Since we've went cloth (see 2/20/10 post) and just since we've had two kids in general, laundry loads have nearly doubled in this house. Knowing that biodegradable laundry soap was what was best for the environment, that's what we were using for probably the past several years, even before kiddos. That was until my husband went to the store while I was recovering from a c-section (the only reason he'd go instead of me, he despises it THAT much). He got Tide, I suppose because that's what he always had before he married a greeny like me. There was a marked difference in the clothes and it could not be denied that the greeny brand just sucked ass.
But, that big orange Tide box was sooo expensive! I couldn't believe it, and at the rate we were going through it, we could be paying on another car practically! But I justified it because I kinda, well, really DID want our clothes actually clean. And, to justify getting non-biodegradable laundry detergent we bought front load energy star washer and dryer which was saving electricity, gas, water, and in effect money. It seemed to equal itself out in my mind.
By chance, during Christmas time when I was looking for recipes for home made apple butter, I came across a recipe for home made laundry detergent. Man oh man! Can I tell YOU how leery my husband was. He must have warned me a million times that IF our laundry didn't come out as clean as it was on Tide, we were going back immediately! Well, we've been on the home made laundry detergent for a month now, and I've heard no complaints. And, can I tell YOU how easy, and cheap it is to make this stuff! Not only that, but they make our clothes clean, and our cloth diapers with out leaving any icky residue. I can't imagine many other things besides daily poopy diapers to test the efficiency of a detergent.
Washer Machine Detergent---diaper tested, daddy approved!
1 cup grated soap (such as fels naptha or Ivory)
½ cup Borax
½ cup Arm & Hammer washing soap
Can add essential oils for scent
Mix well (I store it and mix in a large glass container with a lid)
2 Tablespoons per load of laundry
The fels naptha and washing soap can be found in the laundry detergent section at most grocery stores, and I've even seen it at Bartell Drugs.
Hope it works for y'all! Let me know how ya like it!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Yay Camille! I too go through laundry detergent wayyyy tooooo fast. Thank you for this I cant wait to try it. BTW: Did you like what Klesick Family Farms has to offer? We can't wait to see you tomorrow!
ReplyDeleteLet me know how you like this! We really love how fresh smelling it is too! YES, I LOVE the Klesick Family Farms and I think my mom and I are gonna share a box. Thank you sooo much for the recommendation!
ReplyDeleteMy friend Nikki just had to have her front loader worked on and the repair man told her that one of the biggest problems is that people use too much soap and it builds up, which eventually ruins the machine. He told her to never use more than 1 Tb of detergent and if you ever see suds during the cycle then you've used WAY too much. Just thought I'd throw that out there because our detergent's directions call for more than that too.
ReplyDeleteFaith, that's interesting. Our washer people told us if we use liquid detergent to once in a while switch to the powder because it kind of acts as an "exfoliate" if you will, by rubbing off old soap scum. I'm sure too much of a good think is never good. The great thing about this recipe is it calls for so little, and a little goes a long way. 2 tablespoons is really far less than most other detergents call for, and the ingredients are so cheap to buy! That's what makes it so cost effective!
ReplyDelete