I found a great recipe many years ago for making my own laundry detergent that works for HE washers. It’s super easy and best of all it’s super cheap! I was a stay at home mom and home educator, so I was always looking for alternatives to expensive store bought items. Also, I love the fact that these ingredients are not harmful to the environment and are safe for our bodies and they are better for your washer! This recipe makes 2 gallons. I use recycled tea jugs with screw on caps. This just makes it easy to pour into my washer’s dispenser.
There are only 3 items you will need to buy and all can be found easily at the supermarket in the laundry section.
20 Mule Team Borax Powder
Fels Naptha Laundry Bar Soap
Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda
2 gallon container (I use 2-1 gallon jugs)
I grate the Fels Naptha in my food processor until its almost a powder. This is simply to help it dissolve faster.
You will need 1/3 cup of fels naptha soap; 1/2 cup borax; 1/2 cup washing soda and 6 cups of water.
Using a large stock pot, pour in 6 cups of water and heat over medium high heat. Stir in 1/3 cup fels naptha and let that dissolve, stirring occasionally. Once all the soap is dissolved, add 1/2 cup borax and 1/2 cup washing soda. Stir well. Turn the heat down some as it may start to foam up and could boil over. Continue heating stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. Once everything is dissolved, turn off the heat and let it sit for another 5 minutes. Then pour even amounts into each jug (if you’re using 2). Top off each with hot water and shake well. Watch out shaking hot liquid–it builds pressure! You’re done! The detergent will need to sit 24 hours before using. Sometimes it will gel up and get thick. Sometimes it stays liquid–I have different results all the time.
To use, you will need about 1/3 cup of detergent for a normal load. I usually just fill up my liquid detergent dispenser and let ‘er rip.
As a side note, I also use vinegar in the fabric softener dispenser. Vinegar is great for removing odors and softening your clothes. It’s also good for your washer 🙂
You will spend about $10 on those 3 ingredients and they will last you months! The fels-naptha will make 3 recipes or 6 gallons of detergent. The borax and washing soda last even longer, but sometimes I will add those to the clothes if they need extra cleaning/stain removal.
If you don’t mind missing the store-bought laundry smell, you can save a ton of money making your own. Try different essential oils if you like to put your favorite scent on your clothes.
Give it a try and let me know what you think.