oh this is awesome. how does it smell?

@ Kate – Well, I used the lavender castile, so it smells like AMAZING lavender flowers! It smells really, really good. I think peppermint castile would be really nice too. Or maybe orange!

The soap really holds the smell, which is so lovely. =)

Very cool. And I’m just about out of detergent! I think I may have to give this a shot. Again about the smell, is the lavender particularly strong? I do love that smell, and even use some TJ’s lavender-scented soap, but I’m not sure I want all my clothes and sheets coming out with that scent.

I can’t wait to try this out! Thank you!

Funny… I was just looking at the low level of laundry detergent in my last bottle and thinking, “Do I really want to spend 16 bucks on a little bitty bottle of Mrs. Meyers?”

You are amazing!

@ Alex – The lavender odor is pretty strong. My clothes definitely carry the scent, although I wouldn’t say it’s overwhelming at all. Maybe instead you could try the plain castile (that’s the one they carry at Trader Joe’s) and add a drop of essential oil. I bet something citrus-y would be really nice.

@ Amber – Of course! And let me know how it goes.

@ sarah – Thank you! The start-up of this project can be a bit higher, since each of the ingredients come in a big box of its own. Still, you’ll have enough to last forever – definitely worth a little investment (probably still under $20).

do you have a front loader or a top loader?

@ HoorayParade – I have a top loader, old school. =)

Right about the higher cost… but that’s what I was assuming too. Although I forgot to buy white vinegar, and I was curious if I could substitute apple cider vinegar? One wouldn’t think the smell would be too overpowering mixed with everything else… but who knows. Vinegar all cleans the same right? Hmmmmm…

@ Sarah – I would probably hold off on using the cider vinegar and wait until you can get some distilled stuff. The acidity may be different, and the color is certainly different. It might not matter, but I’ve only ever seen white vinegar called for in cleaning, so I wouldn’t want to recommend subbing. The white stuff is so cheap anyway, and a great all-purpose cleanser to have around the house.

I had the hubby pick some up for me… and we just finished making it! Gonna go some laundry now ;)

Now you need to come up with a way to make a safe, natural countertop spray… oh wait, vinegar haha.

@ sarah – yup! baking soda to scrub, vinegar to spray. =)

Let me know how the laundry soap works!

When you say “white vinegar” is that the same as wine vinegar?

As opposed to apple cider vinegar – which is the other kind of two that we have here, apart from the deli stuff (strawberry vinegar!!!).

@ Cipollina – White wine vinegar and white vinegar are not really the same thing. White vinegar comes from white wine vinegar, but it has been distilled so it is stronger and has also lost it’s desirable flavor.

Honestly, I’d hit up the market for some plain white (aka ‘distilled’) vinegar. It’s *very* cheap and really handy to have around – it cleans almost anything!

Whatever you do, don’t use the strawberry! =)

Thank you ever so much! Distilled and not strawberry, then! Hehe! :D

I am so gonna make this – bought the supplies last night in fact. :-) I’ll probably blog about it too, just because. Actually I find our minds are on the same track on a lot of things LOL! If I don’t move faster I’m going to find all my posts suffering from just-too-late syndrome!

@ Cipollina – Although, strawberry might give a nice aroma . . . =)

@ Ginger Baker – I think the blogosphere is awesome like that, with everyone sort of driving/inspiring everyone else. Keeps us all moving forward! Plus, I certainly wasn’t the first to come up with this sort of thing. (although my pictures are purty, if I do say so myself)
=D

HAH! Yes, you are definitely an inspiration with the beautiful photos – makes me long for a new camera so I can get some nice ones meself. (And also lends to my keeping the house looking nifty as *hey* who wants to have to clear the counter every time they make raw ice cream for a pretty picture? Much better to just keep it looking nice!)

@ Ginger Baker – Totally! That is just one of the many ways that blogging keeps me ‘in check’ in my life. Must have a clean house for all the photography! =)

You know, just as a bit of knowledge here, the vinegar isn’t doing anything here. You’ve neutralized it with the soda, which is basic, so the vinegar is really just detracting from the efficiency of the sodas’ cleaning abilities.

You should try it without the vinegar, and see how that goes.

Wow, I never imagined this would be so easy. Im going to try this out.

What about the washing machines that need special ‘HE’ detergent? Will this bork them?

All of these ingredients are great alternatives to detergent, so I’m sure they are quite powerful together. I think a bigger concern should be that top loading washer of yours, as it is a big water and energy waster. Front loading washers are not only easy on the environment and pocketbook, they are gentler on your clothes.

shopped.

Instead of adding it to my home-brewed detergent, I use white vinegar in the final rinse as a fabric softener. A ball of aluminum foil in the dryer will eliminate static, and is reusable until the kids run off with it or the cat bats it under the fridge.

I’ve been adding baking soda and Borax to my unscented (commercial) detergent for years, but this is even better. I’m going to make up a batch as soon as I find a container. Thanks so much!

Thanks everyone for the comments and input!

@ Tyrone Jenkins – Not sure about the special HE stuff. Is it really different, or a marketing gimmick? I don’t have one so I don’t know, sorry!

I think the HE stuff is just less sudsy. I assume that because these ingredients are all natural and biodegrade quite easily that it wouldn’t be bad for a front loading washing machine.
We are on an incredibly tight budget right now, so I think I’ll make this instead of buying $15-$20 detergent that doesn’t last very long…

Have you come up with any natural dishwashing liquid/powder? Would this stuff work and actually clean the dishes?

Oh yah, also, what about the mildew in my shower? I’ve tried vinegar but it doesn’t quite do it. I’m REALLY hesitant to buy some crazy industrial cleaner, but I really need something to help get rid of it. Any ideas? I figure if you’ve got a recipe for home made laundry soap, then you’ll have some great ideas for a shower/tile cleaner.
Thanks!
In fact, if you could do a post on natural cleaners and the best ways to keep your house clean using the basics (the ingredients in your laundry detergent) that would be awesome!

@ Nathalie – Thanks for the advice on the HE washers – sounds good to me! =)

I am working on a dishwasher cleaner right now, as well as a number of other ‘recipes’. I do plan to cover all manner of household cleaners – natural and homemade – eventually!

As for mildew, try sprinkling the area with baking soda (a cleanser and mild abrasive), then scrubbing with a sponge soaked in vinegar. If that’s not strong enough, you can dissolve 1 part borax & 1 part vinegar in hot water, then use this to cleanse the mildew. Borax is anti-fungal/anti-mold and should definitely do the trick. Luck!

I recently stumbled across your blog, looking around for a recipe such as this! perfect! I made it and am completely happy with the results! I have been using it in warm/hot water so far…just wondering if you’ve found the powder dissolves just as well in cold…I guess I could just try it, but figured I’d ask instead :)

…on another note, I have completely fallen in love with your blog and am trying so many of the things you write about! I am planning a fall garden as we speak, am working on that clothesline, and even tried the vegan thing out a tad – didn’t forever commit to the vegan-ism…is that a word? – but definately appreciate and understand it so much more now! thanks for all the inspiration! can’t wait to keep reading!

@ Melis – Aw thanks lady! I’m so glad you like the blog and you’re getting a lot out of it. Welcome!

For the Laundry detergent, I almost always use a cold wash, and it always works great. I wouldn’t worry. =)

Definitely an interesting recipe. One thing though: vinegar and baking soda together will cancel each other out. It’s an acid base reaction that produces just water and Carbon Dioxide gas. Probably makes some fizz, but won’t help clean your clothes. See this: http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/chem00/chem00303.htm

Might want to leave out either the baking soda or the vinegar, and see how it goes.

@ MadScientist – I think it’s time I address this misunderstanding, since it pops up in many of my recipes involving baking soda and vinegar. As the link you provided says:

“Your experiment was an example of a reaction between and acid (vinegar) and a base (baking soda). Such reactions typically form a “salt” and water.”

SO – An acid + a base does not just make “carbon dioxide + water” – this is the common misconception. This reaction produces a salt + water. Salts are great for all sorts of applications.

In this case, the salt is sodium acetate, which, amongst other things, is an excellent buffer.

Not to mention that, at least in this recipe, you’ve got way more alkaline items in there than acid with the borax + washing soda + baking soda, so it’s not going to completely neutralize anyway! This looks great. I’m going to try it as soon as I run out of my ECOS!

This recipe looks great! My only question is, how long does this keep? Maybe this is a stupid question, but can it go bad?
You see, I’m in university and I plan on making batches in bulk to cut time.

I will pass this onto my mother. Thanks for the info.

@ Sarah – I made my batch (a triple recipe) months and months ago, and it’s still going strong. I think it’ll keep indefinitely. =)

Thanks! That’s so great, makes me think… I bet it lasts longer than regular chemical cleaners too!

PS. Love your article on natural cleaners. Lemon juice and salt is almost all I need for the kitchen :).

I have been using this recipe for some time and am thrilled with the results!

We are due with our first baby in a couple of weeks and will be using cloth diapers. As you have stated above, Borax works great as an anti-fungal/anti-mold agent, however, what about protecting the diapers from bacteria? Should I be using an additional essential oil such as tea tree to protect from bacteria?

works as advertised. amazing site, thank you for sharing all of these wonderful ideas.

@ Marianne – Between the soap, the vinegar, and the borax, you should be okay. BUT, since we’re talking about a wee one, it certainly wouldn’t hurt to add a little back up. =) Tea tree is a great antibacterial, as is lavender and eucalyptus. I use lavender castile soap, so adding a bit of lavender EO would be easy and awesome. =)

[...] Natural Homemade Laundry Detergent | Bonzai Aphrodite bonzaiaphrodite.com/2009/04/natural-homemade-laundry-detergent – cached page   Just 3 months back I wrote the very first Itty Bitty Bonzai about the dangers of bleach, and included a simple recipe for a homemade substitute.  — From the page [...]

Mixed my first batch tonight, boy that bowl got hot with the vinegar soda reaction…..Washed the first load with it, love the smell. Going to experiment more with vinegar in our laundry. Our water is VERY hard so we cant use bleach (yes, I know bleach is bad anyway) because everything turns yellow from the bleach mineral reaction. Be nice if vinegar would help keep white underwear white…dingy yellow is not very fetching after awhile :)

@ Leilani – Vinegar will help whiten a bit, but it mostly will act as a fabric softener (good for our hard water). If you want a natural whitener, try adding some lemon juice!

Does it matter if you use liquid castile versus grated bar castile?

@ Krista – Nope, I think bar soap would be fine. Just make sure it’s well-mixed.

Do you know if this is hypo-allergenic? (Like ‘All-Free and Clear’)

This would be a deal breaker if not. :S

but wont the sodium bicarbonate neutralize the acetic acid, leaving you with water excess baking soda and in the process you release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere totally contradicting the “green” look you are going for?

@ Sam – That term is sort of ambiguous with no actual medical definition, so I’m not sure in what sense you’re using it? But it’s all very common household ingredients, most of them edible. I’d say in the general sense of hypoallergenic meaning ‘much less allergy-causing’, then yes it is definitely hypoallergenic. I haven’t had a single complaint yet!

@ superkeek – Nope! Not even a little bit. This has been discussed quite a bit in the comments here, and apparently there’s a lot of misunderstanding of chemistry out there. I suggest you read through the comments, but here’s a summary from something I said way up there ^^^.

“An acid + a base does not just make “carbon dioxide + water” – this is the common misconception. This reaction produces a salt + water. Salts are great for all sorts of applications.

In this case, the salt is sodium acetate, which, amongst other things, is an excellent buffer.”

Is this detergent safe for all clothing? Or should one find something gentler for things like lingerie and silk?

I think I’m going to try this recipe. I’ve been googling for a simple, homemade recipe to try. We currently use a detergent from Whole Foods, but it’s awful for my daughter’s skin. Plus, this will be a great cost saver as well! Can you tell me if these ingredients are supposed to be gentle on skin? I don’t know anything about Borax, so that’s the one ingredient that I wasn’t sure about.

@ Rayne – Definitely safe for the dainties!

@ Kendra – These should be very gentle on sensitive skin, though everybody will react different of course. The only one I would worry about would be the borax, but even that should be okay (I’ve heard of women using borax to douche, so that should mean it’s pretty mild! eek!). I’d make it as it’s written and then if there’s an issue, try removing the borax. But I bet it’s fine. Luck!

always interested in homemade recipes for all kinds of cleaners.I already make my own laundry detergent,so I’m going to try this one too.

Okay, love your site and the laundry detergent! I have recently wiped my house clean of toxic chemical cleaners for house and our bodies, and I will be trying this recipe! I also have a website that highlights green/homemade living, so I am in harmony with your groove as well! Check it out sometime!

@ Kristen – Congrats on getting rid of all the chemicals, especially with little ones in the house. And good luck with the blogging – lookin’ good! =)

I made my first batch of detergent over the weekend, after fishing a (former) 5-lb. plastic olive jar out of the recycling bin at the restaurant where I work. When I mixed up all the ingredients, it seemed way too wet, so I added more baking soda, washing soda and borax. Then I closed the jar and set it in my laundry room, very proud of myself.

A couple hours later, when I gathered up my towels to do a trial run, the detergent had completely hardened, solid as a rock. I had to bash the jar against my driveway and only managed to get the detergent out by cutting the jar open. I ended up grating most of it back into a usable form (worked!). Total headache which left me with sore muscles. Will let you know how the second batch goes! I guess this’ll teach me to follow the recipe.

When you use the detergent, when do you add it?

@ Laura O – Oh no! I heard a similar story from a reader who had to re-powder it in a food processor, ha! At least you were able to salvage it. =)

@ Dmo – At the very beginning, just like regular powder.

I thought you had to add powder to a machine when the water level was raised, before putting clothes in?

I only recently graduated from putting all my clothes in unsorted and washed on cold. :)

@ DMO – I just put in the clothes, sprinkle the powder over them, and then turn on the machine. Never pre-filled with water and never had any problems. But everybody does it a bit different, I think. =)

To use or not to use?

I have a house full of chemical cleaning agents and I really really just want to go back to the basics (Baking Soda/Borax/Vinegar/Salt/Lemons). My intriguing question to you is this. Does one use what they have and replace with natural alternatives as they go along … or … Give/Throw away the nasties and whip up the natural? hmmmmm……

@ Nikki – I think it’s a totally personal choice, whatever works for you. If you can afford to replace all your conventional cleaners with natural cleaners all at once, maybe you just want to get it done! What you do with the leftover ‘bad’ stuff is up to you. I’ve seen people who don’t want to ‘waste’ it, give it away for free on sites like Craigslist or Freecycle. Or, if you feel like you don’t want anyone else using the nasty chemicals, then you can just properly dispose of it. I guess it just depends on where your priorities lie (financial, wastefulness, that the chemicals are out there at all, etc) and that’s totally up to you.

Luck!

Okay, the second batch has come out much better than the first. I resisted the urge to add more dry ingredients…instead I checked it every hour or so and gave it a stir to fluff it up. My towels came out so nice and soft, and I didn’t even use fabric softener! Can’t wait to wash some clothes with it!

@ Laura O – Oh yay, I’m so glad it worked better this time! Success! =D

I discovered this blog about a month ago while looking for a better homemade detergent recipe. Can I just say – Oh. My. Gosh. Ilovethisrecipesomuch! The water where I live is so hard and makes everything dingy. Now my clothes are so nice and clean and BRIGHT! The first time I made it, though, I forgot to measure the soap. I had just mixed everything together and stopped stirring to figure out the soap and when I came back to the mixture about 1 minute later it was concrete. I just laughed it off and got out the grater. ^_^

All the best, Jenny

I just tried making your laundry detergent a couple of hours ago and now it is solid as a rock. I saw someone else had this problem, but they added more stuff, I did the exact amount you called for. Any suggestions? Did I not stir it enough? Also, can I fix it somehow? Thanks so much for your blog. I just found it this morning and love it.

I’ve been using this recipe for months (thank you, by the way!). My first attempt ended in concrete. I got out the old cheese grater and a heavy metal spoon to grate/scrape the mass into usable chunks. I really don’t think there’s any other way to salvage the soap.

I’ve found that the order in which you add the ingredients makes a difference. My best attempt was mixed like so:
Vinegar
Borax
Washing Soda
Castile
Baking Soda

Another helpful hint is NEVER STOP STIRRING! Once you stop stirring, it seems that the heat from the acid/base reaction bakes your soap into a brick. Recruit a stirring partner, if needed (I do).

I’ve also grated bar Castile soap and boiled it in water to make a gel (when I, sadly, ran out of Dr Bronner’s). It made the finished product stickier than the regular recipe, and eventually the bottom layers of soap were soggier than the top, but cleaned just the same.

So, after my sticky batch, I’ve considered mixing the dry ingredients and Castile soap, then adding the vinegar to the wash water. I think I’ll end up using more vinegar, but it might be a fair trade for the fear of making another bucket of concrete! ^_^

Woo, I just (FINALLY) ran out of my trader joes laundry detergent and made this! I kept stirring until it was powderish, which I think kept it from turning to a solid block. There were some balls of solid stuff, so I threw it in the food processor just to be sure.

I am hoping that I can scrounge up enough dirty clothes to try it tomorrow once the current laundry has vacated the drying racks. :-)

@ Jenny – So you learned firsthand the importance of constant stirring! Haha, sorry ’bout that, but it sounds like you made it work.

@ Brooke – It will turn into a brick if you don’t stir it nonstop. Kind of a pita I know, but it’s worth it! If you *do* get a brick, you can try a few different remedies: I’ve heard of people using a grater on it (see Jenny’s comment above yours), I’ve heard of people using a food processor to chop it up (see Meghan’s comment above this one), and me, I just used a sort of ‘chisel and crush’ method with a big metal spoon. It’s definitely still salvageable though. Good luck!

@ LisaMaddox – Wow, thanks for all the experimenting and tips. I’ll try our order of operations next time I make up a batch. =)

@ Meghan – Luck! Let me know how it goes!

Thank you for sharing such a cool ideas. I got tired of buying regular detergent and running out so quickly on top of it paying lots of money. I have started using natural products as much as I can at home…one step at a time. I was glad to find your site with a homemade detergent. The other once seemed complecated and required lots of time.
I made mine the other day and I love it. I didn’t have washing soda, so I added more soda and borox, to make in one cup. I used Dr.B’s Eucalyptus soap and I love the smell. The smell is not strong at all and the laundry comes ous so fresh and crisp. Mine came out kind of watery, I think because I didn’t use washing soda. Thanks again for your great tips.
I have even added your page to my blog for my friends.. I just started the blog….

I love this site. I made a big batch–10 x the recipe– about a couple months ago. It’s still going strong and stayed well. It was a little too wet so I left the top off and it’s perfect. I love the results! My only issue is that our whites look a bit grey. Should I add more of something to whites? Thanks for any advice!!
Angela

@ VITA – I’m so glad the detergent worked for you, and thanks for adding me!

@ angela – I hear you on the whites. There’s a couple of things you can try. The best is actually sunlight, so in the spring/summer make sure to line dry your whites outside to keep them nice and bright. For this time of year (assuming you’re in my hemisphere) I’d use lemon juice.

Fill your wash with hot water and add pure lemon juice, maybe a couple of tablespoons worth. Let it soak for an hour and then launder as normal. Should work to brighten them up! Luck!

[...] In the next couple weeks I will be making and trying her homemade dish soap,  dishwasher soap, and laundry detergent. I will write about it then, and the [...]

Every time I’ve made this, I’ve had to run it through the food processor to break up the huge chunks. What am I doing wrong? I’m loving how it works, but I’m frustrated w/the chunks.

@ Kendra – Are you stirring it to completion, ie stirring it after all the ingredients are added? You need to *keep* stirring as it hardens up. It will always get harder and cake-ey, but mine ends up easy to crumple with the laundry scoop. That’s the consistency you should get.

If you read through the comments, people have experimented with the order of ingredients, and seem to have a lot of luck. You may want to try that as well. Luck!

Hello,

I found your blog through Apartment Therapy and I just love it! I made up a batch of the laundry detergent the other day with Dr.Bronner’s almond scent. It’s fabulous!
AND on a side note, I have been poofree for over two years now! Hooray!
I might give you a mention on my blog if that’s ok with you?
Thanks so much for the recipes and lovely, inspiring blog!

help! i’ve bought enough of the ingredients to last 3 life times. i made my first batch yesterday. i double the recipe. mixed it all up and put it in tupperware overnight. i just opened it up and it’s as hard as a rock. I had to scrap it with a large serving spoon just to get enough for my first load. please let me know what i might have done wrong. thank you so much!

@ Kateri – I would love a mention on your blog! Thanks, and I’m so glad you like the blog. =)

@ magnolia – This is a common problem that comes, I think, from not stirring for long enough. The end result *will* be a sort of soft cake, but it should be easy to scrape apart/crumble. You should *not* end up with a brick! =D

You have a few options, according to my very resourceful readers. 1) food processor. 2) chisel! I suggest you read back through the comments to see how other people have dealt with this. But it’s still usable – so don’t toss it!

Luck!

I have got to try this!

We are in the process of stirring, and stirring, and stirring… and resisting the urge to add more dry ingredients. How long do we have to keep stirring!!??

@ Kenna – Sorry I missed your question – hope it worked out for you!

This is working perfectly for me now. I neglected to re-read the directions after the first batch and wasn’t starting with the vinegar. I re-read them before the batch I made last week and it turned out perfectly when I followed your very simple, easy to follow directions. Who knew that reading the directions could be so helpful? Hahaha!

@ Kendra – Haha awesome, glad to hear it!

Ah ha! For those of you with stand mixers that is the way to go. It keeps stirring while you remember to measure things. It’ll stay liquid for quite a while, then turn into pudding, then into popcorn looking chunks. Perfectumundo.

Jenny (of concrete and grater fame)

Has anyone timed how long they stirred it? I’m using my Bosch and I’ve been stirring it forever and it’s just whipped and a grainy creamy firm mass. No popcorn, no inkling of powder. I let it rest for 6 minutes and it’s still the same consistency. Can you over stir?

I’m guessing that I stirred the batch I made in my mixer for about 20 minutes or so. It seemed like a really really long time before it went from pudding to popcorn.

Thanks Jenny, I think I mixed it at lease that long!

Ok, this is weird! I put my batch in the container still moist and thick – kind of like really thick, somewhat dry, icing or mashed potatoes. That was 24 plus hours ago. I opened it just now to see if it was a rock and it’s still the same!! What’s up with that? I know I used the correct proportions. It’s possible my baking soda was stale, I found the bag open when I used it. Any thoughts?

hello everyone i’ve been reading the blog for a few days now.. also looking for a detergent b/c my favorite brand of dishwasher detergent is no where to be found. but i was wondering has anyone tried soap nuts?? if you bing it or google it’s a berry that grows on a tree that you can use for your laundry any thoughts??? plus it’s supposed to be great on cloth diapers..

oh and also supposed to be good for HE washers…

sayward, we made this last nite with some almond-scented castille. we’ve done two loads of laundry and love it already!

our only two “issues” were: 1) finding washing soda. after going to target and a major supermarket, we finally found it at our local food co-op. 2) “stirring til completion.” we stirred. and stirred. and stirred. we let it sit for a bit to “dry up.” then stirred some more. then we finally put it in our stand mixer. and let it mix and mix and mix. we let it sit overnight and only THEN did it finally turn into crumbly goodness. i think next time we will experiment with the order of adding ingredients as suggested in the comments.

nonetheless, thank you for this great idea!

@ kelly alice – I don’t know if you’ll see this, but I’m curious – do you know the brand of the washing soda you got from your co-op? Was it by any chance in bulk? I’m searching for a washing soda source other than Arm & Hammer, and preferably in bulk. Thanks!

hi sayward,

we got arm & hammer. it was the only option! and not in bulk. i was, however, very happy to find that our co-op carries dr. bronner’s in bulk.

a little bit of web searching and the only other brand i noticed was by dri-pak which contains no phosphates. i hope this helps!

@ kelly alice – Thanks for the tip!

Hi Sayward – I found your blog while searching for homemade laundry detergent recipes and you have inspired me to try to make all of my cleaning supplies. I just love your blog! I made your laundry detergent about a month ago. I found that some was still lingering in the dispenser of my HE washer, so I set my bucket of detergent out in the sun to dry out some & then put it in my food processor to make a fine powder. Now I love it – thanks for the inspiration!

@ Lynda – Aww, you’re welcome. And welcome to the blog! Hope to keep seeing you around. =)

Now I’m having opposite problems with this recipe. I’ve been using it since December. The last four batches I’ve made have not turned out. My husband stirred one batch for 45 minutes, and it was still nothing but a paste. We made a 2nd batch and had the same problem. Since then, we purchased a new box of a better quality baking soda since that was the only difference, and we had the SAME problem. It’s laundry paste, and it’s not making as much either. It’s still working as a paste, but I’d rather it turn out the way it’s supposed to. Is our mid-western late spring/summer humidity just too much for the recipe?

@ Kendra – Hmm, that’s strange. You know, it really might be the humidity that’s doing it. You could try adding more dry ingredients and seeing how that goes.

But also, have you played around with the order you add the ingredients? If you read through the comments, a couple people have had great luck with keeping a very specific order.

Luck!

Awesome recipe! I’m expecting my 2nd baby boy in September and we’ve decided to do cloth this time. I’m using FuzziBunz diapers that have a PUL and they don’t recommend using vinegar to clean them as it can damage the PUL. Do you have a variation on this recipe that doesn’t contain vinegar? I’m also going to try charlies soap too… do you have any experience with that? And lastly, and suggestions as far as stain removal or pre-treating/soaking? Thanks so much!

@ Kristin – Hmm, that’s interesting! I use FuzziBunz as well as other PUL diapers and totally use this recipe on them. So far no problems!

That said, I totally understand if you want to follow the manufacturers care instructions. I haven’t tried it, but I bet you could just replace the vinegar with water (use a little less water since the vinegar reacts into vapor in the recipe), or even 1/2 water 1/2 castile. There are enough other deodorizing/whitening/cleansing components in this recipe that I’m pretty sure you could get away with omitting the vinegar.

I haven’t tried Charlie’s soap but I’ve heard great things! If I did a storebought diaper soap, that’s the one I would try first.

The absolute best thing for stain removal, believe it or not, is sunlight! Seriously, if you can sun dry your diapers they will be stain-free. It’s crazy!

As for bulk, I’ve made a quadruple batch of this recipe which lasted me nearly 6 months, and it was fine. I’d say it’s definitely safe to make ahead.

Hope that helps!

Thanks Sayward! I just mixed my first batch and altered it a bit. I used Dr. Bronners bar soap and grated it finely and left out the vinegar so I have a dry powder instead of a crumbly wet powder. I’ll let you know how it turns out :)

@ Kristin – Sounds like a perfect solution, let me know how it works!

Hey Sayward! Thanks for the great recipe. As soon as I can get my hands on some washing soda, I’m going to make it. Do you know if your recipe makes quite a bit of suds? From my understanding, that is the big no-no if you have a HE washer. Do you think I should just use less soap or is it already pretty tame?

@ Lisa – Nope, not very sudsy at all. You should be fine!

Hello there you amazing lady you! I just wanted to let you know that I featured you on my blog today! Hope that’s okay!

@ Kory – Yay, thanks for the plug!

*panic!*

I am travelling and forgot my laundry detergent! Eeeek! I have baking soda and vinegar (for my hair) and a partial bar of castile soap… Can I wash my clothes?!?!

@ Meghan – Ooh I hope this isn’t too late! But, I’d say yes, you could totally go for it. The borax and washing soda certainly boosts the cleaning power, but the bs vinegar and castile are the core of the recipe. Sorry I didn’t get this sooner!

Love your blog! Just made my first batch-it went ok except I made the mistake of measuring the powders while I was stirring. NOT a good idea, I ended up with the rock at the bottom but salvaged most of it! I will definitely pre-measure and just pour while stirring next time. Can’t wait to use! I’ll probably link to this on my blog.

I just made this recipe and am looking forward to trying it out! Thanks!

Non-metal bowl, huh? Darn. Otherwise, I’d suggest using a stand mixer to stir (and stir and stir and stir). Just out of curiosity, what ill effect would a metal bowl have?

@ Jackie – Metal can mess with the chemical reactions – it’s the same reason they tell you to mix your hair bleach in pastic/glass. But honestly it would probably be fine. You could always give it a try! (don’t say I didn’t warn you though!)

How long does this last(how many washes)?

i cant wait to make this bread recipe sounds so good. i am going to try using flour instead of cormeal

@ Selena – Oh man, no idea! I always double, triple, quadruple the recipe and it really depends on how much you use (which varies for me). But, it makes a bunch. A batch would last me a month at least. Hope that helps some!

This recipe looks perfect! And I like the fact that it has my new fave, vinegar, in it! Does this come out as a powder or more like a liquid? I was thinking of using an old detergent dispenser, you know the kind with a spout thingy on it.

@ texasangel – Definitely more like a powder. Not sure it would work in that kind of dispenser, sorry! =(

Any dissolving issues in cold water? I wanna make it but don’t hot wash! :)

@ Mandie – No issues! I wash everything cold and it works great!

Hi Sayward! This is Jen and Ken – the cross country trikesters. We have arrived in the BEAUTIFUL South Fork, Colorado for the winter and my new boss has assigned me a task. See, she owns the lodge and cabins where we work/live and she wants to go green with all her cleaning products. Fun, huh? Anyway, since we are so remote, is there an online supplier you can recommend to get all the bulk ingredients we would need?

Thanks!
Jen

OMG!

I just tried this with LisaMaddox’s order for the first time. It is AMAZING how much easier it was for me to make. I wish I had tried it that way last time. Wow.

I also used Dr. Bronners for the first time today, I wonder if it made any difference. I was using Trader Joe’s Castille before.

@ Jen (and Ken) – Hey! So great to hear form you guys! That’s so awesome that your boss is going green with the cleaning. SERIOUSLY AWESOME! As far as bulk suppliers I’m not much help. I’m actually having my own troubles just finding vegan versions of everything (ie not animal tested) Arm & Hammer is a no-go on that front. Bobs Red Mill makes a great baking soda, it’s available on Amazon and in bulk. Amazon in general is really good for bulk buying – you can get great deals there especially on things like Castile soap.

Here’s the cruelty free Borax that I found – http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/search/search.php?refine=y&keywords=borax – and it’s available in bulk!

The one ingredient that’s giving me trouble is washing soda. I CANNOT find a cruelty free/green product anywhere! It’s driving me crazy!

Anyway, great to hear from you guys and I hope that helps. =)

@ Meghan – Yay, that’s awesome that it worked so much better. I’ve totally noticed a difference depending on the mixing order as well.

Also, I’m pretty certain that TJs castile soap *is* Dr Bronner’s, so I doubt it was that. =)

I found Mountain Rose Herbs too. :) We may go that route for our next “batch” of supplies. This time we had to use what we could find. This area of CO is remote so we are limited as to what we can buy locally. We hadn’t gotten as far as vegan yet, but I will keep that in mind as we take our next steps.

Question.. is the consistency of your laundry soap like powder? Or is it sort of sticky? And, importantly, is it okay for HE washers? Should I use less since it is HE?

Thanks Sayward!
Jen

One other thing… Have you ever used Mrs Stewart’s Bluing? We wash lots of white sheets and they tend to get dingy. I am thinking of trying some.

@ Jen (and Ken) – Yep. once it’s completely dried it’s like powder (though it always will have a bit of ‘moistness’). The order that you mix the ingredients really seems to matter in the final consistency – check out comment #68 for tips!

I’ve had a bunch of readers give it the thumbs up after using it in their HE washers, so I’m going to say it’s okay.

I’ve never tried Bluing myself, but I’ve heard good things!

Thanks Sayward! One more question.. have you figured out how much it costs to make one “batch” of this laundry soap as vs buying it in the store? I sure would hate to do all that math if you’re already done it. :)

I will let you know how the Bluing works. It only takes a few drops (up to 1/4 tsp) to make an entire gallon.

Jen

@ Jen (and Ken) – I have not done the math yet! For me, its much more about health than about economy, so I never bothered. However I *do* live on a tight budget and I’m positive that this is a money saver – I’m just not sure exactly how much!

If you ever do the math, I’d love to know!

Hi! I’ve been using this recipe for about a year and love it. So friggin easy, cleans and deodorizes, and is so much better for me and the environment. High five!

We’ve started putting ours in the food processor (my husband’s idea- he needed to involve a tool). It makes it kinda smooth and sticky, but so much easier to remove with my hands and doesn’t get hard anymore.

hi sayward,
wondering if it’s okay to use fels naptha? really wanted to do a powder version and with what ingredients that are available to me locally. would i be able to reproduce this recipe minus the vinegar and castile soap, but add fels naptha? haven’t found much info on fels naptha. HELP! thanks and absolutely LOVE your site. it’s made me even more eco-conscious which i LOVE especially as a role model for my 1 1/2 yr old son! aloha!

@ Diana – Well I don’t have any experience specifically with that alteration, but I *can* say that the recipe is *very* forgiving. I’ve made all sorts of substitutions, so I’d definitely give it a go. Let us know how it turns out!

I would like to try you recipe. I made liquid last time but have hard water and found that it didn’t seem to clean to well. I have a fels naptha bar of soap left, can I use this instead of the liquid castle soap? And is there anything else you would add for hard water?

What a great idea! It did take me a very long time to get it to the proper consistency though. When first mixing, it got these really hard clumps in it that I couldn’t break (I added my ingredients in the order listed, since it was my first time trying it), but I kept stirring and stirring, as the direction say. It stayed pretty much a paste consistency even after 20-30 minutes of hand-mixing it, so I decided just to check on it every 30-60 minutes (stirring for a minute or two) until bedtime. By the time I went to bed, it had thickened considerably and I could definitely tell it was heading in the right direction, though it still wasn’t done. When I woke up it was doing much better, but it still took a couple hours of on and off mixing before it was finally done. And by then I was soooo excited to use it, I washed all the dirty laundry in the house — and it worked WONDERFULLY!! :D I’m SO proud of myself for hand-making something healthier, more eco-friendly, and more cost-effective than the product I had on my laundry shelf two days ago.

(I even went a little nuts and threw a few aluminum foil balls in the dryer, and mixed up a batch of the dishwasher detergent recipe in your site! I’m determined to replace all of my household cleaners now.)

@ Sherry Squirts – I can’t speak from experience, but I’d say why not give it a try? I imagine it would be fine!

For hard water vinegar works like a charm, try it in the final rinse. =)

@ Persephone – Yay! Sorry it took so long to set up right, but hooray for getting it to work. I love your enthusiasm and totally agree – DIY is totally empowering! Feels so good to make our own, healthy versions that work just as wel (or better!) Rock on!

Vinegar is acidic which eats away plant based stains, baking soda is alkaline that washes away protein stains, so if they are mixed together aren’t they both going to cancel each other out and become neutral, so they’re not doing anything to get rid of stains? Just a thought. I’m going to give your recipe a try anyway!

I have a thought, why not add vinegar in fabric softener or bleach slot in washing machine so baking soda won’t be neutralized by vinegar because it will be released later in the middle of load wash? Replace vinegar to water for laundry soap recipe and try this alternative way? Let me know if it works!

@ Alexa – If you read through the comments it will clear up your confusion re: why the baking soda and vinegar don’t actually cancel each other out.

[...] found this recipe over at Bonzai Aphrodite, an amazing blog that could keep me busy for days. I followed her directions to the letter and then [...]

Oh Sayward, you brilliant woman you!!! We LOVE LOVE LOVE this soap! We have been using it for about a year. When I first started making it I measured out the amount I needed for a load and scooped it out on cupcake papers; let them dry and used them as little “clean cakes”; then a few months ago I just started storing the whole batch in an open rectangular box and just scoop out the amount I needed without the fear of the dredded “brick” syndrome… ha. It has worked great. We were also inspired to use white vinegar as fabric softner. We have scented both products with essential oils of our liking! Gotta say having clothes that smell the way we want them to is just…. cool! Thanks for your great ideas!!!
Much Love!!!

I got a message in my email this morning saying someone had commented on your laundry post and it reminded me to write to you with an update. We have been using a liquid version of your laundry soap in our commercial HE washers here at the Lodge for months now and we LOVE it. It works better than the other stuff we were using, it smells fantastic, and we haven’t had to buy any more stuff since our initial purchases! And, get this… each load costs a whopping 5 cents!! Woo to the Hoo!

We here at Foothills Lodge in Colorado say THANK YOU for sharing your knowledge with us. It is making a difference!!

@ Jen (and Ken) – Ooh, what is your liquid recipe??

In a big stock pot Ken mixes 2 cups of washing soda, 2 cups of borax, and 1/4 cup of (Lavender) Bronners, and 20 drops of lavender oil. Then he adds water (half to 3/4 full) and brings it to a soft boil, stirring the whole time. Then pour the whole thing into a 5 gallon bucket and top the bucket off with hot water and cover, leaving it over night. In the morning we pour it into old laundry soap jugs or washed bleach bottles. We also follow up with a Vinegar rinse, adding it to the cycle in our fabric softener place. We use HE washers and wash LOTS of sheets and towels using this and it works like a charm!

@ Jen (and Ken) – If you ever want to take pictures of that process and write up a little summary, I’d love to put up a guest post! Email me if you’re interested!

@ Jen how much liquid do you put into your HE wash?

There is a fill line where you put the soap in, but I don’t even fill it to full. Maybe 1/2 cup or so?

Nice stuff.
So let me clarify about the vinegar and sodium bicarbonate. This will react and form CO2, and sodium acetate. So the part about acid doing some work is not entirely correct. However, the acetate does help in solubilising certain materials, like calcium salts. In this way it helps getting stuff out of the clothes and into the water, which is exactly what one would want. Good luck optimising your recipies everybody!

I just came across your site. This seems so much fun to try! But I do have a few questions: there are total of 4.5 cups of ingredients, does it end with 4.5 cups of detergent? Or, how big a container do I need? How many loads of wash does this last, approximately? Oh, also, do you have hard water? Will I need to use more per load for our hard water?

Thanks so much!

doesn’t the vinegar react with the baking soda?
like the old vinegar and baking soda volcano experiment?

@ Messy Wife – I’d say it makes about 4 cups, maybe a little more. I don’t have hard water myself. If you’re worried, you can always add vinegar to the rinse – it acts as a great water softener!

Sayward~~~~this site is awesome!!!

I just found it while searching for a recipe for a homemade laundry detergent. I will definitely be marking you as a favorite!!!

Thanks for the information.

This is a little different from my recipe. I do 1/2 cup Borax, 1/2 cup Washing Soda, 1/2 bar soap grated, 2 gallons water. Heat half of the water and dry ingredients in a pot until melted, add to bucket and stir in the remaining water.

However, this recipe isn’t all that great on stains, but my clothes get pretty clean regardless. How well does this recipe get stains out? I don’t know where to get Castile soap in my region, but I’ll look harder if I can get some of these stains out with it…

Sayward–Yippee for homemade cleaners! You rock!

Do any of the ingredients act as optic brighteners? (Hubby wears khakis almost everyday so I’m weary!) Can’t wait to make a batch!

@ Kerstin – It pulls endless green juice stains out of my son’s shirts, so I’d say that’s pretty effective! =D

@ Stacey – Hmm, not sure! If you give it a try, will you let us know?

My Wife is stirring like a champion – What stamina this woman has – the muscles are working over time! Done- We’ll let you know how it turns out- Happy Day to Ya’ll

While reading this, I though: Why not make it and pour it into ice cube trays? You could just break one off for each load. I guess I’ll have to try it and see.

Just made your laundry soap….it was a lil tricky, I mixed and mixed and the texture stayed the same…paste like, so I let it sit for a while then mixed some more then again let it sit for a couple more hours and mixed some more and I noticed it was drying up. (good sign)..so then I went to a BBQ and when I came back it was dryer so I mixed some more to get the lumps out and then left it overnite…woke up this morning and it was nice and dry…so then I put it thru a sifter and now it is nice and powdery…can’t wait to try it! Thanks so much….I luv your site!

Amazon.com

Hello! Now, I had a hard time finding “washing soda.” I thought I found it, but it turned out to be a big carton of unidentified “Arm & Hammer” powder. I take it that it is laundry detergent in itself from the instructions. Is this washing soda?? The ingredients are sodium bicarbonate I believe. THANKS!

Washing soda is sodium carbonate (as opposed to BIcarbonate) and it should say “washing soda” or “soda ash” on the box.It can definitely be tricky to find! Maybe call around to pool supply stores, as they use it in the water.

Luck!

it’s been 24 hours and still a thick paste .. I had to add some water to break up the rock hard clump – as I was tipping them in one by one, does anyone know if that would cause it not to dry out??

I tried your recipe today. Thank you so much for posting such a helpful recipe!!

I buy Castile soap at Wal-Greens pharmacy and Target.

One question as I know my daughter will ask right away. Is this okay for HE machines?

This one is not HE-compliant, but I’ve posted an HE version here: http://bonzaiaphrodite.com/2011/06/guest-post-jen-and-kens-homemade-laundry-detergent-for-he-washing-machines/

I am excited to try this, but am wondering why it has to be made in a non-metal bowl?
I have a kitchen aid mixer and would like to let it do the hard work of mixing. :)

Can I just mix it in there and then store in a non-metal bowl after mixing is complete, or will the metal mixing bowl mess it up?
Thanks!

There’s a concern that the metal will react with the chemicals (like if you’ve ever bleached your hair, they say to use a non-metal bowl), but other people have used their mixers on this recipe and it doesn’t seem to be a problem. Might as well give it a try!

Great, thanks! I will post back after I run out of my current batch of homemade detergent and let you know how it goes…

I just finished using up my first (doubled) batch of your laundry detergent, so it’s time to make more. I loved it!

I just wanted to note that it never did dry out for me! I stirred and stirred and stirred; I even threw it in my KitchenAid mixer for a while and let it do the stirring. Finally I just put it into two large yogurt containers and I’ve been been scooping out some of the moist mixture for every load. I do live in Hawaii, where it’s very humid, so that may have something to do with it. At least for this next batch I’ll know I don’t have to bother stirring so much, which will make it much easier for me!

There is a high chance of a chemical fire, thats the reason why. (I own a hair salon.)

I made this today. Well, when we mix it up, it forms bubbles (I suppose that is the CO2), but then those evaporate, I guess. (I’ve heard that carbonated water is useful for removing some stains) I mixed all these dry ingredients and ended up with 10 loads worth (2.5 cups of detergent). I wondered about why to add the vinegar at this point. Am still wondering about adding it along with the powdered soap, so that the CO2 happens in the washer as it is already washing. I was also wondering about the chemistry of having to stir so long. What exactly is happening? Are we waiting for the vinegar to evaporate? For a new compound to form? Would appreciate any pointers or advice from people who know…

Wonderbar! my problem is finding these natural ingrteedients in my little town without burning gasoline for 40-50 miles. Anything near 22443 zip code? I used to find it almost impossible to find fels Naptha in the d.c. area so you can see how hard it will be for me here without help. Anyone??

The stirring just keeps the solution from hardening into one solid mass. It’s not necessary for the mixture to be effective. Sometimes I skip the stirring and just chip off my laundry powder with a chisel, as needed. =)

[...] chemicals from our home and save some money.) So I was ridiculously excited to find these– laundry detergent and dishwasher soap. What can I say? I am a geeky green [...]