Homemade laundry soap

[Shelley D]

Hello everyone ~ I have been curious about something and would love to hear of your experiences with homemade laundry soap. I was leaning towards making a recipe of olive/coconut to shred and mix with washing soda powder but I recently came across an article about the negatives of homemade laundry soap and one of those issues is it negates a factory warranty on your washing machine due to soap scum build up
So, how do you deal with that? Or is it not such a big deal? I live in the St. Petersburg, FL area so we already have super hard water to worry about. I've gone through 3 coffee pots in 6 years and finally convinced my hubby to switch to distilled water for making our tea and coffee and so far, so good ~ but how it affects a washing machine is a concern. Currently, we don't have our own machine and go to a laundromat, but we plan on having own machine soon enough and I just want to know what to expect. All opinions and experiences are welcome! Thank you for sharing

 

[AliOop]

I personally wouldn't use anything but 100% CO or PKO with 0% SF for making the "soap" part of my laundry soap. Those have the highest cleansing value, and they rinse cleaner than other oils that have higher conditioning values.

Think about it... you don't want to "condition" your clothes with anything, not the FAs from the oils you use to create the soap, and not from SF, either. So while you can absolutely make laundry soap from other oils, and it will work, I don't believe it is the best choice.

One thing to keep in mind is that homemade laundry soap works best in hot water. To wash in cold, it's best to pre-dissolve the powder in hot water, and then add that mix to your load. Even then, you will get more scum in your washer, and will need to clean it more often.

Finally, if you will be using very hard water to wash your clothes, homemade laundry soap is probably not the best option for you. You will have lots of soap scum from all those minerals, and your clothes will probably get dingy because they won't rinse clean. Sorry

EDIT: my laundry soap recipe is actually a mix of 1 part grated CO soap, 1 part borax, and 2 parts washing soda. What I was trying to say above is that I only use CO or PKO to make the "soap" part of the mix.

 

[Shelley D]

Good info! I have always favored liquid laundry soaps because there always seemed to be white residue on clothes when removing from the washer, no matter how much I reduced the amount used, so believe me I am doing lots of research and considering all opinions of experience. I may never make that switch, as I seem to be ok with the detergent I've been using most of my life, which is regular liquid Tide at about half the recommended amount per load. But going natural for everything else just makes me curious. So far, the only 2 personal care items I can still use of the commercial variety is my laundry soap and deodorant ~ they don't seem to trigger flares weird, I know. I even had to replace toothpaste because I kept getting rashes around my mouth ~ turns out it was the fluoride So needless to say, it's been an interesting journey

 

[VikingChick]

@Shelley D i don’t know if it’s a feasible option for you, but have you considered a water conditioning system? Not a softener, which just adds salt, but a system that actually removes the hard minerals from the water. We installed one in our last house (where the water was super hard) and it was a game changer! I’d really like one in my current house, but it hasn’t been in the budget as of yet.

So being that in our current house we have neither a conditioner nor a softener, I have a “2nd rinse” button that I always hit on my washer (I use a supposedly-natural liquid detergent from Costco). I’ve thought about making my own laundry detergent- and as I type this I’m wondering if adding EDTA or another chelator to a homemade soap with no SF would help prevent soap scum in a washing machine?

On a completely unrelated side note…..I was in Largo a few weeks ago for work!

 

[AliOop]

Good info! I have always favored liquid laundry soaps because there always seemed to be white residue on clothes when removing from the washer, no matter how much I reduced the amount used, so believe me I am doing lots of research and considering all opinions of experience. I may never make that switch, as I seem to be ok with the detergent I've been using most of my life, which is regular liquid Tide at about half the recommended amount per load. But going natural for everything else just makes me curious. So far, the only 2 personal care items I can still use of the commercial variety is my laundry soap and deodorant ~ they don't seem to trigger flares weird, I know. I even had to replace toothpaste because I kept getting rashes around my mouth ~ turns out it was the fluoride So needless to say, it's been an interesting journey

I hear ya... I go back and forth with homemade toothpaste (or powder). It's definitely better for my oral health, but it's also messier. It never works in squeeze tubes like the recipes say it will, either!

Laundry soap is another one... When I recently ran out of some supplies, and priced their replacements , I reluctantly returned to the large jug of All Free & Clear available from Costco. It doesn't give me any noticeable reactions, and it it easier to use than the powder. Like you, I also use way less than the recommended amount, which still cleans the clothes just fine, and brings the price per wash pretty close to the homemade stuff. TBH, it is nice not to mess with pre-dissolving the homemade mix in hot water.

 

[Shelley D]

@Shelley D i don’t know if it’s a feasible option for you, but have you considered a water conditioning system? Not a softener, which just adds salt, but a system that actually removes the hard minerals from the water. We installed one in our last house (where the water was super hard) and it was a game changer! I’d really like one in my current house, but it hasn’t been in the budget as of yet.

So being that in our current house we have neither a conditioner nor a softener, I have a “2nd rinse” button that I always hit on my washer (I use a supposedly-natural liquid detergent from Costco). I’ve thought about making my own laundry detergent- and as I type this I’m wondering if adding EDTA or another chelator to a homemade soap with no SF would help prevent soap scum in a washing machine?

On a completely unrelated side note…..I was in Largo a few weeks ago for work!

Sadly, not feasible for us to have a water softening system as we live in apartments and as I'm sure you know the filtering systems really don't do much. But I told the hubs that when we finally get a house, a water softening system better be in the budget
The washers at the laundromat don't have an extra rinse cycle so we use the next size bigger for our loads giving plenty of room for the clothes to move around and hopefully rinse thoroughly.
Largo is actually where I live but not too many people are familiar with it, nor Clearwater, so I go with St. Pete

 

[VikingChick]

.Largo is actually where I live but not too many people are familiar with it, nor Clearwater, so I go with St. Pete

I work for a hospital system and we’ve got a handful of facilities in the Tampa area, so I’ve been there a few times. I really like it there!

 

[Shelley D]

I work for a hospital system and we’ve got a handful of facilities in the Tampa area, so I’ve been there a few times. I really like it there!

Me too! Except for the dadgum hard water!

 

[contrinokathy]

Hello everyone ~ I have been curious about something and would love to hear of your experiences with homemade laundry soap. I was leaning towards making a recipe of olive/coconut to shred and mix with washing soda powder but I recently came across an article about the negatives of homemade laundry soap and one of those issues is it negates a factory warranty on your washing machine due to soap scum build up
So, how do you deal with that? Or is it not such a big deal? I live in the St. Petersburg, FL area so we already have super hard water to worry about. I've gone through 3 coffee pots in 6 years and finally convinced my hubby to switch to distilled water for making our tea and coffee and so far, so good ~ but how it affects a washing machine is a concern. Currently, we don't have our own machine and go to a laundromat, but we plan on having own machine soon enough and I just want to know what to expect. All opinions and experiences are welcome! Thank you for sharing

I make it with coconut oil and a touch of castor. Next time I’ll do 100% coconut oil. I found it was wonderful.

 

[DeeAnna]

Adding a chelator to your soap can only help with soap scum if there's a limited amount of water to deal with. The water on your wash cloth is fine. A whole tub of water in the washing machine or kitchen sink -- nope.

If you are going to use lye-based soap in the laundry, you also need to use washing soda or borax for 2 reasons. One is to maintain the high pH that soap needs to be effective. Washing soda or borax also react with hard water minerals to reduce the amount of soap scum made.

Even though coconut oil soap is more soluble in water than other types of soap (lard, tallow, palm, etc.), it still makes soap scum in hard water. If you have hard water and don't have a water softener, you're still going to have soap scum buildup in your clothing no matter what type of soap you use. Maybe less with 100% coconut, but there's still going to be scum.

More: Laundry soap mix | Soapy Stuff
and: Chelator limitations | Soapy Stuff

 

[AliOop]

@DeeAnna after reading what you wrote, I realized that my previous answer sounded like I didn't recommend using anything but 100% CO soap in my laundry soap mix. I was only intending to refer to what oils I would use to make the "soap" part of the formula. I actually use 1 part grated CO soap, 1 part borax, and 2 parts washing soda. I've modified my answer above to reflect that - thanks!

 

[Shelley D]

@DeeAnna after reading what you wrote, I realized that my previous answer sounded like I didn't recommend using anything but 100% CO soap in my laundry soap mix. I was only intending to refer to what oils I would use to make the "soap" part of the formula. I actually use 1 part grated CO soap, 1 part borax, and 2 parts washing soda. I've modified my answer above to reflect that - thanks!

I kinda assumed that since that is what my reading has stated
I have lived in NJ, VA and AR before coming to FL and have always had issues with powder detergents. My curiosity and concern is based on the simple thought of what if that is the next thing I need to replace for natural products so I am doing my research in pre-preparation I have already learned that the commercial retail "all natural" products don't do any justice for me, and I have tried most of the Bonners line but they don't agree with me

 

[AliOop]

@Shelley D I read your other post about all the things that cause reactions for you. So sorry - I have similar experiences, but nowhere near as drastic as yours. Mine seemed to start once we moved to a house surrounded by walnut orchards. The workers often sprayed those orchards while wearing hazmat suits and respirators. It was soon after that I became unable to wear most jewelry, began having chronic sinusitis and migraines, became ultra-sensitive to fragrances and detergents, and on and on.

It’s a journey, for sure, and I wish you the best, as you must be your own detective and doctor for most of it.

 

[Shelley D]

@Shelley D I read your other post about all the things that cause reactions for you. So sorry - I have similar experiences, but nowhere near as drastic as yours. Mine seemed to start once we moved to a house surrounded by walnut orchards. The workers often sprayed those orchards while wearing hazmat suits and respirators. It was soon after that I became unable to wear most jewelry, began having chronic sinusitis and migraines, became ultra-sensitive to fragrances and detergents, and on and on.

It’s a journey, for sure, and I wish you the best, as you must be your own detective and doctor for most of it.

I hadn't really thought about how it started ~ it was hard because no one else in my household or family was having the same problems. However, after reading your reply, I did live in areas near farmland and we used to watch the old bi-wing planes do the crop dusting

 

[Zany_in_CO]

When daughter, Sarah, was 7 years old, she broke out in a rash all over her body. Our pediatrician told me to wash everything, bed linens, clothes, towels, etc. in Dreft liquid detergent. That worked for her. Maybe it may work for you?

The single most important part of laundry, is getting all the soap scum out. You can tell if there's soap residue left in the clothes or bed linens or towels, if/when they come out of the dryer, they are stiff and dingy looking. I've learned over the years to add 1/4 cup white vinegar to the final rinse. I wash in warm to cool water and do as many cold water rinses as it takes to get all the scum out. To do that, after the first wash/rinse cycle, i run a short cold water wash/rinse cycle with nothing added to it. Just water. Sometimes I need an extra rinse and I do that.

Whites come out white and colors come out of the dryer bright, like new, and soft to the touch. That makes folding clothes a "simple pleasure". I like it so much, I have to laugh at myself as I smooth my hands over the folds.

My homemade liquid soap:
100% coconut oil 76° soap paste, diluted at 40% soap to 60% water; 0% SF.

Add to the wash water before adding clothes:
1/4 cup Oxiclean
1/4 cup 20 Mule Team Borax (Water Softener).
Note: Liquid Calgon works well too but it is more expensive.

I've read that running the washer with 1 cup of white vinegar once a month will keep soap scum from building up but I've never felt the need to do that. My washer is so old (at least 10 years?) I can't remember when we bought it.

ETA: The last time I made laundry soap I emptied my bucket of tallow instead of the identical bucket of leftover coconut oil by mistake! Thankfully, it seems to be just as good as the coconut oil. I remember when I first made Laundry Stain Sticks (2004). The Tallow (vs. Lard & Coconut Oil), did the best job and lasted the longest. I still have a small piece of one but not so many stains to get out these days.

HTH

 

[Shelley D]

When daughter, Sarah, was 7 years old, she broke out in a rash all over her body. Our pediatrician told me to wash everything, bed linens, clothes, towels, etc. in Dreft liquid detergent. That worked for her. Maybe it may work for you?

The single most important part of laundry, is getting all the soap scum out. You can tell if there's soap residue left in the clothes or bed linens or towels, if/when they come out of the dryer, they are stiff and dingy looking. I've learned over the years to add 1/4 cup white vinegar to the final rinse. I wash in warm to cool water and do as many cold water rinses as it takes to get all the scum out. To do that, after the first wash/rinse cycle, i run a short cold water wash/rinse cycle with nothing added to it. Just water. Sometimes I need an extra rinse and I do that.

Whites come out white and colors come out of the dryer bright, like new, and soft to the touch. That makes folding clothes a "simple pleasure". I like it so much, I have to laugh at myself as I smooth my hands over the folds.

My homemade liquid soap:
100% coconut oil 76° soap paste, diluted at 40% soap to 60% water; 0% SF.

Add to the wash water before adding clothes:
1/4 cup Oxiclean
1/4 cup 20 Mule Team Borax (Water Softener).
Note: Liquid Calgon works well too but it is more expensive.

I've read that running the washer with 1 cup of white vinegar once a month will keep soap scum from building up but I've never felt the need to do that. My washer is so old (at least 10 years?) I can't remember when we bought it.

ETA: The last time I made laundry soap I emptied my bucket of tallow instead of the identical bucket of leftover coconut oil by mistake! Thankfully, it seems to be just as good as the coconut oil. I remember when I first made Laundry Stain Sticks (2004). The Tallow (vs. Lard & Coconut Oil), did the best job and lasted the longest. I still have a small piece of one but not so many stains to get out these days.

HTH

I don't remember if I ever tried Dreft, I may have to give it try.
I have tried white vinegar, but I can't say I noticed a difference ~ maybe I didn't use enough. I do tend to use lesser amounts out of fear of reactions (and not wanting my clothes to smell like vinegar)
I am saving all these tidbits for trial and error later! Thank you for sharing your experience!

 

[Jorah]

Good info! I have always favored liquid laundry soaps because there always seemed to be white residue on clothes when removing from the washer, no matter how much I reduced the amount used, so believe me I am doing lots of research and considering all opinions of experience. I may never make that switch, as I seem to be ok with the detergent I've been using most of my life, which is regular liquid Tide at about half the recommended amount per load. But going natural for everything else just makes me curious. So far, the only 2 personal care items I can still use of the commercial variety is my laundry soap and deodorant ~ they don't seem to trigger flares weird, I know. I even had to replace toothpaste because I kept getting rashes around my mouth ~ turns out it was the fluoride So needless to say, it's been an interesting journey

I used Tide Free for many years and was surprised when the little 'laundry sheets' turned out to do just as good a job. Have you tried them yet?

 

[Shelley D]

I used Tide Free for many years and was surprised when the little 'laundry sheets' turned out to do just as good a job. Have you tried them yet?

Laundry sheets you say? I am not familiar

 

[Jorah]

Laundry sheets you say? I am not familiar

The ones I get from Amazon are called '

Sheets Laundry Club'​

I just put one sheet in each load, or 1.5 sheets for really heavy, dirty clothes. So far, after two months, I haven't seen any change from the liquid Tide Free I was using. My wife tends to have very sensitive skin, and she hasn't had any downside yet. It's nice to get away from the plastic jugs (tho I wish I'd saved the last one for lye M.B.).

 

[Shelley D]

The ones I get from Amazon are called '

Sheets Laundry Club'​

I just put one sheet in each load, or 1.5 sheets for really heavy, dirty clothes. So far, after two months, I haven't seen any change from the liquid Tide Free I was using. My wife tends to have very sensitive skin, and she hasn't had any downside yet. It's nice to get away from the plastic jugs (tho I wish I'd saved the last one for lye M.B.).

Cool beans ~ I will check into that! Thank you for the tip!