Anyone make their own detergent?

[Emilie]

I found a recipe for homemade detergent- have you done it- how is it?
It seems like it would be MUCH cheaper!
Emilie

[VikingKvinna]

Hi Emilie,
I make my own laundry soap -- have for about a year and a half now. It is very inexpensive. I invested in the supplies (borax, washing powder, and Fels Naptha soap) when I first started, and have hardly made a dent in them. I use large lidded plastic containers to store mine in, which I got at the local bulk foods place, and I make up a big batch at a time, and use it for everything except microfiber pocket dipes (FBs, HHs, etc.), which will get "coated" with the soap and repel liquid -- not a good scene. :LOL So every few days I do a hot wash of pocket dipes, towels, bibs, washcloths, dishrags, etc., and use "regular" detergent and hot water. Everything else gets the homemade treatment and I have not noticed any problems with stains, or dinginess, or any compromise in cleanliness.

Does that help? If you have any more questions, holler.

~Nick

[AngelBee]

I use Dr. Bronners on my regular clothes and Allen's on my dipes. It takes me months to get through each of them. One to two T. of Bronners per load and a half scoop of Allens in the dipes.

[JenLove]

Is the homemade detergent good for someone with allergies? I can only use Tide Free, otherwise I itch. Would this be a cheaper alternative for me?!

[VikingKvinna]

JenLove, I think it'd be worth a try. And all of the ingredients that I use are also good for other things -- the Fels Naptha for stains, the washing powder and borax for around-the-house cleaning jobs -- so even if it made you itch as a clothes soap, your investment wouldn't be wasted, kwim?

I also like Dr. Bronner's -- we actually use a similar, also-green product which is a little cheaper, the name of which is totally escaping me now -- for general cleaning.

HTH,
~Nick

[Emilie]

OK- so where do I get the supplies? I can find a container with a lid- but the borax- etc.
I am excited! One more way to save some dough!
Emilie

[KariM]

Can you share the recipe for the laundry soap (proportions, etc)?

--Kari

[Jennisee]

:

If the homemade laundry soap coats the pocket diapers, will it coat all manmade fibers--like acrylic sweaters, polyester jackets, etc.?

[VikingKvinna]

Emilie,
You can usually find them at the grocery store, or Sprawl*Mart. The washing soda can be hard to find -- it's in a big box like baking soda, but is *not* baking soda. Usually by the laundry supplies. You might have to do some searching around for it. Fels Naptha is usually by the laundry stuff too, or maybe in general cleaning. Worst case, you can get them all online.

Kari, I just eyeball it now -- but if you Google for "homemade laundry soap" or similar, you'll probably get lots of hits. It's basically a handful of shredded Fels Naptha, and a half-cup each of washing soda and borax, stirred into a pot of water and heated until it all melts. Then you can water it down before using, or just use a teeny-tiny bit with each load.

Jennisee, I don't know -- we don't wear much in the way of acrylic and polyester. But the "coating" I'm talking about is the kind that you need to strip off, b/c the dipes will repel liquid. I'm not sure it would matter in other garments, kwim?

HTH~
~Nick

[OneTrickPony]

Here's what I do:

Grate a bar of Dr. Bronner's bar soap. Add water to cover and simmer on the stove until the soap is totally melted. Then put into a big, lidded pail with 32 cups hottest tap water and 2 cups washing soda OR borax, plus whatever essential oil is handy. Stir and enjoy. Add 1-2 Tb per wash.

[Emilie]

Great

Thanks for the recipes- I am so excited! What a great way to save some money! I am going to start this weekend!
Emilie

[SandyBeachBums]

What type of water do you have (for those who are successful)? I have heard some people didn't like it at all. Our water seems to be a bit hard and I think it has lots of iron because we get orange stains in the bath tub.

Heather

[QueenMommy]

Just a heads up on washing soda...if you can't find it you can sub Aqua Chem Ph Add (+) (used for pools...has a red lid). It is 100% sodium carbonate (washing soda) Also, if you can't find Fals Naptha, you can use Zote or Octagon.

[frogemomma]

We made our own laundry detergent, powder version. Was only able to use it about 2 months. It was not a good combo with our childrens eczema. My guess is it was the borax. So we went back to All Free.

If anyone has suggestions for sensitive skin people, Im all ears, cus it sure was easy to make my own detergent!!

[ekblad9]

I LOVE making my own detergent. I use something called "Mrs Meyers Clean Day" on my diapers right now. The rest seems to work well with homemade. I have always wanted to try Allens but it is so $$$ even through our food co op. Does it last forever?

[Ruthla]

I used to make my own detergent, and I've found that it works just as well with ivory soap as with fels naptha, and ivory soap is a lot more allergy-friendly. I've recently discovered that my clothes get clean with just baking soda in the wash and vinegar in the rinse. You can't get much more natural/non-irritating than that!!

I haven't actually sat down and calculated what it costs me to do laundry this way vs using commercial detergent. I might not be saving any money, but there's nothing to irritate my lungs when I do laundry or my skin when I'm wearing the clothes.

[J3fer]

Ruth: (from another kosher mama!)

You are for sure saving $$$, even if you're not keeping track. I just bought a ton of washing soda & borax, along w/ Sunlight laundry soap (hard to get Fels-Naptha here) for $10 Canadian (about $8 US?). The equivalent in commercial detergent would be at least several $10 boxes, from what I understand...

I am mixing it all up tomorrow and will let everybody know how it works for our family!

J :
Proud bf / cd / / soon-to-be-slinging mommy to
ds YM born 25 Tishrei / Sept 30, 1994
dd1 EC born 8 Teves / Dec 31, 1995
dd2 Naomi born 12 Adar 1 / Feb 21, 2005

[HappyLamb]

for Ruth and J3fer:
I bought all the stuff to make my own laundry soap a long time ago. But kind of a weird question: do you have a separate pot that you "cook" it all in on the stove? I don't know what the Fels-Naptha is made of... I wouldn't want non-kosher ingredients in my large meaty soup pot....

[VikingKvinna]

Originally Posted by HappyLamb

for Ruth and J3fer:
I bought all the stuff to make my own laundry soap a long time ago. But kind of a weird question: do you have a separate pot that you "cook" it all in on the stove? I don't know what the Fels-Naptha is made of... I wouldn't want non-kosher ingredients in my large meaty soup pot....

I'm not them, nor do I keep kosher, but I do have a separate pot that I use for mixing and cooking the soap. It's just an old stew pot that I never use anymore -- you can get one at a thrift store or yard sale for this purpose. I don't even wash mine out, really, just give it a rinse and put it back in the basement next to the washer. I have an old wooden spoon I use for this, too.

BTW, you don't have to use Fels-Naptha for the soap -- you can use any kind of soap. Ivory, glycerin, Lever 2000, you name it! :LOL Fels Naptha is recommended b/c it's good at getting out stains (we also use it like a big stain-removal crayon), and generally cheaper than body soap.

HTH~
~Nick

[HappyLamb]

Nick,
So anyway you use a a separate pot. Okay, so I think I'm going to give it a whirl today (depending on mood an cooperation level of my little tyke)