Saving Money with DIY Laundry Detergent
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Trying My Hand at Making Laundry Detergent
If you asked me even a week ago, if I would ever consider making my own laundry detergent, I would probably have laughed at you and gave you a resounding NO!
Seriously, who has time to spend making something I can easily pick up in the store and just get to the task at hand? I have to do laundry for 7 people and for every moment I waste fiddling with making some detergent--that may or may not work--is another moment I could be folding clothes off of that heaping pile in the clean basket.
However, a really good friend of mine decided to try this. Not because she had to do it in order to save money--because she wanted to do it--she wanted to see if it really worked. Her name is Darlene Bloggity Blogger and you can read about her adventure here.
Her enthusiasm was contagious--and I thought about it. Her recipe was pretty simple. I really, really like to save money. Could this work for me?
Honestly, there is only one way to find out--and we just happened to be OUT of laundry soap. (Talk about timing!)
Now--if you were able to read her blog--my recipe is slightly different. Namely, because I could not find Zote, the soap she used in her recipe for laundry detergent. A little research online, and I discovered that Zote can easily be substituted by any bar soap that you like. With that said--I was willing to try it!!
The Recipe And Pricing!
This particular recipe was a simple one and is for dry detergent. There are many recipes for dry and liquid detergent on the internet. I would like to share with you the one I used--because it seriously did not take much time.
- 1 cup of Borax
- 1 cup of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda
- 2 cups of Irish Spring bar soap* grated
- 1/2 bar of Fels-Naptha grated
For this recipe-- I used a fine cheese grater to grate down the Irish Spring bar soap and the Fels-Naptha bar soap. 1 bar of Irish Spring yielded just under 2 cups. I found and added a half bar of Fels-Naptha which according to the label is used to remove stains. After grating the soaps, I added in the cup of Borax and the cup of Washing Soda and mixed it thoroughly.
When I poured all this into my container--it measured just a little under 1 Quart of ingredients. You can probably get 16 loads of laundry out of this--using 2 TBSP of this detergent with each load of laundry.
It took me 25 minutes to grate the bars of soap, mix it together thoroughly, and funnel it into my container. I chose a container with a smaller opening--so I used a funnel to control spillage.
*The original recipe calls for Zote--which I have been unable to locate in my stores in this area. You can use any bar soap that smells good!
Pricing: (Full Pricing--none of this was on sale).
Borax $5.99
Washing Soda $4.39
Irish Soap $1.60
Fells-Naptha $1.39
__________________________
Total $13.37
A small side note--I bought two bars of Irish Spring for this recipe. I own about 12 bars in my pantry--so technically I didn't have to buy these bars of soap--but I wanted to have a receipt of the costs in this adventure.
Putting it to the TEST!
Once I assembled my detergent--I first want to tell you how wonderful it smelled. The scent was intoxicating and a bit strong. This worried me a trifle, because I don't like real perfumy stuff on my clothes--but to smell it out of the container--was strong, but heavenly!
So my son--was once again playing football in the mud, in his good sweatshirt. Yes!! This was waiting for me last night when I woke up, which made me think I need to talk to him again. He has good clothes for school and "play clothes" to get muddy in. And this certainly was not "play clothes" (I digress, boys will be boys.)
Guess what I washed first?
You guessed it! This sweatshirt! Now when things get this muddy, I refuse to wash it with other clothes. No worries--I have one of those washers that has a brain (or so they say) and only puts enough water in the machine to wash what is in there and not a drop more. Off I went to take this muddy sweatshirt to get washed.
For a load of laundry, you use 2 TBSP of the recipe above. Normally, I wouldn't put that much detergent in for just one item, however--as filthy as thing was--I wanted to be sure it got clean, so I added 2 TBSP. Set the water temperature to warm and let the washer do it's thing!
Results and Impressions
Okay--so after I washed it, I inspected it to make sure it was indeed "clean". Sure enough, after inspecting the front and back and the inside and out of the sweatshirt revealed that every bit of it was clean and up to my standards. The sweatshirt did not feel like it had been washed with too much soap and the amount of detergent definitely gave it the right amount of scent. It was not overpowering or too heavily perfumed!!
Then I dried this in the drier. I am not one that uses drier sheets, so the scent I smelled was from the detergent I made--and it had a wonderfully clean smell. I was extremely impressed with how it came out looking brand new. The color was vibrant and not faded. The material felt clean and fresh!!
I have to say--I was totally impressed. I've gone on to do another full load--with only 2 TBSP and I'm experiencing very similar results. I think I have found a great recipe!! I have enough Borax, Washing Soda, Irish Spring, and Fels-Naptha left to make 6 more batches!! At 2 TBSP that is roughly 96 more loads of laundry!! (A total of 112 loads including the first batch I made!!)
How much am I saving?? Well since I have a family of 7, I go through a bottle of liquid laundry detergent every week. I usually buy the Arm and Hammer with Oxy Clean 62.5 Fluid Ounces and I get approximately 30 loads out of the bottle, and it costs 6.99 without a coupon or being onsale. With this in mind, buying liquid detergent I pay approximately $0.23 cents a load. With making my own, I am paying $0.11 cents a load, which is a little over half!! With as many loads of laundry as I am tasked with--this is HUGE savings for our family!!
I'm really into this making my own laundry soap--and I am so excited--thanks to my friend Darlene who shared it with me!!
Have You Ever Made Your Own Laundry Soap
See results without votingAfter Reading This Article--Would You Consider Making Your Own Laundry Soap?
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Thank you for sharing this laundry recipe! Your hub has convinced me that I MUST try it!
Interesting, indeed. I have all of those things available, however, I don't care for dry laundry detergent. I buy a 1-1/3 gallon bottle at the Dollar Tree store (yes, for only $1.) and it gives me over 100 loads. I don't think I can do any better.
Very interesting, however, voted up and useful.
Oh Duffee! You hit it home on this one! I made a batch of this stuff about a couple months ago and we have fallen in love. It smells so good, and it does such a wonderful job! I originally found the recipe on Pinterest, but it may have come from your friends blog - I'm not sure. Either way, I agree whole-heartedly that this is worth making... and certainly an affordable alternative to buying laundry detergent every other month!
Very nice hub! You've gained a new follower :)
Oh cool--if you try this, let me know what you think!! I have found the my laundry is fresh and not dingy! Thanks so much for the comment and for sharing this!! You are the best!! :)
Oh Yay!! You can find a multitude of recipes for homemade laundry detergent both dry and liquid. If you try this one or any other--let me know what you think!! Cheers!
I understand--we don't usually use dry detergent either, however--I wanted to try this out. That said--there are a lot of recipes out there for homemade liquid laundry...and some of them don't seem too hard to make. Cheers, Jenn
Thanks Pinkchic!! Glad to hear from someone who has tried this and that you like it!! YAY. Thanks for being a new follower. I'm really new to Hub--so learning my way around. Cheers, Jenn
I'm pretty impressed, too! I've been seriously considering making my own detergent, so I've read a bunch of guides, but I never got around to trying it. Seeing your step-by-step photos really makes things seem doable- I think I'll go for it!
Thanks Simone!! If you do be sure to let me know how it goes!! If you do this--I hope it goes just as well for you too!! So far I'm loving it and no issues--everything has turned out really clean!! Thanks so much for the comment :) Jenn
Works well and is good for people with skin allergies. Congrats on Hub of the Day!
Thank you so much!! I'm really excited to learn I've made the Hub of the Day!! Cheers, Jenn :)
This article was well done - entertaining and informative. I enjoyed reading it although with my small family I doubt I would actually make the detergent, but for a split second I thought I might, especially since you say it smells so good. Glad you found such an economic recipe for your family.
Hi Cyndi!! Even with a small family--I think you could save...and yes it does smell wonderful!! Thanks for the great comment :) Cheers!! Duffee
I use a similar recipe, but with all Fel-Naptha soap. I'd like to try Irish Spring, so when I have a coupon I'll get some. I'll bet your clothes smell good!
Hi Kschimmel!! I mixed the two--and you wouldn't think it wouldn't smell good together but it is WONDERFUL!! And so far so good!! I might try Zote next time (if I can find it), this was in the original recipe I was given. I might do a follow up if I find it was a lot better!!
Thanks so much for the comment!! Cheers, Jenn.
I would like to try this but I have to be very careful what kind of laundry detergent I use: has to be unscented for sensitive skin (essentially on par with baby detergent). I also can't use bar soap because it makes me skin breakout! So I'm not sure if I would be able to do this or not, but wonderful hub nonetheless. I know I'll be trying some DIY dishwashing detergent soon!
I would love to know the recipe for DIY dishwashing detergent. Can you use Ivory or Dove? Just an idea. I'll look around and see if there is something else you can use!! Cheers, Jenn
This is an interesting article not sure if I would pay the price for the ingredients though seems quite expensive when I can go and by Tide, Gain for equally the price. What would be the benefits of me making my own versus buying the detergent with the same price.
Hi RJ-- Thanks for the great question. I made this to see if I would even like to do this--if this was something I might consider doing to save money. Once I did it--I was all for it...because yes I can save money!!
I usually buy liquid. Faced with the decision in the store to purchase and use a liquid laundry detergent or a dry laundry detergent--I will not even bother to buy dry detergent. I was intrigued with the idea of making my own. So the switch from liquid to making my own dry is a huge savings--and the results are much better than I expected. Going into this-- I had my doubts.
I had not compared the cost of switching from a name brand dry detergent to a home-made dry detergent. However--I'm up for the challenge!!
I have some shopping to do this weekend and I hope to be able to report some results to you and the other readers. My guess is that it will still be cheaper to make your own--but the margin will be a bit closer). It will be fun to do this experiment as well and see if my Hypothesis is correct. So look for that update by Monday!! :) Duffee!!
PS... I'm not a fan of Gain--and normally would never buy Tide as it is way too out of line with my budget--again going with the liquid detergents. Also--there are recipes to make your own liquid detergent--but the recipes are a lot more complicated and you need bigger storage containers.
Stay tuned!
I love this hub! I've been making our own laundry detergent for quite some time - we generally use fels-naptha but I've used Ivory, too. It is so much cheaper and lasts forever - great hub, Duffee!
Thanks so much Leah--I appreciate the feedback!! I think I'll try a batch with just Fels-Naptha and see how I like it!
Cool!Voted up and sharing!
Love this! My DIY recipe is essentially the same; but I have added baking soda to the mix when I've needed to remove odors from something yucky--works great! There is a way to "cook" this mix into a liquid--might be a great follow-up hub!
Congrats on Hub of the Day! That's quite an accomplishment for you short time on HP. I've bookmarked this so I can follow your instructions. Sounds too good to be true. I vote this UP, etc.
Great hub and information. I'm anxious to try a batch! Thanks for the detailed instructions.
Sounds great Duffee - Wish I had known about this when my five children lived at home. I remember all the laundry they created! I think I will make a batch to try and pass some onto my grown kids - That will give me pleasure!
Congrats on Hub of the Day!
Thank you Rebecca--and thanks for sharing!
@larcaustin-- what a great idea--to add baking soda. I'll have to try it!! Thanks for the pointer on the follow up Hub--I may just try it!!
@lbidd54 --Let me know if you try it and what you think!!
@Jean-ette I'm so glad I found the recipe!! I'm going to try a few others I've been given and modify it so I get it just right.
Thanks Mary for the comment ;)
You know--I was kinda skeptical going in--but honestly--I'm impressed. I'm the first to pitch an idea if it doesn't pan out--but this one has gone great so far!!
I find it quite an honor to be the Hub of the Day!! I was so happy when I read the email...I couldn't believe it--and what a great way to meet other Hubbers!! Thanks for stopping by! Cheers, Duffee
Great experiment--thanks for sharing your results! I would definitely like to try a powdered recipe. There are many recipes for homemade laundry detergent out there :) but not too many. People are interested in the topic for a lot of different reasons.
Just stopped back to say congratulations on Hub of the Day! Well done!
Congratulations on HOTD. Interesting hub. I may try this one. Fels naptha is a staple for getting stains out. I can imagine some with my fancy rose scented soap. It would be for women only but would smell so good.
I learned to make laundry detergent from my grandmother and I don't like it at all. Of course, she learned to make it from the ash from the stove and pure fat. That is lye, by the way. It really burns if you don't get the mixture right. But it works. It will also eat your clothes.
@RTalloni--thank you for the comment!! Let me know if you try it and what your impressions were. I'm really happy with it so far. And you are right--a lot of people do want to try it for a lot of different reasons.
Thank you DzyMsLizzy!! How sweet!!
LOL @Royalwhiskers. I sure didn't take it THAT far!! LOLOL!
@Becky Katz... I don't know if I would want to try the Lye Soap. It sounds complicated--but I'm sure people used it when they didn't have many choices..and that was understandable.
Rose scented soap would be great for my clothes--my boys would probably be a little miffed if I washed their school clothes in it!! LOL. If you try it, Let me know!! Cheers!!
Borax is such an awesome household cleaner. I stock up on it when I go shopping. Thank you for providing a great recipe for my beloved borax!
@Farmer Brown--I have read (from one of The Queen of Clean books I have) that there are MANY uses for Borax!! I should try another!! Thanks so much for your comment :)
What an interesting and educational hub. I saw homemade soap made on television and now I have an actual "recipe". Voted up!
We've made our own laundry soap for a long time and wouldn't have it any other way. Our recipe is slightly different, we add Fels Naptha, but we don't add additional bar soap. Voted up.
Looks pretty easy!
Very interesting. I have switched from liquid detergent to powder detergent recently to save money. Powder detergents are as good as liquid or even better. Because it produces leather first. Useful hub for saving money. I may try.
Really cheap and effective from pictures. One should try!
Interesting content and definately ssomething I need to try--great info and congrats!
This will be Huge savings, thumbs up Duffee!
@Jen-- wouldn't that be cool to try homemade soap with this recipe!! Thanks so much for the comment!
@homesteadpatch Thanks so much for the comment, I may try it with just Fels-Naptha. Cheers!
@Maren-- yes it was definitely easy--and surprisingly with great results!! Thanks for stopping by to read :)
@SFshine-- I totally get the saving money part--that is why I wanted to try it!! Thanks for the comment!
Thank you so much @Danareva!!
Thanks @Tiltshift for the thumbs up!! Cheers!
I think Zote is in the Hispanic section of stores. There's only me and one son now so I don't need this but my kids and THEIR kids sure might!
Oh I hope you share it. I will check that section of the store for sure!! Thanks for your comment :O) Jenn
I make the "Duggar" recipe (liquid soap), but I'm going to try this one. I like the idea of using Irish Springs and making a powdered detergent. It would be easier to store than my 10 gallons of liquid soap! I've heard of people using Zote, too, but I've never found Zote in our local grocery store.
@leahlefler I was beginning to think I was the only person in the world that could not find Zote!! I have read a lot of liquid recipes online-and not sure which on is the Duggar's recipe, but so many of them make so much soap for storage. With 5 kids--they'd be sure to get into it. I can't have that. This works--because you can make a lot or a little, rather quickly and you can put it UP high and out of the way! Thanks so much for the comment ;) Jenn
I absolutely love this idea. Bookmarked, Voted up, and shared.
@Jennifer--thanks so much!!
Congrats on winning hub of the day!!!!
So glad I stumbled across yr page~ Can't wait to try this!
I found this very educational...I would like to say I will find to try this. Thanks for the info~
Sounds great. I wonder if I can find the similar ingredients in Australian supermarket shelves
Great Hub, it is also much more environmentally friendly to make your own laundry detergent. homemade soap is free of the harmful phosphates. Great hub!
Minnetonka Twin Level 7 Commenter 4 weeks ago
Jenn-I love this hub and I'm so excited for you that you can save money with your big family. I am so impressed that you tried this and now this is gonna be a big help to you with all the laundry you do. Yae to Darlene for writing this in her blog and yae for you to try it. I am definitely gonna try my hand at this. Thanks for a very useful and helpful hub and your writing is very clear and easy to read. I hit all buttons except funny and I plan to tweet this and hit the share with followers button.