Until recently, I didn’t even realise that homemade laundry detergent was a thing!   I was aware of some alternatives to traditional laundry products, such as soap nuts, which, despite their name, are berries.

When I was little, I remember my grandmother grating up bar soap to use on “delicates.”  The commercial version of soap flakes was known as Lux. My mom had a box of it always stashed under the sink! I thought that laundry detergent, or washing powder, as it’s still called in our house, was a magical factory-made product filled with top-secret ingredients.

Then, someone told me that it is very easy to make your laundry detergent. It can be made for a fraction of the price of store-bought products. Plus, you can choose the fragrance you like, or for sensitive skin, you could omit the fragrance altogether.

Homemade Washing Powder Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 bar of soap (e.g. any natural, unscented soap or use-up bar ends)
• 1 cup washing soda (sodium carbonate, also known as soda crystals in the UK)
• 1 cup bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
• 10-15 drops of essential oil (optional for fragrance)

Instructions:

1. Finely grate the bar of soap. You can do this with a cheese grater or in a food processor.
2. Put the grated soap, washing soda, and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl. Mix thoroughly to combine everything.
3. Add 10-15 drops of essential oil. Fresh scents such as lavender, tea tree and citrus oils work exceptionally well.
4. Transfer the mixture to an airtight container. Use 2 – 4 tablespoons per load of laundry, depending on how heavily soiled items are.

Homemade Fabric Softener Recipe

Ingredients:

•  2 cups white vinegar
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 cup baking soda
• 10-15 drops of essential oil (optional for fragrance)

Instructions:

1. Mix the vinegar and water in a large bowl.
2. Slowly add the baking soda to the mixture. It will fizz and bubble, so add it gradually to avoid the mix overflowing.
3. Add essential oils if using.
4. Pour the mixture into a storage container. Use about 1/4 to 1/2 cup per load during the rinse cycle.

Cost Comparison to Commercial Laundry Products

How does the cost of making homemade washing powder compare to commercial laundry products? Here is a breakdown of the cost of the ingredients.

Bar soap –  Most supermarkets sell plain bars of soap for around 30p a bar. Tesco Essentials soap is 30p for a 125g bar.  You could make this recipe even more eco-friendly and cheaper by saving your old bathroom soap remnants.

8oz washing soda costs around 50p from supermarkets and might be cheaper from bargain and discount stores.

Bicarbonate of soda is the most expensive ingredient, but it doesn’t have to be food-grade. I found it online for £5 a kg, so I calculated the cost of the bicarbonate of soda in this recipe to be around  £1.25.

The basic formula’s total cost without essential oils is £2.05. Adding essential oils costs a couple of pence more but is entirely optional.

The quantities above will do 20 washes, each working out at a fraction over 10p per wash. This compares well with commercial laundry products, which average 17-25p a wash.

Essential oils add a fresh scent but are optional

Ecofriendliness

There are nearly 50 different chemicals in one of the leading commercial laundry detergent products.  These include phenypropyl dimethicone, disodium anilinomorpholinotriazinylaminostilbenesulfonate, sodium polyaryl sulphonate and more terrifying-sounding chemicals. Unless you are a chemist, you are unlikely to understand what these chemicals do.

In contrast, the homemade laundry detergent recipe contains just three chemicals, making it a much more eco-friendly formula. Also, you know exactly what goes into the recipe and can quickly identify any ingredient that might be causing a problem. Allergies to ingredients in commercial laundry products are surprisingly common, and with such a huge list of ingredients, it is often tricky to identify the problem component.

As we discussed in our article on branded products vs. shops’ own items, the laundry detergent market is highly competitive. Therefore, manufacturers spend huge amounts on their advertising campaigns—at one point, it seemed there was a laundry detergent advert in every ad break. Therefore, a higher-priced product does not necessarily mean more expensive ingredients go into it.

Homemade laundry detergent is just as effective as the big brands when it comes to getting your washing clean and is kinder to your pocket and the environment.