Homemade (Safer) Laundry Detergent

As I've gone increasingly natural in my food choices for the family, I've branched out slowly into other areas of the home. Living well in this modern world takes effort and thought.  I'm on my second batch of homemade toothpaste, for instance, and I'm hooked on it, as it's a "remineralizing" concoction, something that commercial toothpastes don't even try to do. (Besides being flouride, additive, and preservative free!)

Three ingredients are all you need for homemade laundry detergent.

Today I thought I'd share the recipe I recently used to make homemade laundry detergent. Perhaps laundry detergent isn't high on your list of products to go natural with, but if you look at what typically is in commercial detergents, you may decide to add it to your list!

If you suffer from chemical allergies, you should certainly give homemade products a try.
We don't have allergy issues in my home, (thankfully) but the very real issue of toxicity was enough to make me interested in trying safer alternatives.

There are two ways to go with homemade laundry detergent: Powder, or liquid. I made the powder. My friend Rachael tells me that the powder may not be ideal for septic systems, but the website I got the recipe from says it's fine. To be safe, I plan on making the liquid version as well, and using it every other load.   

Close-up view of the powder after mixing.

Homemade Powdered Laundry Detergent

1 cup finely grated Castile Soap (such as Dr. Bronner's), or Fels Naptha, or Ivory

2 cups borax

2 cups washing soda

optional: 6-10 drops essential oil for fragrance, if desired

 

1. Grate the bar soap into a fine powder. I used a cheese grater, but a food processor would work also. I needed one bar and about 1/4 of a second bar to get one full cup.

2.  Using a large container, mix the grated soap with the borax and the washing soda. Use this container, tightly covered, to store your detergent in, or transfer to another container.  That's it!

One-quarter cup or thereabouts is enough for a large load. 

So far, I've seen no difference in my laundry using this formula, which is exactly what I'd hope for. What I'd like to do next is find a natural substitution for dryer sheets! Anyone out there know of a good way to soften clothes and remove static without using those toxic dryer sheets? Please share it here!

When I make the liquid version of the detergent, I'll share that here as well.

If you store the powder in a kitchen container, as I did (above), be sure to label it!

 

 

Everything you need for this recipe can be found in most supermarkets in the detergent aisle. I never noticed these things before I went looking for them, but they're there, all right. 

What about you? 

What natural versions of commercial products do you favor in your home? Got any good substitutions you'd like to share with us?  

I am itching to give away a three-tin set of English Tea, but I haven't had enough commenters to hold the drawing! 

According to my Google stats, I do get a lot of viewers here, but only a few choose to leave a comment. I'd still like to have a minimum of ten to twelve before doing the drawing, so please, if you would, spread the word! I'll pick one (leave contact info) from among the next ten or more commenters to win this tea.

Warmest Blessings,

Linore