Sunday, June 6, 2010

Homeade Laundry Detergent and "All Purpose Cleaner"

Homeade Laundry Soap

Ingredients
1/3 bar Fels Naptha
1/2 cup washing soda (Arm and Hammer)
1/2 cup Borax (20 Mule Team)
A large bucket, about 2 gallon size
Container to store the soap

Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan. Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts. Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved. Remove from heat. Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket. Now add your soap mixture and stir. Now add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir. Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel. You use 1/2 cup per load.

Few things about the soap...
-It will not be a solid gel. It will look kind of watery. Just shake before use.
-You can also add a few drops of an essential oil for a different scent. I love the soapy scent myself and can't use any fragrance on Benjamin's cloth diapers. You can find all of these ingredients at a local grocery store, Target, etc! It will average to about .01 per load. Not too bad!

"All purpose cleaner" Recipe

Ingredients
1/4 cup Dr. Bronners liquid castile soap (you can buy at Target, I love peppermint!)
2 tablespoons White Vinegar
16 oz. Hot water
1 teaspoon Borax
Cheap spray bottle

Mix vinegar, borax and hot water in bottle and shake until dissolved. Add liquid soap and shake. Done! I love this cleaner! I use it in my kitchen, bathrooms, dusting, and on my floors! I love that I can wash the floors and let Benjamin crawl around without any harsh chemicals absorbing into his skin!

1 comment:

  1. you make your own laundry detergent? SO COOL! I'm gonna try it this week with a friend. Her recipe makes 20 gallongs, YIKES :)

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