Reduce Waste, Chemicals & Cost with DIY Laundry Soap

Non toxic eco-friendly cleaning products are an important way to reduce your daily chemical exposure, but the cost and waste can add up fast.  One way to save some money and cut down on extra packaging is to make it yourself!  One of our staff recently delved into DIY laundry soap and reported not only a cost savings but that her jeans were softer than ever.

Here’s the recipe from diyNatural for a powdered laundry soap.  The links show each item on Amazon but all these items are available in laundry aisles of local stores.

Handmade Laundry Detergent

• 1 bar of shaved bar soap (Ivory, ZOTE, Fels-Naptha)
• 1 cup of borax
• 1 cup of washing soda

“Each batch yields approximately 32 ounces (between 32-64 loads based on how many Tbsp used per load).  Thoroughly stir together for 5 minutes and enjoy the results!  That’s it folks…seems too good to be true, but it is true indeed!”  This site does a good job at addressing questions including use with HE washers.  They also have other recipes on the site including dishwasher detergent, toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo and more.

If you run your washes in cold water to save energy, or would prefer a liquid detergent, here is a how-to video using the same ingredients following an easy step by step process to create liquid laundry detergent.  (Basically all those same ingredients but you melt the soap shavings in hot water and then add all ingredients to a 5 gallon bucket of water – easy peasy.)

There are a ton more resources out there on DIY home cleaning products, often using products available in your own kitchen.  Be sure to download the Hazardless Home Handbook from this site to get recipes, preventative tips, disposal options and alternatives for many of our common chemical products.  With a little planning we can reduce our exposure to harmful chemicals, reduce packaging and waste, and save a little money to boot.