How to Make Homemade Laundry Soap

Make your own homemade laundry soap.

Making your own homemade laundry soap can prove very beneficial to your pocket. Homemade soaps will save you money and also reduce the amount of chemicals you put in the environment, according to Sheila Barnett and Deborah DeBiasi, from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. You have the option to make powder or liquid homemade laundry soap, depending on our needs.

Things You'll Need

• Body soap bars
• Box grater
• Container
• Water
• Pot
• Wooden spoon
• 5-gallon bucket with lid
• 1-1/4 cup borax
• Glass container
• 1-1/4 cup washing soda
• 1/2 cup baking soda

Instructions

Liquid Laundry Soap

1. Grate the bar of body soap with the box grater. Grate to medium size and place in a container large enough to hold it.

2. Boil 6 cup of water in a large pot on the stove. Lower the heat to medium once it starts boiling, until the water is simmering.

3. Add the grated soap in small batches to the hot water, about 1/2 cup at a time. Stir with the wooden spoon while adding each batch until the soap dissolves. Remove the pot with the soap from the stove once everything is completely dissolved.

4. Add 3 gallons of water to the 5-gallon bucket.

5. Add 1 cup of borax and stir until the borax is dissolved.

6. Stir 1 cup of washing soda into the mixture in the bucket until it is dissolved.

7. Add the dissolved bar soap to the mixture in the bucket. Stir.

8. Let the soap sit for 24 hours with a lid before using. Stir when ready to use. Use 1 cup of the detergent for each laundry load.

Powdered Laundry Soap

1. Grate enough soap bars using the smallest size on the grater until you have 1/2 cup. Place in a glass container large enough to hold all the ingredients.

2. Add 1/4 cup of borax to the mixture and stir.

3. Stir on 1/2 cup of baking soda and 1/4 cup of washing soda.

4. Use 1 tbsp. for each load of laundry or 2 tbsp. for heavily soiled laundry.

Tips & Warnings

• Try different water and soap ratios until you find the perfect mixture for your laundry soap.

• Keep the laundry soap away from children and pets.

References

• Virginia Department of Environmental Quality; What's Your Recipe?; Sheila Barnett and Deborah DeBiasi; September 2010
• Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College: Homemade Laundry Soap