Homemade Liquid Laundry Soap

This is one of the biggest money saving DIY discoveries I have made! I first saw homemade laundry soap on an episode of 19 Kids and Counting (or is it 20 now?) on TLC. The Duggar girls were making this soap and honestly I did not even consider trying this myself at the time.  I think I disregarded it as another odd-ball thing the Duggar family does.

But, as I have been examining my grocery budget and trying to really cut down, I realized that if I cut out nonfood items (or at least cut them way down) I could significantly reduce  the amount I spend each week. So, I Googled the Duggar laundry detergent recipe and decided to give it a try.

I have to admit that I was very skeptical at first. But, I figured if the soap did not work well I wouldn’t be out that much, and it seemed like a fun science project, so it was worth a try. I have used it on every type of laundry and I have been very pleased! It really cleans and has not faded out any of my clothes. It gets my husband’s work clothes cleaner than store bought detergent did! I have even used it on cloth diapers. They come out white and have no perfume smell. This is a biggy for me because my Little Man has sensitive skin.

Here’s the recipe:

4 cups hot water

1 bar Fels-Naptha soap *

1 cup Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda**

½ cup Borax

Grate bar of soap. You can use a food processor for this. Add grated soap to 4 cups of water in sauce pan. Stir continually over medium heat until soap dissolves and melts completely.

Fill 5 gallon bucket half full of hot water. Add melted soap, Washing Soda, and Borax. Stir well until all are dissolved.

Fill Bucket to top with water.

Put in clean laundry container filling half way. Fill the rest of the way with water.

Shake before using.

This makes 10 gallons. ¼ cup per load = 640 loads!

* Ivory soap or Colgate Octagon soap can be used.

** You must use Washing Soda NOT baking soda.

A few extra tips:

1.)    I was sharing this recipe with someone much smarter than I, who said “Couldn’t you just cut this recipe down. You could easily half it or even forth it and you wouldn’t need to have five gallons of it sitting around.” Well….hmmm…. that would just be too easy. But, if you prefer the easy way I suggest you cut this recipe down.

2.)    If you have a friend (or two) who wants to make this laundry detergent too you could easily share and take turns making it!

3.)    The detergent does get lumpy even when you shake it, but it still works well!

How much is it saving me? Here’s the math:

Fels Naptha = $1.29 per 10 gallons of detergent

Borax = $4.99 per box = $0.07 per ounce = $0.56 per 10 gallons of detergent

Arm and Hammer = $3.79per box = $0.07 per ounce= $0.28 per 10 gallons of detergent

$1.29 + $0.56 + $0.28 = $2.13 FOR 10 GALLONS OF LAUNDRY DETERGENT!

That’s just $0.13 for a regular 72 oz laundry detergent container!

Naomi