Hello all! Hope that everyone had a great weekend. Ours was spent relaxing and enjoying a day out with some of the kids. And today it’s all about laundry! Mondays are our laundry day so I figured what better time to share this Homemade Laundry Soap Recipe with you, than today? Make sure you come back tomorrow for a review on Woolzies dryer balls and a giveaway.
As I’ve mentioned previously I am always looking for ways to lower our household expenses and use more natural products in our everyday life. Often this can be a real challenge. I’m sure you’ve all noticed that natural and budget friendly are not easy to come by when you’re shopping. One of the ways we’ve found to combat that is to make as much as we can when it comes to household cleaners. Laundry soap is a big expense and when you make your own it cuts it down to pennies per load and you know what’s in it.
We have made our own laundry soap off and on for many years now but it was always the powdered detergent. When we purchased a new HE washer a few years ago we quickly found that powdered detergent did not work well in it at all. At the time I was working 50 to 60 hours a week and just did not have the time or energy to test liquid laundry soap recipes. So, we went back to purchasing laundry soap again.
We finally got in gear and decided to work on a homemade liquid laundry soap recipe this past week. We’ve been testing it since and so far so good. You will still need to use a pre treatment for stains but the detergent does get our clothes clean without any buildup left behind. They also smell fresh but not overly scented.
Ingredients
- 2 bars Fels-Naptha – grated
- 3 cups baking soda
- 2 cups washing soda
- 2 cups borax
- 40 drops essential oils
- 4 1/2 gallons water
Instructions
- 1. Stir grated Fels-Naptha into 2 quarts of water in a heavy pan on medium high heat – do not allow to boil.
- 2. Stir continuously until melted.
- 3. Remove from heat and add remaining ingredients while stirring until dissolved.
- 4. Pour into a 5 gallon bucket.
- 5. Add an additional 4 gallons of water and stir until completely mixed.
- 6. Allow to sit for 24 hours prior to use. It will thicken during this time.
- 7. Use 1/2 cup per load.
- Note It may appear to be separated after letting it sit. Just stir it well and then pour some into a more manageable container such as an empty milk jug or dishwashing liquid container.
If you find that your clothes are not as bright as they normally are you can add about a 1/2 cup of cheap white vinegar to each load. No, your clothes will not smell like vinegar. The vinegar also helps to soften your clothes. I personally have not noticed this.
~Tammy
About Tammy Northrup
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