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Homemade laundry soap - a REAL savings!

Submitted by smo65d11 on Mon, 07/28/2008 - 12:02
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I started making my own laundry soap last year to save money, and out of boredom (and curiosity) I calculated how much I saved. So I thought maybe someone else on here who is money concious (as we all should be) would find this interesting and/or of use.

I have made 5 batches of detergent in the past year (I do a lot of laundry). Each batch makes 2 gallons. Each load only takes 1/2 cup (or a bit more if the laundry is DIRTY). So a batch will roughly last 60 loads. The soap doesn't suds up so you have to train yourself to ignore the lack of suds. Each batch took 15 minutes to prepare plus an overnight "setting" period, then funneling the finished product into the gallon jugs.

The ingredients cost me this to buy:
Fells Naptha bar $1.25 (good for 3 batches, .42 cents per batch)
Borax $2.00 (good for 5 batches, costs $.40 per batch)
Arm & Hammer Washing Soda $2.50 (good for 10 batches, costs $.25 per batch)

Total cost for a batch is $1.07 and last for 60 loads. The last time I was at the market a bottle of Tide about that many loads costs $8.99. So I figure I saved almost $80 just this year with a little bit of effort. Also knowing that my laundry had no chemicals and was MUCH more environmentally friendly made me feel "green" for the day :)

try it out, you might be glad you did!

I found my soap recipie here:

http://www.thefamilyhomestead dot com/laundrysoap.htm


I garden a LOT, we have dogs, chickens, goats, and my husband and I hunt all sorts of animals so we often have all sorts of dirt, blood, and other unmentionables on our clothes. I was TOTALLY skeptical when people said "it is just as good as my detergent." It isn't. It is BETTER in my opinion! I still use bleach on my whites and fabric softener (simply because I like the smell :) ), but I know that the detergent I make is just as good or better than the storebought, expensive soap.

I forgot to mention ... my per unit cost for energy has gone up due to rate hikes, but my power bill has dropped about 22%. This is how I did it ...

Since the early spring I have been washing all my laundry in cold rather than warm or hot, I have not noticed any lack of cleanliness in our clothes.

I started to hang most of my clothes out to dry on a washing line, and when it is raining or windy outside, I'll hang items on hangers in the house. I used to hang outside "sometimes" because the dryer was more convenient. But often the dried loads would sit in the dryer for days, so I figured why not pretend the dryer was broken and see if I could get into the habbit of drying with free solar power? I do sometimes "finish them up" in the dryer for 5 or 10 minutes to fluff out the wrinkles and knock off any lint or dog hair that gets left on in the wash, but normally I don't need to.

I believe that the combination of all the above stuff has helped make my power bill (in the heat of the summer, AC running quite often) an average of $25 less than in the early spring when the weather was good and I wasn't running the heater or the AC. My old bills were about $100, now they are in the low $70 range.


Submitted by smo65d11 on Tue, 07/29/2008 - 06:31

smo65d11

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Oh I forgot... you can get Fells Naptha at any grocery store, if they don't stock it, they CAN get it, and usually within a few days. They have distributors that are more than happy to accomodate special orders at no additional charge. Talk to your store manager, they WANT to keep their customers happy in todays climate so don't feel bashful or like you are inconveniencing someone. They get paid to help YOU.

When getting the other 2 ingredients, make sure what you are buying is what you are SUPPOSED to be getting:

The Arm & Hammer Washing Soda is NOT Baking soda or their regular laundry soap. It is called Washing Soda and is clearly labeled on the outside. Same thing as the Fells Naptha ... they can special order it.

The 20 Mule Team Borax is sometimes just called "Borax". It is NOT like Comet Cleanser, it is the plain old original Borax. Same as the other 2 items, the can special order it.

You can also get a soap called "Octagon" but I personally haven't seen it at any of my local stores. I have seen both FN and Octagon available online, but the shipping makes the bar cost nearly $10.

I do know some people use soap scraps instead of Fells Naptha or Octagon, but I personally feel the $1 or so for the bar of FN that will last you for 3 batches is cheap enough not to be using bath and body soap scraps to wash your clothes. But for those whose money is really really tight, then go for it.


Submitted by smo65d11 on Tue, 07/29/2008 - 06:43

smo65d11

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I did see the recipe above, but I have found 2 receipes, and each of them use anywhere from 3/4 to 1 whole bar of natural soap such as Fels Naptha Laundry Soap bar or Ivory. Each of the recipes called for 1/2 cup of 20 Mule Team Borax, 1/2 cup of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda. You can either use a Cheese Grater on the soap bar, or a knife to make thin strips of the soap, and then mix all the ingredients in a food processor. The recipe that I have only requires that you use 1 tablespoon per regular load. For heavier stains use a little more. This formula is also safe in front loading washers since it is low sudsing. You might want to use a little less than a tablespoon on front loading machines, but most likely 1 tablespoon will be fine. Also, if you want to add smell to the detergent, you might want to add approximately 10 drops of Esential Oils (EO) such as Orange, Lavender or one of your choice. Hope this also helps. I know that everyone says you should be able to find the 20 Mule Team Borax and the Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda for about 2.50 a box, but I have not been able to find it for that price. I am finding it for almost 5.00. If anyone knows specifically where to find it for 2.50 a box I sure would appreciate them passing the info on to us.


Submitted by on Fri, 02/20/2009 - 14:41

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i was having trouble finding the fels and the washing soda and i came across a site that says that the washing soda is just baking soda that is heated. You can find it at pool supply stores for your pool. if you cant find it and say your recipe calls for 1 cup of washing soda, nook one cup of baking soda in the micro for 10 minutes and it will be flaky. you now have washing soda.

I have also heard that you can use ivory soap. I used it and it works just fine but the site also said you can use dial or any bar soap of your wishing. But im not sure if any is better than the fels, but i cant find it anywere i searched all over town one day. But the ivory seems to be working well for me. Hope this helps!


Submitted by love_my_things on Mon, 02/23/2009 - 06:53

love_my_things

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I know people add fragrance, but all I do is continue to buy fabric softener with scent. It costs me about $3 a month for it, and since I would buy it anyway, it isn't a financial burden. I don't understand why more people don't make their own laundry detergent, I save hundreds a year and only wish I had started years ago.


Submitted by smo65d11 on Thu, 04/23/2009 - 08:57

smo65d11

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its great and easy. i will never purchase it again. i can see if i still worked but im a stay at home mom and i have the time to do it so why not?? it saves me alot of money scince i do alot of laundry and my husband gets extremely dirty at his job so sometimes i need to wash his items twice.(even with store bought) so its been a great saver for me. Im glad i tried it.


Submitted by love_my_things on Thu, 04/23/2009 - 09:59

love_my_things

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