How to Make Eco-Friendly Liquid Laundry Detergent
Many store bought laundry detergents are filled with chemicals that can harm the water. Although commercial eco-friendly detergents are readily available, they are relatively expensive. Making your own with natural ingredients might take a little bit of effort up front, but in the long run you will save money and do your part to help protect the Earth.
- Difficulty:
- Moderately Easy
Instructions
Things You'll Need
- Grater
- 2 ounces natural or laundry soap
- Medium saucepan
- 1/2 cup washing soda
- 1/2 cup borax
- 2 gallon bucket
- Containers to store finished product
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1
Grate 2 ounces of soap.
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2
Heat 3 pints of water over low heat in a medium saucepan. Stir in the grated soap and allow the soap to completely melt.
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3
Stir in 1/2 cup of washing soda and 1/2 cup of borax. Keeping stirring until the mixture begins to thicken.
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4
Remove the mixture from the heat.
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5
Pour 1 quart of hot water into the 2 gallon bucket.
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6
Add the soap mixture to the 2 gallon bucket and stir well.
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7
Fill the rest of the bucket with hot water once the water and soap are well combined and mix well again.
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8
Allow the mixture to thicken and cool for 24 hours.
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9
Pour the detergent into containers or, at the very least, make sure the bucket is securely covered.
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10
Add 1/2 cup of homemade detergent in each load of laundry.
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1
Tips & Warnings
If you want your new detergent to have a scent, add 50 to 70 drops of essential oil in Step 7.
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References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images
Comments
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I made this the other day and gave small jars for friends, neighbors and family members. It is unanimous....we all love it! Oh and FYI I used lavender essential oil (20 drops) and was afraid it was way too strong. However once the laundry is washed and dried it is just fine.
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sa1157
Jul 27, 2008
One tip - this recipe comes out with a weird, gloopy texture. If that bothers you, you can use a stick blender on it and it stays a bit more cohesive. -
sa1157
Jul 27, 2008
I've been using this recipe for a year or so and it works great. I use a scoop of off-brand Oxyclean (sodium percarbonate) with each load (you can't pre-mix that with the detergent, as it loses effectiveness within hours). Vinegar in the rinse cycle as fabric softener. I've been adding essential oils and was disappointed that the smell didn't come thru, but I wasn't using anywhere near 50 drops! Thanks for that tip. (Since i couldn't get the smell from the wash cycle, i put a few drops of oil on a tennis ball and toss it in for the last few minutes of the dryer cycle - everything smells lovely, but i'm nervous the oil might spot my clothes.)
