Make Your Own Laundry Soap

One of the more satisfying things you can do in the face of a nagging expense is to find a way to do it yourself for less.  I want to thank my Sister-in-Law, Laura Greaves for sharing a recipe for making your own liquid laundry soap.

Homemade Liquid Laundry Soap

Ingredients:

4  Cups – hot tap water
1  Fels-Naptha soap bar
1 Cup – Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*
½ Cup Borax

You will also need a 5-gallon plastic bucket, preferably with a lid, and an empty liquid laundry soap dispenser.

Procedure:

1. Grate the bar of soap and add to a saucepan with water. Stir continually over medium-low heat until soap dissolves.
2. Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of hot tap water. Add melted soap, washing soda and Borax. Stir well until all powder is dissolved. Fill bucket to top with more hot water. Stir, cover and let sit overnight to thicken.
3. Stir and fill a used, clean, laundry soap dispenser half full with soap and then fill rest of way with water. Shake before each use. (will gel)
4. Optional: You can add 10-15 drops of essential oil per 2 gallons. Add once soap has cooled. Ideas: lavender, rosemary, tea tree oil.

Using the Laundry Soap:

• For top loading machines use 5/8 Cup per load (Approx. 180 loads)
• For front loading machines use ¼ Cup per load (Approx. 640 loads)

Tips for Laundry Soap:

We use Fels-Naptha  bar soap in the homemade soap recipes, but you can use Ivory, Sunlight, Kirk’s Hardwater Castile or Zote bars. Don’t use heavily perfumed soaps. We buy Fels-Naptha by the case from our local grocer or online. Washing Soda and Borax can often be found on the laundry or cleaning aisle. This recipe costs approximately $2 per batch.

This liquid soap recipe makes 10 gallons, so you might want to consider doing this with some friends and splitting the results if this is more soap than you can comfortably store. In fact, doing this with friends is a great excuse to get together for other reasons.  Living well in hard times often depends on how often you can get together with friends.

Laura also sent me recipes for powdered laundry soap and fabric softener, which I’ll post in later installments.

*Note: you want Arm & Hammer “Super Washing Soda.” Some, but not all supermarkets or drug stores carry it.  You can also buy it online here (Meijer.com). Baking Soda will not work, nor will Arm & Hammer Detergent – It must be sodium carbonate!