When you start reading frugal blogs and books, before too long you run into homemade laundry detergent, some make the liquid goop others the powdered kind. I’ve kept telling myself I should try making some if I wanted to fit in with the other self-proclaimed penny-pinchers, but I didn’t know what all those strange ingredients were that were involved in detergent making, plus there’s so many recipes out there! But alas I finally decided to give it a whirl and it really wasn’t that complicated!
According to The Thrifty Couple, the cost break down for one load of this detergent is just 4 cents!
There’s a lot of detergent recipes out there, I decided to stick with a simple one for my first try:
- 1 bar of Fels Naptha soap
- 2 cups of super washing soda
- 2 cups of borax
- a few drops of a scented essential oil (I happened to have some lavender oil on hand that I used, but this is completely optional).
Just 3 ingredients (4 if you want to add scented essential oil).
Now if you’re anything like me, I’d never bought any of the above ingredients in my life, but thankfully Twinology 2011 had a post about laundry soap and she said you could find these in the laundry isle, and she was right! All 3 of the necessary ingredients were in the laundry detergent section at Wal-Mart!
Then mixed all of the ingredients together.
Then I decided the bar soap was rather big and ran all of the detergent through the food processor. Next time I might try microwaing it first, or maybe just leave it grated, I don’t know yet.
Store it in any kind of container you like, a pretty glass jar with a lid, a big zipper top bag or an old ice-cream tub like me! 
Use 1-2 Tablespoons per load.
According to The Thrifty Couple (where I got the basic recipe), it costs about 4 cents per load. While that is cheaper than your regular store-bought detergent, I don’t think it’ll save us hundreds a year, but…
- Every penny counts!
- It takes just minutes to make, and I’m guessing I’ll only have to make it every few months.
- It’s actually kind of fun and satisfying to do it yourself.
- I have more control over what scents and things go in it.
- Now maybe the really serious tightwads will take me more seriously!
Have you ever made your own laundry detergent? Liquid or powder? What were the results? Did you make it with your regular kitchen utensils, or do you have a separate grater and such for your soap?
I’m nearing the end of my detergent from Sears. I am very unhappy with this detergent but I bought a BIG box so it has taken a long time to go through it. In order to do my laundry in cold water I need to disolve the detergent in hot water before adding it to the machine. Not hard to do, but a bother that I don’t think should be necessary for a detergent that advertizes that its for all tempertures. If I don’t desolve it first there are flecks of detergent left on my “clean” clothes. I never really noticed this until I began hanging my clothes on the line. I guess the dryer shakes the detergent out. Anyway, I’ve been planning to make my own soap and am glad you posted instructions.
I recently made my 2nd batch. The 1st batch lasted me 6 months. It cost me roughly 5 cents a load. This time around I didn’t use any bar soap, just the powder stuff. I actually think I like it better without any soap in it.
Do you know if it is safe for high efficiency washers?
I asked my facebook followers and here’s what they said:
“Yes, but it will leave soap residue in the HE machine.”
“yes it is.”
“Yes it is. It is a low sudsing formula. For the residue, once a month or so, depending on how often you do laundry, run a cup or so of white vinegar through your washer.”
“Yes that’s what I use in mine. Just put it in the drum with your clothes not in the dispenser and it works great!”
Hope that helps!
Thanks. I am a little apprehensive, but I may try it. My sister had to have her machine repaired because she didn’t use the special HE detergent. That would sure kill any savings!
I love the homemade soap! I think it cleans better and I love the scent, it’s a light fresh smell and not strong like a lot of the store bought soaps. You can also add Oxyclean for a stain fighting boost, with two boys I sometimes add extra;)
How do you compare the cost to store brand liquid detergent like Target? I know laundry detergent is expensive but I can’t force myself to make it. I want to say that I pay $4.99 for purex liquid detergent (for maybe 80 loads of laundry).
I think it would be hard to compare it to liquid detergent. I definitely don’t think making homemade laundry soap is a HUGE savings, especially if you’re using cheaper brands, sales or coupons.
hi, i tried the powdered once and had trouble with it dissolving in cold water. would find clumps of it in the bottom. has anyone else had this problem. making the powdered is much easier than the liquid but if it doesnt dissolve…. thanks
I have found three easy fixes for this. I sometimes get clumps when I have put too much of the detergent in with my laundry, so I will go easier the next time. I have also put the detergent into a cup of warm water and dissolved it before dumping into the machine. If it is the grated soap that is giving you a problem, then run the detergent through a food processor to make the shavings into a more granule consistency that is more easily dissolved.
I make my own laundry detergent too! It does save a lot of money. I recently changed to making a liquid version (which dissolves a little better). Thanks for linking this up to Frugal Crafty Home Blog Hop!
What is your reciept for liquid?? Thank you for your time.