Liquid Laundry Detergent Recipe

To make liquid laundry detergent, you will need these ingredients:

-1 bar of soap (grated)

-2 cups of washing soda

-2 cups of borax

- At least 3 Gallon container (Since the recipe calls for just over 2 gallon of water)

Boil one quart of water and add the grated bar soap, mixing until it has completely melted. I suggest either Kirk's Castile (I found it at Meijers) or Pure Soap bars (found here:http://www.gaiam.com/pure-soap-bar-soap/02-9074,default,pd.html). Leave that to sit while you prepare the rest of the solution. 

IMPORTANT!! Most recipes say to add the washing soda and borax directly to the soapy water. I did that the first time and I found that the powders immediately seized into a big lump and wouldn't dissolve. After trying several different utensils to try and break up the clumps and get it dissolved, I ended up having to reach in with my hands, break up the clumps, rubbing the granules against the side of the container to try and get them to dissolve. What a pain in the butt! 

I have found the best results by dissolving the borax and washing soda, one cup at a time, into a quart of warm water. I fill my mixing bowl with a quart of warm water and add one cup of soda or borax, mixing till dissolved, then pouring it into my bulk container. Refill the mixing bowl and repeat until you have dissolved 2 cups of washing soda and 2 cups of borax. Since you will do this 4 times, and 4 quarts = 1 Gal, this means you will need to add 1 more gallon of water.

Now add the soapy water mixture that you have sitting on the stove and mix thoroughly. Once the mixture has cooled, you can add a few drops of the essential oil of your choice for scented detergent. This soap does tend to gel when it cools, so be prepared to mix or shake it before you use it. Use about 1/4 cup per load. TIP: I don't have room in my laundry cabinet to keep my bulk container, so I kept my last store bought detergent container and funnel in my homemade solution.

This soap will not be sudsy, since it does not contain artificial lathering agents like Sodium Laurel Sulfate (SLS). But, that's a good thing since SLS was originally purposed as an industrial strength cleanser and degreaser and can toxically build up in body tissues and organs. This alarmed me too at first, but my clothes always come out clean and smelling fresh.