Eco Friendly Homemade Laundry Detergent

Black and White Laundry by Honey Tree on Etsy

 Who likes to do laundry? I know I don’t, but that’s beside the point. The point is, how can you clean all those dirty clothes cheaper and more naturally? As many of you have probably noticed, it’s not always cheap to be more eco-friendly and healthy. So when I come across something that doesn’t cost much money, is healthy for my family, and better for the environment, I’m ALL about it!

Well today is your lucky day because I have the solution to your laundry woes, and yes it’s cheaper {much}, healthier, and not harmful to the environment. It’s a recipe for homemade liquid laundry detergent that’s quick and simple to make, it costs about .03 cents per load, and has no harmful chemicals to absorb into your skin or your soil. Plus on top of that, it lasts FOREVER! Well not actually forever, but I think you get my point.

 So here we go! You’ll need:

• 1 bar of Fels-Naptha soap
• 1 cup of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda {not baking soda}
• ½ cup of Borax
• Essential oils {whatever scent you like}
• 5-gallon bucket

First you’ll need to grate the bar of soap and add it to a saucepan with 4 cups of water. Stir continually over medium-high heat until all the soap is melted. Second fill one 5-gallon bucket up half way with hot water then add your melted soap, washing soda, and borax to it. Stir well! Finally fill that bucket the rest of the way up with water. Stir, cover, and let it sit overnight to thicken.

The next morning you’ll need to take a used, clean laundry detergent dispenser and fill it half full of your soap and then fill it the rest of the way with water. Now if you want it scented, you’ll want to put 10-15 drops of an essential oil in for every 2 gallons.

Viola! There you have it. Homemade, all-natural laundry detergent. Remember to shake it before each use because it will gel. This recipe yields approximately 10-gallons of detergent. For a top-load machine use 5/8 cup per load {approx. 180 loads}, and for a front-load machine use ¼ cup per load {approx. 640 loads}. So, you get all of this detergent and it only costs about $2.00 to make it! I don’t know of anything cheaper than that!

Do you have a recipe for an eco-friendly cleaner you’d like to share? Here’s your chance! Leave a comment and let us know what it is so we can try it out too!