Homemade Powder Laundry detergent
Homemade laundry soap is a very new favorite. I have only been using it for about 3-4 weeks but so far I am loving it. My friend Jamie told me about it and I will admit I was very skeptical at first but I really wanted to try it because I knew if it worked then It would save me so much money, plus I loved the idea of knowing exactly what went in my laundry soap that touches my kids skin everyday, so I set aside me fears and jumped in and so far I am not looking back. I will for sure do an update post after I try this for a longer period of time but so far it has exceeded my expectations (and I am picky about laundry detergent, let’s face it I do a lot of laundry with 9 people living in my house so I need to be good friends with my laundry detergent). So far the smell has been great, it’s a pretty neutral clean scent which I like. I have had some problems in the past with my front loader smelling, especially if the clothes sit in there for a while after they have been washed, after using this soap my washer has smelled way better than it ever has which makes me another huge fan of this detergent. It has also done a great job washing and getting stains out which is a must at this house. The recipe is simple and the only thing that takes much time is grating the Fels-Naptha soap but that is what kids are for, right:)? Remember my post on teaching them hard work. This is a great job to give them and they will be so happy in the end they contributed to helping with the laundry (okay maybe not but it will help you out, keep them busy, and help teach them the value of hard work, three birds with one stone is good for me).
If you don’t have kids, round some up from the neighborhood to help you grate your soap, you won’t be sorry:). You can buy Borax and Arm and Hammer washing soda together here. Or check your local grocery store or Target or Wal-mart down the cleaning or detergent isle if you want to shop prices. Here is a link to the Fels-Naptha soap which you can get at the store as well if you prefer. Here’s a link where you can buy all three together if you want to do it that way.
Ingredients
- 3 C of Borax Soap
- 3 C of Arm and hammer Washing Soda
- 3 bars of Felths-Naptha soap
Instructions
- Grate soap with a cheese grater. Put all ingredients in a clean bucket and stir.
- *It's best after you grate the soap to leave it out for a day or two to dry out before using. If you don't want to do this make sure when you mix all the ingredients together that you let it sit with the lid off for a day or two and stir it a few times, this give the Felths-Naptha soap some time to dry a little.
- Use 1 Tablespoon per load of laundry.
Enjoy the recipe and wash away!
*I apologize for my poor quality of pictures sometimes, I post a lot at night while my babies are sleeping and if I take the pictures at that time then my lighting isn’t great, hopefully as I get better at this my photography skills will get better too. As long as you can see what’s in the picture we are in good shape for now, right?
April 22, 2015 @ 3:30 pm
I have been using homemade detergent for about a year and I love it. I have less people in my house so I’m just barely getting through my first batch. I add a couple other things to mine. A container of oxy clean and a container of downy unstoppables. I love it when I can smell a yummy scent when it comes out of the dryer. I have also started doing a new experiment with fabric softener if your ever interested.
April 22, 2015 @ 8:29 pm
That’s awesome Nedra! Great tips. The unstoppables sometimes make my front loader smell if I don’t change the load over right away have you ever had that problem with them? I use Vinegar for softener, you’ll have to let me know what you are experimenting with.
April 23, 2015 @ 5:26 am
I have been making my own laundry detergent for about 4 years now. My recipe is slightly different, but I have tweaked it over the years for my personal preferences. If you have a food processor or mixer with a grater attachment, that makes grating the soap so much easier. Turns an all day job into one that takes less than an hour (especially if you make a triple batch like I do!).
April 24, 2015 @ 9:35 am
Thank you Joanna so much for your suggestions, I’ll have to try a food processor for the soap.
April 24, 2015 @ 8:00 pm
I’m so excited to try this! When you grate the soap do you use the side of your grater that grates it finer or could you use the side that grates it bigger?
April 28, 2015 @ 8:44 am
You can use the side that grates it bigger.
May 20, 2015 @ 1:50 pm
I mix this up today after having used my food processor to grate the soap and let it dry out a bit. That soap sure has a strong smell and it worried me a bit but I was amazed how when combined with the other ingredients it wasn’t as overpowering. Is it really only a tablespoon?I have a lot of kids as well and was wondering if you needed to use more if the load was large or extra dirty?
May 21, 2015 @ 9:15 pm
Hi Kim, If you have a super large load or one that is extra dirty you can add a little more but you don’t need a lot more, a little goes a long way with that detergent sometimes I’ll add just a little more (like another half Tablespoon) if I think it needs it but I never add a lot extra. I do have front loaders though so I never have to use lots of detergent to get my clothes clean. I hope this helps, I hope you like the homemade detergent.