Poll on laundry soap

eggs4sale

Lush who can't use a cheese grater
Joined
Jul 20, 2009
Messages
263
Reaction score
0
Points
84
1. What is your favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?


2. What is your least favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?


3. What is your favorite store-bought laundry soap?


4. Have you ever had any of these gunk up or damage your washing machine?


5. Have you converted friends and family to your choice of laundry soap?
 

keljonma

Epicurean Goddess
Joined
Sep 10, 2008
Messages
5,288
Reaction score
13
Points
257
Location
Garden Zone 8A Texas
eggs4sale said:
1. What is your favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?
1 bar Fels Naptha
2/3 cup Borax
2/3 cup Washing Soda
24 quarts water

I make laundry soap once a year. :D I store it in old plastic detergent jugs or in quart canning jars.

eggs4sale said:
2. What is your least favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?
I've only made one recipe and it is the one I first tried and have stuck with.

eggs4sale said:
3. What is your favorite store-bought laundry soap?
Back in the day, Cheer.

eggs4sale said:
4. Have you ever had any of these gunk up or damage your washing machine?
Not yet - using the homemade for 2 years now. Instead of fabric softener I use a half and half mix of water and white vinegar. I have been doing that for 10 years.


eggs4sale said:
5. Have you converted friends and family to your choice of laundry soap?
Yes, 4 friends of mine from church tried the homemade (I gave them 1 quart canning jars as samples) and now they make their own laundry soap. Three more women just bought some homemade laundry soap from me at $3/quart. My guess is I'll be getting requests for the recipe.


edited for typo
 

eggs4sale

Lush who can't use a cheese grater
Joined
Jul 20, 2009
Messages
263
Reaction score
0
Points
84
keljonma said:
Yes, 4 friends of mine from church tried the homemade (I gave them 1 quart canning jars as samples) and now they make their own laundry soap. Three more women just bought some homemade laundry soap from me at $3/quart. My guess is I'll be getting requests for the recipe.
Love it!!!!!
 

freemotion

Food Guru
Joined
Jan 1, 2009
Messages
10,817
Reaction score
90
Points
317
Location
Southwick, MA
eggs4sale said:
1. What is your favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?
1/2 c each borax and washing soda, 1/3 bar fels naptha grated and melted, 2 gallons water. White vinegar in the rinse dispenser.

My water seems to be a culprit here for laundry difficulties. Thanks to this forum, I now add a tablespoon of bleach, diluted well, to every load and it works just fine, no more funky smells on my clothes.
eggs4sale said:
2. What is your least favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?
Ummm........homemade soap instead of fels naptha didn't work with my city water.


eggs4sale said:
3. What is your favorite store-bought laundry soap?
None anymore! Unscented liquid, if I must.



eggs4sale said:
4. Have you ever had any of these gunk up or damage your washing machine?
Nope.



eggs4sale said:
5. Have you converted friends and family to your choice of laundry soap?
I have given baggies with the dry mixture and a print-out of directions as gifts. I use them as little prizes for the students at the massage school where I teach a class once a week, and print out enough instruction sheets for everyone. Many converts!
 

sylvie

Recycled Spunk
Joined
Dec 1, 2008
Messages
1,881
Reaction score
3
Points
123
I am not thrilled with any of the laundry soap recipes so far. At least not for white fabrics. I have whites getting dingier with each load. I think I am going back to a name brand soap and oxyclean for those, and use the homemade for colors. I must have white white for work.
 

sufficientforme

Almost Self-Reliant
Joined
Oct 8, 2008
Messages
969
Reaction score
0
Points
104
I use
2 C Borax
2 C A&H washing soda
1/2 bar of Fels Naptha
and either of the following added for white loads (this amount for a whole batch of soap, not per load)
1 C of oxyclean
or
1 C of color safe bleach
I do not make it liquid, just use as a powder.
Vinegar in the rinse (have a stainless wash tub in my machine, I have been told it will take the finish off of painted barrels and cause rust)

Never had any build up, nor adverse reactions, and have been using successfully for over a year.

My favorite store bought brand is Wisk, but don't ever buy anymore.
and as for converting others, I freely give out the recipe and I make up little samplers to include in Christmas baskets along with some soapnuts this year.

The ingredients are so cheap, really if you end up hating it, I clean my toilets and many household items with Borax, and the rest of the ingredients can be used as "boosters" for regular detergent etc. I think I am not sure what others pay for the individual ingredients but this is what I get them for:
Borax 2.49
washing soda 2.79
fels bar 1.29
Color safe bleach is 2.69 a box
Oxyclean is only bought if it's on sale. It is not something I would be willing to pay full price for.
 

BeccaOH

Almost Self-Reliant
Joined
Nov 3, 2008
Messages
1,225
Reaction score
0
Points
124
Location
east central Ohio
1. What is your favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?

The powered version
2 cups Fels Naptha Soap (finely grated - you could also try the other bar soaps listed at the top)
1 cup Washing Soda
1 cup Borax
approx. 10 drops of essential oil (orange or lavender)
Mix well and store in an airtight plastic container.
Use 2 tablespoons per full load.
Sometimes I add a little scoop of Oxiclean to boost the stain fighting ability on whites.
I add about 1/2 cup white vinegar to the rinse cycle.

2. What is your least favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?
The above is the only one I've tried.

3. What is your favorite store-bought laundry soap?
Tide

4. Have you ever had any of these gunk up or damage your washing machine?
Not yet.

5. Have you converted friends and family to your choice of laundry soap?
Yes, many. I gave the recipe with 2 little baggies of the soap out at Christmastime.
 

Wifezilla

Low-Carb Queen - RIP: 1963-2021
Joined
Jan 3, 2009
Messages
8,928
Reaction score
16
Points
270
Location
Colorado
1. What is your favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?
I use the powdered version
2 cups grated zote soap
1 cup washing soda
1 cup borax
2 cups salt (I have hard water)

2. What is your least favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?
I have only tried two. The same as above but without the salt. Works better with the salt.

3. What is your favorite store-bought laundry soap?
I used to buy Purex

4. Have you ever had any of these gunk up or damage your washing machine?
Nope

5. Have you converted friends and family to your choice of laundry soap?
They already think I am nuts for having ducks. I haven't said a WORD about my homemade laundry soap :p
 

Beekissed

Mountain Sage
Joined
Jul 11, 2008
Messages
12,774
Reaction score
3,934
Points
437
Location
Mountains of WV
eggs4sale said:
1. What is your favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?
1/2 bar FelsNaptha
1/3 c. Borax
1/3 c. Washing Soda
6 qts. water
Grate soap on cheese grater, add it and other ingredients to water, heat until soap is melted, stirring occasionally. Divide mixture between two gallon jugs, add water to fill, shake well and let sit 24 hr., shake well before using. I use plastic laundry detergent jugs for this and keep three on hand. When two are empty at the same time, I make another batch...always having one from which to use while the detergent gels overnight.

2. What is your least favorite homemade laundry soap recipe?

This is the only one I've tried and am quite content.

3. What is your favorite store-bought laundry soap?

Used to be Arm and Hammer, unscented.


4. Have you ever had any of these gunk up or damage your
washing machine?

Nope...been using it for 3 years now.

5. Have you converted friends and family to your choice of laundry soap?
My mother, my aunt and two sisters are now using this recipe. The ladies at church want me to make it and sell to them also, but I've not gotten around to it yet.
Don't use fabric softener and use dryer balls for the dryer....have had the same set for 3 years now also. Nice to have soft, unscented laundry for a fraction of the price that others are spending. :)
 

Latest posts

Top