Thursday, July 12, 2012

Homemade Laundry Detergent

Hello everyone! I've been seeing several bloggers blogging about making homemade laundry detergent. It piqued my curiosity, but I must admit, I was very skeptical. So I did what any responsible blogger would do. . .research, research, research!! I read every blog post I could find on it and it seemed like the overwhelming census was that it got the laundry clean and cost only pennies to make. So I decided to jump in and give it a try!
Most of the "recipes" for this concoction are basically the same, but I decided to go with one I found over at the blog StoneGable.
Here's a look at my ingredients:
Click on the StoneGable link above to get the exact measurements and recipe. I would list them all here for you, but I've already thrown away all the boxes! The total cost to make a batch of this detergent is around $30. And it makes a huge tub of the stuff, let me tell ya! All you do is grate your Fels-Naptha soap (it looks like cheese!) and then pour all the other ingredients in and mix, mix, mix!
Here's what mine looked like after I mixed it all together:
Since you only use about 2 tablespoons per load, this batch should last me about a year! Thirty dollars for a year's worth of laundry detergent ain't too shabby, if you ask me! I used it for the first time today, and I really like it. My clothes came out fresh and clean without smelling perfumey. I don't have a HE front load washer, but all the info I read on this product states that it is safe to use in these types of machines. Also, it doesn't make hardly any suds so if you try it, don't think you aren't using enough. I used 2 tablespoons in the load I did today and it didn't suds up hardly any at all. But my clothes came out wonderfully clean! I did use my regular fabric softener but think I may now be on the hunt for a homemade version of that, too!
Have any of you tried anything like this? If so, I'd love to hear about your experiences.
Until next time. . .

4 comments:

  1. I have been using this for a couple of months now, and we like it. Hubby really likes that it doesn't smell, and of coarse the cost is nice also. Let us know if you find a home made recipe for the fabric softner. I would love to try that also.

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  2. I've made several varieties and if you can find all the ingred. locally it's a great bargain, but for me i had to order the washing soda online then pay the shipping too so if you do it that way I found my Arm & Hammer liquid is probably cheaper, it worked well though!

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  3. Great idea for a more economical laundry detergent. I'm a big fan of Arm and Hammer products anyway. I used to use Borax years ago, but haven't seen it recently. I'm looking for it again. Thanks for sharing.
    Babs

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  4. Hi Donna,

    We made our own using the Duggar's recipe which doesn't have as many ingredients and is liquid(y) gel like back in January and it looks like it's going to last through September for laundry for the 4 of us here at home. I like the idea of powder like this one. I'm saving this recipe and we may make this one next time. I also made my own dishwashing one and have been using it too. It really saves! Need to find a fabric softener recipe. If you find a good one, please share!

    Enjoy your day!
    Tammy

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