Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #90 on: July 19, 2006, 04:35:34 PM » by healthybratt

Quote from: dara on July 18, 2006, 01:10:22 PM

The problem I had yesterday with heating it is that when I stired it, it foamed so much it tried to climb out of the pot (and this is a big 3 gal. pot). What I have right now is a thick layer of curdles on top of a bucket of water, like you said. I might try one more time, but it's not looking hopeful. I might just have to use it up myself. Funky stuff.

You probably have your heat too high. Mine foams a bit, but not that much.

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #91 on: July 20, 2006, 01:02:29 PM » by 1happygal

I had a thought this morning when taking a shower. Someone might have already posted this earlier in the thread, but here goes... Why not save the last little bits of soap (we use Ivory) from each bar and use them in the homemade laundry soap when there is enough. I usually just throw them away because my husband and I find them hard to use with a washcloth when they are so thin and small.

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #92 on: July 20, 2006, 08:13:57 PM » by amazonmama2five

Hey Girls!
I have made the laundry soap lots of times now and we love it! We use two large pots and put 2 gallons of water in each to heat. Then grate the two bars of Dove ( they are probably not as big as bars you would get in the States.) Cover the grated soap with about 4 cups of water and heat, stirring frequently to dissolve the soap. I pour one pot of 2 gal. of hot water in the 5 gal. pail, then the liquid soap, then two cups of baking soda VERY SLOWLY Wink

stirring all the while and finally the other two gallons of warm/hot water. It takes a long time to cool down and we take turns stirring it all day. It is thicker on the second day, and even thicker on the third. We always give it a stir before we use it. We use two cups per large load. I have no problems with "boogers" and my clothes smell good. We also rinse with a half cup (more for jeans and towels) white vinegar. We use a clothes line mostly and only use the dryer during the rainy season.
Have a Great Day!!!
Lisa

PS -- Hey 1happygal, my husband wants me to make liquid hand soap with the little bars. I thought I might melt them in a little water with some baking soda and see how it goes.

« Last Edit: July 20, 2006, 08:17:09 PM by amazonmama2five »
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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #93 on: July 20, 2006, 08:57:15 PM » by healthybratt

Quote from: 1happygal on July 20, 2006, 01:02:29 PM

I do this also, but I hadn't posted it. I think it's a great soap saver. Grin

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #94 on: July 26, 2006, 08:19:49 AM » by ~esposita~

A sure way to be absolutely certain that you have lots and lots of boogers all over you (supposedly) clean clothes is to wash them with a disposable diaper. It will explode all over the inside of your washer, coating your clothes with nice, clear, slimy, and highly annoying boogers. I am presently taking a needed break from shaking out all my clothes, cleaning the inside of the washer, all so I can run that blasted load again. grrrr. Angry

Odd, how the ONE disposeable diaper we used all day yesterday managed to find its way into my washer? Huh

(I'm wondering if my helpful little 20 mos. old put it in the diaper pail, rather than the garbage...)

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #95 on: July 26, 2006, 10:26:46 AM » by WithLoveAndJoy

Ok, maybe this is a stupid question, so forgive me for asking, but do you have a special pot that you use for heating the soap up? Or do you just wash it out real good before you cook with it again? I just don't want to end up making us sick :-)

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #96 on: July 26, 2006, 10:50:34 AM » by healthybratt

Quote from: joyfullyhis on July 26, 2006, 10:26:46 AM

I use the same pots, this soap is far less toxic than regular dish detergent in my opinion. I also use my canning pot for reheats if necessary cuz it's bigger.

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #97 on: July 26, 2006, 10:56:40 AM » by Sonja

I have mixed up my own batch of dry laundry soap using equal parts borax and baking soda, a grated bar of castille soap, and essential oils. I was wondering if any of you could post why you prefer the liquid laundry soap. Also, have any of you found the borax to be "bleaching" or spotting your clothes? And can you see any reason why the castille soap wouldn't be a good choice? Up until this point, I've been trying to avoid making the liquid soap, but maybe for some reason it's better. Hope you all can sort it out for me. Grin

I had read on a website that the baking soda is gentler on your clothes than washing soda, however, I don't remember that it commented on a difference in cleaning ability.

Sonja

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #98 on: July 26, 2006, 11:23:37 AM » by healthybratt

Quote from: justme on July 26, 2006, 10:56:40 AM

I've been trying to avoid making the liquid soap, but maybe for some reason it's better. Hope you all can sort it out for me. Grin

I used to use powdered detergent and it always stuck to my clothes if I didn't predissolve, so I opted for the liquid. Also you would probably need a good grinder/food processor to make dry soap and if you make liquid, all you have to do is heat and stir.

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #99 on: July 26, 2006, 12:25:41 PM » by Julie G

Okay...we're having homemade laundry soap issues.

I really want to make my own laundry soap, (it's so much cheaper). But I used the recipe you posted HB...still laundry not getting clean.

My husband works with diesel & oil all day long so his clothes are really smelly. We even spot treat them before placing them in the wash. A couple of days ago I made the laundry soap, (using 2 bars and only a 4 gallon bucket - so it is more concentrated and using 1 cup soap/load). Washed clothes yesterday and they came out very diesel-fuel-smelling and spotty...like I never even washed them. We are also hanging our clothes out on the line...can't figure out why the soap is not working for us.

Any suggestions?

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #100 on: July 26, 2006, 04:15:51 PM » by SHERRI REEL

honeybee posted that vinager soak takes out oil and grease but I wander about chemical mixing? My husband used to be a feller and would come home with bar oil & fuel all over I never could get it out.

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #101 on: July 26, 2006, 05:15:46 PM » by healthybratt

No diesel fuel here, so I'm not sure. Maybe double your usage? If it works, it would still be cheaper than store bought. I've actually poured extra borax straight into the wash for extra smelly dish cloths (sour - nasty) and this has worked as a laundry booster.

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #102 on: July 26, 2006, 07:11:20 PM » by ~esposita~

Quote from: Julie G on July 26, 2006, 12:25:41 PM

My husband works with diesel & oil all day long so his clothes are really smelly.

Join the club!!! I've given up on hubby's work clothes ever being clean. They usually at least smell clean (kinda, sorta) after the wash and the line, but the only way to get them to look clean is to get new ones. HA! I wash them seperately from the rest of the wash...and sometimes, I wash them twice. Other than that, they're just gonna get dirty 10 min after he puts 'em on, anyway Cheesy

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #103 on: July 26, 2006, 07:38:45 PM » by Julie G

Quote from: bajusabroad on July 26, 2006, 07:11:20 PM

Quote from: Julie G on July 26, 2006, 12:25:41 PM

My husband works with diesel & oil all day long so his clothes are really smelly.

I'd tried using vinegar in the rinse cycle...still bad results. (I'd done 2 other batches of laundry soap before this more concentrated batch). I guess I'm just going to have to wash his clothes separately (which I probably should have been doing all along) with store bought detergent. Before I tried the homemade laundry soap, the store bought worked very well to get rid of the smell and grease. That and Shout were my solutions for his stinky clothes. He's not too happy with having such smelly clothes...though I like your reasoning...they'll get dirty 10 minutes after wearing them....it's so true!

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #104 on: July 26, 2006, 08:13:47 PM » by healthybratt

What about Lava soap? Do they still make that? Would somthing like that work?

Or - have you heard of TKO? On the "flies pest" thread, Pennie said she uses this for everything but it's very expensive. I researched it and found that d'limonene is the key ingredient and it's used in place of detergents to clean and degrease industrial machines.

The TKO is very expensive, but I found d'limonene pure (I think) at citrusdepot.net. It's $29 per gallon and you just dilute it with water. You could add this to your soap or maybe just use it alone? It's a thought.

I sent them an email to find out if there are other ingredients and to see if they would share the ingredients list. I'll let you know what I find out.

« Last Edit: July 26, 2006, 08:20:53 PM by healthybratt »
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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #105 on: July 27, 2006, 01:35:05 PM » by healthybratt

Quote from: elif on July 27, 2006, 01:29:38 PM

It's just as gentle as the recommended Dreft for babies AND it's great advertisement for your own laundry soap business! Heeh.

Actually...it's gentler than Dreft. Dreft contains detergents too. Wink

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #106 on: July 27, 2006, 01:37:02 PM » by healthybratt

Quote from: healthybratt on July 26, 2006, 08:13:47 PM

The TKO is very expensive, but I found d'limonene pure (I think) at citrusdepot.net. It's $29 per gallon and you just dilute it with water. You could add this to your soap or maybe just use it alone? It's a thought.

I sent them an email to find out if there are other ingredients and to see if they would share the ingredients list. I'll let you know what I find out.

Here's the reponse I got. Sounds like good news to me.

Quote

We have pure d-limonene and blends available with detergent & emulsifiers available. The Citrus Depot affiliate company Suncoast Research Labs, Inc. offers contract packaging, private labeling & custom blending formulations.

Give us a call & we discuss further.

Larry Watts
Citrus Depot
800-424-8045

Here's some technical info on d'limonene.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limonene

http://www.floridachemical.com/whatisd-limonene.htm

I think I'm going to get me some as soon as the budget fills up again. Wink

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #107 on: July 27, 2006, 01:45:55 PM » by healthybratt

Quote from: elif on July 27, 2006, 01:40:53 PM

Actually...it's gentler than Dreft. Dreft contains detergents too. Wink

Quote

YEY! I 'm glad you are able to second that it's gentler than Dreft, HB.
I already have 3 customers and I just ask them what soap they want used and I do the rest! Grin

That's cool, but if your customers are concerned with skin irritation, you might want to educate yourself on detergents and their common names. I just discovered that some bar soaps include them also. I bought some and it caused me the same problems as the detergent based shampoos I used to use.

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #108 on: July 27, 2006, 02:19:43 PM » by healthybratt

This site doesn't have all the listings, but it can help.

http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/household/brands?tbl=brands&id=16003462

If you can't find the info here then check the individual labels of the boxes (bottles).

I just looked up Dreft and it contains: Unspecified Surfactants (detergents usually SLS, ALS, Cocamide Betaine and a few others), Sodium Carbonate (Same as Washing Powder), Alkylbenzenesulfonic acid, sodium salt which is some kind of emulsifier (not sure why they need to emulsify a powder Huh

) and Subtilisin (proteolytic enzyme) "(noun) enzyme such as trypsin that degrades proteins by hydrolyzing (cleaving with addition of water) some of their peptide bonds".

__________________________________________

Borax: "Sodium Borate-(Borax, Cosmetic Grade) - A natural preservative, buffering agent and emulsifier."

You might just want to give your customers a disclaimer about Borax and you could try making Beka's version and selling it in addition to your other soap. She only uses soap, Baking Soda (Sodium Bicarbonate) and oils. I've also seen variations with Washing Powder (Sodium Carbonate) and soap without the Borax.

You could offer them 1) Detergent Free - which is what you are making. 2) Borax Free 3) Super Gentle (no Borax and Soda instead of Powder).

Then if anyone tries this d'limonene thing (I may very soon), you could offer a super gentle degreaser option for greasy, oily and smelly work clothes. Wink

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #109 on: August 13, 2006, 12:29:32 PM » by Soñadora

I finally made some of this and I am so excited! I made the powdered version AND I used baking soda, AAAND I have a front loader, AAAAND I didn't have to stir anything!
I only made a little, because I was worried it wouldn't happen for me. I used about 2T, and it worked great. I have bedwetters, and boys who love dirt--okay and girls who love dirt. Cheesy

My clothes don't stink or "feel" dirty like I was worried they would. I am so glad y'all thought to post this stuff, because I hate the feeling of being bound to the expensive junk. Thanks and slap five. Grin

« Last Edit: August 13, 2006, 03:30:48 PM by Soñadora »
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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #110 on: August 15, 2006, 02:52:56 PM » by heatheronthehill

I just made my first batch of liquid laundry soap! I've been waiting this long because I wanted to use up the store bought stuff first, and it took me a while! It gelled nicely, and doesn't have any floaties, so I'm really excited to use it!

I just ordered some grapefruit seed extract from the Beeyoutiful folks, but couldn't wait long enough for it to come in before I made the soap. I splashed in some Tea Tree Oil for the disinfecting qualities and for the smell. (My husband really likes the earthy, fresh clean smell!) I know others tried fragrance oils, but I didn't read about anyone else using Tea Tree Oil. Has anyone else done this? How did things turn out? I thought I'd double check before I wash anything in it just in case. Wink

DH is really excited for this to work! I was really proud to tell him about how much money we would save!

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #111 on: August 16, 2006, 12:00:12 PM » by heatheronthehill

*bump*

Any word on the tea tree oil?!? Has anyone else used it? Does anyone know a reason why it wouldn't be good to use in laundry soap? Huh

If I don't hear anything, I'm just going to run a batch of towels and see how it turns out...

Just wanted to check one more time.

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #112 on: August 16, 2006, 12:55:59 PM » by WithLoveAndJoy

Quote from: heatheronthehill on August 16, 2006, 12:00:12 PM

*bump*

Any word on the tea tree oil?!? Has anyone else used it? Does anyone know a reason why it wouldn't be good to use in laundry soap? Huh

If I don't hear anything, I'm just going to run a batch of towels and see how it turns out...

Just wanted to check one more time.

Essential oils, from what I understand, do not provide benefit in laundry detergent because they denature when heated. So if you dry your clothes in a drier or use warm/hot water to wash your clothing, there would be little benefit to adding essential oils to your laundry soap.

There is more information on this earlier on in this thread.

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #113 on: August 16, 2006, 01:38:32 PM » by kittyninja

Quote from: joyfullyhis on August 16, 2006, 12:55:59 PM

Quote from: heatheronthehill on August 16, 2006, 12:00:12 PM

*bump*

Any word on the tea tree oil?!? Has anyone else used it? Does anyone know a reason why it wouldn't be good to use in laundry soap? Huh

If I don't hear anything, I'm just going to run a batch of towels and see how it turns out...

Just wanted to check one more time.

but if you add it when the soap has cooled, wash only in cold water and hang your clothes it works fine!! Cheesy

I wonder if the same thing happens to GSE? and does the tea tree oil add any kind of anti viral benfits (ie for poopy clothes, or youcky rags used to mop up blood fromthe meat i was making for dinner or my mom's scrubs)

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #114 on: August 16, 2006, 02:38:44 PM » by heatheronthehill

Thanks so much! My main concern was that it would harm my clothing. Wouldn't want to do that! If the disinfecting power is lost due to the heat or whatever, that's o.k. It's just an experiment anyway.

Thanks again!

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #115 on: August 23, 2006, 03:55:16 PM » by lovingmomof2

I've been reading this thread and am super excited about making a batch of this laundry soap. I really like the smell that softener adds to clothes and I was wondering if anyone had any ideas about how to make a softener that smells good even if you use the dryer? It rains a lot and you never know when its going to hit.

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #116 on: August 23, 2006, 06:42:56 PM » by dara

See the thread called "Wonderful Smelling Laundry Sachet".

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #117 on: August 24, 2006, 06:55:47 PM » by healthybratt

Quote from: Nickole on August 24, 2006, 12:10:07 PM

Ok, I have made the laundry soap, concentrated, and I even put in two capfuls (cap from my detergent bottle) and stains do not come clean. I am also using the stain remover I think I got somewhere from this site (ammonia, vinegar, baking soda, soap I think) and it does not work. Granted, I let the stains sit a few days. Is that the problem? That is why I loved Stain Stick! I think I may need to go back to that. Expensive but gets stains out. Any suggestions? Also my soap is very thick and chunky with those "boogers" but I don't mind. Another thing, I have tried rinsing with vinegar (even a capful worth) and when I hang the clothes out, they are stiff as if I have used nothing. Pooh Embarrassed

I want to use this stuff, save money and be healthier but it's not working - am I doing something wrong? Must I live with stiff towels and such? Also, my towels and dish towels still stink Undecided

. I am going to get some lavendar - perhaps that will help?

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #118 on: August 24, 2006, 07:02:46 PM » by kittyninja

I still have problems with stains also but i too let them sit too long. usually when i catch em right away i just spray with simple green (my all purpose cleaner). I stopped hanging my towels up cos even fabric softener left them stiff on the line. i dunno if you have a dryer but towels are the only thing i do dry now(unless it's a rare rainy day) and they come out soft and fluffy and smelly good. I also use orange essential oil and it even survives the dryer on low. or you can make a dryer sachet as was mentioned somewhere. Also for the stinky towels, maybe making a borax bucket with a little smelly good and let them soak until laundry day. I hope this helps...i'm only on my 2nd round of the soap but i am determined! Cheesy

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Re: Homemade Laundry Soap (Detergent Free)
« Reply #119 on: September 05, 2006, 02:16:13 PM » by mommyoftwins