around where the soap dispenser in mounted in to the stone.... HATE IT... sorry, very, very passionate on this subject! More so than bad throw pillow combos for couches :)

"@Joseph, following up on acm's question, warned about what? Not disagreeing I just don't get it. What damage happens from freestanding soap dispensers that you would have to come in and buff out?"

12th post down in this thread with picture.

Drilling countertops is not without risk.

Hemina, you should give it a try! Once we did it, we wondered why it never occurred to us before. Doh! :D
It's so easy and mess free!

Lyndy-funny I could somehow picture it when I read your comment and realized I'd saved it on my Pinterest while back and forgot all about it! Thanks for the reminder!

I like to change my hand soap dispensers with nice smelling soap and to match the seasons and colors in the countertop.

Absolutely I put them in every kitchen

Sharon Joyce, where are you from?

bradley_amber, I'm Canadian. I imagine there are soap dispensers here, but they must be quite uncommon. Or maybe I just never had one and never felt the lack of one and never noticed them. :) This reminds me of...I hate to bring it up...the discussion about removing shoes at the front door. We all found out there were national and regional difference for that issue, too!

Undercounter is great. Mine lasted 16 years before it failed. Replaced it in about 10 minutes.

They are easy to install and I don't have any problem with refills--just pull out the plunger and squirt in some soap. I don't understand how people can complain about that being difficult. If it overflows, that's your own fault; you can use the plunger as a dipstick if you can't see down it, just like any other soap dispenser!

Keeps the sink area much neater.

Sharon Joyce, I'm in Canada also and I've had built in soap dispensers in my current and previous two homes. I find once you know about them, they are a "must have". I love mine (Grohe brand, no problems). I've also had Kohler ones that worked well.

As to filling them without any mess, here's what I was taught.....when the under counter holder is completely empty, remove it and fill it with water. Put the pump dispenser section in to displace the water it takes up. Pour out a bit more to be on the safe side. Pour the remaining water into a measuring cup (possibly more than once depending on your holder and measuring cup) and note the total number of ounces. You now know the maximum capacity of the holder.

When you are refilling the holder from now on, do it from above the counter. Put the soap into a measuring cup to the maximum capacity you measured above, then use the measuring cup to refill the holder. It won't overfill, since you know the maximum ounces to put in. It's also easier to pour the soap from the pouring spout on the measuring cup than from the soap container.

edenchild, we're in the process of replacing our kitchen and bathroom sinks, and I just double-checked and, sure enough...there are optional soap dispensers. The company we are dealing with said they're still seldom purchased for homes (at least here: I'm in Atlantic Canada), though of course they're around in commercial and industrial locations and have been for years.

We're on a well and have drinking water taps as well, and I hate visual clutter or having to clean around extra "things." (For example, I don't keep small appliances on our countertops, but store them in cupboards.) So I believe I will continue to stick with my under-the-sink bin in kitchen and lovely milled soaps in nice soap dishes in bathrooms, but it has been interesting to read this discussion. I love the passion on both sides of the issue!

I am picking out a new sink now, for my new quartz counters, and the soap dispenser is a decision I need to make. My fabricator hates them, says they always drip/leak and make a mess and he would rather pick up a dispenser and clean under it. I have had one for 25 years without s single issue. I despise keeping a dispenser container on the sink/counter. And in my experience they are far messier. Water drips down off your hand every time you pick it up, and there is always a ring of soapy water under it. I think I have to go with choosing a built in soap pump. Much cleaner, and very easy to fill from the top, If you have a well, however, I might choose differently. My BF has a well and he has to replace sink fixtures regularly. Thankfully I don't have that problem.

I would never as a simplest but personally those pics above look beautiful! I am planning a sink against a wall and no upper cabinets, the soap will rest nearby near a long elegant shelf with wall art on top.. ongoing drinking cups for family and plants, french press coffee coffee, etc.. If I didn't have a shelf I might have a small tray nearby...but those above for islands made me look!

When our clients purchase a new kitchen, most prefer to add a soap dispenser to have soap accessible up top next to the faucet, as opposed to going down into the cabinet for it. When purchasing a new faucet some of the better companies such as Waterstone, Franke or Brizo offer suites that match the particular style of your choice.

For those collecting statistics on soap usage, we keep dish soap (and DW pods, etc.) under the sink, but I like (me and my family) to be able to wash hands without touching a bunch of stuff to get to the soap! Dish soap is more occasional, but ever since I had a bunch of house-mates I've kept a dish brush in a jar of diluted dish soap out on the counter for quick-scrubs... (yes, frequently changed)

Just my crazy idea for soap planning in new build.. that kon Mari method got to me! Soap is on shelf to the left, pot soap in container and handmade hand bar soap we like.. On the right, water cups we drink during the day.. on the right lower, DW soap and big soap bins. A small brush stone bowl will probably make that shelf too.

Can people provide brands for the ones they love? Ours kept breaking, just wouldn't pump anymore, and for our new kitchen we don't want that same issue again!

Try the ones they sell at Pacific Sales or Ferguson’s type plumbing supply store. I think there’s maybe a difference in quality from the same brand sold at HD Or Lowe’s. I’ve not had mine break (knocking on wood) yet. I think it’s a moen.

Also, you can refill it from the top, btw. No need to crawl under the sink to untwist the bottle.

I love the combination I have been using for well over a year now and it has been reliable. The dispenser is high quality and works perfectly. The Never Mt dispenser kit makes it sooo nice because all you do is switch out your soap under the counter. No filling little bottles! I purchased both of these on Amazon and it looks like they are still available. I also purchased the one gallon size of Dawn dish liquid so that it lasts a looong time! Highly recommend this combo!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HFNF74M/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_S3pMEbR4S8683

Never -Mt Soap Dispenser Kit - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002FJ9LBS/ref=cm_sw_r_other_apa_i_x5pMEbDY5ZBSF

A friend of mine put one in her quartzite and it stained the stone right through and it won’t come out. I want to put one in my new countertop but fear the same might happen...

M D - if you have quartz counters you don't have to worry, But if you have quartzite - that will depend on how well your fabricator knows what he is doing. The problem with quartzite is that unless the edges are completely sealed...well, there are hundreds of pictures of the edge bleeds right here on HOUZZ.

Thank you Chessie...they are installing it tomorrow... I didn’t realize Quartzite had these issues...the stone company gave no warnings...too late now to change products.. I question now if I should have them cut holes for a soap dispenser and air switch for the garbage disposal🤔🤔🤔 fingers crossed! maggie

Hoping for the best for you. :-) I would definitely discuss this with them though.

Thanks for the discussion on this topic. I am in the same boat trying to figure out if I will add the built built-inin soap dispenser or not. But this video helps me to decide, I am going for it.

It shows a way to connect a big bottle of soap, the biggest you can buy, to the built-in dispenser using a long and flexible tube.

https://todayshomeowner.com/video/soap-dispenser-filling-tip/

I prefer a soap/lotion dispenser. I've had 3 so far, for over 25 years. The only problem I've ever had was with the plastic bottle stripping out, plus now there is a tubing system that works well. Nothing is perfect, it's what you prefer. As for me if there is a little mess wipe it up, it's a sink!

I prefer an in-quartz soap dispenser over a bottle of soap on my counter simply so that I have less "moveable" clutter on my counter. As for the placement of the hole in the stone, I like it about 3 inches from the sink faucet (close), rather than further away.