After reading 100+ comments from our readers we realized that not everyone is used to making their own detergents, cleaners, and soaps- so I set out to figure out a way to make the recipe Fool-Proof for those that may be.. domestically challenged (or just plain too busy to spend time Cooking their own Detergent!)
Thus,
Below you'll see that I've broken down this 1 recipe into 2 different methods- the recipe is the same- the preparation is slightly different, the end result is the same. I guess what I'm trying to tell you is that this is not Brain Surgery- it's like any other recipe, it can be made a thousand different ways and still come out great, that's the beauty of it! Find a method that works best for you and go with it.
You'll Need:
1 Entire 5.05oz Bar of Fels Naptha Soap
3 c. water
1 cup 20 Mule Team Borax Powder
1 cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (not Baking Soda)
2 (1 qt) Mason Jars
Optional:
30 drops Essential Oil of your choice such as Lavender, Jasmine, etc
How to Make Super Laundry Sauce for Dummies Detergent: Method #1
Unwrap the Fels Naptha soap and cut the bar in half. Take (1) half of the bar and slice it, cutting it into pea-sized chunks. Place all of those chunks into a 1 qt mason Jar. Cut up the other half and place those pieces in the
Add 1 1/2 cups of Boiling Hot Water to each jar, cover and leave it alone overnight. I literally just run a pot of water through my coffee pot and use that. This is what it will look like in the morning if you cut the pieces up first:
The next day (or several days down the road, depending on your schedule!), open the jar, use a butter knife to make a "criss-cross" pattern to loosen the gelled fels naphtha off the bottom when you whip it. Add 1/2 cup borax and 1/2 cup washing soda to each jar.
At this point, if you'd like to add a scent to the sauce, directly add your essential oil(s). We've found lavender or jasmine to work quite well.
Add Enough Hot water to bring the level up to the "shoulder" of the Jar, (again, I actually just ran a pot of water through my coffee pot, because boiling water is a pain in the butt!) like so:
Note the Purple line to indicate the level your water should be at before you continue to the next step...
Carefully
Place the jar on the blender base and Whip until it is light and fluffy with the consistency of Creamy Mayonnaise.
How to Make Super Laundry Sauce for Dummies Detergent: Method #2
This was my "speed" method the first time around . . .
Unwrap the bar of Fels Naptha soap and cut it into chunks. Place those chunks in a Ziploc baggie and add 2 cups of water. It doesn't have to be hot or cold, just your basic plain old tap water will do fine. Remove as much of the air as possible from the bag and seal it shut. (This takes all of 30 seconds).
Set it aside for 48 hours.
Once the fels naptha has set for 48 hours (or more- it's fine if you forget it for a few days) Gently palpate the bag -squeezing any lumps to squish them. You want the contents of the baggie to
In a medium-size bowl combine borax and washing soda powder. Add 2 cups of boiling water and stir well to combine. We simply heated the water in the microwave in a pyrex measuring cup for 2 minutes.
Snip the corner of the baggie off and squeeze the fels naptha into the mixing bowl containing the dissolved borax/washing soda. Mix well with a spoon or spatula or a whisk- whatever you happen to have on hand will work just fine. (this takes about a minute)
Pour the mixture evenly into 2 ( One Quart) mason jars. Add enough water to bring the contents of each jar up to the "shoulder" of the jar, so that it looks like this:
Unscrew the blade and bottom from your blender and carefully seat the gasket and blade on the jar, then screw on the bottom piece. If you neglect to make sure your gasket is lined up properly, it will get chewed up by the blade when you whip the contents of the jar, consider yourself forewarned.
Put the jar onto the blender and whip until smooth and creamy throughout.
The detergent is Smooth and creamy with the same Look and consistency of Mayonnaise. This is what it looks like after it's whipped:
Unscrew the blender blade, attach a canning jar lid and cover and that's all there is to it! You've just made enough Heavy Duty Laundry Detergent to wash 128 Loads of Laundry for about $1.76 and in less than 10 minutes flat.
By the way, it is smooth and creamy like mayonnaise after it is freshly whipped, but will thicken as it sets and must be stored with a cover on. A repurposed parmesan cheese lid works perfectly. (Thank you to Southern Belle for this great tip!)
How to Use the Homemade Super Laundry Sauce for Dummies: (View FAQ here)
To use, add 1 Tablespoon to a load of laundry in any type
Be sure to label the jar to prevent accidental ingestion!! We have created these cute labels here if you'd like to Print them out to attach to your own Jars.
Here is EXACTLY how I use our detergent:
- Fill the machine with dirty clothes
- start the water, (hot- Cold- or warm- doesn't matter)
- Measure out 1 Tablespoon (literally) of super laundry sauce
- stick the measuring spoon of detergent under the running water, let it fall off the spoon.
- Close the washer lid, go away and do something else while the machine runs.
Tips and Tricks, Troubleshooting & Other Thoughts and experiences:
- Do
NOT Use Baking Soda or Oxyclean in this recipe hoping it will be an added "Boost". Your jars will likely explode within 7-10 days in storage
- This can be stored indefinitely. It does become slightly firmer but still melts fine in the washing machine water, both hot or cold. Be sure to store it with a lid on though, once it dries out, it's effectiveness is greatly reduced. Again, repurpose the lid from a container of parmesan cheese and you'll be good to go!
- Fels Naptha Can usually be found in the Laundry Detergent Isle of the Grocery Store for about $1 a bar, or it can be found online here.
Budget101 Budget Breakdown:
Fels Naptha .99 bar
Borax 76 oz box = 9.5 cups $3.29 box = .34 c per cup
Washing Soda 55 oz box =6.875 cups - $2.97 box = .43 per cup
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Total Expense for 128 loads of Laundry
We're really hoping that you find these 2 different "speed" methods to be easier and less time consuming for you!
See Also the Super Laundry Sauce Frequently Asked Questions FAQ
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