IT WORKED! A great homemade laundy detergent!

Yesterday I blogged about my attempt at preparing homemade laundry detergent. I have seen several variations online and I think I found one that is pretty amazing. I was skeptical, I must admit. The idea that this little amount of ingredients would render the same quality of detergent as store brands had me raising an eyebrow. Well... I am a convert! Thanks to the amazing talents of MiMi-nuc (my mother and ilinnuc's grandmother) we were able to create something that smells amazing... and totally works!

Here is how we did it!

Ingredients:
20 Mule Borax
Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
Fells Naptha
Ivory Soap

Tools
2 large boilers
5 Gallon Bucket with lid
large plastic spoon for stirring
*optional: Power Drill and large mixer attachment

Step 1:

Place 4 Cups of water in a boiler along with the shredded or grated Fels Naptha and Ivory soap.  Heat contents over low-medium heat until soap has melted. It should have a custard like appearance.

Step 2:
Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full with hot water. My water doesn't heat up enough so I bring it almost to a boil on my stove top and add it to the bucket.


Step 3:
Pour the melted soap mixture into the 5 gallon bucket.



Step 4:
Add 1/2 cup of Borax and 1 cup of washing soda to the water and melted soap mixture.
                                                      Step 5:
Thoroughly mix the concoction. I used a power drill and mixing attachment I had. I just refinished my bathroom and used it to mix up the grout. =)

Step 6:
Fill the bucket with hot water until the bucket is full. Cover with the lid and... walk away. It will take 24 hours to set up.
Step 7: 
After 24 hours fill a container half full with the detergent and half full with hot water, and SHAKE! You must shake the detergent before every use.

Tip:
I used an old detergent container I had. I waited to make this until I was almost out of detergent. It works PERFECTLY!

The detergent has a lemon scent that smells clean and wonderful. If you like you can add 20-25 drops of essential oil into the mixture after you add the melted soap. Scents I recommend are lavender, orange or peppermint. Peppermint is a strong essential oil so only 15 or so drops are needed.

Cost breakdown:
Fels Naptha: $0.97
Ivory Soap (3 pack): $1.33
Borax: $3.39
Arm & Hammer Washing Soda: $2.98
5 Gallon Bucket with lid from Lowes: $4.32

Each batch costs roughly $1.60. It makes with is 10 Gallons of detergent. I don't think that sounds TOO bad!!! =)