Home Made Laundry Soap

[MadClikr]

Have you ever tried making your own home made laundry soap? Here is a recipe I came across:

http://pepperpaints.com/2010/01/05/e...-laundry-soap/

[MadClikr]

Hi everyone! I tested out the laundry soap recipe, and wanted to give my results. While I was optimistic but skeptical about all the claims people were making (does it really clean just as well? and what's this about not needing fabric softener?), I'm really glad that I gave it a try, as the recipe has several advantages over commercial products.

The first advantage, which I think applies to most everyone, is price! How much you save will depend on your current brand, where you live, and whether or not you only buy when it's on sale. For me, since I normally buy all natural / organic cleaners due to my family's allergies, and live in the suburbs of DC, I'm saving a whole lot of $$$ - about 90%! I also like that I can completely control the ingredients, including fragrance - lavender, orange, peppermint, almond, tea tree, rose - whatever you like!

I made my first batch (and only batch, so far) using a plain unscented bar of Kirk's Original Castile Soap ($1.29 at my local grocery store), Washing Soda ($2.99 for a big box which will make many batches), Borax ($3.99 for a big box), and a little Oxiclean (already had some in my pantry). Since the Kirk's bar is 4oz vs. the 5oz bar in the recipe, I reduced the other ingredients by about 20% as well. All in all, it only took me about five minutes to make 3 cups, and I'm storing it in a mason jar topped with a plastic lid. Since you only need 1 tablespoon per load, and there are 16 tablespoons in a cup, that means that one of my smaller batches still makes about 48 loads! I haven't measured out the contents of the washing soda and borax boxes, to see how many loads they will make, but I think my cost per batch is somewhere under $2.

For my first wash, I decided to play it safe, and washed an old towel which I use with the pets. It came out clean, safe, and to my surprise, very soft! For my second batch, I used our plain white bath towels, and was again pleased with the results, so I moved on to washing the lights, then the colors, and finally the darks. Everything came out nice and clean, DH's socks were even white again, and I really didn't need any fabric softener, which is even more $$$ in savings!

All in all, I'm really happy with my results. I've even purchased an extra bar of the plain Castile soap, and a bar of peppermint scented soap, so I don't have to worry about running out of detergent anytime soon.

At some point, I might try making my own dishwasher detergent, but since I recently stocked up while my brand was on sale, it'll be a few months before I run out!

[mspete]

Thanks Mad, I'm looking forward to trying this. I put all the items on my shopping list and will try it soon.

[MadClikr]

I've been using this recipe for about a year now, and couldn't be happier with the results.

I've completely switched to using the Dr. Bronner Castile Soap bars, because they're completely natural, and I love the scents! The scents are nice because while they scent the soap, you really don't smell it much after the clothes are washed and out of the dryer (so if you like rose scented soap, and hubby doesn't, no problem!). I buy the bars when they're on sale at my local Whole Foods, and then I purchase them by the case to get an extra discount (and if you find coupons to use with them as well, more power to you!). One case, I think, is six bars, which lasts me an entire year. Whole Foods lets you mix and match the scents, too, which is nice.

I've also learned that it's really easy to make your own washing soda - all you do is take some baking soda, and then bake it (at 400 degrees for about an hour or so)! So, that huge $5 bag of baking soda from Costco has another use!

I'm still using my original box of Borax, which goes to show just how long it lasts.

I haven't tried making my own dishwasher soap yet, but the laundry soap recipe is a keeper!

[mspete]

Thanks for the update - I still haven't tried this but maybe I will be more diligent in doing some of the things I keep putting off until a later date.