Nuggets of wisdom

Laundry soap

It is a staple of life.  About a year ago a friend of mine turned me onto making our own.  We save a ton of money this way and I haven’t noticed a huge difference in the cleanliness of the clothes as opposed to when we used store bought detergent.

There are recipes online for both dry and liquid soaps, I prefer liquid.  Here is the recipe I use.

1/3 a bar of Fels Naptha soap – You can find this in any grocery store in the laundry section.

6 cups of water

1/2 cup washing soda (also found in the laundry section)

1/2 cup of Borax (once again, you know where)

This isn’t in the original recipe, but I usually add about five drops of Tea Tree oil or Melaluca oil for the extra benefit and to make it smell a little more like the soap I am use to buying.

Heat the water, Fels Naptha and Borax until dissolved. I find the easiest way to make the Fels Naptha bar melt is to grate it with an old fashioned cheese grater.

Stir in the washing soda and mix and heat until it is dissolved. You will have to stir continuously as it will boil over quickly if you don’t.

Remove from heat.  In a 3-5 gallon bucket ( I use a large old soap bottle) pour one quart hot water then add the soap mix.  Add enough cold water to make 2 gallons. Mix. Let sit 24 hours. use 1/2 cup per load.  I usually stir and shake mine each time as it can get pretty thick.

When washing this soap will not bubble and foam like store bought brand, but rest assured it is doing it’s job!

The rest of the fels naptha bar can be used as a stain lifter by rubbing directly on stains.