Homemade Laundry Detergent

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This Homemade Laundry Detergent Could Potentially Save You Hundreds of Dollars a Year

Homemade laundry detergent is probably one of the most popular and prolific diy recipes on the internet. Why? Because people get tired of seeing their grocery bill jump upwards of $15.00 just for a box of detergent. Also, some people prefer to make their own green detergent to reduce the toxic load in their home. My personal reason was to cut down on expense.

Why I Started Making Homemade Laundry Detergent

We have four children, and when they were all younger, I had to do four loads of laundry a day to stay on top of things. Yes, you read that correctly, FOUR LOADS! One of darks, one of lights, one of towels, and a load of whites to bleach. Now, you can imagine that this was a pretty hefty expense, and one I was none too thrilled about. However, all that changed when a friend of mine told me she had started making her own detergent.

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Now, to be quite honest, I was highly skeptical of “homemade” detergent. I had tried other diy cleaners in the past and at that point in time, and hadn’t been very impressed. But, after she assured me that it worked great, I decided to give it a try.

Her recipe was for a liquid detergent. To be honest with you, it wasn’t great. It didn’t seem to be rinsing out of the clothes very well and it kept getting clumpy. However, it got me to thinking, so I started experimenting with my own recipe for a powdered detergent. It took several tries, but I finally created one that has excellent cleaning power, smells fantastic and will save you a TON of money.

Before I go any further I need to make something clear. This is not a “green recipe”. You can make it green by leaving out the Gain and OxiClean. It will make a smaller batch, but you could just double all of the other ingredients to increase the amount.

Store Bought Price Breakdown

So I’ve told you that this recipe will save you a lot of money, but let’s do a breakdown so you can see for yourself. Here is what your average cost and actual number of loads come to for a large box of name brand laundry detergent.

• Price – $13.00 – $22.00 for a large box of detergent
• *120 loads per box

Do you see that little star in front of the 120 loads? Well, there is also one on your box of detergent. When you look at the corresponding information on the detergent box, you’ll find that you will only get 120 loads out of that box if you fill your scoop to the bottom line. Most laundry scoops have five lines on them. Most people are going to fill their scoop to the fifth line for a full load of laundry. So now you have to divide the 120 loads by five, giving you 24 loads of laundry from a large box of detergent. When my children were small, a large box of detergent lasted me six whole days. I was spending somewhere between $52.00-$88.00 per month on laundry detergent!

Homemade Detergent Price Breakdown

Now let’s do a breakdown of my homemade detergent using Walmart prices in 2024.

• Powdered Gain – $18.77
• Borax – $5.97
• Super Washing Soda – $5.38
• OxiClean – $14.98
• 3 Bars of Fels Naptha Laundry Soap – $1.78 each
• Total = $50.44

You can already see how much money you can save from the price breakdown above, but here’s the best part. This detergent is so concentrated that you only need to use 1/4 cup per load! My recipe will make enough detergent to fill a five gallon bucket about 5″ from the top. Now I haven’t ever actually counted the number of loads I get out of one recipe, but doing four loads of laundry a day, this lasted me 2-3 months. Now that my children are older, I only make detergent every 3-4 months! If you go halfway between those numbers and assume it lasts 3 months, you are spending about $16.81 a month on detergent. Pretty great, right?

A Five Gallon Bucket Makes A Great Storage Container

In the past I’ve had people ask me why I put Gain (sometimes Tide) in my detergent. My children LOVED to play outside when they were small. This meant a lot of dirt, mud and grass stains. The Gain, along with the OxiClean gave it more cleaning power for tough stains. It also makes it smell amazing!

To make your homemade laundry detergent, you’ll want a clean five gallon bucket. Add about 1/4 of each product at a time, mixing well after each addition.

Beware of The Grated Cheese Deception!

A word of warning. When you grate up the laundry soap, keep it out of reach or out of sight until it’s added into the detergent. At some point all four of my children thought it was grated cheese in a bowl, and promptly popped it in their mouth! Even my husband had a close call….. 🤢

If you have trouble finding the Fels Naptha Soap, try looking on the bottom shelves in the laundry aisle of your local supermarket. Not sure why, but that’s where it’s most often located. If it’s not available, another brand of laundry soap should work just as well.

Laundry Soap Only, Please!

While we’re on the subject of soap, please DO NOT USE BATH SOAP IN YOUR DETERGENT! Trust me, this leads to a big problem. Bath soap is not made for laundry and it will build up on your clothes making them dingy and keeping them from coming clean.

Laundry Treatment To The Rescue!

If you have unknowingly already done this, then you’re going to want to purchase a laundry treatment to strip the soap out of your clothes. Just put your laundry in the washer, or bathtub if you prefer, and use the hottest water recommended for the clothes or items you are treating. Add the treatment and using plastic gloves to protect your hands, swish the laundry around to make sure it’s getting the full benefit of the treatment. Allow to soak for an hour and then launder as usual.

GroVia Mighty Bubbles Deep Clean Laundry Treatment

I hope you enjoy this easy homemade laundry detergent. It has saved us hundreds of dollars in unnecessary costs through the years. I have to share something this good and I hope it helps your family like it has mine! If you have any questions, please contact me. I’m always happy to help!