My Laundry Soap Recipe

By popular demand, I'm sharing my homemade laundry recipe! Before making an investment in equipment, I recommend trying a smaller batch first. All in all, each batch leaves me with at least 10 gallons of liquid laundry detergent depending on how concentrated I make it. It generally averages out to about fifty cents per gallon for me, without a ton of work.

Equipment:
Shredder
Large pot (Does not need to be exclusively for soap making)
Slotted spoon
Five gallon bucket with tight-fitting lid (My aluminum one was $25 at a local hardware store- well worth the investment!
10 or more empty gallon containers (Ice cream and vinegar containers work especially well.)
Whisk (if you have one)
Large funnel

Ingredients:
1 bar of Fels Naptha Soap
4 (ish) cups of hot tap water (use distilled if this will be stored for more than a couple months)
1 cup washing soda
1/2 cup borax
Your choice of essential oils (optional)
     * I use 100 drops of lavender and 25 drops of lemon essential oil. It adds a slight scent to the actual detergent but no after-smell.

1. Unwrap the bar of soap and set out for a few days. This dries it out a bit and makes it easier to shave.
2. Plop down in front of a good movie and shave your bar of soap down, or enlist the help of nearby munchkins or an unsuspecting hubby. There are other ways to prep your soap (hammer, microwave, blender, etc) but this comes out best for me when I shave it.
3. Heat water over medium heat, slowly stirring in shaved soap. As it melts into the water, slowly add more until it is completely disintegrated. I find this works most effectively for me, using a slotted spoon, though I have tried dumping it all together.
4. When completely melted, turn off burner and stir in washing soda and borax.
5. Stir til well blended.
6. If you are using essential oils, add now and stir well.
7. Pour mixture into a five gallon bucket.
8. Fill with water up to about five inches from top. Be sure to do this- if it sloshes out onto the floor, you WILL fall!
9. Stir well.
10. Top with lid and let set overnight.
11. The next morning, it should look pretty globby and rather disgusting. If not, let it sit longer and make sure you didn't forget any ingredients.
12. Stir. Stir. Stir. Whisk if you have it. Stir some more.
13. Eventually it will be glob-less. Pat yourself on the back.
14. Divide the mixture up between your containers, filling in with water. Be sure to put most of the water in before hand otherwise it bubbles and you have to wait for the bubbles to go down.
15. Leave a bit of room at the top of each container for when you shake it.
16. Shake all containers now, and before each use. (Stirring is OK too.)

For my front loader I use about 1/4 cup per full load, add a bit more for especially filthy loads. My husband likes to use more when he doesn't need to, so I water it down for his laundry detergent (Shhh!). 

Try it out and let me know how it works! We use vinegar as fabric softener, so the clothes just end up smelling clean. And most importantly, I'm not allergic to it!