We have been making our own detergent for the last year or more and it has really worked well for us. I do use some spot remover on chocolate, dirt stains, blood or other such things from having two young boys, but any food marks, oil, yogurt, etc, comes out without a mark. My boys don’t wear much white so I can’t really say how it does with that. I do wear white, though and I feel like they come out just fine!

I really like the idea of making my own because I know what ingredients have been added! And an added benefit is, it’s so much cheaper! I have a cost comparison at the end of the post. It really doesn’t take much time to do; it’s easy and makes a lot, so you don’t have to make it very often. It also does well in my HE, front loading washer since it is a low sudsing detergent.

I use it to wash my cloth diapers as well and feel it does a good job with that too. I do add about ½ cup of vinegar and ½ cup of baking soda to each load of diapers and wash them on hot with a prewash, extra rinse and an additional rinse and spin cycle. (I will have more on cloth diapering and washing later on).

All the ingredients are pretty readily available. I purchased my Borax ($3.99 for 76oz box) and Washing Soda ($2.99 for 55oz box) at Wegmans, but if you don’t have one of these stores close by, there are other options. I found it at [amazon_link id=”B0042UF6JO” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Amazon[/amazon_link] ($6.49 for Borax and $3.25 for Washing Soda) and Soap.com ($4.95 for Borax). There are also plenty of ways to get discounts and free shipping from both of these sites as well.

So let’s get cooking…

Ingredients:
• 3.1 oz bar Ivory soap (Ivory is chosen because it’s all natural. You may use a soap of your choice)
• 1 cup 20 Mule Team Borax
• ½ cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
• Water

Tools:
• 5 Gallon container
• Knife or potato peeler
• Pot large enough to hold 5 cups of water
• Long stirring stick/spoon (for 5 gallon container)
• 4 cup measure

Instructions:
Shave the soap into small strips and place in the pot with 5 cups of water using the knife or potato peeler. I think the potato peeler works better and makes it smaller so that it melts faster.

Bring the water just shy of a boil and stir until the soap is completely melted.

While the water and soap on the stove is heating, fill the 5 gallon container with 3 gallons of hot tap water, borax and washing soda and mix until completely dissolved. Once all of the soap shavings are melted, pour the mixture into the 5-gallon container. Stir until completely incorporated.

Optional: Essential Oils for fragrance. If you like fragrant detergent now is when you can add a few drops of your favorite essential oils. However, if using this for washing cloth diapers, do not add oils otherwise it will decrease the absorbency of the diapers.

Now you’ve got a huge container of hot soapy looking water. You can either leave it in this container with a lid, or pour it into smaller containers. I have used old gallon milk jugs which work well. I now use old detergent containers from Costco, so they hold about 2 gallons and are easy to dispense. Let it cool overnight before using. Once it’s cooled it will gel. It will not gel uniformly so it will be lumpy and watery. It may not be very attractive, but it works. Be sure to shake or mix well before using. Use ½ cup per laundry load. You should be able to wash 110 loads of laundry.

Cost break down:
As of March 2011, the purchase price for the ingredients are as follows:
• Borax: $4 for 76 oz.

• Cost per batch: $0.42 (8 oz needed for recipe)

• Washing Soda: $3 for 55 oz.

• Cost per batch $0.22 (4 oz needed for recipe)

• Ivory Soap: $1.29 for 3 3.1 oz. Bars.

• Cost per batch: $0.43 (1 bar of soap needed for recipe)

Total cost to make: $1.07
Yield: 440 oz.
Cost per oz. = .00243
Cost per ½ cup (4oz) = .00972 or rounded to .01 cent per load

How does that compare to your store-bought detergent? I know I purchased a container of Kirkland brand environmentally friendly laundry detergent for HE washers from Costco for $17 for 170oz which is 110 loads which is a good price. At that cost it would be about $0.16 a load! Doesn’t even come anywhere close to as good a deal as making my own or as safe!