Now that you’ve saved all kinds of money shopping at thrift stores and recycling your things– why not go the extra mile and try making your own laundry soap? It’s really quite easy and cost effective– coming in at just pennies a load. I found a ton of “recipes” out there for laundry soap– both the liquid type and powdered type. Personally, I prefer the powdered variety for homemade soap.
Here are a few tips before getting started:
- For the bar soaps required in the recipes, you could try Ivory soap, Sunlight bar soap or Kirk’s Hardwater Castile. Don’t use heavily perfumed soaps.
- Washing Soda and Borax can normally be found in the laundry and cleaning aisles.
- Some people with really hard water or well water may have to adjust the ingredients if the clothes look dingy.
- Some of the recipes call for large amounts of water. Check with a local restaurant to see if they have any empty large pails from deep fryer oil–that’s how many restaurants buy the oil. See if you can have one or two of the pails after they’ve emptied it–just wash them out really well before using. They’re big, heavy plastic and very sturdy when stirring the soap and hot water.
Liquid Laundry Soap Recipe:
Hot water; 1/2 cup Washing Soda; 1/2 cup Borax; 1/3 bar Soap (grated)
- In a large pot, heat 3 pints of water. Add the grated bar soap and stir until melted. Then add the washing soda and borax. Stir until powder is dissolved, then remove from heat.
- In a 2 gallon clean pail, pour 1 quart of hot water and add the heated soap mixture. Top pail with cold water and stir well.
- Use 1/2 cup per load, stirring soap before each use (will gel).
You can add between 10 to 15 drops of essential oil (per 2 gallons) to your homemade detergent. Add once the soap has cooled to room temperature. Stir well and cover. Essential oil ideas: lavender, rosemary, tea tree oil.
Powdered Laundry Soap Recipe:
12 cups Borax; 8 cups Baking Soda; 8 cups Washing Soda; 8 cups Bar soap (grated)
- Mix all ingredients well and store in a sealed tub.
- Use 1/8 cup of powder per full load.
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