My Favorite Powdered Laundry Detergent for ten cents a load

A Few years ago I decided I wanted to make my home chemical free, or as close to it as I possibly could.  I set out to do that by making as many homemade cleaning agents as I could without sacrificing quality.   I didn't want to tell people I make my own laundry detergent while wearing dingy whites or stained T-shirts. 

Like I said it's been a couple of years and I have tried a few different recipes for Laundry Detergent and Stain remover,  All purpose cleaners, Window cleaner,  Furniture Polish and a few others.  Some of them worked OK, and some of them were really great. Much more than what I expected.  

Because laundry is such a huge chore in every household, and because I recently came across this article headlined Discover The Hidden Toxins In Your Laundry Detergent That May Be Wreaking Havoc On Your Health  I'm going to start with my very favorite Laundry Detergents.   I wasn't a big fan of any of the liquid laundry detergent recipes I tried mainly because of the room they took up and the fact that you had to shake and stir it every time you went to use it . I couldn't find a way to keep it from separating. However; I did like the way it cleaned. My clothes came out nice and clean and   all odours were removed.  It was doing the job.  When I made up my liquid laundry detergent the first time I also made a batch of the powdered detergent because the ingredients were almost the same.  I have to say I did love the powdered detergent.  It did the same cleaning job and was just so much easier to use. 

All the recipes I found called for washing soda and for a bar of Fels Naptha soap.  I've never found either one in any of the stores here in central Ontario.  If you know where I can find either of these in this area please leave a message in the comments and let me know. I'd really like to try them. 

I needed to find substitutes to solve this  dilemma. After a short google search I found out I could actually turn regular baking soda into washing soda by baking it in the oven.  Just spread it out on a bar pan and pop it in.  You can read how, and what happens to change it here. How to turn baking soda to washing soda.


I couldn't get Fels Naptha here in Ontario either, so I decided I would use Ivory bar soap.  My reasoning for this was it's gentleness.  I have very sensitive skin and a lot of soaps will make me itch. I knew the Ivory didn't do that.  You could probably try another brand but this worked well for me so I'm sticking with it. I have used this detergent on clothing for baby's and toddlers as well and its fine.



















Another good reason to use the Ivory is that I don't have to grate it all.  I can just pop it in the microwave and let it do its stuff. If you've never done this it's a neat trick.  Show the kids, and they'll love it.  Once your puffed up soap cools just rub the chunks between your palms until you have a nice pile of soap powder, much smoother than a grated soap. 

 




















Now on to making your detergent...... 
First gather all your ingredients plus a measuring cup.

 

Then add all your ingredients to a very large bowl and mix together really well.  Tip: I used a kerchief tied  over my mouth and nose when I did the mixing. I really don't think this stuff should be breathed in, It may be mostly natural but it its still detergent.

Once you have it well mixed put it into your container.  You could use a pretty jar, or an old laundry detergent box. I used a plastic container from  previously used pods.

Besides doing a great job of cleaning our clothes, this detergent will save you a ton of money.
If you do the math you will see how much money you can save by making your own. All told I spent  about $15 and I have enough supplies to make between three and four batches of this powdered detergent.  That's about 150 loads for $15 or only 10cents a load. 
The borax is a natural cleaner and freshner , Baking soda deodorizes the extra tough odours, Washing soda is a wonderful cleaner,  The bar of soap does what soap does... it cleans , and the Epsom salts that I add do a wonderful job of softening the water so it is easier for the other ingredients to do their intended jobs.  It also makes your clothes a little softer in the end.

Here's my Recipe:

 

1 large bar ivory soap - or two small ones. Grate or do the microwave magic.

3 cups Borax

2 cups washing soda

1 cup baking soda

1 cup of epsom salt crystals - use a fine grind or put it in a coffee grinder to make the crystals finer.

-mix all ingredients together

-use 1/4 cup per load

 

You really only need to use the 1/4 cup  because that is enough even for an extra large load. Using more will only lead to a build up on your clothes and in your washer.

 

 

 

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