Homemade Laundry Soap
June 23, 2008 by Marye Audet
Filed under Home & Living
So, isn’t homemade laundry soap time consuming to make?
So, do you get tired of paying a huge amount for laundry detergent that gives you a headache and is rotten for the environment? Yeah. I thought so.
And no, homemade laundry detergent takes just a few minutes to make. It doesn’t go bad so you can get a big container from a restaurant supply (I get containers to hold flour there because I buy organic flour by the 50 lb bag…a container to hold ALL of that is about 10 bucks) and make a ton of it at once.
Most people have at least read about making your own laundry soap. It is really easy and it works! I think the biggest complaint I have had form people who use it is that there are not that many suds. I hate to tell you but that is a good thing! Suds mean soap residues that stay in your clothes and make them dingy. Eww.
Anyway. Remember. We live on a pseudo farm. With only a little over 2 acres I can’t really call it a farm, can I? But we have creeks, mud, livestock, and boys.This recipe is the laundry soap I like, which works well on everything.
Powdered Laundry Soap
- 2 c fels naptha soap (or zote, or castille but fels naptha is the best) grated
- 1 c borax
- 1 c washing soda
- 1/3 c oxy clean
Mix together and use one to two tablespoons per load. Add essential oils if you like. Lavender is good. Tangerine is good. Whatever you love the smell of. Just add about 15 drops of an essential oil or a combination of a couple of them. Store covered and stir before using.
Image: MorgueFile
What about using liquid castille soap (such as Dr. Bronners)?
I have really sensitive skin and I’m afraid of the reaction I will have from the Borax. Do you have any suggestions?
Carrie- You can do that if you are making a liquid laundry soap. This is a powder
Karen- we have chemical sensitivities here and Borax does not bother us. You might do a patch test on your forearm. I will start testing laundry soap recipes for sensitive skin and let you know
marye -
i have been on the search for these ingredients to make my own laundry detergent. i found borax no problem but everywhere i go, there is no WASHING soda and i can’t find any soap flakes/castile soap. i’m about to just buy them all online!
the washing soda you prety much have to get online..amazon is good…the soap? Dr. Bronners is castille, Fels Naptha, etc..you can get those at amazon too.
If you have a health food store in your area you can find Dr. Bronner’s soap. Also, if your grocery store has a organic or healthy food section you can sometimes find Dr. Bronner’s items.
Look for wahing soda at your local grocery store in the laundry soap aisle with the other powdered items. It’s usually near the borax.
Amie, washing soda is impossible to find here…I have to get it on Amazon.
Fewer stores are carrying it
I’ve been using this soap for 6 months now and I’m very happy with it. My tip: Washing soda is sold at pool supply stores as “soda ash” it’s used to clean and adj PH levels. You can find it on online pool stores. Look for 100% Sodium Carbonate. They sell it in many sizes and is tons cheaper than in the grocery stores!! Good Luck and enjoy the money saved!
I did not know that Dawn Rose, thank you! Glad you like the soap!
I just found Dr. Bronner’s at Target! Maybe someone here has posted that already. I’m not normally on this site and found it by accident.
You can find Washing Soda at most grocery stores, by the way. I couldn’t find it at WM, Target or places like that, but it’s right on the shelf at Cub Foods. I’m in Minnesota.
Target is getting ver y good about carying eco stuff!
I don’t know if you guys have found what you needed by now or not but…I have found Dr. Bronners at Target, Walgreens, and at the health food stores. I have found Washing Soda at Dillons/Kroger that is also where I found Fels Naptha..in case you were wondering and couldn’t find it.
Thanks SaraH that is awesome.
No problem…I just remeber how hard it was to locate things when I started making my own cleaning products!
It was a big help.
Just came across your website. I have been making the laundry soap for over a year now and have been able to get the borax, washing soda and fels naptha at our local Cash Wise until now. They are no longer carrying the fels naptha laundry bar. This is a bummer, they were 99 cents each!! Walmart, hardware stores nor any other of the other stores close by carry this, so went searching on the internet and found the site Soaps Gone By, they have it for 99 cents, but of course you have to pay shipping which brings the cost to $1.50 per bar, not sure if I am ready to checkout on that yet, but am in need of making a batch right now. Really when you look at the cost of everything it is still way cheaper than the other “stinky brands” out there. Just thought I would share this with everyone. Also, another note, for those of you with skin sensitivities: I have 3 children with Ichthyosis(a rare skin disorder) and have been using this on their clothing with no problems, actually their itching has reduced quite drastically since I have been making this.
I tried this today and it was great! Thanks!
Instead of Fels Naptha soap I used Dr. Bronner’s liquid castille soap (lavender) and it still worked well, although you have to break up the chunks a little bit.
Putting 1/4 cup vinegar in the final rinse also helps to break down any build ups
I had trouble finding washing soda too, so I called this phone number 1-800-524-1328 and gave them the UPC code 33200-03020 for A&H Super Washing Soda. They will find the nearest stores that carry the product and give you their phone numbers.
Hope that helps!