Homemade liquid laundry detergent!

One of my favorite ways to save a ton of money and take care of my daughter's sensitive skin is to make this homemade liquid laundry detergent!  It is ridiculously inexpensive.  We make a large batch every 3-4 months and it probably costs about $2.50 for the whole thing!! Seriously!  We've been using this recipe for about a year and a half now and that means we spend less than $10 a YEAR on laundry detergent for our family of 5.  It's fabulous.  And it's as natural as you're gonna find! Though we originally tried this recipe at the recommendation of a dear friend to help with my daughter's skin, it is better for us all to have a few less chemicals, ya?

Here is what you'll need:

• Borax
• Super Washing Soda
• Castile soap 

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• 5 gallon bucket
• 7 clean gallon jugs
• cheese grater
• Long spoon or stick to stir
• Funnel
• Ladle to fill jugs

Borax and Washing Soda are both about  $3 per box but you only use a tiny bit each time so they will last for a long time!  The soap is about $1.25 a bar depending on the store.

The Recipe

1.  1 cup Super Washing Soda
2.  1/2 cup Borax
3.  6 ounces Castile Soap

The Directions

1)Grate 6 ounces of castile soap (grated soap will melt much quicker than a whole bar)

2)Melt soap in 4 cups of water over the stove

Grating soap is actually kinda fun ;)

 

3)Meanwhile, fill your 5 gallon bucket HALF full with hot water (using the hose at your sink makes this much easier!)

4)Add your borax and washing soda.  Stir well.

5)Add your soapy water to the bucket once the soap is all melted.  Stir some more!

6)Fill bucket to almost the top with more hot water. It will make a big lather so you may need to wait until bubbles goes down and add hot water in segments.  

The kids love bringing up the milk jugs on detergent making night!

7)Cover with a hand towel and let sit overnight.  I just keep it right in my kitchen sink. That's why overnight is my best option because I am otherwise using the kitchen constantly during the day! 

8)The next morning, the detergent will look a bit papery but not super thick.  You will then fill your milk jugs 2/3 of the way full.  (I measured this once and drew a line with sharpie at the 2/3 mark so I don't have to measure each time).  I use a ladle and a funnel to fill up the jugs to reduce mess.

9) When you are ready to use the detergent- fill one jug (that's 2/3 way full) to the top with hot water and shake a little.  Just fill one jug at a time.  The jugs will have "gelled up" a bit while they are sitting and become thicker.  

Use 1 cup detergent per load (or a little more for super stinky gym clothes.  For these I also add some extra borax for the smell).

I keep the jug and a measuring cup on my dryer.  Just rinse the measuring cup out when you are starting the washing machine and you won't have any mess!

I have a shelf above my dryer in our laundry closet where I store the extra jugs of detergent.  Once I use up a jug I just get a new jug down and fill to the top with hot water and voila!! I have been able to re-use the jugs thus far.

I love this recipe!  It has a neutral clean smell.  If you can't handle laundry that doesn't smell like Tide, opt for a scented fabric softener sheet to balance it out.  :)  I use wool dryer balls for my sensitive little one's clothes for the less chemicals.  I definitely use a scented dryer sheet when drying my hubby's gym clothes, though :)  

Happy laundry washing!!