OPERATION CHRISTMAS CHILD 2012

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Works For Me Wednesday: Homemade Detergent



In an effort to stretch our dollars as far as they can go, I have been researching (translation: spending too much time on Pinterest) the many different "recipes" to make your own detergent.  There are the "wet" recipes and the "dry" recipes.  After reading about both, I decided to go with the dry mix.

Here are the ingredients:  Total Cost - $17.75

1 4 lb 12 oz box Borax (2.15 kg or 76 oz) found in the detergent aisle


1 4 lb box Arm & Hammer Baking Soda (1.81 kg) found in the cooking aisle

1  box Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda 55 oz (3 lb 7 oz) found in the detergent aisle

3 bars of Fels-Naptha soap, found in the detergent aisle

2 small containers of Oxy Clean or store brand Oxy Clean (try to get about 3.5 lbs total (1.58 kg)) found in the detergent isle.    
(this is optional, I added it into mine because I have a pretty messy grandson and husband)

Toss all ingredients in a 5 gallon bucket lined with a garbage bag. Use a Heavy Duty Trash Bag. Less of a chance for tearing while mixing.

definitely use a heavy duty trash bag

open and dump

The grating goes quick

looks like shredded cheese!


This part makes your whole house smell great. Once everything is mixed store soap however you like.  Right now  I still store my detergent in the same five gallon bucket and bag that I mixed it in.    I also got a little scoop to keep inside. Wasn't that easy? Sure was! Enjoy your soap.

I have been using the "new" detergent for the last few loads.  I like how it cleans and am looking forward to the money saving benefits too.  It should last several months, but I will keep you posted on exactly how long it does last.

5 comments:

Michelle said...

I need to do this!

Joe said...

Nice job. I need to try this sometime.

maureencairney said...

Why do you need to put a trash bag in is the bucket not secure enough without it ???
Probably a silly question, but I have never tried to make my own detergent, part of the reason is because none of the brands are familiar to me here in Oz and I would have to go and source similiar brands so I have always put this in the too hard basket ( I know and yes I am blushing )

Melissa@PersonalFinanceJourney said...

I have thought about making my own detergent for several years now, but still haven't done it. Do you think it gets your clothes as clean as store bought detergent?

CentsToSave said...

So far it is working pretty good. I am happy with the results. :)

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