The first time I ever made laundry detergent, I made liquid detergent, and after all the messy melting, boiling, stirring and pouring, I knew I'd never do that again.
So I tried the powdered version next. I don't remember where I found the original recipe (most likely Pinterest ;) but I have since adjusted and tweaked it so it's perfect for us!
There are 5 of us (3 males, so stuff gets dirty!) and we use an HE front loader washer.
What you need:
So I tried the powdered version next. I don't remember where I found the original recipe (most likely Pinterest ;) but I have since adjusted and tweaked it so it's perfect for us!
There are 5 of us (3 males, so stuff gets dirty!) and we use an HE front loader washer.
What you need:
- Cheese grater or food processor
- 1 bar of castile soap (about $2.50)
- 2 cups of Borax (about 95c)
- 2 cups of washing soda (about $1.25)
- 10 drops of preferred essential oil - I enjoy lemon or other citrus scent (optional)
- Container (preferably with a seal to keep moisture out)
- Grate your bar soap using a cheese grater or a food processor, which is what I use when I'm in a rush (i.e. most of the time).
- Add all ingredients to your container (including your essential oil if you have chosen one) and shake/mix well. If your container is large, or hard to shake, use a zip lock bag to do the shaking and then transfer the mix to your laundry detergent container.
- Use 1 tablespoon for a regular load, 2 tablespoons for an extra dirty load.
- Using a cheese grater allows you to grate the cheese more finely, which makes it blend nicely even though it does take a bit longer.
- No, grating the soap in the food processor has not ruined it, nor is there flying soap or mess ;)
- Essential oil is useful for more than just scent - if you need to disinfect, add lavender or tea tree to your load - 3 or so drops should do. If you are washing bedding, add chamomile and lavender to aid sleep.
- Your whole batch should do about 32-64 loads depending on how much you use, costing you 7c a load (versus Tide, at about 26c for powdered detergent and 29c for liquid - about a $35 savings a year)
- THE BENEFITS: The benefits for me are not mainly about the savings, although every little bit adds up. The main benefits to me are:
1) My product is natural, without any added chemicals. Some of the ingredients found in Tide include:- Sodium Carbonate
- Sodium Aluminosilicate
- Sodium Sulfate
- Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonate
- Alkyl Sulfate
- Sodium Percarbonate
- Sodium Polyacrylate
- Silicate
- Nonanoyloxybenzenesulfonate
- Ethoxylate
- Polyethylene Glycol 4000
- Fragrance
- DTPA
- Disodium Diaminostilbene Disulfonate
- Palmitic Acid
- Protease
- Silicone
- Cellulase
