Concentrated Homemade Laundry Soap
A few months ago you may remember that I made my first batch of homemade laundry soap. In my first attempt I felt my original soap recipe was a bit too runny and I wanted to try the process again
In this new batch of soap, I made a more concentrated soap by using less water. It’s still liquidy but not so watery which I like much better. I tweaked the original recipe and this is my newest recipe for a more concentrated homemade laundry soap.
Supplies:
Large metal cooking pot at least 4 quarts or bigger
2 gallon plastic bucket for final soap container
1/2 bar of Fels-Naptha laundry soap
1/2 cup Arm & Hammer washing soda
1/2 cup 20 Mule Team borax powder
6-7 drops of essential oil (Optional)
Directions:
Grate 1/2 of the bar of Fels-Naptha soap and place in cooking pot. Add 6 cups water and heat gently over low to medium-low heat stirring occasionally until the soap melts. Turn heat to low, add the washing soda and the borax stirring until all ingredients are dissolved.
Pour 4 cups of very hot water into the plastic bucket. Now quickly add the cooked soap mixture to the plastic bucket mix and stir well. I added 6-7 drops of lemon essential oil to the mix at this point. This is an optional ingredient but the bit of oil gave my final soap just a hint of fragrance. Now add 1 gallon of hot water to the plastic bucket mix and stir well again. Let the soap mixture sit at least 24 hours to gel.
This recipe resulted in a much less watery soap mix and I use 1/3 cup of soap in my top-loading large washer. For best results I place the soap in the washer and use a little hot water to dissolve the soap before placing my clothes into the washer. As a reminder this soap can be used for stain treatments by either pre-soaking or spot treat the stain directly with a small amount of soap before washing.
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Tags: clothes washing, homemade laundry soap, laundry-soap, soap, soap-making
Nov 11, 2011
This is a good post, I should share this method in our women’s bimonthly meeting. We are given a task to share homemade things to our fellow women in the community.
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Nov 16, 2011
My sister swears by this recipe! She even convinced me to make it and I love it. It makes the whole house smell amazing. I got desperate and even used it to mop the floors
Dec 29, 2011
I have been making my own laundry soap using the same ingredients you listed for a few years now. I didn’t want to mess with the cooking and water, so I make a powdered version. I blend it together in the blender so it is very fine and dissolves in the washer.
Jan 26, 2012
I was wondering if you can answer a question for me: Do you still get a bit of ‘water’ at the top? I wish I could get it all t congele. Any suggestions?
Jan 27, 2012
Tami — Yes I still have some water stuff but it’s just really soap so its okay for me. I don’t know if there is any way to completely get rid of it unless you whip it in a food processor as I have seen one person do in a post. But for me its fine and it cleans my clothes great. I just made my second batch of this and love it.