We all hate to do it, those never ending piles of clothes that seem to appear out of no where. Just when I think I’ve gotten it all done, at least for a little bit, every member of my house seems to remember that they have clothes that need washing and I end up with as much or more than I’ve already just washed. But, it has to be done, right? Well, in my family we have allergies to dyes and perfumes and even the supposedly hypoallergenic (expensive) stuff on the market doesn’t work for us. Still too many unknown chemicals in it. So, for the past few years I have been making my own detergent. It is so simple and way more cost effective. I’ve never actually broken it down to how much per load or per bottle, but I know its way cheaper than anything in the grocery store. So, here we go…homemade laundry soap.
*****What you will need…
-5 gallon bucket
-20 mule team borax (located in the laundry detergent section)
-Super Washing Soda (also in the laundry detergent section)
-A bar of Soap ( this can be any kind you have on hand or if you have allergies, go for Ivory or even better yet Kirk’s Castille.)
-Water
-Empty Detergent Bottles- if you have them and want to store your soap in a handy container, rather than a big bucket.
*****What to do with all this stuff…
1.Take the bar of soap and grate it with a cheese grater. You read that right. You want it shredded like cheese.
2.Get a med/large pot and fill it about 3/4 full of water, place it on the stove on high heat and as it begins to boil, start adding your soap shreds a little at a time, stirring in the soap until its dissolved in the water. Once dissolved completely, turn off stove and let set while you get your other things ready.
3.Get your bucket and fill it with water 1/2 – 3/4 of the way full, depending on the strength of detergent you want. I typically do 3/4 full.
4.Measure out 1/2 cup borax and add that to your bucket, stirring until dissolved.
5.Measure out 1/2 cup washing soda and add that to your bucket, stirring until dissolved.
6.Carefully take your pot of Hot soap-water and pour it into the bucket slowly, stirring carefully to combine.
7.Cover bucket with a lid or plastic wrap, whatever you have and place it somewhere that it won’t be disturbed for 24 hours.
VOILA! You have laundry soap!
You can either leave it in your bucket or reuse old detergent bottles.
The look of it certainly won’t be the clear, smooth liquid you’re used to. It may look like a squishy gel or it may be a thick liquid with bits of gelled soap in it, but no matter how it looks it is supposed to be that way. It all depends on what bar soap you use and how much water you add.
Above is what my laundry soap looks like, (clear liquid, with opaque swirled bits of gel in it,) after its been shaken a bit. If you want it more incorporated, give it a good stir (or shake if you store it in old laundry detergent bottles like me.). Either way, shaken or stirred (ha) it dissolves in the washer easily and leaves no residue.
Use 1/2 cup per load.
This stuff is even a good pretreat for stubborn dirt/grime.
*as fab as I think this stuff is, you may have differing results. And, as always, please be careful when handling hot liquid as well as detergents.
Happy Laundering! 🙂
“The way I see it, every life is a pile of good things and bad things. The good things don’t always soften the bad things, but vice versa the bad things don’t always spoil the good things and make them unimportant.” -Doctor Who-
RK~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Crazy Homemade Mama 