Homemade Laundry Detergent
Hey everyone! So my new fun subscription to the Simply Earth Monthly Recipe Box has sparked interest in starting to create my own homemade soaps. After doing a bit of research I have found its actually significantly cheaper to do it! There has been a bit of research, investment, possible regrets, more ideas, I mean in all honesty, its been a whirlwind of emotions and decisions. The recipe I use came from my mother in law and not from Simply Earth like other recipes that I use. But, I do use Simply Earth in my recipe for a scent booster!
Ok for my opinion. This is definitely the great affordable laundry detergent to use! Whats nice is that you know whats in it, no hidden ingredients, and you can make it smell like what you want it to smell like by adding essential oils to it. For a laundry softener I like to add vinegar to my laundry, your clothes don’t end up coming out smelling like vinegar. Just remember not to overload your washing machine. There needs to be space for agitation so only fill your machine about 3/4 of the way full.
The recipe is honestly quite simple, it contains Super Washing Soda, Borax, and Fels-Naptha soap. Now before I get into how to make it lets talk about this soap and the positives and negatives of making you own detergents. So what I have learned is that detergents made for HE washing machines do not have any fats or oils in them. Fels-Naptha soap is a fat based soap. What this means is that over time the soap will start to build up inside your washing machine which will cause your clothes to get a greasy build up on them.
Now that sounds super gross I know. But heres a secret, wash your machine frequently! Most washing machines have a self clean mode. You can use a store bought cleaner or you can add borax and washing soda to the drum and vinegar to the detergent tray and run the cycle on the hottest longest setting or the clean washer cycle. I suggested these ingredients specifically because they will be on hand if you make your own homemade detergent. Cleaning your washing machine once a month will help to keep any detergent from building up inside your machine.
Now lets talk about the ingredients. What I quickly discovered after some research is that ingredients like washing soda and baking soda are grossly overpriced online! Seriously, a two pack of Washing Soda and Borax (3oz and 4oz boxes) was around $24 from Amazon and when $36 on Walmarts website! These boxes buy themselves equal less than $10 in the grocery store. Fels-Naptha is a bit harder to find in person but I managed to find them at Ace Hardware for around $2.
So with all that being said, you can buy just the detergent ingredients for roughly around $12. But how much does the detergent make? The ingredients for the basic recipe only require 1/3 bar of the Fels-Naptha Soap, 1/2 cup washing soda, and 1/2 cup of borax. Well that doesn’t seem like a lot does it? Have you ever heard people complain that laundry soap is mostly just water….thats how its made! Yes the main ingredient to liquid detergent is water! Unless you want your clothes coming out feeling stiff and disgusting, you want these ingredients watered down a bit. After its all done this recipe makes around 2 gallons of detergent.
Something you may not enjoy about this recipe is that once is made and sits, it congeals. So the soapy part sits at the top and the water sits at the bottom. Each time you use it you will need to shake the container up or stir it well to get it all mixed back up. All it takes is 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup per load of laundry.
Ingredient Break down
Washing Soda
Washing soda is composed of two ingredients, sodium carbonate and water. It cleans, freshens, brightens, and deoderizes your laundry. Not only can it be used on laundry but it can be used to clean various other things in your house as well. Its an incredibly diverse and natural cleaner. Here are a couple of links for some more information:
Borax
Borax is a mineral called Sodium Tetraborate that is made up of sodium, oxygen, and boron. Borax is great at removing stains, neutralizing odors, and brightens clothes. Similarly to Washing Soda, it has many great uses around the house as a cleaning agent and even repels bugs. Even though it is a natural ingredient it is still toxic if ingested so be careful. Here are a few websites with more information:
Fels-Naptha
The main ingredients of Fels-Naptha are sodium palmate, sodium tallowate, and sodium cocoate. Essentially, its a bar of soap made specifically for your laundry. Its a great stain remover and degreaser for your laundry. It can be used by itself directly on to the laundry for stain removal or pre-treatment or grated to make into laundry detergent. There are several websites that talk about Fels-Naptha but none from the actual company that now owns it. Was actually quite frustrating to research. But I will again refer you back to the Spruce blog because they have some great articles!
Homemade Laundry Detergent Recipe
This recipe is not my own but was provided to me by my mother in law. The Fels-Naptha can be adjusted to use 1/2 of the bar but do not change any of the actual ingredients. You can keep the detergent in a bucket if you prefer but know that it congeals and needs to be shaken or stirred before transferring into another container or used. You can either re-use an old (rinsed out) laundry detergent container or purchase a new one, just remember this recipe makes liquid detergent.
Ingredients:
1/3 bar Fels-Naptha soap bar, grated
1⁄2 cup Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda
1⁄2 cup 20 Mule Team Borax
Supplies:
Measuring cup
Long Handled Spoon
Steel Hand Grater
Bucket
Stainless steel or porcelain pot
Instructions:
On your stovetop, place grated soap in large kettle with 6 cups of water and heat until the soap melts.
Add washing soda and borax and stir until dissolved.
Remove from heat.
Pour 4 cups of hot water into the 5-gallon bucket.
Add soap mixture and stir well.
Add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water
Stir again until mixed well.
Let the soap sit for 24 hours (it will congeal into a gel)
Stir the soap thoroughly until the gel is broken up.
Store in containers of choice
Stir or shake before each use.
Use 1⁄2 cup per load for top loading, 1⁄4 - 1/3 cup for front loading washers.
Notes:
One batch will make 2 gallons of soap which is 256 oz. The large tide bottles are 100 oz, the jumbo Tide bottles are 170 oz, so 3 large bottles or 2 jumbo bottles will hold a batch.
This is a low-sudsing soap, so you will probably see few/no bubbles or suds in the laundry water
If you wish to scent your soap, DO NOT use purchased soap scents. If you must add scent , then 1⁄2 oz - 1 oz of ESSENTIAL OIL can be added at step 6
White Vinegar
White vinegar is another one of those super useful household items. For laundry its a great deodorizer and laundry softener. Unlike your other laundry softeners, vinegar doesn’t leave a residue on your laundry but naturally softens it. Add 1/2 cup vinegar to your washer either in your fabric softener or 1 cup during your last rinse cycle. I like to add 1/2 cup to the bleach compartment and 1/2 cup to the fabric softener compartment. More information on, yes you guess it, the spruce website!
Wool Dryer Balls
Wool balls are another way to help soften your laundry. These fluffy adorable things just go in the dryer to soften clothes, and reduce dry time. You can add essential oils to them to help boost the scent of your laundry too. Simply Earth has them available in a 3 pack!
Essential oils is a great way to add a delightful scent to your laundry. Most natural detergents don’t really have much of a scent, so if your someone who likes your clothes coming out with a pop of scent, adding essential oils to your washing machine or dryer can give you that. You can use these oils in any combination to achieve the scent and desired outcome. I’ve included some recommended essential oils that add a little extra to your laundry outside of scent boosters.
Lavender: Adds a fresh and floral scent while promoting rest and helping to fight off bacteria.
Lemon: Lemon has a sweet and citrusy scent that is a great mood booster and is shown to be an effective antimicrobial agent.
Tea Tree: Tea tree is a great cleaning agent and also a antimicrobial agent.
Rosemary: Rosemary is another antimicrobial agent that adds a bit of a woodsy scent to your laundry.
Lemongrass: Lemongrass gives that earthy and citrusy scent while also deodorizing and fighting off bacteria.
Peppermint: Peppermint gives that uplighting minty aroma while helping to fight off bacteria.
Eucalyptus: Eucalyptus is a great antimicrobial agent that provides a clean, energizing scent.
Orange: Orange is another great uplifting scent that helps to fight off bacteria.
Bergamot: Bergamot is uplifting and calming while fighting off bacteria and deodorizing.
Spearmint: Spearmint energizes and helps to fight off bacteria.
Thyme: Thyme has that herbal kick while also having antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral properties.
Clean & Fresh Blend: This is a blend of essential oils made by Simply Earth. Clean and fresh blend consists of Fir Needle, Lemon, Grapefruit, & Neroli Essential Oils. It has a delightfully fresh scent while helping to clean your laundry, fighting off bacteria, and deodorizing.
More Laundry Ideas
If your not sold on making your own laundry soap I did do some research on the best laundry detergents on the market today.
Persil ProClean
Tide Original
Persil ProClean Sensitive Skin
Tide Purclean
Kirkland Signature
Soap Nuts
Another option thats safe and natural is soap nuts. You just pop a few of them in a little cloth bag and toss the bag in the wash. These are the husk from soapberry nuts that have been dried. You can find more information here. You can find soap nuts on Simply Earths website!
