Today's "recipe" isn't for something you can eat - but an important household recipe for our home - laundry detergent concentrate. This recipe makes about 3 gallons. I read the math somewhere - that it was about $6 for the batch and it can wash up to 500 loads. I haven't ever kept track since there have been anywhere from 4-6 people doing laundry in the household at any given time. Let's just suffice to say it is a great savings.
Be sure to start with a large pot that will hold at least 2 gallons of water.
The ingredients:
1. A bar of soap, grated. I prefer not to use petroleum based products. A lot of the recipes call for Fels Naptha soap - and while it will get your clothes clean, it is petroleum based. I have also used Ivory soap - but found I didn't like the smell and found it very difficult to get through the whole batch of detergent. If you throw it out it is a waste! I like Dr. Bonner's magic soaps - specifically the lavender scent. (If you use Fels Naptha - only use 1/3-1/2 of the bar) Grate it right into a large pot.
2. Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda, 1 cup - not to be confused with baking soda. This is different. You should be able to find it in your grocery store's laundry detergent aisle.
4. Mule-Team Borax, 1 cup - The box for this used to be green and square - but they have recently switched to a taller white box. It can also be found in the grocery store detergent aisle or with cleaning products.
Add 1 gallon of water in a large pot to the bar of grated soap. Turn the heat up high and stir until the soap has melted. (It does not need to boil to melt the soap.) Once soap is melted, add the Washing Soda and the Borax. Stir until dissolved. Sometimes I get a little on my fingers to make sure the liquid is smooth and not gritty to know that it is completely dissolved - depending on how hot it is. Add another gallon of cold water and stir well.
This concentrate is super thick. Overnight it should turn into a gel so you want to be sure to store it in containers that allow room for you to add more water. I use a large gallon pitcher for my "in use" detergent (see picture above). I fill the pitcher up halfway and add another half gallon or so of water and stir or whisk together. The rest of the concentrate gets stored in other containers to mix in that gallon jug when we need more. It is incredible that you almost cannot liquefy it - you add water to it and it returns to a gel. Even if your gel gets a little clumpy - it will all dissolve in the washing machine.
This detergent is not sudsy and therefore is great for HE machines! Happy Laundry Day!
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