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Homemade Laundry Soap — Budget-Friendly & Gentle on Clothes
If you’re looking to save money and simplify your laundry routine, making your own laundry soap at home is a great option. This DIY laundry detergent is easy to make, cost-effective, and works well even in high-efficiency (HE) machines. It’s a wonderful project if you enjoy frugal living and practical household DIYs. I’ve been making homemade laundry soap on and off for over 20 years now. I don’t always make homemade laundry soap, but when I do, this is my favorite recipe.
You don’t need a long list of complicated ingredients — just a bar of soap, washing soda, borax, and water. This recipe makes a big batch (about 5 gallons), but you can easily halve it if you don’t need that much.
Why Make Homemade Laundry Soap
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Saves money: Making your own detergent can cost a fraction of store-bought brands.
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Gentle cleaning: Works well on everyday laundry and is low-sudsing, so it’s safe for HE machines.
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Customizable: Add essential oils for fragrance or booster products like OxiClean if desired.
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Easy to store: Store in recycled detergent bottles, milk jugs, or other containers.
Ingredients
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4 cups boiling water
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1 bar Fels-Naptha soap or about 5 oz of Zote, Castile, Ivory, or similar soap
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1 cup Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda Laundry Booster
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1 cup Borax
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Enough hot water to fill a 5-gallon bucket
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Optional: a few drops of essential oil for fragrance or 1 cup OxiClean as a booster
Instructions
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Melt the Soap:
Heat 4 cups of water in a large saucepan until boiling. While the water heats, grate your bar of soap using a cheese grater or food processor. Add the grated soap to the boiling water and stir constantly over medium-low heat until it is fully melted. (Zote melts faster than harder soaps.) -
Mix the Base:
In a 5-gallon bucket, add about half of the hot tap water. Stir in the washing soda and borax until dissolved. -
Add Melted Soap:
Pour the melted soap mixture into the bucket and stir well to combine with the washing soda and borax solution. -
Fill with Water:
Add more hot water to fill the bucket nearly to the top. Stir thoroughly. Cover and let the mixture sit overnight. -
Finish & Use:
The next day, you’ll notice the detergent has thickened into a slightly gel-like consistency. Stir it well before using. Transfer to storage containers, such as recycled detergent bottles or milk jugs. Shake gently before each use.
Usage: Use about ¼ to ½ cup per laundry load. This detergent is low-sudsing and safe for HE machines.
Hard Water Tip: If you have hard water, add ¼ cup of white vinegar to the rinse cycle to help soften clothes and reduce residue.
Tips & Extras
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Scent Boost: A few drops of your favorite essential oil (like lavender or lemon) can give your laundry a subtle fragrance.
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Cleaning Power: Adding OxiClean (about 1 cup) to the mixture makes this soap even more effective for heavily soiled clothes.
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Smaller Batch: If 5 gallons is too much, cut the ingredients in half and use a smaller bucket or container.
Why It Works
This homemade laundry soap combines simple cleaning ingredients:
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Soap: Provides the cleansing action.
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Washing Soda: Boosts water softness and helps remove stains.
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Borax: Enhances cleaning power and deodorizes fabrics.
Making your own laundry soap is a classic frugal hack that can save you money and let you control what goes into your cleaning products. Whether you make a big batch for your family or a smaller one to test first, this recipe offers a reliable and wallet-friendly alternative to commercial detergents.
When I buy laundry detergent instead, I wait for a good sale and stack it with a coupon – I rarely pay more than $2 a bottle.
This recipe makes 5 Gallons, it’s easy to make and use. You can cut the recipe in half if you don’t want to make so much.
Homemade Laundry Soap
Ingredients
- 4 cups boiling water
- 1 Bar Fels-Naptha soap or approx. 5 oz. Zote Soap, Castile, or Ivory Soap
- 1 cup Arm and Hammer Super washing soda
- 1 cup Borax
- 5-gallon bucket / Hot Water
- essential oil for scent (optional)
Instructions
- Heat 4 cups of water until boiling.
- While the water is heating Grate your Preferred bar soap ( use a cheese grater or food processor) and add to the boiling water. Stir continuously over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted.
- Fill your 5-gallon bucket half full with HOT tap water, add washing soda, and borax, stir, add melted soap mixture, and stir well until all powder is dissolved.
- Fill the bucket the rest of the way to the top with hot water, stir, cover, and let sit overnight to thicken.
- The next day it should be lumpy with a partial gel-like consistency, Stir well and fill old laundry detergent containers, cleaned milk jugs, or whatever empty containers you prefer. You can add a few drops of essential oil for scent if you like.
- Shake well before each use. Use approx. 1/4 cup per load. If you have hard water you may want to add 1/4 cup white vinegar to your rinse cycle.
- Naturally softens hard water
- Improves cleaning power of detergent
- Safe for both standard and high efficiency machines
- Brightens and deodorizes clothes, bathrooms, kitchens, and more
- Helping you clean for over 100 years
- Pure Original Ingredients Borax in a resealable bag
- Multipurpose cleaning agent
- DIY laundry soap, fabric softener & carpet freshener
- Always pure ingredients with no additives
- Fels Naptha Laundry Soap Bar & Stain Remover
- For a delicate wash
- Pink laundry soap with a minimum fatty acid content of (66%)
- 7.0 ounces bars
- One 55 oz box of ARM & HAMMER Super Washing Soda Household Cleaner and Laundry Booster
- 100% fragrance-free and phosphate-free washing soda neutralizes and eliminates odors naturally without the use of heavy fragrances, leaving a long-lasting fresh and neutral clean scent
- As a laundry additive, it improves liquid laundry detergent performance by up to 15% (1), giving you cleaner, whiter and brighter laundry and upholstery (1) For mustard and blood stains vs leading value detergent alone
- Great general purpose cleaner for a wide variety of indoor and outdoor hard surfaces like sinks, stainless steel, bathtubs, garage floors and more, a must-have addition to your household cleaning supplies
- Use as a silver polish to remove tarnish from silver, gold, brass or copper to keep your jewelry, silverware and precious items looking their best
- MULTI-USE: Make storage a breeze with these multi-purpose 5-gallon buckets. Perfect for storing liquids, powders, oils, paints, fire chips, charcoal, as well as for fermenting and brining.
- White bucket
- Built tough
- Comfortable grip handle
- Easy to clean
- Nest together when not in use
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