Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Laundry detergent



This all started with sour smelling towels. We would use our towels for 2 days and they would smell moldy. Well, after some research, I found out that most detergents don't rinse out completely. So the moldy smell came from soap that had accumulated over time. I tried adding vinegar, which did not resolve my problem. I had a recipe to make my own detergent. I didn't expect the outcome to be this good. We only use this detergent now, my family has been using it for three years. A week ago, I ran out of it and was looking for the ingredients, I didn't find everything that night at the store. So, in a pinch I brought some detergent to hold us over. It was instant! The laundry did not smell or feel as clean. My husband even noticed! This stuff is good. You do need to treat stains with this detergent (most detergents have harsh chemicals to get out stains, most of the time they get out a few stains, but I always needed to use a stain spray even with Tide, Surf and Gain). So now I use 2 tablespoon of the detergent, a capful of downy and spray and wash on my stains and everything comes out smelling and looking good!

Okay, this is what you need.

-a big container, one that holds a couple of gallons (Mine holds 33 cups)

- Food processor, large knife,  a spoon,

- 4 bars of Fels-Naptha soap

- a box of Borax 4lbs 12oz

- Super Washing Soda 3lb 7oz

- That little cup from the NyQuil container, it measures 2 tablespoons or 1 oz (that's what you need per load, no more!)

You can find these ingredients at Kroger's. I've also seen them at Walmart and Meijer's. Look for sales. My bill for everything was $11.41, that was without any sales. This batch will last me almost a year.

Okay Let's make it! Get your container ready, make sure it has a lid. Mix the Borax and Super Washing Soda together, set aside. Cut up the bars of soap into small 1 inch blocks, put the blocks of soap into the food processor. Don't worry, remember it's just soap, the same thing you wash your dishes with. Pulse until the soap is a little smaller than pea size. Mix all the ingredients together in your container with the spoon. That's it! Use only two tablespoons per wash. Don't worry it will be clean! Shake up the detergent from time to time before using. It keeps forever! Enjoy!


Have a wonderful Vintage Day!


Gina