You already know what laundry detergents are. What you might not have guessed is how to make them. Yeah, you can carry out DIY laundry detergent processes right there in the comfort of your home.
Many artificial chemicals and items are used in making these laundry materials.
So, many people would prefer to produce natural homemade recipes which have the same if not better efficacy than regular laundry detergents.
Some laundry detergents might be expensive, so you can actually save some cash making your type and scent of laundry detergents.
Steps to Making Laundry Detergents
These recipes can help you explore new ways to make your own laundry detergent.
The ingredients are easy to come by and may be found in any grocery store.
Making Liquid Laundry Detergent
Liquid laundry detergents are the types you’ll probably see in the grocery store. They’re quite effective in removing stains. To make yours, you can use this recipe.
Ingredients
- A bowl of heated water
- 240 ml of Borax
- 250 ml of washing soda
- A bottle of essential oil
- A bar of soap (coconut soap)
- Rubber gloves
- Measuring cups
Method
- To make liquid laundry detergents, the first thing you might want to do is to get a bowl of heated water.
- Then get a bar of soap you would like to use, crush it and add it to the bowl of heated water. Afterward, stir the mixture.
- Ensure you stir the mixture thoroughly to allow the mixture to mix properly.
- After stirring it, get a measuring cup and measure about a cup of both washing soda and borax and mix in another bowl.
- The Borax acts as a stain remover since it’s alkaline to eliminate stains caused by acids.
- Add the mixture in bowl 2 to the thoroughly stirred mixture in bowl 1 and also stir properly.
- After it has acquired a liquid form, you can add maybe 2 cups of essential oil laden with your favorite scent and leave it to cool for about 35 minutes.
- Now you’ve got your custom-made laundry detergent.
- Ensure that while you do all this, you wear safety gloves because some of the ingredients like Borax can irritate the skin on contact.
Making Powdered Laundry Detergents
Like its liquid counterpart, the powdered form of laundry detergent performs over a wider surface area of laundry.
Just follow these steps below to make them.
Ingredients
- A can of baking soda
- A bar of soap (you can use coconut soap or Sal suds)
- 2 cups of washing soda
- Rubber gloves
- A measuring cup
- A large bowl
- A can of scent booster
Method
- First, you’ll need to get your gloves on to prevent any irritation from bare contact with the ingredients.
- Next up, get a large bowl and set it on the table next to the materials you’ll make use of.
- Now, get a soap bar (either Sal suds or Coconut soap) and crush it to a more powdery form in the bowl.
- After doing that, then measure 1½ cups of baking soda and add it to the powdery soap in the bowl.
- Also, measure a cup of washing soda and add it to the mixture.
- Stir the detergent mixture thoroughly for about 20 minutes or you can shake the bowl constantly. But be careful not to let any of its contents spill to the floor.
- Then you can add your scent booster to give it the unique scent that you prefer.
Making Laundry Detergent Tablets/Pods
Laundry detergent Pods are quite different from conventional detergents. They are more like capsules with higher concentrations and also tend to perform more than the other two forms.
To make this by yourself, you can try this method.
Ingredients
- A cup of Baking soda
- A bottle of Vinegar
- A molding object (preferably an ice cube tray)
- A measuring cup
- 250 ml of washing soda
- A bowl of heated water
Method
- If you’ve already got a homemade powdery laundry detergent, then you’ll just add it to the steps listed below.
- If you do not, you can try out the recipe above to create a homemade laundry detergent.
- To create a laundry detergent tablet/pod, get a bowl and pour the powdery laundry detergent if you’ve got it, and stir it gently.
- Then take a little amount of vinegar (preferably white vinegar) and sprinkle it on the powder to make it clump together.
- Then knead the mixture and put it into a molding object. I’ll recommend you use ice trays due to the easiness of removing the tablets.
- You can let the mixture dry for 45 minutes to 2 hours after putting it inside the molding object, depending on the quantity.
- And that’s it. Pods for your laundry detergent
So, you can see you do not have to be well versed in chemistry or science to create your laundry detergent.
Why Should I DIY Make Laundry Detergents?
Since many of these laundry detergents contain lots of artificial chemicals, they are not a fond choice for individuals who want to get laundry materials that meet their expectations, health, and quality wise.
Let’s examine some reasons why you should make laundry detergents.
- They might just save you some extra cash
You’ll agree with me that making your own laundry detergent is pretty easy once you get the right ingredients.
When you go to get an already processed laundry detergent from a grocery store, they might come expensive.
So why not try out your own type and save some cash along with it.
- They are eco friendly
If you’re a campaigner for a cleaner, healthier and greener environment, you might want to think about DIY making laundry detergents.
Some regular detergents contain chemicals that might not be decomposable and therefore harmful to the environment.
Chemicals such as phenols and sulfates mainly compose many laundry detergents.
With homemade laundry detergents, you can use materials like baking soda, and vinegar that is ecologically sustainable and also gives your laundry better wash action.
- You can use them in HE washers
You cannot just use any laundry detergent for HE washers unless you want to cause their breakdown.
Adding regular laundry detergents to HE washers causes an accumulation of foam and detergent residues.
HE front and top-loading washing machines, on the other hand, can utilize homemade laundry detergents. It’s more like a high-efficiency detergent.
Simply measure a cup of homemade detergent and pour it into your washer before loading your clothing.
- You can customize your scent
Some laundry detergents tend to leave some kind of artificial smell on laundry after wash. You can change the way your laundry smells by tailoring your homemade laundry detergents to your taste.
Components of homemade laundry detergents like baking soda help to remove any unpleasant odor that might arise.
Essential oils which come in different scents also give your laundry a unique type of scent.
How Do I Store My Homemade Laundry Detergent?
Just like any other laundry materials, proper storage of laundry detergents equals longer-lasting and effective laundry detergents.
It’s necessary to properly store your homemade laundry detergents in areas that are out of reach to little kids if you do not want them to get poisoned. Especially the laundry detergent tablet/Pods that look like little candies.
If they’re not airtight, the powdered detergents might get hardened and might not be suitable for machine washing.
So, when you’re storing them, ensure you seal them properly and keep them in cool, dry areas of the laundry room at room temperature say 74-77°Farenheit.