Does Homemade Laundry Detergent Work? The Science Behind this Trend
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- Опубліковано 9 лип 2022
- I never thought that homemade laundry detergent would end up being such a hot button issue for so many people until I posted about it two years ago. I guess when we like something we’re doing and we feel like it’s a good fit for us, it can be a touchy subject to discuss with those of differing opinions.
To be honest, I’ve been on both sides of the homemade laundry detergent debate. I’ve used homemade laundry soap for years at a time, and I’ve also purchased my non toxic laundry detergent from companies. And while I do have a preference for our home and laundry, I really don’t have a preference on what you or other families use, as long as it's a non toxic option.
I’m a huge fan of doing what’s best for your family. I preach this to my kids when they ask about why a friend's family does or doesn’t do something that we do. And I think we can all stand to hear this from time to time. Most of us are truly just trying our best to make sense of a very cluttered and chaotic world and in the process trying to make the best choices for our families.
While I would love a completely non toxic home, I too, realize that a mostly toxin free or less toxic home is just fine for me and my family. I obviously have some non-negotiables that I don’t budge on when it comes to ingredients in my home, such as synthetic fragrance, but otherwise, I leave a little wiggle room.
After all, stress, in and of itself, is also toxic, and if making all my own homemade ingredients causes me to be stressed about time, then in reality, this change isn’t worth the price. I promise you I won’t judge you or your family if you don’t buy all completely toxin free, organic products, wear only organic clothing or even sleep on a completely toxin free mattress.
But what I will offer you are ways to make your home as low toxin as possible in terms of what works for your family. And so while I may not use homemade laundry detergent, I do think it works for some people and homes really well. You just have to know exactly what those conditions are in order to actually get your laundry clean.
I’m all about sharing with you facts, not just my opinions. In this week’s post we’ll dive into:
👚 How Homemade Laundry Detergent Ingredients Work Together
👚 Toxic Ingredients in Some Homemade Laundry Detergents
👚 The Perfect Conditions for Homemade Laundry Detergent
👚 Affordable Non Toxic Laundry Detergent You Can Buy
Read the Blog Post Here: healthyhouseontheblock.com/ho...
Just a couple of clarifications. First, soap *is* a surfactant, as is detergent. The difference lies in how well a soap molecule attracts oily dirt particles vs. detergent. Second; yes, soap is made from oils (coconut oil, olive oil, palm oil, or animal fats [lard or tallow]), but there are no oils remaining in finished soap (unless it is superfatted soap, which should not be used for laundry). And remember, detergents are made from petroleum - aka oil. The ability to dissolve in cold water is more about the size of the granules than the fact that oil is used to make soap -- oil is used in detergent too.
you are right. I found the video had a lot of misinformation
There are just 2 adults in our household & laundry challenges pretty much don't exist. I make our laundry detergent....
I grate a bar of plant-based soap, add baking soda, washing soda & Borateem. We don't have soft water. Most of the time, I use cold water & don't employ an extra rinse. I line dry all of our laundry. Everything comes clean & has no smell. I smell various pieces of laundry that have been in a drawer or closet for weeks since it was washed & it has no scent.
For some reason, homemade works for us despite not having soft water & not using warm or hot water most of the time.
Not saying you're wrong! Maybe it works for us because we don't have the laundry challenges a family w/kids has. Mostly what our laundry needs is to just be freshened up.
One thing I think people need to remember to do is : leave your door or lid open after you use your washing machine. It needs time to dry out. Mold can develop or just bad smells if the door/lid is closed all the time.
P.S. I now use warm water wash all the time. Patric Richardson aka The Laundry Evangelist has changed some of my thinking !
That guy is clueless. Sells soap so recommends it over detergents. His reasoning makes no sense.
@@FrankGutowski-ls8jt what are your credentials?
@@patwagner9308
Of the three degrees I earned, two degrees are in chemistry.
The evangelist makes too many mistakes: it’s obvious he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. He’s interested in being on TV and selling pricey soaps.
@@FrankGutowski-ls8jt Maybe you should talk w/Patric some time. He, too, has degrees.
I have followed his laundry advice w/excellent results. He's a likeable guy who freely answers laundry questions weekly w/out pushing his own products.
Thanks for answering my question. Hope your evening goes well.
@@patwagner9308
I know what I’m taking about and don’t feel that I need guidance counseling.
I'm in a unique situation in a pristine mountian wilderness of Brazil. In this place it is so unapoiled you can literally drink the river water with no filtration and the last thing I want to do is intridice contamination of any kind to this precious land. Above that I also feel the need to keep my own body in this same codiroona dn have become quite sensitive to the toxicity of the laundry soaps a bailable here in the market. So...
My household situation is currently hand washing (which makes the chemicles situation quite intense) and also cold water. I'm not sure if the water is hard or soft but there is no limeatone here, only clay and surface rising rainwater. I'm on the lookout for Borax here and an option for washing soda and will be working on making my own castle bar soap soon which I will use a as the base. Typically I find a hand wash to really out do any machine I have ever seen but the convenience will be enough to have me looking for a machine option when we have power to run it.
Curious is anyone else here has experience hand washing with homade soaps or with environmental factors as a motive for moving away from toxic store bought options...
Thanks now I KNOW to avoid the the temptation and will not be making it…because it just won’t work with my hard water! Appreciate this honest info!
Same
Borax is a water softer it says so on the box. I love washing my towels with it. I also use it mixed with laundry detergent on my clothes if they are extra sweaty.
Thanks for this! I’ve been receiving a ton of HATE on my UA-cam video I shared over a year ago on my channel about my laundry recipe and all. I ready didn’t realize how sensitive this topic was for many highly agitated 😡 folks. (No pun intended) haha😅
I have gone the route in this current season of only making my laundry soap occasionally and substituting with very low toxic rated purchased detergent. 😂some folks may see me as a traitor or a sell out. But like you said (and thanks for saying it) I can only speak on what works for my family and in my current stage of life. Thanks for making this video. ❤
Thank you for your kind words!! I didn’t know this was such a sensitive topic myself….but there are some passionate folks out there!! 😂😂😂 But it is all about what works for you 👍🏼🙌🏼❤️
@@Healthyhouseontheblock yes! 💗
I think you made some good points. I'm currently researching surfactants, as I think that is the missing link in homemade laundry soap. 2 of the ingredients you mentioned also help soften water, so that doesn't worry me.
There are 4 basic Musts when using homemade laundry detergent. They are:
1. Soft water (0 Grains Hardness or 0 Parts Per Million).
2. Warm wash water (90F-110F) & Hot wash water (120F-140F). Cold rinse water (60F-80F).
3. Extra Rinse Option or 2nd Rinse Option turned on.
4. Heavy Duty Cycle set to heaviest soil level/longest wash time.
No modern washer is designed to use soap.
I briefly went through this video. I am wondering about the comments that are in other videos about homemade laundry soap clogging up the new machines that warn about using any detergent that is not approved for he machines. Can you shed some light on this?
Polysorbate 20 or polysorbate 80 are surfactants and emulsifying agents that could be added to make the soap washing liquid more like a liquid detergent and disperse essential oils evenly in the mix. I think 30 ml of either would work well for a 5 gallon batch. Since borax is so alkaline adding 1/2 cup of citric acid with 1/4 cup borax is an idea.
Super helpful! Thank you!!
Please do have a video of how to make a good home made detergent or can you please recommend a video. PLEASE!!!
I didn't realize this was a sales video. Waste of time.
Great video. Can you suggest a source simple recipe to make my own home made detergent that I can mix with bleach to clean my concrete driveway..( using a Powerwasher . I need plenty of foam!)
Thank you
Yes
sodium tetraborate vs ‘sodium decahydrate’ for soap making ? Which one better and why are they different?
Sodium decahydrate is impossible chemically and doesn’t exist.
Question. I have a front loader. I would like to wash my darks at 30 degrees Celsius. If I dissolve the detergent with borax and washing soda in hot water first and then add it, would it be effective because I activated it before or does it not work that way?
I think it would be effective to a point, but maybe not AS effective as a true detergent with a surfactant. 🤷🏼♀️
Homemade Laundry Detergent:
1 bar Fels Naptha Soap
1 box 20 Mule Team Borax
1 box Arm Hammer Super Washing Soda
1. Grate the Fels Naptha.
2. Put the Fels Naptha in a food processor to make it into a powder.
3. In a 5 gallon bucket, Combine the Fels Naptha powder with the 20 Mule Team Borax and with the Arm Hammer Super Washing Soda.
4. Mix thoroughly to make sure everything is combined.
5. Store in airtight container to prevent clumping.
6. Use 1/2 cup per load.
Suggestions:
Add 1/2 cup of baking soda to the wash basket after you add your detergent and before you load your laundry. The baking soda softens the water and deodorizes your laundry.
Add 1/2 cup of white vinegar to the fabric softener dispenser or to the final rinse cycle. The white vinegar dissolves soap residue and softens your laundry.
Use wool dryer balls in your dryer. The wool dryer balls fluffs your laundry and reduces drying time.
Lol. You’re washing a load with 0.03 oz of soap. A paper clip weighs 0.05 oz. Like washing with plain water!
Dont knock it till u try it. My niece uses this method as well has been for years she has 2 kids and a husband who works on a ranch and construction. I started using this as well my clothes are so much more soft and smell better than using gain laundry detergent and softener. Even putting in dryer sheets my clothes are still a bit staticky but with this homemade soap I don't need dryer sheets.
I was skeptical about the vinegar but was quite happy with it no smell at all just soft and fresh
Spent a lot of money to get started clothes stunk won't waste my money again doesn't work
But what’s the proportions of every ingredients you taking about? The proportions are very important to make such detergent works
Borax can bleach your clothes.
200!
Omg just get to the point already
Let me save the viewer 14 minutes. No it does NOT work. Your clothes might appear clean, but stains will not come out without elbow grease, and any odors such as pet odors or body odors will NOT come out of the clothes. My wife was making laundry detergent for a while and I noticed over time that our clothes began to smell more and more. The ONLY time the scent ever went away was when we used a conventional detergent along with Nellie's laundry booster.
So it all comes down to $$. You chose to endorse a company for $$ instead of making your own. I won’t watch someone willing to sell out for $$ This person is not knowledgeable she is a “digital creator” selling UA-cam videos and all the products she can
I make and use the same recipe my Mother used in her washer. I make the soap used in my recipe, I control 100% of my ingredients. The same can not be said for anything mass produced!