Laundry Soap!
Jul. 31st, 2010 09:20 amPosting this for ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
stoicheion, who is getting into DIY homecare. The recipe is very simple, it takes longer to explain than it does to make, in fact. It's a little different than the standard DIY Laundry Soap recipe that's out there, but I think the ingredients are a little easier to come by and a little less harmful to the environment than borax, which can also be harmful to small animals and small children. The only note I have on it is that the soap needs to be plain soap, not a beauty bar or a moisturizer bar, but this usually makes it cheaper anyway. I can usually find a pack of Ivory Soap for 12c a bar or locally made glycerin soap for 50c a bar, and either way this means I make a batch of laundry soap for less than a dollar. You will need:
One Cake of Soap
1/2 Cup Baking Soda
1/2 Cup Oxobrite
Grate the soap and then put the shavings and the powders into a food processor or blender and pulse five times to mix them together and then switch it on and let it run for a minute or two until it makes a fine and fluffy powder. For the few of you out there old enough to remember Ivory Snow, that's what it will look like. If you can't find Oxobrite in your area or don't want to use it, you can just use one cup of Baking Soda.
To Use: Measure out two tablespoons of laundry powder per load, unless the clothes are seriously dirty and then use three or four. Yes, really, just two tablespoons. Most commercial laundry soaps have you use way too much because they want you to buy more soap more often. Enough that there can be residual soap in your clothing for up to seven washings in plain water after that. Fill the fabric softener dispenser with white vinegar, this both softens fabric and removes residual soap. If your machine doesn't have a dispenser, you can buy a Downey Ball and fill it with vinegar.
I use this soap just as it is in its powdered state and it works just fine even in cold water wash. There are instructions out there for making the powder into a liquid or a gel, but it seems like more trouble than it's worth.
stoicheion, who is getting into DIY homecare. The recipe is very simple, it takes longer to explain than it does to make, in fact. It's a little different than the standard DIY Laundry Soap recipe that's out there, but I think the ingredients are a little easier to come by and a little less harmful to the environment than borax, which can also be harmful to small animals and small children. The only note I have on it is that the soap needs to be plain soap, not a beauty bar or a moisturizer bar, but this usually makes it cheaper anyway. I can usually find a pack of Ivory Soap for 12c a bar or locally made glycerin soap for 50c a bar, and either way this means I make a batch of laundry soap for less than a dollar. You will need:One Cake of Soap
1/2 Cup Baking Soda
1/2 Cup Oxobrite
Grate the soap and then put the shavings and the powders into a food processor or blender and pulse five times to mix them together and then switch it on and let it run for a minute or two until it makes a fine and fluffy powder. For the few of you out there old enough to remember Ivory Snow, that's what it will look like. If you can't find Oxobrite in your area or don't want to use it, you can just use one cup of Baking Soda.
To Use: Measure out two tablespoons of laundry powder per load, unless the clothes are seriously dirty and then use three or four. Yes, really, just two tablespoons. Most commercial laundry soaps have you use way too much because they want you to buy more soap more often. Enough that there can be residual soap in your clothing for up to seven washings in plain water after that. Fill the fabric softener dispenser with white vinegar, this both softens fabric and removes residual soap. If your machine doesn't have a dispenser, you can buy a Downey Ball and fill it with vinegar.
I use this soap just as it is in its powdered state and it works just fine even in cold water wash. There are instructions out there for making the powder into a liquid or a gel, but it seems like more trouble than it's worth.
