Laundry Detergent

Over the last year DJ has suggested a few times that we should make our own laundry detergent. He visits a web site run by a guy who has a lot of ideas of how to be frugal. So DJ sent me a link the other day to his post about making your own laundry detergent. I was never too keen on the idea but I decided to visit the link and see what it was all about. Once I read the post I really wanted to try it. So, I decided to use his recipe and make my own laundry detergent. It was very easy and only took about 20 minutes to do. And it really works just as well as Tide which is what we used to use. It also saves a lot of money. So, for now on we will be making our own laundry detergent. It may sound silly but it saves a lot of money for a little effort. And it helps the environment by us using one less plastic container. So here is the recipe for the homemade laundry detergent.

1 5 gallon bucket with lid
1 bar soap (I use Ivory)
1 cup washing soda (not baking soda but it is made by Arm & Hammer)
1/2 cup borax (I use the brand 20 mule)

Grate bar of soap with a box grater. Grate very thin. Boil 4 cups of water. Add one hand full at a time of the grater soap. Stir until it is mostly dissolved. Continue to add one hand full at a time of the soap until it is all dissolved in the boiling water. Fill the 5 gallon bucket with 3 gallons of warm water. Add the soapy water and smash up any chunks with a big spatula or spoon. Add the washing soda and stir until it dissolves. Add the borax and stir until it dissolves. Put the lid on the bucket loosely and let it sit for 24 hours. Now it is ready to use. Just add one cup to every load. It works great!!
It may be a strange consistency. Mine is a mix of lumpy, jello like stuff and a watery substance. I just use the measuring cup to mix it up and then make sure when I scoop I get some of the jello and liquid. The consistency will depend on the type of soap you use.

Here is the link to the web site. It has a picture of all the ingredients and a video demonstrating how to make it. It is very helpful
http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2008/04/09/making-your-own-laundry-detergent-a-detailed-visual-guide/