logo
mobile-logo
HomePosts Tagged "homemade laundry soap"

Saving money is most times easier than making it and I have found a way to save LOTS of money. In our home we seem to have mountains of laundry to be done but my honest first thought when I heard about making my own soap was – all I need is one-more-thing-to-do…was the extra work going to be worth it?

I decided to give it a try for several reasons. The first was my ongoing struggle with allergies. I seem to be allergic to the strangest things and at times have a wallop of an attack. Life with allergies is no fun so over the years I have looked at nearly everything I come into contact with to see if there was some way I could mitigate the allergic response. The second reason is financial – we seemed to be constantly buying or running out of laundry soap.

Even though the cheapest brands weren’t always satisfactory they seemed to give me less of an allergic response than the big name brands perhaps because there was less scent. Homemade laundry soap has very little scent to it except clean. The third reason is storage which I will explain in a moment.

Making your own laundry soap might seem like something super-homesteading-large-family-enviromental-frugal people do. Well – perhaps – but it’s so simple it doesn’t matter what your reasons are – this stuff is fantastic and inexpensive and doesn’t make me itch or sneeze (except when grating the soap!) and it super-simple-easy to make and it can be used in a HD washing machine because of the minimal amount of suds AND does a great job of cleaning your clothes!

Here’s what to do:

In a large pot on the stove combine:

  • about 8 cups of water
  • 1 bar of Linda laundry soap grated
  • 1 cup Borax
  • 1 cup washing soda

All these items are easily found in most grocery store laundry aisles – you’ve probably just not been looking for them.

I use a pot that is exclusively used for making laundry soap – use an old one or buy one at a thrift store. some people say this is not necessary if you clean the pot out really well after you make it – you decide. I also use a dollar store grater for grating the Linda soap – it’s hard to clean afterwards so don’t use it for food!

Over low heat and stirring often mix the contents until they are completely dissolved for about 20 minutes.Leaving it on the stove longer won’t hurt it – but any shorter and you may not have it completely dissolved.

Add this mixture to a 5 gallon pail and fill the pail till about 2/3 full with hot water. That doesn’t sound very exact and that is because it doesn’t seem to need to be. Stir using a whisk, immersion blender or a hand mixer – whatever you have. It should turn into a gel by the next day when it cools completely or it may look a bit watery like cottage cheese but either way it cleans your clothes very well. You can re-blend it if it bothers you. That’s all there is to it!

Use about 1/16 cup – a heaping tablespoon for the more visual among us – I have a small plastic scoop beside the bucket. If the clothes are particularly greasy or dirty use a little more.

The cost is approx. .05c a load by my last calculations.A pail like that lasts us at least three months (that of course depends on how many loads your family does each month)

How does it save money???

Linda soap bar: $1.49 a bar
2kg. Borax: less than $5.00 (8.5 recipes)
3 kg. Washing soda: less than $5.00 for 13 recipes

But think about this… if you bought:

  • 13 bars of soap $20.00
  • 2 boxes Borax $10.00
  • 1 box Washing soda $5.00

For a total of less than $35.00 you could make the recipe 13 times which would be enough for more than 3 years (39 months to be exact!)
That’s less than $1.00 a month..

Can you see why I love this stuff! We’ve been using homemade laundry soap for 5 or 6 years and I wouldn’t switch back for any reason. Frugal. Practical. Simple.

Other self-sufficiency and preparedness solutions recommended for you:

The vital self-sufficiency lessons our great grand-fathers left us

Knowledge to survive any medical crisis situation

Liberal’s hidden agenda: more than just your guns

Build yourself the only unlimited water source you’ll ever need

4 Important Forgotten Skills used by our Ancestors that can help you in any crisis

Secure your privacy in just 10 simple steps

0 Comments

Saving money is most times easier than making it and I have found a way to save LOTS of money. In our home we seem to have mountains of laundry

Power’s out; car won’t start, pantry’s empty – anything can happen. You either need to learn how to make do without or to take the high road which, in this case, means making it yourself. I’ve spent many sleepless nights thinking about how to be even more self-sufficient. Sure, learning how to whip up a quick dinner or to repair stuff around the house helps, but something was missing.

Then it hit me: what if took a breather from shopping and instead tried to make my own things at home? “How hard can it be?”, I told myself. Well, everything’s hard if don’t know what you’re doing. Luckily, I have this magic lamp called Google which revealed a couple of very handy instructions on how to make day-to-day items.

So, for my first no-shop month, I started with one of the most common things found around the house: soap. Yes, I stopped stockpiling it for a while and instead I tried a quick and easy recipe I got off the Internet. Have to say that I’m quite impressed with how it turned out, considering that I had no clue as to how soap-making works.

Pity that my great-grandmother passed away. Mom always used to talk about how she spent hours toiling in the shed, making soap and all kind of cosmetic stuff. Apparently, the bars my great-granny made were so good, that you could hardly make any difference between her home-stuff and supermarket soap.

Anyway, because I know that most of you people would rather make than buy, I’ve decided to share with you the recipe I’ve uncovered. As I’ve told you, it’s super easy to make, and with a couple of other ingredients, you won’t even know the difference. So, enough chit-chat! Let’s get cooking.

Materials needed

  • An old newspaper (to cover your work area)
  • Canning jar (I used a quart jar for this project).
  • Gloves and goggles.
  • Spoon.
  • Thermometer.

As for ingredients, you will need:

  • Coconut oil (about 2/3 of a cup).
  • Olive oil (2/3 of a cup).
  • Liquid oil of choice (you can use sunflower, almond or grapeseed oil; aim for 2/3 of a cup).
  • Lye (around ¼ of a cup).
  • Distilled water (2/3 of a cup).

How to make

Step 1. Cover the table with the newspaper and put on your protective gear.

Step 2. Put the canning jar on your work area.

Step 3. Pour the water into the canning jar.

Step 4. Slowly pour the lye over the water, while stirring with your spoon. Don’t get too close, as the fumes resulting from the reaction are toxic.

Step 5. Wait for the mixture to settle. You can proceed with the next step when the water clears up.

Step 6. In a pan or bowl, mix your coconut oil, olive oil, and the third oil of your choice (I used sunflower for this recipe).

Step 7. Stick the pan of mixed oils in a microwave for about one or two minutes. When it’s done, stick the thermometer in and check the temperature. It should be between 95 and 105 degrees. This is the sweet spot of soap-making – it the temp’s lower, you’ll end up with mush.

Step 8. After the oil mixture reached the right temp, pour it in the canning jar over the lye and water. You may want to add an extra ¼ cup of lye to ensure consistency. Slowly add the lye while stirring with your spoon.

Step 9. Stir the mixture for about five minutes. It should have a nice, vanilla-like color. You know it’s done when it starts to thicken.

Step 10. Add herbs or oil of your choice. Stir until they’re incorporated.

Step 11. Place the mixture into molds (I used an old baking tray for this experiment).

Step 12. Cover with plastic wrap and store in a dry and dark place.

Step 13. Check the mold every 24 hours.

I should warn you though that home-made soap is not something that magically appears overnight. In fact, the curing process takes about two to four weeks depending on environmental factors such as moisture and heat. So, if I were you, I wouldn’t hold my breath. Another thing you should know is that your kitchen or garage will end up smelling like a funeral home after doing this, mostly because of the lye.

Last, but not least, always remember to measure your stuff before adding them to the canning jar. If you pour too much or too little, you’ll end up with a mushy thing that won’t cure. As for the aesthetic part, you’re free to choose the shape of your soap.

Sure, the rectangular part would be the most obvious choice since it’s easier to handle, but you can opt for any shape that comes to mind. Just be sure to make hand-size bars. What I did after the soap has cured was to drill a hole near one of the edges and draw a string through it. That way, I don’t have to worry about dropping the soap while bathing (no, it’s not what you think).

As for the storage bit, once you’ve cut them into shape, you can store them in an airtight container. Make sure that the place you’ll be keeping your bars of home-made soap is dry.

Now, if you want to add a bar of soap into your B.O.B or household survival kit, wrap it in food foil before tossing it inside. It may be a good idea to throw in a desiccant pack or two to prevent the soap from drawing too much moisture from the air.

See how easy it is to make your own hygiene products? Well, this turned out rather well, if I can say so myself. In fact, this project gave me enough confidence to try out some other stuff. I have this buddy of mine who uses natural glycerin and herbs to make ointments and beauty cream. Maybe I’ll try a recipe or two and let you know how it turned up.

0 Comments

Power’s out; car won’t start, pantry’s empty – anything can happen. You either need to learn how to make do without or to take the high road which, in this