I have people ask me a lot how I make my own laundry detergent. I love to share this information with others - it's a really simple way to save money and reduce household waste.
Before you make it you will want to make sure you have a large 5 gallon bucket to mix it in, and some empty containers with lids to keep in in afterwards. You can save the bottles from your store bought detergent, or save plastic 1 gallon milk jugs or even two-liter soda bottles. A funnel will help you put it in these bottles once it's done.
Supplies;1/2 Cup Borax Powder
1/2 Cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
1/2 bar of Fels-Naptha Laundry soap or Zote soap
A cheese grater
a 5 gallon bucket to mix everything in
a medium sized pot for the stove
Directions;
Grate the 1/2 bar of Fels-Naptha soap with a cheese grater. You can also substitute Zote soap. These can both be found in the laundry section of most grocery stores, or the cleaning product section of Hardware stores. (I found all the ingredients for this soap at ACE Hardware)
In a separate bowl, mix the dry ingredients... the Borax and the Washing Soda. Set this aside.
On the stove, bring the medium saucepan filled with water to just below boiling. Turn the temp down to medium, medium low to keep it warm. Slowly add in the grated Zote soap while stirring, you want it to melt evenly and avoid clumps and I find it works best if you just sprinkle a little at a time into the hot water while stirring.
In the 5 gallon bucket, fill it half way with warm water and add the dry mixture of Borax, Washing Soda, and Oxy-Clean. Mix until all the dry ingredients are dissolved. Slowly pour in the melted pink Zote & water mixture from the pan you had on the stove. Mix well. Add more water until the bucket is full, mixing well.
Cover the bucket with Plastic Wrap or a lid, set it aside somewhere safe and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours. It will thicken and become more gel-like. Mix again, and then you can add it to empty bottles to be used for laundry! I used empty bottles from store-bought detergent I had bought before, because they have the lid for measuring and store easily. Hard to believe that I have been using those same bottles for nearly 2 years, just refilling them with my own home-made soap!
For washing I use 1 cap full (1/2 cup) of detergent for small loads and 2 caps full (1 cup) of detergent for large loads. I sometimes add Shaklee Nature Bright Laundry Booster if the clothes are particularly stained, it's a non-toxic and safe version of Oxi-Clean.
For an optional fabric softener, adding 1/2 cup of plain white vinegar to the water at the rinse cycle really helps soften the clothes and leaves them deodorized. If you want a scented fabric softener you can add essential oils of your choice to the white vinegar.
