How to Make Natural Homemade Laundry Detergent

Excited to try this! Thanks.

I am also wondering about HE machines? Any ideas on that?

I use it in my HE machine. I only put in one tablespoon of soap. the recipe I use is one bar of soap to one cup or borax and one cup of washing soda.

They would probably work also. I haven’t tried them personally, but
know people who have success making this even with dial or other
store brand soaps, so it should work just fine.

couldn’t you use Dr. Bonner’s liquid castil soap instead of grating up a bar for the liquid soap?

Help I think I messed up…..I am not sure if I read the instructions right for the powder version of the laundry soap.  I mixed 6 cups of borax, 6 cups of washing soda with 3 cups of grated bar soap.  Would that be correct for a 2 part : 2 part :1 ratio?  If so do I still use 1/4 cup per load?
Thank you!

awesome thank you!!!

Help! We made the liquid soap yesterday & today I stirred it, but it is very watery. Is it suppose to be that way?
Also, when I used a cup of it, I fill the washer a little with water & put soap in before laundry. It did not suds up at all. Should we have used more of something?
Thanks.

I’m curious if this recipe is safe for cloth diapers.  We use a mix of prefolds, fitteds, and pockets.  Has anybody else tried it with their diapers?

Yep

All the information I’ve seen has been only if it is consumed internally or used in large amounts on the skin. I wouldn’t use it in soap or anything in the kitchen, but from what I can tell, it’s fine for laundry, especially since it is rinsed out…

I’m wondering about it causing the color to fade more (or less) using this method.

Add a vinegar rinse at the end or pre-treat with dishwashing liquid

I’ve had a hard time finding Washing Soda.  Any particular store suggestions?

My Kroger has it but it’s also available on amazon if you can’t find it locally

I’ve never had any trouble with it at all…

To the large liquid batch, basically to your scent preference, but about 40+ drops would be my guess. You could definitely add the baking soda…

Can anyone tell me if this will be ok to use in a HE front load washer.I called the manufacturers and they said no, only use the he detergent, I really would like to use the homemade but afraid to, Thanks.

Is this safe to use in an he washer? 

Yep… Scented is fine

absolutely. As long as they dissolve, it will work. You could probably even do it in a smaller container… You’ll just have to shake the bucket rather than stir it to remix the next day…

Thanks so much! Glad it worked well

I was wondering if Mrs. Meyers triple presses Castile soap will work? I cannot find dr. Bronners in my town. Thanks

Yes, it is non foaming…

I’m making the liquid version today and was wondering since this recipe makes a lot how long it will last in a closed 5 gallon bucket…will it not go bad? Thanks for any help!!!

Can you use this on cloth diapers also to get them clean without weekening them?

I just found some at walmart today. Target didn’t have it

You can, or you can even use it alone as a detergent.

I have been looking for a natural homemade laundry detergent but all the recipes I have found have borax in them.  Isn’t borax something you should avoid?  Maybe I am wrong but could someone please explain?

I tried the liquid laundery soap recipe this weekend and it did not gel and it seemed that 4.5 gallons plus 2 qts of water was too much. What did I do wrong?

What do you use in the dryer, if anything, or do you line dry your clothes?

Do dryer balls also take care of the static (my main concern)?

I have a bar soap of Austin’s natural soap called hippie hollow with hemp seed oil…..do you think I could use this? This is what is in it:
Austin Natural Soap is handcrafted and handmade in Austin, Texas in small batches using only quality plant-based oils for their moisturizing properties. All of our soaps contain base oils of olive, palm, and coconut with vitamin E added as a natural preservative. In addition, all of our soaps include one or more extra moisturizing super-fatting oils (e.g. cocoa butter, sweet almond oil, castor oil, avocado oil, hemp seed oil, jojoba oil and/or shea butter). Your skin will feel clean, smooth, and soft after using our soap – no lotion needed! No animal fat is used in our handmade, vegan, herbal soaps and natural glycerin is not extracted – unlike commercial soaps. All of our handmade Texas soaps are pH tested and we do not test on animals (only willingly tested by our friends and family!).

I’m wondering if there is any way that body wash could be substituted for a bar of soap? My hubby wants his detergent to smell “manly” if possible. Any suggestions?

Thanks for catching that typo! I’ll fix it.

About a cup… you don’t need to add the liquid, but if you don’t, just use a couple tablespoons of the mixture per load.

Yes

I made this a couple of weeks ago! I love it! thanks….so cheap & easy to make…one of the recipes I found said to fill up the laundry bottle with 1/2 of the detergent & 1/2 with water…but yours says to just fill up the bottle with the detergent…your recipe makes 5 gallons, the other one would make 10. what do you recommend? I havent seen a problem with diluting it to make 10 gallons, but I don’t have kids at home making a lot of stains….

So if I use te liquid Castile soap instead of the bar of soap I should use a 1 cup?

I was making my laundry detergent with with borax until I read the review/info provided at http://www.ewg.org/guides/cleaners/2507-20MuleTeamBoraxNaturalLaundryBoosterMultiPurposeHouseholdCleaner
Since I have been using just Vermont Soap Organics Liquid sunshine cleanser… It works great and softens the clothes! What do you think about this info on Borax? I use the ewg website for lots of information, including the cosmetics database.

In other words, if you are mixing them up, use the measure you want to use as the “part.” For instance, if you were using a cup measure, 1 cup=1 part

i’ve tried this with the Fels Naptha soap and it made a terrible thick grey residue around the top of the washer drum. it also made the diapers stop absorbing liquid…. very bad. What do you recommend for diaper washing? Thanks!

i’ve tried rockin green.
it was expensive, but didn’t work.

I found the same information other places too. Based on other recipes across the web, I used 2 boxes Arm & Hammer Washing Soda, 2 two pound boxes of Arm & Hammer Baking Soda, and 3 bars of grated Ivory Soap (because that’s what I already had on hand).

Yep

I haven’t had a problem with that- how finely is the soap ground?

Have you used this recipe on your cloth diapers?

Any unique suggestions on containers for the liquid detergent?

Did you use the bar soap? What proportions and size batch did you make?

I used the bar soap and I did 1 cup of borax 1 cup of washing soda and a whole bar. I also tried doubling everything but the water and its like egg drop soup and its still not cleaning my clothes properly I am very confused.

Thanks for the quick response. Should i be strickly using warm or hot water for this or is there something to add for hard water. Thanks again. Also I occasionally use reusable pee pads for my dog is there anything special i would need to do with those?

I’m a bit hesitant to try this recipe because I’m worried it might somehow clog the washing machine – how long have you been using this recipe and have you noticed any negative effects?

Do you have a recipe you use for cloth diapers?

Is it possible to use this in a HE washing machine? Can I substitute a liquid soap instead? Can this be made up in smaller batches instead of a gallon? Will this also dissolve well in cold water or will I have to use warm water?

The Dr. Bronners comes in a peppermint that I think smells amazing, also in tea tree or almond. Would he like any of those? Using a body wash adds in a lot of the chemcials some of us are hoping to avoid.

Can you tell me what the consistency of the liquid formula is supposed to be? Mine mixed up nice, but is still of a watery consistency, and I was envisioning a thicker end product like other liquid detergents. I just want to know that it is fine to use as is, or should I be doing something else to “fix” it? Thanks!

I used the recipe to make the home-made detergent but the pants that I washed in the detergent are itching me.  I changed the quantity of each ingredient but I did it so the ratio of each ingredient to the other stayed the same as it is in the original recipe.  I did not want to use 4.5 gallons of water so I converted the water into cups which = 72 cups, converted the other ingredients into cups and made adjustments in the quantity of all the ingredients  so they are still the same ratio to each other.  Do you know why the detergent is making me itchy?  The soap I used has saponified olive oil, palm kernel oil, and palm oil.  I can’t use soaps containing coconut because I’m allergic to coconut.

No, the soap had olive oil and palm oil in it.  I also had the same problem when I tried a different recipe using only Borax, washing soda, and baking soda.  Will your recipe work if I leave out the Borax?

It will be more liquid-y and it will thicken more over time too…

Question, I was doing the math and granted I did add oxyclean because I read it really helps boost the cleaning, but it is still about 40cents a load. I do not want to mess with the 5 gallons of goo….. Any suggestion on cutting the cost? I use dr bronners soap after reading several posts! I love the way the clothes feel after a couple of washes they are super soft! I changed to natural soaps and laundry soaps after itching with all free and clear…which was about 11cents a load. Thanks for your help!

I’m looking for a substitute for dryer sheets, but my HE washer LOCKS once the cycle begins, so I can’t add anything during a rinse cycle. Do you know of anything that works in the dryer, or if put in the washer along with the detergent? I have to put the detergent in the empty machine and THEN add clothes, according to manufacturer directions. Thanks much.

Has anyone tried to make the liquid clothes detergent in a more concentrated formula? I was thinking of using 1/2 the water and using 1/2 as much per load. Will it still gell and work all right?

Your washer should have fabric softener slot (same area as the one for detergent) that will get added during the rinse.

I use Michigan Mama she is on Facebook her wool dryer balls are awesome

Try replacing any borax or baking soda with washing soda. Borax and baking soda are weaker water softeners than the washing soda. I’m not sure which type of bar soap you are using, but you might want to try a heavier duty laundry bar like fels naptha. It’s not as natural as castille, but it really gets the stains out. Also, you can try using warmer water. Borax doesn’t work well at all in cold water.

It should be fine if it re-mixed well…

If you use 1/4 cup of vinegar in the rinse cycle, it should take the static out of the clothing so you will not need to use dryer sheets.

What do you think if I infused the water with something like lemongrass before hand? I would love to add some yummy smells to this w/o having to spend a fortune on essentials. – thanks

Hey, I made the liquid for the first time yday and when I went to stir it this morning it is very think and clumpy.. like it gelled… Is it suppose to do this?!? :/

My mother and sister have made the liquid for years. They have wanted me for years to make it and start using it and I finally did with this recipe. They use the fels-naptha soap, borax and washing soda. Theirs have always jelled. I made this recipe last week with the Dr. Bronner’s lavendar soap (the only thing that is different from their recipe). My is still just like water. It’s not jelled at all. I used 2 quarts of water to melt soap and 4.5 gallons of REALLY hot tap water. When mixed all together would total 5 gallons. Is this correct? This is the only thing that I could think of as to why it’s still water consistency and didn’t jell. I thought maybe I used to much water. Is there anything I can add to it to make it jell? Also do you have a homemade stain treatment recipe on your blog anywhere? I love your blog thanks for sharing all the great recipes!

Is the bar soap necessary or can the other two ingredients alone be used?

Hi Katie. Although I plan to try soap nuts eventually, for now I’ve simply stopped using conventional laundry detergents and made my own using Kirk’s Coco Castile bar soap and Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda. Sometimes I add Hydrogen Peroxide to the wash water as well, usually in the white or bright loads. I noticed right away that our dark clothing has faded very badly after only one month. Do you have any suggestions? Have you noticed any fading using either homemade detergent or soap nuts? I use 1-3 TBsp of dry mix depending on the size of the load. I’m rather shocked that our clothing faded so quickly, especially since we have hard water.

I just tried making the powdered version of this recipe. I am confused as to how much volume 1 shredded bar of Dr. Bronner’s soap counts for? At first, I put it on the small shredder setting the in the food processor and it came out close to 2 cups. But then I put it through a regular setting to make it finer and it came out to 1 cup. So, I wasn’t sure if I should add 2 cups of washing soda and borax (each) or 4 cups each? Thank you so much for your help!