Save Money on Laundry: Simple Steps to Homemade Laundry Detergent
Create your own affordable, clean, and easy homemade laundry detergent to meet all your laundry needs! Using just four simple and effective ingredients, you’ll save money while having peace of mind knowing exactly what’s in your home products. Say goodbye to store-bought alternatives and hello to a cost-effective solution that works wonders for your laundry!
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I’m on a journey to replace chemical-laden cleaning products with simpler alternatives that contain fewer ingredients, easily sourced from home or your local store. This transition not only promotes a healthier living environment but also empowers me to take control of what I use in my home.
This laundry powder recipe involves 4 simple ingredients: baking soda, washing soda, borax, and bar soap.
Ingredients For Homemade Laundry
Baking Soda
Baking soda, scientifically known as sodium bicarbonate, is a white powder that is commonly used as a leavening agent in baking.
It effectively absorbs and neutralizes odours, leaving clothes smelling fresh and it can help lift stains from fabrics, especially when combined with water. It acts as a gentle abrasive, making it useful for scrubbing tough stains without damaging the fabric.
Baking soda can soften hard water, which improves the effectiveness of detergents and helps them work better. It also helps to balance the pH levels in the wash, making detergents more effective and preventing colours from fading.
Buy baking soda here.
Washing Soda
Washing soda, also known as sodium carbonate or soda ash, is a white, odourless powder that is commonly used as a cleaning agent.
You can make washing soda by baking baking soda in the oven at 400°F for 30 minutes.
Its alkaline nature helps to break down grease, oil, and tough stains, making it effective in removing dirt and grime from fabrics and helps neutralize odours in clothes. Its alkaline properties can also help kill bacteria and allergens, providing a deeper clean for laundry.
It softens hard water which allows detergents to work more effectively. Washing soda can help maintain the brightness of coloured fabrics by preventing mineral build-up from hard water.
Buy washing soda here.
Borax
Also known as sodium borate, borax is a white, powdery mineral that has a variety of uses in cleaning, laundry, and even some industrial applications.
Borax enhances the cleaning power of laundry detergents, making it effective for lifting tough stains from fabrics. Borax has mild antibacterial and anti-fungal properties, which can help reduce germs and allergens in laundry. This also helps neutralize odours, leaving clothes smelling fresh by combating the bacteria that can cause unpleasant smells.
Borax is alkaline and also acts as a water softener. This allows detergents to work more effectively, improving overall cleaning performance. It can help whiten and brighten white fabrics, reducing greying and dinginess over time.
Buy borax here.
Bar Soap
You can use most kinds of basic bar soaps such as castile, ivory, or Fels-Naptha.
Bar soap helps lift dirt and grease from fabrics, improving the overall cleaning effectiveness of the detergent. The fatty acids in bar soap can help break down tough stains, making it easier to remove them during the wash cycle.
Bar soap can create suds, which can help collect dirt and grime, making it easier for them to be rinsed away during the wash. Some bar soaps can have fabric-softening properties, leaving clothes feeling softer after washing. Many bar soaps come in a variety of fragrances, which can give a pleasant scent to your laundry.
Buy Fels-Naptha here.
Essential Oils (optional)
You can use any of your favourite scents! I chose lavender and lemon for this batch but you can use any essential oil or a blend.
Orange and pine, lavender and lemon, eucalyptus and mint or vanilla and sage are some lovely blends for homemade laundry powder!
Homemade Laundry Detergent Cost Breakdown
1000g borax + 1000g washing soda + 1000g baking soda + 500g bar soap = 3500g
At 30g per load: 3500g ÷ 30 = 116 loads
At $20 CAD for ingredients: $20 ÷ 116 = $0.17 per load
Homemade Powdered Laundry Detergent: $0.17 per load
Tide Pods: $0.29 per load
Gain Pods: $0.26 per load
Homemade laundry detergent is cheaper and uses cleaner, simpler, household ingredients vs. conventional laundry detergent.
The only exception is Arm & Hammer Laundry Detergent that is kind of the best of both worlds. It’s $0.12 a load and the ingredients are less toxic than your conventional brands. I would consider this product if I were to forgo making my own.
Does This Homemade Detergent Work In High-Efficiency (HE) Washers?
Yes, it does!
How Much Detergent Do I Use Per Load?
About 1-2 Tbsp for a regular load or 3-4 Tbsp for a large load.
Recipe
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I have an HE washer and had to check to see if this home made soap was ok for the machine ~ it is. Something you may want to mention in your post??? :)))))))
Oh good! Will do, thanks!