I recently made a follow up video to this one. It answers questions and comments and gives several options with the homemade version, many of them I've gotten from the comments here on this video. You can see the video here: ua-cam.com/video/ZCN5yn_Xy0U/v-deo.html -Crystal
Nope. The colors and whites seem dingy is because there is no bluing in homemade. Unless your machine doesn't have an agitator. Then yes, you need detergent. But machines with agitator bars are extremely expensive.
Appreciated the 'honesty' of this video. We keep talking about the OLD DAYS and how they did things back then but we FORGET that they (as you said) didn't have the MODERN conveniences available to them that we have today. Better find one of those old _Wash boards_ and properly store it just in case you ever need to 'break it out!' 😄
I've been using the homemade soap for over 10 years in the same front loading machine and have not noticed any problems. The difference might be that in every load I also use peroxide in the bleach cycle and vinegar in the rinse cycle. Both are also very cheap products and the peroxide acts as a mild 'bleach' to keep things bright, and the vinegar removes any build-up and softens the clothes. I have read articles telling you not to use vinegar in the front loading machines -- though this was years after I'd already been doing it -- saying it would damage the seals on the door. But, I'd been doing so for so many years already that I think the damage to the seals others had was because they didn't leave the door open between uses. Just my opinion. Still using the same soap and the same machine.
@@annemariekrux3575 It is important to leave the door open to prevent mold mildew and bacteria formation. It allows the water to completely dry out. The rubber seals on uprights will rot no matter what there is such as thing as dry rot. But every appliance has an Achilles heel.
Oh my goodness! Hi Crystal!! I had no idea you had a UA-cam channel! Way back when my kids were 2-3 (they are 20-21 now :-)) I began following your blog and bought all of your cookbooks. Your frugal, healthy recipes got me into grinding my own wheat, and got our family through the very rough recession in 2005-2009. Thank you! You don't know how your tips and recipes fed my family when we only had $25/week for groceries. I Love you.
Thank you so much for sharing your story!! That's so encouraging to read 💖 It's wonderful to meet you 😊 2005 -2009 were some difficult years and I'm glad to know my tips and recipes helped you get through it all. Have a wonderful blessed day!! -Crystal😊
That sounds so much like me! I was following you Crystal when my two oldest children were littlies, now they are 20 and 21 and I went on to have another who is now 13!! I didn't realise you had a UA-cam channel either until the other day when I found one of your recipes I had printed out years ago and looked you up, I'm so happy to have found you again!! Your advice and knowledge helped me so much over the years, what a blessing to be able to see and hear you now!! Xx
While I was using the homemade I always used white vinegar, but still had the problems of dingy whites and faded colors, towels that wouldn't absorb, etc... After I quit using the homemade those problems went away. I know it does help to a degree, but my experience was it didn't help over the long term (I used the homemade for over 3 years). -Crystal
@Crown Prince...I add a very small amount in my wash cycle...I have never noticed a vinegar smell on my fresh washed clothes...and they are nice and soft 😉
Usually these “here’s why I don’t…” videos are boring and uninteresting BUT you held my attention with your thorough explanation that anyone can understand.
So in a nutshell, detergents are better for modern machines that soak clothes without friction scrubbing. But homemade soaps still have a place for people who might use a scrub boards or handwriting things, which could he quiet useful in emergency situations or places without electricity.
So it’s a bad idea to do the homemade stuff I’m trying to save money. We have six people in the house and I recently saw a video about homemade detergents
I hated my HE washer. Clothes still felt dirty and looked dingy. I now am back to a washer with a agitator and deep water. Love having it back again. My clothes and towels immediately felt normal again.
@@doobalaba I still use hard mount front loaders in laundromats. Their is now only one best top loader washers out in the world which is a Speed Queen TC series which still has the classic moving agitator. The big box stores like Lowes, Home Depot, Best Buy and Menards don't carry them. Sadly the Government has been setting mandates to use lesser water and lesser energy which seems to explain why their have been alot of HE front loader washers and HE top loaders washers out there.
Hi! May I ask which washer you’re now using? I’ve found washers with agitators, but the water is still low. I’d love to get back to a normal level. I’m very tired of this HE . The capacity is huge, but very little water.
I also hated HE! Actually I have never known a "family" (more than 3) that liked HE. It does not clean 'for real'. The only people that seemed okay with their HE washer were singletons. Being in charge of laundry and speaking with other persons in charge of their laundry, whenever we would have to do three or four pairs of jeans, they would never quite seem to get clean. (Stains or whatever) I finally learned a trick when my boys had reached about 17, 18. I was experiencing towels that wouldn't absorb and clothing that had what felt like residue, and the smells were awful! (The smell seemed gone in the first day or two, but then the stink would return within a few days of washing). I spoke with an old timer who said something in passing about "stripping". It sounded like a very concentrated effort, taking a lot of time, but at this point I was kind of desperate. What I would do is wait till I had a couple of pieces that need it (either because they stunk or they were stiff or there were residues or whatever, and I would put them in the bathtub with hot water, vinegar and soap and agitate that every few hours using a mop or broomstick handle. Generally leaving it about 24 hours or longer, going in and agitating my "soup" (of clothing in water) once or twice....man! It was a trade-off that I was willing to make! I found out that by soaking some pieces 24 hours, it would actually get rid of the stink and bring back the color (IF the color reduction was muted due to build up). One of the things that I had always hated about HE was that it never seemed like anything got clean in my book. I joked that it only took a cup of water to wash a load, but I could do better with a cup of water than the silly machine. "Stripping" clothing and towels has been a game changer for me! (PS: The first couple times it was amazing how after just a few hours of soaking, the water turned to the most disgusting dark shade! At this point, I would drain the tub, lightly "rinse" the clothes under the tap, and then go ahead and fill to just cover the clothing again. Let that continue to set for another 12 hours. After the 24-hour soak, I would squeeze the water out of the articles and then pop them in a rinse load in my HE. I really don't have to "strip" much anymore. I still do this for bath and kitchen towels; (separately of course) It is extra work, but clean absorbent and functional is my goal! Now what I will do is if I get a kitchen hand towel that has just encountered some sort of liquid or essence, I have a little plastic trash can that I bought from the dollar store that I pour hot water and a drop of laundry soap or vinegar (whatever I think I should be cleaning with at the moment), and just let it start soaking from get go. By the next day, I throw that in with whatever loads I got going on and it's like a pre soak that doesn't take much water.
It matters enormously on how naturally soft your water is. For example, my sister lived in Tacoma, WA for 15 years. She never had soap scum or calcium build-up. She never needed a water softener. Then she moved to South Dakota, where the water is extremely hard. She tried to do without a softener, but after a month of the hard water problems, she installed one. It still isn't the same as having naturally soft water. When I would visit her in Tacoma, my skin cleared up and became super smooth, and my hair looked so shiny that it sparkled. There's just no comparison between naturally soft water and hard water.
I'm in the Pacific Northwest, Washington state.. I have soft water and I do have soap scum. I know it's no where near as bad as those with hard water. I agree there is no comparison between naturally soft water and hard water.
I live in Indiana and we also have extremely hard water, but I use an HE washing machine and use All Free and Clear and I've never had any issues with the laundry.
I’ve never felt comfortable adding grated soap in my laundry machine so I looked for a recipe that didn’t include bar soap and borax. I’m so glad my hunch was right! This has been my go to recipe. I can’t take the credit, but it’s been working very well. I have a front load HE machine. I fill the bleach compartment with distilled vinegar with every wash. DIY Laundry Powder: Ingredients * 1/2 cup Epsom Salt * 1 1/2 cups Sodium Bicarbonate (baking soda) * 1 1/2 cups Sodium Carbonate (washing soda) * 1/4 cup Sea Salt * 20-25 drops Essential Oils (optional) Instructions: Use 1-2 tablespoons per load (depending how dirty your laundry is). Fill bleach or fabric softer compartment with vinegar
A few months into using my homemade laundry soap my husband told me his clean clothes smelled. That was about 6 yrs ago. I researched the soap-detergent issue but there wasn't a lot of info as to why homemade was not good, only that it wasn't good. Thank you for providing me the "rest of the story".
When you make your own it is important to use washing soda and baking soda they are 2 minerals that do different things to break up the dirt composition it changes the alkalinity of the water to disperse stains and soil and it freshens the laundry I like making my own laundry soap my whites are very white and my laundry smells amazing
Where may I find the recipe you use, I am tired of paying and fighting with the store detergent and softener and ready to use more thoughtful and organic ingredients!
I made my own powder detergent about 10 years ago. I loved it, smelled nice and really worked. Used it for a while. Then I noticed my fairly new Samsung front loader was leaking water from around the soap dispenser. Called a repair guy and he opened it up. The lines were clogged with the soap I grated. I grated it fine too btw. It was a total loss. He also said he has seen the rubber or silicone parts breakdown with the Borax from the homemade detergents. I had to get a new washer and I’m back to commercial detergent. He did say people use way more soap then needed. So I use less. Still miss the homemade detergent.
Another thing is that Samsung make disposable washers that break within 3 years, and dryers that don't work properly right out of the box. Avoid Samsung washers and dryers in the first place.
Thank you for posting this video. This was super helpful. I was just about to deal with into making my own soap. Then I came across your video. Thank you for not being negative to those who have decided to make their own soaps but instead you simply shed light on a facts and information, this allows people to decide for themselves and beat well informed about their decision without being critical to one's choice.
As a biology major (who dabbles in chemistry) this video was amazing! This “soap knowledge” also applies to hand washing as well. Soap is caustic, which means it “needs friction” (as you have mentioned) that’s why it’s so effective in removing germs. Very appropriate for today’s climate (if you know what I mean). I was planning on making my own detergent (UGH I already made it) but decided to stop and question “hmm....maybe I shouldn’t put this in an HE washer” decided to stop by this video, and I have to say that I’m impressed and your voice is calming haha. Very knowledgeable! Thank you for spreading your experience!
What about if you use "Washin’ Jax Laundry Agitators" haha that sounds like an ad. Anyways, I was having issues with my frontloader HE cleaning my clothes and when I got the jaxs it really helped. I wonder if that would give enough friction to clean the clothes. But then again I suppose the laundry machine would still eventually get clogged with the soap.
Sorry for my clumsy English, but I have a question, something I wondered about after reading your comment. When soap needs friction to lift the dirt and detergent does not, can it then be said that scrubbing with a detergent on some stubborn dirt, really doesn't make a big difference, compared with just applying the detergent and let it sit for a while?
I've been making my own laundry soap for over 10 years and I still love it. I use washing soda, borax and grated Ivory soap. I also add white vinegar to every load, at the start of the wash cycle with the soap. I added the vinegar for deodorizing and to kill germs.
This is why I'm raising my children to ask questions. Be curious. If you still don't get it ask again or someone else. Read. Feed your brain. Ask others if they have any questions. These are just a few of the "annoying" mom things they will probably say to their kids someday 😁 Thanks for this brain food, Homemaking on the Homestead... This makes so much sense now. 🦋
Thank you so much I bought all the ingredients to make my own laundry detergent. But now I have changed my mind. I was going to make it tomorrow so thank God I saw this to night. Thank you so much for Sharing
Some of the cheap laundry detergent clean well and some don't. I just try them and find out. If they don't work, I just don't buy it again. And a squirt of Dawn helps with dirt and grease or a scoop of Borax really cleans everything
@@traviousandrews1015 I had the very same experience you had with the Dawn detergent. People talk about it like it just does everything so perfectly no matter what it is you got to get some dawn! . I don’t feel that way about it though. In fact I don’t think I like it very much at all.
I loved my homemade at first and thought my clothes looked cleaner. After a couple years, my clothes didn't look as clean. I started using half the amount of homemade and half amount of commercial. Then I heard you need the detergent to keep your plumbing from clogging. So far I've been using half and half and haven't noticed a problem. But now with these water saving machines they have, I noticed powdered detergent wasn't completely dissolving in some loads like towels and blankets. So I use a gel detergent tablet only in those loads.
I made your laundry soap when all my children were at home. I also noticed the dinginess after awhile. My husband still says its the best hand cleaner ever! Every time he worked on something greasy it got his hands perfectly clean! With just the two of us i no longer need big batches of laundry soap. Great memories!
@@HomemakingontheHomestead You should market it as the best hand cleaner you'll ever use. :) See if you sell some. Actually, do a side by side comparison with Lava. Film it of course, just in case.
To keep towels absorbent you add about 1/2 cup of white vinegar to washer. I do use fabric softener in rinse cycle but it does make the towels less absorbent after a few washings, but I like the fresh smell l. This works 100% every time. I’ve been doing it for over 30 years 😊
I never use fabric softener in towels. You're putting those chemicals all over yoir baked body. If you buy white towels and use a scented bleach, they will smell wonderful and you can forgo the oily, scented waxes they use in fabric softeners.
I don't like strong fragrances but I use a small amount of fabric softener to prevent static. I live in the southwest where the air is very dry and static is a big on problem. I also use laundry balls, but they aren't enough on their own. A little bit (a tablespoon or two) of fabric softener is all I need to prevent static, and my towels are just fine. Downey makes a plant based version now, so that's be what I've been using. It does have fragrance, but it's not irritating with the small amount I use.
@@emmteemee I have neither washer nor dryer, I hand wash and air dry. yet I never get static. Is Static just a byproduct of electric dryers? I've seem people put things like new tennis balls or balls made of wool into their dryer to reduce static. Don't know if it works but sharing in case it helps. Cheers.
Thank for making this video. I had feared that homemade soap would not work laundry machines. Laundry machines need detergent. I have had people ask me to make laundry soap and I refused. I was afraid it would break their machine. Your video help confirm my belief.
Thank you so much for this video. I have been making my own laundry soap (Powder and liquid) for about 5 years now. I noticed in the last year my clothes after washing them would have a greasy or odd smell. We live on a farm and both work jobs we get dirty in. I have added and taken away so many things I think in the last year I have tried all I could but last week I bought my first liquid laundry detergent in 5 years. What a wonderful difference. I also make my own soap and cleaning supplies which I love but I thought I was not doing something right, thank you so much for clearing this up. I only wash with cold water so, I now know why and will bite the bullet and have brighter, and better smelling clothes once again. Your video explained everything.
Thank you for this info. That makes total sense. I was thinking of making my own soap to use in my HE machine. You saved me money. Also note, dryer sheets coat towels and makes them less absorbent.
Yes, dryer sheets will cause problems with absorbency over time. I made a follow up video on this with other ideas and options, many of them from the comments here on this post. ua-cam.com/video/ZCN5yn_Xy0U/v-deo.html
2 cups of the powder detergent of your choice 1 cup of borax 1 cup super washing soda 1 cup of baking soda 1 cup of sun oxi clean 1 or 2 cups of purex crystals your smell preference Mix all up and no issues at all because using actual laundry powder with the added enhancers still saves tons of money and clothing comes out super clean smells great I also knew about the bar soap causing issues that’s why I did box detergent with the other ingredients You can double the batch triple what ever you need or want just follow measurements @@HomemakingontheHomestead
Knowing all this, what I chose was to reduce the zoat soap by half and add oxy-powder. I do add scented crystals but they are pure magnesium based, not just any bottle of "laundry booster" crystals on the shelf. FYI: these crystals are getting harder to find. Oils in general should not be used in laundry. That's why I never use Castille soap in machines and even kitchen due to the disposer. It's asking for clogging issues, even in a bathtub. You'll find you need Drano more often, like the old days when we had to use Drano alot to cut the residue build up in pipes. The hair would get caught in the residue, where hair wouldn't normally clog up a drain. So it's kind of common sense really. I have no chemistry background and abhore the thought of having to try to figure such things out. It really did just make me think about residue build up with all these homemade recipes. I do put a few drops of teatree oil in my bath, but the soap we use to wash ourselves with breaks it down, going down the drain. Oils are great for personal body cleansing, but you must think about your drains and pipes when using them. Remember back in "the day" baths were the form of bathing and usually in a metal tub you emptied by dumping out - outside, not down a drain. With each thing comes a new factor of use. If I use homemade laundry soap, I prefer the liquid version and use half the recommended zoat... technically you could wash your clothes with just baking soda but they will be stiff... or just oxyclean. Either way, it's up to each person to be responsible about learning the technology they work with and the products they want to produce for themselves. You can't throw wood into a water heater for fuel to make it work. It uses gas. Same concept. Don't throw Great grandma's tech at today's... you'll end up paying for it. Great video, thank you.
I make my own body soap with coconut oil. I do get soapscum but I clean my tubes and showers with a mixture of Dawn Free and Clear, white vinegar and distilled water. I've never had clogged drains.
It's just hubs and me here, retired and disabled, so we don't have a lot of washing to do. We wait until the laundry baskets are full, then wash about once every two weeks. For the little detergent we use we just buy it from the store. We have soft water so only use half of the amount (or less) since our clothes aren't really dirty. I wash scarves and delicates by hand with olive oil and laurel bar soap, that I use in the shower, and they do well so far. I'll start to throw in a little detergent once in a while from now on to make sure the delicates are releasing the dirt. Thank you for your informative and easy to understand explanation.
What I've done for years is make the laundry detergent as a "laundry booster." I would use a tablespoon or so of the homemade stuff and then half a lid of commercial detergent. I haven't had any trouble and it saves me money. I usually buy Tide from CVS using their ECB deals.
I use detergent at only 25% the listed quantity. Then I add baking soda to soften and boost the detergent. Can also add washing soda for whitening if desired. Cheap, easy and effective.
Sharon Contini I do the exact thing in regards to amount of detergent and the addition of baking soda. You’re 100% correct, it’s very very cost effective, my detergent last twice as long, easy and gets my laundry sparkling clean with any and all doors removed.
I go through a lot of baking soda with my Ecos detergent and love it. I do use hot water to begin the wash to dissolve properly. Just a bit if it's a warm wash. I have to admit I do a lot of hot wash. I do believe it dissolves my homemade powder better and never had clogged pipes. I also use a coconut soap (Kirks) .
As I mentioned in my previous replies.. going back and forth between homemade and commercial detergent would prevent the issues and the soap scum build up. I used homemade ONLY for 3 years.. it took time for the problems to develop.
(Disclaimer: your mileage might vary...) Hi Crystal, If you find an old box of Instant Fels or Ivory Snow laundry soap, the instructions will tell you to use 1 1/2 - 2 cups in a top load washer, or 3/4 - 1 cup in a front loader, and you need "to maintain 1-3 inches of suds". Yes, that is A LOT of soap! By those instructions, everyone today is not using enough soap in their laundry. (1 - 2 tablespoons would barely wash a pair of socks.) The reason for the high amount of soap and the high amount of suds is due to minerals in the water, which cause the water to be hard. Soap reacts with the minerals to form gray compound that precipitates "out of solution". A sure sign this is happening is when you have no suds. So you have to use enough soap to compensate for the amount of soap that will react with the water minerals. When the soap and mineral compound "fall out of the solution", it gets caught in the fibers of the clothes, causing what was known as "tattle-tail gray" or "tell tale gray" dingy whites and dull colors. The precipitate caught in fibers causes them to become unabsorbent. And the precipitate can build up in the water level tubes and cause the washer to malfunction. So if you use enough soap to offset the precipitate, it won't build up and cause tattle-tale gray or build up in the water level tubes. So you might say, "Well, borax softens water, and washing soda softens water." Yes, they do, but they are a precipitating water softeners. When you mix these with water, they combine with the minerals and turn the water milky. They need water to be still to float to the bottom due to gravity, hence the phrase "falling out of solution". The agitation in the washer keeps them suspended, and they still get caught in the clothes. Adding soap to the equation can make it worse. By contrast, the phosphate water softeners that were used in detergents for years are "non-precipitating"; they react with the minerals and stay suspended in the water, and the water stays clear. When phosphates were banned from detergents, it took several years for manufacturers to get the formulas correct, and many detergent brands disappeared because they couldn't get clothes clean anymore and the makers failed with their formulas. Soft water does not have the calcium and the magnesium that causes the water to be hard. With soft water, you can get by with soap, but you still need enough to get the suds level needed to indicated there is enough soap to suspend everything that is in the water (minerals) and everything that will be in the water (dirt from clothes). The harder the water, the more soap needed. 1 - 2 tablespoons of a soap/soda/borax concoction will not work. Melt all that in water, and a 1/2 cup of soap goop will not work. Get the suds up and maintained throughout the entire wash portion of the cycles, use hot water, rinse thoroughly, and washing with soap can be successful. All the best to you and everyone here!
Very interesting Peter, thanks for the info... I have soft water and tried many different amounts of the soap and still had issues and was using a top load washer (not HE).. I think still there is a lot to the fact that soaps require friction to break down the surface tension that holds the dirt in the clothes.. detergents don't require the same type of friction to do their job. HE washing machines say you should not see suds.. I had my grandson dump a bottle of shampoo on a bathroom rug.. I did my best to get all of it out before attempting to wash it.. I washed it in my HE front loader and ended up with a lot of suds in the machine and got an error code and the machine could not/would not finish the cycle.. ended up having to put a few cups of vinegar in the machine and run a rinse cycle to clear up the suds..
So I have been Making my own DIY laundry soap for quite some time now. I have done extensive research and so to help with the soap scum it’s true what your friend said you have to add a surfurcant to the DIY laundry soap so I use one bag of Foca laundry detergent in the mix because it eat’s away at enzymes ,food and bacteria in the clothes and I also use a half a cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle,I also add Oxiclean unscented to get that gunk and build up out and keep my whites white and my color’s bright after the course of time I will wash my towels in regular detergent and use the vinegar rinse to wash away the buildup soap scum and bacteria so that’s how I found that it was very effective to use my homemade laundry detergent, it’s not as frugal as I would like it to be but it saves a whole lot of money!!!!
I use Oxiclean as well as Borax and I use white vinegar in a Downy ball in every load. I do not try to figure out how much it costs me to do my laundry this way, I just know that it is a lot cheaper. I do not use dryer sheets or anything like that either. I make my own 100% wool dryer balls. You can scent them with essential oils if you want to. They help to dry your laundry a lot faster as well.
Thanks for this. (I realize this is 2 years old video). 25 years ago, I was making this exact recipe, to save money. I really thought I was doing great. A year in, I had to take a job outside the home in retail. I noticed a few months in, that my white shirts were very dingy next to my co-workers. I immediately went back to regular detergent.
We have been making our laundry soap for 12 years and yes the quality of your water does matter, mineral laden water will not rinse the soap out at all, plus if you are using that same water to make the soap you will not have a very active soap. We went from having a broken water softener to a brand new system and rinsed every article of clothing, they all got brighter, cleaner and returned to the original shape, just with good water. We actually add dish detergent right to the recipe and we use vinegar in my rinse. We also add ammonia to heavily soiled towels loads and also periodically run an empty load with vinegar or peroxide clean out the scum from the machine itself. Also we occasionally use laundry bluing in our whites, works great.
I appreciate your point of view. I've always used the recipe that includes oxiclean stain remover powder. $20 bucks vs. the $50 I was spending monthly is a great bargain. I hadn't noticed anything wrong with our towels or dingy whites. But I'm gonna bet it's the oxiclean that keeps that from happening. Also, I've learned that Zote and Fels Naptha have detergent additives in it. The soap we make is usually only oils and lye. I tried to use my personal homemade soap in the stead of the Zote and it clogged my front loader. So I definitely won't be doing that again.
Thanks for great info! Try using 1 cup of white vinegar only in your towels or clothes once in awhile. You are going to see the difference especially on the towels. White vinegar is antibacterial, deep cleaning and is a brightened. Also absorbent.
I heard something many years ago from a washing machine repairman. He said only use half of what the detergent bottle says. Its too much for the washing machine and can wear out components fast. I did that and my laundry came out really nice Also dont stuff your machine it wears out the motor
I wouldn’t worry about wearing out the motor, at least not on any machine made in the last 20 years. The electronics or some plastic part will fail long before the motor does.
I came across your video by trying to search for a “homemade soap” for dark clothes. I think the same thing that causes the build up from bar soap on the shower is the same thing that causes all the issues that you mentioned. That’s why, in my country, even though we use bar soap with detergent for white clothing. No one washes dark colors with it because it leaves a whiteish film/top on the clothing.
I completely understand about soap scum, Im surprised nobody's realised how bad showers or baths get when you use soap.. as to whats happening in the laundry..makes perfect sense...thankyou for your video
I came across this video for a different reason and the topic intrigued me. That being said, both Soap AND detergents are surfactants. A surfactant essentially clean by having molecules that have a Hydrophilic (Water loving) end and a hydrophobic (grease/dirt loving) end. The difference in detergent and soap is how those molecules are created. With true soap (Fat + and alkali) glycerin is left behind to moisturize (important for body, maybe not so much for laundry). With Detergent, chemicals are used to create the molecules, and mosturizing and sanitizing and killing bacteria all require more additions. (Real soap does not). Does this explain the phenomena of why the clothes are less absorbent? More Dingy? Possibly. It could also be that older washing machines had an "Agitation" cycle that provided GOOD Friction (which you indicate is needed for using "Soap") and newer ones just don't provide it as well. I will also say that if you are using an "Additional" product that many use (Fabric softener) that fabric softeners also "Water proof" clothes as part of making the softer, making towels less absorbent. (Even Dryer sheets do this to a lesser extent) I think a good "Compromise" is a periodic use of the commercial detergent and more regular use of the natural (homemade?) soap for it's value in saving money (and less chemicals too). In those HE washers regardless of which you use, most of the manufacturers suggest that you wash the washer periodically using a product like "Affresh" which gets rid of the scum left behind from ANY detergent or soap. Lastly only soap made from FAT can legally be called "Soap". Everything else is a bunch of chemicals. (IMHO).
For the record, I make my own soap from Bacon Fat and Lye. (Nothing else). Works great and I love it. No Dry skin, no rash, and no smell. I was looking for the best way to "Powderize" this soap (for the laundry) when I came across your video.
i use to grate my lard soap.. maybe you could grate it and then send it through a blender? Never have done that, so I'm not sure but it was my first thought.
I think this has a lot to do with the washing machine. I just hand wash my clothes with bar soap and my clothes actually look better than they used to when I put them in the washing machine.
Thanks for the info...It explains why my whites looked dingy when I used the homemade detergent that I made. I had decided to stop using it because of that.......
My trouble with the homemade soap is mold problem. As I think about it soap leaves scum and scum turns into mold if not found. So I am taking ur avice and stop making my own. U had me thinking about the soaps. Thank u
I plan on making homemade laundry soap soon. I am making infusions from lavender, rosemary and lemon verbena (not used together and I also grow them). I have a top loader. I always hated the strong fake smells that detergents have. Any appliance repairman will tell you residue and soap scum is a problem on any washer. You have to maintain it by using citric acid and oxygen booster monthly. I use white vinegar in every load in the dishwasher, too. I never have to descale it since starting the vinegar. I also bought a speed queen top loader washing machine and have been maintaining it so I hope the machine last for 20 years, lol!
Excellent video and bonus points for making it despite your most popular content saying the opposite. You have made me take a change of direction on how I clean my clothes
I used soap berries with baking soda for years and it was great. I still use them on occasion, just have to buy a new batch. They’re from a tree in South Asia. Definitely recommend!
Mechanical action in any laundry machine is created by adding the correct amount of linen. Too much linen and it has no room to agitate against the sides of machine or against the other linen. It also doesn’t allow the cleaning products to evenly distribute. Too little and you get the opposite effect. There are other factors as well, such as water quality, temperature, products used and the amount of time per cycle. In the end, if you changed products and things are better, then it seems like you solved your problem. Thanks for the video!
OMG 😱. This is VERY good information! Thank you for giving us an intelligent answer why you stopped using home made laundry detergent! We certainly don’t want to void the warranty of those high tech washing machines that really don’t do a thorough job of cleaning anyway. The washing machine companies need any excuse not to honor their warranty. Thank you for sharing!
That has to be the BEST explanation & when one gets down to the logical science of it all, of the differences between soaps & detergents I've ever heard. I used homemade soap for like maybe a total of one month - had all kinds of pipe & plumbing problems back up from soap scum almost right away - not realizing my plumbing problems were caused by the scum accumulations. But when one thinks of it - its like pouring fats & grease down a drain almost! Great information!!
I made my own, it washes my clothes extremely clean, I added oxygen clean powder to the mix, I rinse with half cup of white vinegar, it comes out to perfection. Blessings to you
Makes perfect sense! I used homemade liquid soap with fels naphtha for years, but never noticed problems because our water was terrible at that house so I just assumed it was the water. I did however try making my own powder laundry soap several years later with 100% homemade coconut oil soap (0% super fat). The washer was the same, but it was a different house/ different water. The laundry soap clogged the pipe terribly! We tried and tried to unclog the pipe. After a few days, my husband thought he was going to have to dig up the pipes to clear them. He tried one last time to snake the drain pipe and he finally got it cleared. I have never used homemade after that!
Thank you for this video. I have stopped to do homenade laundry detergents with soap flakes, when I read in the instruction booklet of my washing machine that it's strongly not reccomended to add soap in flakes or pieces,otherwise the manufacturer declines all responsability for any breakdowns the machine may suffer.
I make my own laundry detergent with 3/4 cup washing soda and 3/4 cup Dawn dish washing liquid and 4 cups very hot water. I use Dawn dish washing liquid but your favorite should be fine. I dissolve washing soda using a old wooden spoon in 4 cups of very hot water, until water is almost clear. Then I add dish washing liquid mixing well, a few drops of essential oil (your favorite smell) can be added for smell but not necessary. I pour into old laundry detergent jug I kept, top off with room temp water to fill jug up. It will separate between loads so I gently tip jug side to side to mix again, I don’t recommend shaking the jug. It will make a mess in the lid when you open the jug and spill out. It makes about 75-80 ounces and I use 1/4 cup per load. I have a he washer and have used this for over a year, my clothes get clean and no soap buildup in my washer.
Thank you very much for this information. I was noticing that my clothes were not as clean as I felt they should be. And yes, my towels were not absorbing. I've stopped making my own laundry soap now.
Love how you explained everything. As someone who loves to learn and needs to understand everything it was amazing listening to you. Everything made sense. Thank you.
Wow! This was extremely helpful! I just started making my own soap powder this year. I always add a little name brand powder soap to my mix; maybe that's why I haven't noticed anything yet. Thanks for the heads up! ❤
Thank you for the information on HE soap. I've been making homemade washing machine soap for >10 yrs. I recently watch Jeffrey Tucker on Epoch times taking about our laundering wrong. So informative. He was stating that they have taken TSP ouit of soaps and detergents which removes that soaps, oils, dirt from our clothes. Also we need to use more hot water to clean. We have had trouble with the smells and dinginess of the clothes. I did switch from taken the Fels Nalpha out of my soap thinking about the grime left on washing tub lining and door thinking that was not getting rinsed out. Your explanation about soap and detergent makes sense and will keep that in mind with my laundry trials. Thank you so much.
Using grated lye soap with borax cleans extremely well. We started out with light colors, move to the farm and dark cloths, then we added bluing and bleach in the water to due our whites. We used a ringer washer. Same tub of water.
Thank you. I usually don't comment, but since you honestly asked for input, here goes it. I'm not a very disciplined adult, but I love nothing more then to have clean and sanitized laundry, especially with out all the harmful chemicals . So I alternate between the basic homemade and pre- wash by hand or soak heavy soiled items first. Keeping my washing machine clean( and my dryer). And I always add oxy the 56oz liquid OxiClean, and the free Lysol sanitizer. Which I alternate my whites by using bleach and Arman Hammer Detergent. And always an extra rinse cycle. I feel real self conscious about sharing that, some may see it as wasteful. Just a little OCD🥺
The homemade laundry soap works for me really well but that’s because I mix Ariel or Foca powder laundry detergent along with grated site. However I also added a small dash of dish soap and a splash of vinegar and I let it soak for about 30 minutes. Then I go in with a plunger and agitate my clothes. I do that before loading it in the washer. I find that my white underwear and socks look brand new. Perfectly white. I sometimes walk outside with white socks and doing this really cleans my clothes. I personally can’t run my clothes in the washer without soaking them. That’s the only way I find my clothes to wash. This video is very correct you do need detergent to clean your clothes so if you try this at home mix in powder detergent and it will work lovely.
Thank you so much for explaining this. I also used to DIy. It ruined my clothes and my machine. The first “real” detergent wash my stuff looked like mud
its like the difference between prewash spray & high powered soap spray at the car wash. The prewash spray is most important because it breaks apart the dirt on your car, but most people will just turn on the high powered soap spray instead. When in reality you can just skip that part. Prewash -> then foam brush is best.
Crystal, Thank You for this explanation! I used your homemade laundry soap for several years and then my husband started complaining so I stopped. I had not seen your You Tube channel until this video , which I am watching in 2022. Thanks again and I'll subscribe as I always loved your blog and web site!!
Thank you for these awesome tips and knowledge around this subject - it definitely was helpful coming across this. I want to add that many petroleum products may be harmful to ocean life including us unfortunately. Therefore if the cost for organic detergents steer you away; I recommend using laundry bar soap specifically for machine/hand washing (without the extra oils) as well a high alkaline washing powder that is actually made from baking soda to wash your clothing naturally. There are so many recipe tutorials out there too
thank you so much for your video I was just about to make our start making laundry soap but because of your knowledge I'm not going to do it no more cuz I do have an HE washing machine as well thanks again Albert Rodriguez
I buy the liquid pods, BUT I do small loads, so I pop like 6 pods in an empty laundry (50oz) detergent bottle , and fill with warm water. I pour like less than a capful per load. 6 pods can last me many loads. I stopped using fabric softener too. My clothes kept getting grungy dirt on them whenever I did. I think it must gum up the machine. Sometimes I’ll use vinegar in place of that or omit all together.
Thank you very much!!! I was just about to start making my own!!! What you say makes perfect sense! I don't WANT to scrub my laundry!!! And I can't afford to mess it up!!! There's no savings in THAT!!! Thank you again very much!!!!
Good information and a good explanation. I can see having the homemade laundry soap ingredients on hand for a SHTF scenario, or just hand washing of clothing.
Hi! Thank you. I think what I'll do is use my soap, and once a month or so, use detergent to see whether that's enough to have the benefits of both. We'll see. Thank you for checking all this out. It is really helpful.
That may just work.. I don't know. I know some have said (here in the comments) that they will use an inexpensive detergent such as Foca or Roma in place of the grated soap. I thought that was a good compromise. -Crystal 🙂
Thank you! I know you made this several years ago but I found the information you shared very helpful and probably why I won't take the time to make my own laundry detergent.
Thank you for explaining the difference between soap & detergent. I learned the difference years ago when I had a "care" label that stated washable in soap NOT detergent. I think it was a goose down comforter dried in the dryer with a couple of tennis balls but it could have been something else.
I use nearly the same recipe as you do, but I add oxyclean. My whites are whiter and my brights are brights. No problem with towels absorbing water. Been doing it for years.
Approximately how much OxyClean do you add? I want to start making my own laundry soap because my skin is very sensitive to chemicals, especially my intimate area. I am tired of infections!
Very helpful information. I saw a video just today 5/23/2023 where this woman showed a recipe to make homemade laundry soap. I thought great I can save money. I won't be making homemade laundry soap cause I don't want to ruin my he easing machine.
Thank you for this video! I have heard so much good and bad about homemade laundry soap. I am all about saving money. But when we bought a new washer my husband was adamant about using he specific detergents. He did not want to void the warranty. So I would not have used homemade laundry soap anytime soon because we havent had the washer that long and have a 3 year warranty. But I have a cousin who at one point was making her own laundry soap and seemed to like it a lot. And I have an aunt who has been making it for years and swears by it. I didnt want to use boron so I didn't like her recipe. But I've heard many people say the complaints you had about clothes and things and I did not want those issues. But listening to your video helped me realize that unless I want to move near a creek and get out the washing board then I need to just use the proper laundry soap. Thank you for that.
Thanks. I also use calgon laundry sanitizer in the rinse cycle. This completely removes odors, (by killing bacteria). I use this on underwear, towels, bedding and all kitchen laundry. No more funky smells
Thanx so much for honestly sharing your experiences and wonderful insights. I've wanted to make my own laundry pods following the youtube recipes. I now realize that while I love😍 the concept of doing "homemade". It's not realistic for me. It's just myself at home now and with arthritic limitations, I need to work smart and not hard. This was very helpful. 🌻Blessings to you.
I have been thinking about making my own laundry detergent and came across your video. Thank you very much. I have a front load He washer and don’t want to take any chances ruining it
want more people to listen to this because as you said..we use soap and detergent interchangeably when they're not the same from a chemistry/functional perspective. There are things we can't DIY and just have to buy or use a scrub board :)
I recently made a follow up video to this one. It answers questions and comments and gives several options with the homemade version, many of them I've gotten from the comments here on this video. You can see the video here: ua-cam.com/video/ZCN5yn_Xy0U/v-deo.html -Crystal
Thanks
What if you only replace the soap with something else ?
Nope. The colors and whites seem dingy is because there is no bluing in homemade. Unless your machine doesn't have an agitator. Then yes, you need detergent. But machines with agitator bars are extremely expensive.
I watched that video also. I found very helpful all the information. Thanks so much for the videos
Appreciated the 'honesty' of this video. We keep talking about the OLD DAYS and how they did things back then but we FORGET that they (as you said) didn't have the MODERN conveniences available to them that we have today. Better find one of those old _Wash boards_ and properly store it just in case you ever need to 'break it out!' 😄
I've been using the homemade soap for over 10 years in the same front loading machine and have not noticed any problems. The difference might be that in every load I also use peroxide in the bleach cycle and vinegar in the rinse cycle. Both are also very cheap products and the peroxide acts as a mild 'bleach' to keep things bright, and the vinegar removes any build-up and softens the clothes. I have read articles telling you not to use vinegar in the front loading machines -- though this was years after I'd already been doing it -- saying it would damage the seals on the door. But, I'd been doing so for so many years already that I think the damage to the seals others had was because they didn't leave the door open between uses. Just my opinion. Still using the same soap and the same machine.
Yes i can relate to it! And i will add that once in a month i do washing witout clothes, so only for the machine. And i have never a problem❤
How much peroxide? I personally feel it's gotten pretty pricey
@@annemariekrux3575 It is important to leave the door open to prevent mold mildew and bacteria formation. It allows the water to completely dry out. The rubber seals on uprights will rot no matter what there is such as thing as dry rot. But every appliance has an Achilles heel.
Thanks for info! I'm going to start this!
Vinegar damages vinyl that's all I can think with not using vinegar
Oh my goodness! Hi Crystal!! I had no idea you had a UA-cam channel! Way back when my kids were 2-3 (they are 20-21 now :-)) I began following your blog and bought all of your cookbooks. Your frugal, healthy recipes got me into grinding my own wheat, and got our family through the very rough recession in 2005-2009. Thank you! You don't know how your tips and recipes fed my family when we only had $25/week for groceries. I Love you.
Thank you so much for sharing your story!! That's so encouraging to read 💖 It's wonderful to meet you 😊 2005 -2009 were some difficult years and I'm glad to know my tips and recipes helped you get through it all. Have a wonderful blessed day!! -Crystal😊
This is so helpful!! Thank you!!!!!
That sounds so much like me! I was following you Crystal when my two oldest children were littlies, now they are 20 and 21 and I went on to have another who is now 13!! I didn't realise you had a UA-cam channel either until the other day when I found one of your recipes I had printed out years ago and looked you up, I'm so happy to have found you again!! Your advice and knowledge helped me so much over the years, what a blessing to be able to see and hear you now!! Xx
I always use white vinegar as a softener. It is very effective for washing off the soap scum.
While I was using the homemade I always used white vinegar, but still had the problems of dingy whites and faded colors, towels that wouldn't absorb, etc... After I quit using the homemade those problems went away. I know it does help to a degree, but my experience was it didn't help over the long term (I used the homemade for over 3 years).
-Crystal
Any vinegar smells not pleasant to me
@Crown Prince...I add a very small amount in my wash cycle...I have never noticed a vinegar smell on my fresh washed clothes...and they are nice and soft 😉
Vinegar harms silk and wool.
@@shandadeardorff797 How much do you add??
Usually these “here’s why I don’t…” videos are boring and uninteresting BUT you held my attention with your thorough explanation that anyone can understand.
So in a nutshell, detergents are better for modern machines that soak clothes without friction scrubbing. But homemade soaps still have a place for people who might use a scrub boards or handwriting things, which could he quiet useful in emergency situations or places without electricity.
😂 yes!
I make my own because my husband is allergic to nearly all of the detergents in the store.
I've been making it for years.
@@lyndi9719 Watching videos on this stuff because our whole family is developing allergies to the store stuff! Super itchy!
So it’s a bad idea to do the homemade stuff I’m trying to save money. We have six people in the house and I recently saw a video about homemade detergents
@@veronicaseegmiller4396 No, she just pointing out the differences, and outcomes of each choice
I hated my HE washer. Clothes still felt dirty and looked dingy. I now am back to a washer with a agitator and deep water. Love having it back again. My clothes and towels immediately felt normal again.
I will never go back to a front loader! The smell, especially towels, was horrible!
same here!
@@doobalaba I still use hard mount front loaders in laundromats. Their is now only one best top loader washers out in the world which is a Speed Queen TC series which still has the classic moving agitator. The big box stores like Lowes, Home Depot, Best Buy and Menards don't carry them. Sadly the Government has been setting mandates to use lesser water and lesser energy which seems to explain why their have been alot of HE front loader washers and HE top loaders washers out there.
Hi! May I ask which washer you’re now using? I’ve found washers with agitators, but the water is still low. I’d love to get back to a normal level. I’m very tired of this HE . The capacity is huge, but very little water.
I also hated HE! Actually I have never known a "family" (more than 3) that liked HE. It does not clean 'for real'. The only people that seemed okay with their HE washer were singletons. Being in charge of laundry and speaking with other persons in charge of their laundry, whenever we would have to do three or four pairs of jeans, they would never quite seem to get clean. (Stains or whatever)
I finally learned a trick when my boys had reached about 17, 18. I was experiencing towels that wouldn't absorb and clothing that had what felt like residue, and the smells were awful! (The smell seemed gone in the first day or two, but then the stink would return within a few days of washing).
I spoke with an old timer who said something in passing about "stripping". It sounded like a very concentrated effort, taking a lot of time, but at this point I was kind of desperate.
What I would do is wait till I had a couple of pieces that need it (either because they stunk or they were stiff or there were residues or whatever, and I would put them in the bathtub with hot water, vinegar and soap and agitate that every few hours using a mop or broomstick handle. Generally leaving it about 24 hours or longer, going in and agitating my "soup" (of clothing in water) once or twice....man! It was a trade-off that I was willing to make! I found out that by soaking some pieces 24 hours, it would actually get rid of the stink and bring back the color (IF the color reduction was muted due to build up). One of the things that I had always hated about HE was that it never seemed like anything got clean in my book. I joked that it only took a cup of water to wash a load, but I could do better with a cup of water than the silly machine.
"Stripping" clothing and towels has been a game changer for me!
(PS: The first couple times it was amazing how after just a few hours of soaking, the water turned to the most disgusting dark shade! At this point, I would drain the tub, lightly "rinse" the clothes under the tap, and then go ahead and fill to just cover the clothing again. Let that continue to set for another 12 hours. After the 24-hour soak, I would squeeze the water out of the articles and then pop them in a rinse load in my HE.
I really don't have to "strip" much anymore. I still do this for bath and kitchen towels; (separately of course)
It is extra work, but clean absorbent and functional is my goal!
Now what I will do is if I get a kitchen hand towel that has just encountered some sort of liquid or essence, I have a little plastic trash can that I bought from the dollar store that I pour hot water and a drop of laundry soap or vinegar (whatever I think I should be cleaning with at the moment), and just let it start soaking from get go. By the next day, I throw that in with whatever loads I got going on and it's like a pre soak that doesn't take much water.
It matters enormously on how naturally soft your water is. For example, my sister lived in Tacoma, WA for 15 years. She never had soap scum or calcium build-up. She never needed a water softener. Then she moved to South Dakota, where the water is extremely hard. She tried to do without a softener, but after a month of the hard water problems, she installed one. It still isn't the same as having naturally soft water. When I would visit her in Tacoma, my skin cleared up and became super smooth, and my hair looked so shiny that it sparkled. There's just no comparison between naturally soft water and hard water.
I'm in the Pacific Northwest, Washington state.. I have soft water and I do have soap scum. I know it's no where near as bad as those with hard water. I agree there is no comparison between naturally soft water and hard water.
@@HomemakingontheHomestead - could you not put a soap scum remover (ie. for shower walls) in a homemade laundry soap?
I live in Indiana and we also have extremely hard water, but I use an HE washing machine and use All Free and Clear and I've never had any issues with the laundry.
I’m from Tacoma born and raised. Now in Kentucky very hard water. I just made my first batch hoping for the best.
I’ve never felt comfortable adding grated soap in my laundry machine so I looked for a recipe that didn’t include bar soap and borax. I’m so glad my hunch was right! This has been my go to recipe. I can’t take the credit, but it’s been working very well. I have a front load HE machine. I fill the bleach compartment with distilled vinegar with every wash.
DIY Laundry Powder:
Ingredients
* 1/2 cup Epsom Salt
* 1 1/2 cups Sodium Bicarbonate (baking soda)
* 1 1/2 cups Sodium Carbonate (washing soda)
* 1/4 cup Sea Salt
* 20-25 drops Essential Oils (optional)
Instructions: Use 1-2 tablespoons per load (depending how dirty your laundry is).
Fill bleach or fabric softer compartment with vinegar
Great, thanks!
Oh love this recipe! Thank you soo much for sharing!!
thank you!
Thank you for sharing!
Pretty much what I use.
One woman who actually has wanted to research.
Thank you fur all this unbiased info.😊
I'm glad you found it helpful! -Crystal :)
I used to make homemade laundry soap and was thinking about starting again until I saw your video. Thank you! It makes so much sense now!
A few months into using my homemade laundry soap my husband told me his clean clothes smelled. That was about 6 yrs ago. I researched the soap-detergent issue but there wasn't a lot of info as to why homemade was not good, only that it wasn't good.
Thank you for providing me the "rest of the story".
When you make your own it is important to use washing soda and baking soda they are 2 minerals that do different things to break up the dirt composition it changes the alkalinity of the water to disperse stains and soil and it freshens the laundry I like making my own laundry soap my whites are very white and my laundry smells amazing
Do you mind sharing your laundry soap recipe for your white clothing? Thanks in advance!
I would love to know as well if you ever see this😊
Ditto! Would appreciate your laundry soap recipe!
Where may I find the recipe you use, I am tired of paying and fighting with the store detergent and softener and ready to use more thoughtful and organic ingredients!
How long have you been making your own with no issues?
I made my own powder detergent about 10 years ago. I loved it, smelled nice and really worked. Used it for a while. Then I noticed my fairly new Samsung front loader was leaking water from around the soap dispenser. Called a repair guy and he opened it up. The lines were clogged with the soap I grated. I grated it fine too btw. It was a total loss. He also said he has seen the rubber or silicone parts breakdown with the Borax from the homemade detergents. I had to get a new washer and I’m back to commercial detergent. He did say people use way more soap then needed. So I use less. Still miss the homemade detergent.
Another thing is that Samsung make disposable washers that break within 3 years, and dryers that don't work properly right out of the box. Avoid Samsung washers and dryers in the first place.
@@babycakes8434true
I almost bought a ton of stuff to start making my own soap.
You surely saved my washer.
Thank you dear!
Same here! Thank you @HomemakingOnTheHomestead
I just did... d-oh!
Your video saved me from starting to make my own laundry soap because I was seriously about to get into it. Thank you so much!!
Same!
Same here!!
I dont think you need to stop but from I've gathered just add a little dawn to it, it still will save you a 'load' of money.
I was going to make my own too. Thank God I watched this awesome video.
Same❗️
Thank you for posting this video. This was super helpful. I was just about to deal with into making my own soap. Then I came across your video. Thank you for not being negative to those who have decided to make their own soaps but instead you simply shed light on a facts and information, this allows people to decide for themselves and beat well informed about their decision without being critical to one's choice.
Yes!! I felt the exact same ❤️
If only the rest of the world could approach ALL issues like that. The world would be a better place.
Well done Clear explanation, no judgement.
Soaking, even in front loader, gives water time to remove most dirt
As a biology major (who dabbles in chemistry) this video was amazing! This “soap knowledge” also applies to hand washing as well. Soap is caustic, which means it “needs friction” (as you have mentioned) that’s why it’s so effective in removing germs. Very appropriate for today’s climate (if you know what I mean). I was planning on making my own detergent (UGH I already made it) but decided to stop and question “hmm....maybe I shouldn’t put this in an HE washer” decided to stop by this video, and I have to say that I’m impressed and your voice is calming haha. Very knowledgeable! Thank you for spreading your experience!
Thank you so much for your comment! I really appreciate it. -Crystal :)
What about if you use "Washin’ Jax Laundry Agitators" haha that sounds like an ad. Anyways, I was having issues with my frontloader HE cleaning my clothes and when I got the jaxs it really helped. I wonder if that would give enough friction to clean the clothes. But then again I suppose the laundry machine would still eventually get clogged with the soap.
Sorry for my clumsy English, but I have a question, something I wondered about after reading your comment. When soap needs friction to lift the dirt and detergent does not, can it then be said that scrubbing with a detergent on some stubborn dirt, really doesn't make a big difference, compared with just applying the detergent and let it sit for a while?
You can use the home made to soak stains, etc, so you don't have to waste it, also for cleaning around the house.
I will use homemade laundry soap for hand wash only bcuz i don't know what it can do washer. maybe bcuz it was cuz of the lard
I've been making my own laundry soap for over 10 years and I still love it. I use washing soda, borax and grated Ivory soap. I also add white vinegar to every load, at the start of the wash cycle with the soap. I added the vinegar for deodorizing and to kill germs.
Can you please share your recipe thanks
Can you please share recipe.? Please and thank you
this deserves some sort of science award
I agree. Honestly, why are science awards only given to school kids and scientists?
This is why I'm raising my children to ask questions. Be curious. If you still don't get it ask again or someone else. Read. Feed your brain. Ask others if they have any questions.
These are just a few of the "annoying" mom things they will probably say to their kids someday 😁
Thanks for this brain food, Homemaking on the Homestead... This makes so much sense now. 🦋
Love this! Thank you for sharing 😃 -Crystal 🙂
@@HomemakingontheHomestead Just wanted to wish you and yours a nice day💚 Pass it on. Our Earth needs so much love 💘
Thank you! ❤
Thank you so much I bought all the ingredients to make my own laundry detergent. But now I have changed my mind. I was going to make it tomorrow so thank God I saw this to night. Thank you so much for Sharing
I buy cheap laundry detergent and add a bit of dawn works great and I only spend around $5 bucks a month. (Foca Liquid detergent)
Can you share the recipe?
I put dawn in my laundry once and it didn't end well lmao
Some of the cheap laundry detergent clean well and some don't. I just try them and find out. If they don't work, I just don't buy it again. And a squirt of Dawn helps with dirt and grease or a scoop of Borax really cleans everything
@@traviousandrews1015 sweety, if you use dawn in washer, just use a tiny squirt or too many suds and won't rinse out
@@traviousandrews1015 I had the very same experience you had with the Dawn detergent. People talk about it like it just does everything so perfectly no matter what it is you got to get some dawn! . I don’t feel that way about it though. In fact I don’t think I like it very much at all.
I loved my homemade at first and thought my clothes looked cleaner. After a couple years, my clothes didn't look as clean. I started using half the amount of homemade and half amount of commercial. Then I heard you need the detergent to keep your plumbing from clogging. So far I've been using half and half and haven't noticed a problem. But now with these water saving machines they have, I noticed powdered detergent wasn't completely dissolving in some loads like towels and blankets. So I use a gel detergent tablet only in those loads.
I made your laundry soap when all my children were at home. I also noticed the dinginess after awhile. My husband still says its the best hand cleaner ever! Every time he worked on something greasy it got his hands perfectly clean! With just the two of us i no longer need big batches of laundry soap. Great memories!
I remember someone saying their husband used it as a hand cleaner! That's too funny.. :D
@@HomemakingontheHomestead You should market it as the best hand cleaner you'll ever use. :) See if you sell some. Actually, do a side by side comparison with Lava. Film it of course, just in case.
To keep towels absorbent you add about 1/2 cup of white vinegar to washer. I do use fabric softener in rinse cycle but it does make the towels less absorbent after a few washings, but I like the fresh smell l.
This works 100% every time. I’ve been doing it for over 30 years 😊
I never use fabric softener in towels. You're putting those chemicals all over yoir baked body.
If you buy white towels and use a scented bleach, they will smell wonderful and you can forgo the oily, scented waxes they use in fabric softeners.
the vinegar also really helps me
I don't like strong fragrances but I use a small amount of fabric softener to prevent static. I live in the southwest where the air is very dry and static is a big on problem. I also use laundry balls, but they aren't enough on their own. A little bit (a tablespoon or two) of fabric softener is all I need to prevent static, and my towels are just fine. Downey makes a plant based version now, so that's be what I've been using. It does have fragrance, but it's not irritating with the small amount I use.
@@emmteemee I have neither washer nor dryer, I hand wash and air dry. yet I never get static. Is Static just a byproduct of electric dryers? I've seem people put things like new tennis balls or balls made of wool into their dryer to reduce static. Don't know if it works but sharing in case it helps. Cheers.
KKP does the vinegar bleach your cloths out?
Thank for making this video. I had feared that homemade soap would not work laundry machines. Laundry machines need detergent. I have had people ask me to make laundry soap and I refused. I was afraid it would break their machine. Your video help confirm my belief.
Thank you so much for this video. I have been making my own laundry soap (Powder and liquid) for about 5 years now. I noticed in the last year my clothes after washing them would have a greasy or odd smell. We live on a farm and both work jobs we get dirty in. I have added and taken away so many things I think in the last year I have tried all I could but last week I bought my first liquid laundry detergent in 5 years. What a wonderful difference. I also make my own soap and cleaning supplies which I love but I thought I was not doing something right, thank you so much for clearing this up. I only wash with cold water so, I now know why and will bite the bullet and have brighter, and better smelling clothes once again. Your video explained everything.
You're welcome, I'm glad the video was helpful for you! -Crystal :)
Thank you for this info. That makes total sense. I was thinking of making my own soap to use in my HE machine. You saved me money. Also note, dryer sheets coat towels and makes them less absorbent.
Yes, dryer sheets will cause problems with absorbency over time. I made a follow up video on this with other ideas and options, many of them from the comments here on this post. ua-cam.com/video/ZCN5yn_Xy0U/v-deo.html
2 cups of the powder detergent of your choice
1 cup of borax
1 cup super washing soda
1 cup of baking soda
1 cup of sun oxi clean
1 or 2 cups of purex crystals your smell preference
Mix all up and no issues at all because using actual laundry powder with the added enhancers still saves tons of money and clothing comes out super clean smells great I also knew about the bar soap causing issues that’s why I did box detergent with the other ingredients
You can double the batch triple what ever you need or want just follow measurements
@@HomemakingontheHomestead
Yep, I found the same with my clothes. Now I use Foca, Ariel, or Roma, about ¼ cup per load works great.
Knowing all this, what I chose was to reduce the zoat soap by half and add oxy-powder. I do add scented crystals but they are pure magnesium based, not just any bottle of "laundry booster" crystals on the shelf. FYI: these crystals are getting harder to find. Oils in general should not be used in laundry. That's why I never use Castille soap in machines and even kitchen due to the disposer. It's asking for clogging issues, even in a bathtub. You'll find you need Drano more often, like the old days when we had to use Drano alot to cut the residue build up in pipes. The hair would get caught in the residue, where hair wouldn't normally clog up a drain. So it's kind of common sense really. I have no chemistry background and abhore the thought of having to try to figure such things out. It really did just make me think about residue build up with all these homemade recipes. I do put a few drops of teatree oil in my bath, but the soap we use to wash ourselves with breaks it down, going down the drain. Oils are great for personal body cleansing, but you must think about your drains and pipes when using them. Remember back in "the day" baths were the form of bathing and usually in a metal tub you emptied by dumping out - outside, not down a drain. With each thing comes a new factor of use. If I use homemade laundry soap, I prefer the liquid version and use half the recommended zoat... technically you could wash your clothes with just baking soda but they will be stiff... or just oxyclean. Either way, it's up to each person to be responsible about learning the technology they work with and the products they want to produce for themselves. You can't throw wood into a water heater for fuel to make it work. It uses gas. Same concept. Don't throw Great grandma's tech at today's... you'll end up paying for it. Great video, thank you.
I make my own body soap with coconut oil. I do get soapscum but I clean my tubes and showers with a mixture of Dawn Free and Clear, white vinegar and distilled water. I've never had clogged drains.
I just started making mine. Now I'm confused.
Good point about 'Grandma's tech'! Thank you @Rhonda Kay for your tip to clear pipes bc we do use fat based soaps as well as detergents.
It's just hubs and me here, retired and disabled, so we don't have a lot of washing to do. We wait until the laundry baskets are full, then wash about once every two weeks. For the little detergent we use we just buy it from the store. We have soft water so only use half of the amount (or less) since our clothes aren't really dirty.
I wash scarves and delicates by hand with olive oil and laurel bar soap, that I use in the shower, and they do well so far. I'll start to throw in a little detergent once in a while from now on to make sure the delicates are releasing the dirt.
Thank you for your informative and easy to understand explanation.
What I've done for years is make the laundry detergent as a "laundry booster." I would use a tablespoon or so of the homemade stuff and then half a lid of commercial detergent. I haven't had any trouble and it saves me money. I usually buy Tide from CVS using their ECB deals.
That's what I do. I use half homemade amount and half commercial amount.
Same here 👍🏻
I use detergent at only 25% the listed quantity. Then I add baking soda to soften and boost the detergent. Can also add washing soda for whitening if desired. Cheap, easy and effective.
This. People use way too much soap. 25 - 50% of the recommended amount is plenty.
Sharon Contini
I do the exact thing in regards to amount of detergent and the addition of baking soda. You’re 100% correct, it’s very very cost effective, my detergent last twice as long, easy and gets my laundry sparkling clean with any and all doors removed.
That's what I do, and still have a little bit of suds in rinse cycle, so that's definitely enough detergent.
I go through a lot of baking soda with my Ecos detergent and love it. I do use hot water to begin the wash to dissolve properly. Just a bit if it's a warm wash. I have to admit I do a lot of hot wash. I do believe it dissolves my homemade powder better and never had clogged pipes. I also use a coconut soap (Kirks) .
As I mentioned in my previous replies.. going back and forth between homemade and commercial detergent would prevent the issues and the soap scum build up. I used homemade ONLY for 3 years.. it took time for the problems to develop.
(Disclaimer: your mileage might vary...)
Hi Crystal, If you find an old box of Instant Fels or Ivory Snow laundry soap, the instructions will tell you to use 1 1/2 - 2 cups in a top load washer, or 3/4 - 1 cup in a front loader, and you need "to maintain 1-3 inches of suds". Yes, that is A LOT of soap! By those instructions, everyone today is not using enough soap in their laundry. (1 - 2 tablespoons would barely wash a pair of socks.)
The reason for the high amount of soap and the high amount of suds is due to minerals in the water, which cause the water to be hard. Soap reacts with the minerals to form gray compound that precipitates "out of solution". A sure sign this is happening is when you have no suds. So you have to use enough soap to compensate for the amount of soap that will react with the water minerals. When the soap and mineral compound "fall out of the solution", it gets caught in the fibers of the clothes, causing what was known as "tattle-tail gray" or "tell tale gray" dingy whites and dull colors. The precipitate caught in fibers causes them to become unabsorbent. And the precipitate can build up in the water level tubes and cause the washer to malfunction. So if you use enough soap to offset the precipitate, it won't build up and cause tattle-tale gray or build up in the water level tubes.
So you might say, "Well, borax softens water, and washing soda softens water." Yes, they do, but they are a precipitating water softeners. When you mix these with water, they combine with the minerals and turn the water milky. They need water to be still to float to the bottom due to gravity, hence the phrase "falling out of solution". The agitation in the washer keeps them suspended, and they still get caught in the clothes. Adding soap to the equation can make it worse. By contrast, the phosphate water softeners that were used in detergents for years are "non-precipitating"; they react with the minerals and stay suspended in the water, and the water stays clear. When phosphates were banned from detergents, it took several years for manufacturers to get the formulas correct, and many detergent brands disappeared because they couldn't get clothes clean anymore and the makers failed with their formulas.
Soft water does not have the calcium and the magnesium that causes the water to be hard. With soft water, you can get by with soap, but you still need enough to get the suds level needed to indicated there is enough soap to suspend everything that is in the water (minerals) and everything that will be in the water (dirt from clothes). The harder the water, the more soap needed. 1 - 2 tablespoons of a soap/soda/borax concoction will not work. Melt all that in water, and a 1/2 cup of soap goop will not work. Get the suds up and maintained throughout the entire wash portion of the cycles, use hot water, rinse thoroughly, and washing with soap can be successful.
All the best to you and everyone here!
Very interesting Peter, thanks for the info... I have soft water and tried many different amounts of the soap and still had issues and was using a top load washer (not HE).. I think still there is a lot to the fact that soaps require friction to break down the surface tension that holds the dirt in the clothes.. detergents don't require the same type of friction to do their job. HE washing machines say you should not see suds.. I had my grandson dump a bottle of shampoo on a bathroom rug.. I did my best to get all of it out before attempting to wash it.. I washed it in my HE front loader and ended up with a lot of suds in the machine and got an error code and the machine could not/would not finish the cycle.. ended up having to put a few cups of vinegar in the machine and run a rinse cycle to clear up the suds..
Great info. Thank you for sharing!!!!!
Thanks for sharing such helpful information. Very informative!
1-3 inches of suds looks like its gonna trip the oversuds sensor in my machine lol
So what are you saying in a nutshell?
Just in the Nick of time. Almost made the soap. Thank you
So I have been Making my own DIY laundry soap for quite some time now. I have done extensive research and so to help with the soap scum it’s true what your friend said you have to add a surfurcant to the DIY laundry soap so I use one bag of Foca laundry detergent in the mix because it eat’s away at enzymes ,food and bacteria in the clothes and I also use a half a cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle,I also add Oxiclean unscented to get that gunk and build up out and keep my whites white and my color’s bright after the course of time I will wash my towels in regular detergent and use the vinegar rinse to wash away the buildup soap scum and bacteria so that’s how I found that it was very effective to use my homemade laundry detergent, it’s not as frugal as I would like it to be but it saves a whole lot of money!!!!
Thank you for sharing Andrea. Your additions are interesting... So with your additions what are you spending per load of laundry?
I use Oxiclean as well as Borax and I use white vinegar in a Downy ball in every load. I do not try to figure out how much it costs me to do my laundry this way, I just know that it is a lot cheaper. I do not use dryer sheets or anything like that either. I make my own 100% wool dryer balls. You can scent them with essential oils if you want to. They help to dry your laundry a lot faster as well.
@@yannettemiller I also make and use wool dryer balls. I love them!
I followed the basic popular recipe and i would get bleach spots on my cotton clothing 😥😥
Thank you, Andrea. I will certainly try these tips. I just made my first batch of liquid detergent. I'll see how things go.
I ask about how this homemade soap can affect washing machine, but nobody gives me an answer,
I feel so great full for your honesty❣️👏
Thanks for this. (I realize this is 2 years old video). 25 years ago, I was making this exact recipe, to save money. I really thought I was doing great. A year in, I had to take a job outside the home in retail. I noticed a few months in, that my white shirts were very dingy next to my co-workers. I immediately went back to regular detergent.
We have been making our laundry soap for 12 years and yes the quality of your water does matter, mineral laden water will not rinse the soap out at all, plus if you are using that same water to make the soap you will not have a very active soap. We went from having a broken water softener to a brand new system and rinsed every article of clothing, they all got brighter, cleaner and returned to the original shape, just with good water. We actually add dish detergent right to the recipe and we use vinegar in my rinse. We also add ammonia to heavily soiled towels loads and also periodically run an empty load with vinegar or peroxide clean out the scum from the machine itself. Also we occasionally use laundry bluing in our whites, works great.
So glad I saw this! I was on the way to buy ingredients
Same here
Me too I was ready to save
Finally, someone has confirmed my experience! I try to use green detergent but I will never use again soap! Thank you!
I appreciate your point of view. I've always used the recipe that includes oxiclean stain remover powder. $20 bucks vs. the $50 I was spending monthly is a great bargain. I hadn't noticed anything wrong with our towels or dingy whites. But I'm gonna bet it's the oxiclean that keeps that from happening. Also, I've learned that Zote and Fels Naptha have detergent additives in it. The soap we make is usually only oils and lye. I tried to use my personal homemade soap in the stead of the Zote and it clogged my front loader. So I definitely won't be doing that again.
Costco brand powder detergent is quite good. I dissolve it in warm water before adding it to my washing machine. Very cheap per load and works well.
Can you please share your recipe?
@@happycook6737how much of the powder do you use?
Thanks for great info! Try using 1 cup of white vinegar only in your towels or clothes once in awhile. You are going to see the difference especially on the towels. White vinegar is antibacterial, deep cleaning and is a brightened. Also absorbent.
I heard something many years ago from a washing machine repairman. He said only use half of what the detergent bottle says. Its too much for the washing machine and can wear out components fast. I did that and my laundry came out really nice
Also dont stuff your machine it wears out the motor
I wouldn’t worry about wearing out the motor, at least not on any machine made in the last 20 years. The electronics or some plastic part will fail long before the motor does.
I came across your video by trying to search for a “homemade soap” for dark clothes. I think the same thing that causes the build up from bar soap on the shower is the same thing that causes all the issues that you mentioned. That’s why, in my country, even though we use bar soap with detergent for white clothing. No one washes dark colors with it because it leaves a whiteish film/top on the clothing.
Accumulates in your drain also
I had planned on making a years worth tomorrow. So glad to see this video before I made my first batch. Thank you so much!
You're welcome, I'm glad it was helpful for you -Crystal :)
Any recipe for a actual homemade detergent?
I completely understand about soap scum, Im surprised nobody's realised how bad showers or baths get when you use soap.. as to whats happening in the laundry..makes perfect sense...thankyou for your video
I came across this video for a different reason and the topic intrigued me. That being said, both Soap AND detergents are surfactants. A surfactant essentially clean by having molecules that have a Hydrophilic (Water loving) end and a hydrophobic (grease/dirt loving) end. The difference in detergent and soap is how those molecules are created. With true soap (Fat + and alkali) glycerin is left behind to moisturize (important for body, maybe not so much for laundry). With Detergent, chemicals are used to create the molecules, and mosturizing and sanitizing and killing bacteria all require more additions. (Real soap does not).
Does this explain the phenomena of why the clothes are less absorbent? More Dingy? Possibly. It could also be that older washing machines had an "Agitation" cycle that provided GOOD Friction (which you indicate is needed for using "Soap") and newer ones just don't provide it as well.
I will also say that if you are using an "Additional" product that many use (Fabric softener) that fabric softeners also "Water proof" clothes as part of making the softer, making towels less absorbent. (Even Dryer sheets do this to a lesser extent)
I think a good "Compromise" is a periodic use of the commercial detergent and more regular use of the natural (homemade?) soap for it's value in saving money (and less chemicals too). In those HE washers regardless of which you use, most of the manufacturers suggest that you wash the washer periodically using a product like "Affresh" which gets rid of the scum left behind from ANY detergent or soap.
Lastly only soap made from FAT can legally be called "Soap". Everything else is a bunch of chemicals. (IMHO).
For the record, I make my own soap from Bacon Fat and Lye. (Nothing else). Works great and I love it. No Dry skin, no rash, and no smell. I was looking for the best way to "Powderize" this soap (for the laundry) when I came across your video.
i use to grate my lard soap.. maybe you could grate it and then send it through a blender? Never have done that, so I'm not sure but it was my first thought.
Wow Paul! I fully appreciate this comment! Right on very detailed!
I think this has a lot to do with the washing machine. I just hand wash my clothes with bar soap and my clothes actually look better than they used to when I put them in the washing machine.
@@paulgardner5928 I'd love your bacon soap recipe if you're willing to share! ☺️
Thanks for explaining. I just made a vat yesterday. I did notice a funny scent. Oh well, I'll use it for the floors and cleaning the bathrooms
Thanks for the info...It explains why my whites looked dingy when I used the homemade detergent that I made. I had decided to stop using it because of that.......
I'm glad my info was helpful -Crystal :)
Thank you for this explanation! I definitely don’t want to void my warranty.
My trouble with the homemade soap is mold problem. As I think about it soap leaves scum and scum turns into mold if not found. So I am taking ur avice and stop making my own. U had me thinking about the soaps. Thank u
You're welcome -Crystal :)
I plan on making homemade laundry soap soon. I am making infusions from lavender, rosemary and lemon verbena (not used together and I also grow them). I have a top loader. I always hated the strong fake smells that detergents have. Any appliance repairman will tell you residue and soap scum is a problem on any washer. You have to maintain it by using citric acid and oxygen booster monthly. I use white vinegar in every load in the dishwasher, too. I never have to descale it since starting the vinegar. I also bought a speed queen top loader washing machine and have been maintaining it so I hope the machine last for 20 years, lol!
Excellent video and bonus points for making it despite your most popular content saying the opposite. You have made me take a change of direction on how I clean my clothes
Great information! My wife and I were about to start making our own laundry soap and are so glad we found your video. Thank you!
I used soap berries with baking soda for years and it was great. I still use them on occasion, just have to buy a new batch. They’re from a tree in South Asia. Definitely recommend!
Thank you for sharing! I mention these in the follow up video I made. I have not tried them so appreciate you sharing.
I was gonna make DIY laundry soap and use it in my HE machine but I’m so glad that I watch your video before I do. This is so helpful
Mechanical action in any laundry machine is created by adding the correct amount of linen. Too much linen and it has no room to agitate against the sides of machine or against the other linen. It also doesn’t allow the cleaning products to evenly distribute. Too little and you get the opposite effect. There are other factors as well, such as water quality, temperature, products used and the amount of time per cycle.
In the end, if you changed products and things are better, then it seems like you solved your problem.
Thanks for the video!
Thanks for the great video, it was very informative and well explained.
Glad it was helpful!
OMG 😱. This is VERY good information! Thank you for giving us an intelligent answer why you stopped using home made laundry detergent! We certainly don’t want to void the warranty of those high tech washing machines that really don’t do a thorough job of cleaning anyway. The washing machine companies need any excuse not to honor their warranty. Thank you for sharing!
That has to be the BEST explanation & when one gets down to the logical science of it all, of the differences between soaps & detergents I've ever heard. I used homemade soap for like maybe a total of one month - had all kinds of pipe & plumbing problems back up from soap scum almost right away - not realizing my plumbing problems were caused by the scum accumulations. But when one thinks of it - its like pouring fats & grease down a drain almost! Great information!!
I love your honesty, I hope you are happy for ever, you deserve it for been so nice!
I made my own, it washes my clothes extremely clean, I added oxygen clean powder to the mix, I rinse with half cup of white vinegar, it comes out to perfection. Blessings to you
Makes perfect sense!
I used homemade liquid soap with fels naphtha for years, but never noticed problems because our water was terrible at that house so I just assumed it was the water.
I did however try making my own powder laundry soap several years later with 100% homemade coconut oil soap (0% super fat). The washer was the same, but it was a different house/ different water. The laundry soap clogged the pipe terribly! We tried and tried to unclog the pipe. After a few days, my husband thought he was going to have to dig up the pipes to clear them. He tried one last time to snake the drain pipe and he finally got it cleared. I have never used homemade after that!
Soap scum can be a big problem for sure! -Crystal 🙂
I was this close to doing it thanks for saving me😳😲
Im so glad you taught me this..... No more worries
Thank you for this video. I have stopped to do homenade laundry detergents with soap flakes, when I read in the instruction booklet of my washing machine that it's strongly not reccomended to add soap in flakes or pieces,otherwise the manufacturer declines all responsability for any breakdowns the machine may suffer.
I make my own laundry detergent with 3/4 cup washing soda and 3/4 cup Dawn dish washing liquid and 4 cups very hot water. I use Dawn dish washing liquid but your favorite should be fine. I dissolve washing soda using a old wooden spoon in 4 cups of very hot water, until water is almost clear. Then I add dish washing liquid mixing well, a few drops of essential oil (your favorite smell) can be added for smell but not necessary. I pour into old laundry detergent jug I kept, top off with room temp water to fill jug up.
It will separate between loads so I gently tip jug side to side to mix again, I don’t recommend shaking the jug. It will make a mess in the lid when you open the jug and spill out. It makes about 75-80 ounces and I use 1/4 cup per load. I have a he washer and have used this for over a year, my clothes get clean and no soap buildup in my washer.
Thank you very much for this information. I was noticing that my clothes were not as clean as I felt they should be. And yes, my towels were not absorbing. I've stopped making my own laundry soap now.
You’re welcome! I’m glad it was helpful for you. -Crystal 🙂
Love how you explained everything. As someone who loves to learn and needs to understand everything it was amazing listening to you. Everything made sense. Thank you.
Glad it was helpful!
Wow! This was extremely helpful! I just started making my own soap powder this year. I always add a little name brand powder soap to my mix; maybe that's why I haven't noticed anything yet. Thanks for the heads up! ❤
Thank you for the information on HE soap. I've been making homemade washing machine soap for >10 yrs. I recently watch
Jeffrey Tucker on Epoch times taking about our laundering wrong. So informative. He was stating that they have taken TSP ouit
of soaps and detergents which removes that soaps, oils, dirt from our clothes. Also we need to use more hot water to clean.
We have had trouble with the smells and dinginess of the clothes. I did switch from taken the Fels Nalpha out of my soap thinking about the grime left on washing tub lining and door thinking that was not getting rinsed out. Your explanation about
soap and detergent makes sense and will keep that in mind with my laundry trials. Thank you so much.
Using grated lye soap with borax cleans extremely well. We started out with light colors, move to the farm and dark cloths, then we added bluing and bleach in the water to due our whites. We used a ringer washer. Same tub of water.
Thank you. I usually don't comment, but since you honestly asked for input, here goes it.
I'm not a very disciplined adult, but I love nothing more then to have clean and sanitized laundry, especially with out all the harmful chemicals .
So I alternate between the basic homemade and pre- wash by hand or soak heavy soiled items first. Keeping my washing machine clean( and my dryer). And I always add oxy the 56oz liquid OxiClean, and the free Lysol sanitizer. Which I alternate my whites by using bleach and Arman Hammer Detergent. And always an extra rinse cycle. I feel real self conscious about sharing that, some may see it as wasteful. Just a little OCD🥺
The homemade laundry soap works for me really well but that’s because I mix Ariel or Foca powder laundry detergent along with grated site. However I also added a small dash of dish soap and a splash of vinegar and I let it soak for about 30 minutes. Then I go in with a plunger and agitate my clothes. I do that before loading it in the washer. I find that my white underwear and socks look brand new. Perfectly white. I sometimes walk outside with white socks and doing this really cleans my clothes. I personally can’t run my clothes in the washer without soaking them. That’s the only way I find my clothes to wash. This video is very correct you do need detergent to clean your clothes so if you try this at home mix in powder detergent and it will work lovely.
Thank you for sharing what you do and how it’s working for you! ~Crystal 😊
These are the type of videos that people actually need !!
Thank you so much for explaining this. I also used to DIy. It ruined my clothes and my machine. The first “real” detergent wash my stuff looked like mud
Thank you so much. I was just getting ready to switch. You saved me from ruining things. I appreciate it so much.
its like the difference between prewash spray & high powered soap spray at the car wash. The prewash spray is most important because it breaks apart the dirt on your car, but most people will just turn on the high powered soap spray instead. When in reality you can just skip that part. Prewash -> then foam brush is best.
Crystal, Thank You for this explanation! I used your homemade laundry soap for several years and then my husband started complaining so I stopped. I had not seen your You Tube channel until this video , which I am watching in 2022. Thanks again and I'll subscribe as I always loved your blog and web site!!
You're welcome Luella and thank you for subscribing! -Crystal :)
Thank you for these awesome tips and knowledge around this subject - it definitely was helpful coming across this. I want to add that many petroleum products may be harmful to ocean life including us unfortunately. Therefore if the cost for organic detergents steer you away; I recommend using laundry bar soap specifically for machine/hand washing (without the extra oils) as well a high alkaline washing powder that is actually made from baking soda to wash your clothing naturally. There are so many recipe tutorials out there too
thank you so much for your video I was just about to make our start making laundry soap but because of your knowledge I'm not going to do it no more cuz I do have an HE washing machine as well thanks again
Albert Rodriguez
Very well said, makes sense. Thank you for your vivid explaination. 🙏🥰
I buy the liquid pods, BUT I do small loads, so I pop like 6 pods in an empty laundry (50oz) detergent bottle , and fill with warm water. I pour like less than a capful per load. 6 pods can last me many loads. I stopped using fabric softener too. My clothes kept getting grungy dirt on them whenever I did. I think it must gum up the machine. Sometimes I’ll use vinegar in place of that or omit all together.
I agree! I've made my own laundry soap before and it just didn't clean as well as store bought.
Thank you very much!!! I was just about to start making my own!!! What you say makes perfect sense! I don't WANT to scrub my laundry!!! And I can't afford to mess it up!!! There's no savings in THAT!!! Thank you again very much!!!!
Oh wow! Thanks for sharing. I couldn't understand why water just rolls off the towels and takes forever to absorb water🤦🏿♀️
I know that's a common problem for many people. I'm glad you found it helpful! -Crystal :)
Good information and a good explanation. I can see having the homemade laundry soap ingredients on hand for a SHTF scenario, or just hand washing of clothing.
Hi! Thank you. I think what I'll do is use my soap, and once a month or so, use detergent to see whether that's enough to have the benefits of both. We'll see. Thank you for checking all this out. It is really helpful.
That may just work.. I don't know. I know some have said (here in the comments) that they will use an inexpensive detergent such as Foca or Roma in place of the grated soap. I thought that was a good compromise. -Crystal 🙂
Thank you! I know you made this several years ago but I found the information you shared very helpful and probably why I won't take the time to make my own laundry detergent.
Thank you I was in Walmart buy all of the ingredients and then saw your video and put it all back lol ver informative!
Glad you found the information helpful! -Crystal :)
Thank you for explaining the difference between soap & detergent. I learned the difference years ago when I had a "care" label that stated washable in soap NOT detergent. I think it was a goose down comforter dried in the dryer with a couple of tennis balls but it could have been something else.
I use nearly the same recipe as you do, but I add oxyclean. My whites are whiter and my brights are brights. No problem with towels absorbing water. Been doing it for years.
Approximately how much OxyClean do you add? I want to start making my own laundry soap because my skin is very sensitive to chemicals, especially my intimate area. I am tired of infections!
What about lines and pipes etc. clogging?
Very helpful information. I saw a video just today 5/23/2023 where this woman showed a recipe to make homemade laundry soap. I thought great I can save money. I won't be making homemade laundry soap cause I don't want to ruin my he easing machine.
Thank you for this video! I have heard so much good and bad about homemade laundry soap. I am all about saving money. But when we bought a new washer my husband was adamant about using he specific detergents. He did not want to void the warranty. So I would not have used homemade laundry soap anytime soon because we havent had the washer that long and have a 3 year warranty. But I have a cousin who at one point was making her own laundry soap and seemed to like it a lot. And I have an aunt who has been making it for years and swears by it. I didnt want to use boron so I didn't like her recipe. But I've heard many people say the complaints you had about clothes and things and I did not want those issues. But listening to your video helped me realize that unless I want to move near a creek and get out the washing board then I need to just use the proper laundry soap. Thank you for that.
Hi Christina, ha, ha.. that's funny :D (move near a creek and get out the washing board) :) I'm glad the video was helpful for you
-Crystal :)
Thanks. I also use calgon laundry sanitizer in the rinse cycle. This completely removes odors, (by killing bacteria). I use this on underwear, towels, bedding and all kitchen laundry. No more funky smells
Thanx so much for honestly sharing your experiences and wonderful insights. I've wanted to make my own laundry pods following the youtube recipes. I now realize that while I love😍 the concept of doing "homemade". It's not realistic for me. It's just myself at home now and with arthritic limitations, I need to work smart and not hard. This was very helpful. 🌻Blessings to you.
Dee, I’m very glad this helped you 😊 -Crystal🙂
I have been thinking about making my own laundry detergent and came across your video. Thank you very much. I have a front load He washer and don’t want to take any chances ruining it
want more people to listen to this because as you said..we use soap and detergent interchangeably when they're not the same from a chemistry/functional perspective. There are things we can't DIY and just have to buy or use a scrub board :)