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Trial Size Scent Free Laundry Detergent is perfect for you to test out if homemade laundry detergent is right for your family. It makes about 85 loads worth of detergent for less than $7.
Many years ago I used to make my own laundry detergent. But then my food processor broke. And I didn’t replace it right away. Then a lot of other life things happened (miscarriage, moving, pregnancy, new baby, Cakey starting kindergarten, many more things, etc). Anyway I stopped making homemade laundry detergent. And I never replaced my food processor either.
Last month, I noticed when entering our line items on our budget spreadsheet that cleaning products are taking a bigger chunk of it than we planned for. I decided that I was going to go back to making homemade laundry detergent because that would save us a big chunk of money. We do at minimum two loads of laundry a day.
Trial Size Scent Free Laundry Detergent
However, it had been so long since I had made it that I wasn’t sure if we would like it now. Our family is bigger than it was 4 years ago. The kids are getting dirtier than they did when they were toddlers. Well maybe not. 😉 But there is 3 of them now and they make some pretty huge messes!
Anyway I was concerned we might not like the laundry detergent. Or that it wouldn’t clean as well as it used to. Maybe I was just remembering it through rose colored glasses?
So I decided to make a trail size to test it out and not make a full commitment to it. Yes laundry detergent is a commitment to me. 🙂
Supplies:
- 1 bar Ivory soap (3.17 oz)
- 2 1/3 cups borax
- 1 3/4 cups washing soda
- 2 cups baking soda
- 1.5 cups Oxiclean (or Oxiclean Baby or Oxiclean Free)
Directions:
- On a microwave safe plate, microwave the bar of Ivory soap for 30 seconds.
- Remove and break into tiny pieces.
- Alternatively, you can shred the Ivory bar with a food processor or box grater.
- In a large container with a tight fitting lid, add Ivory soap pieces, borax, washing soda, baking soda, and Oxiclean.
- Close lid tightly and shake to mix.
To use:
- Use 1 tablespoon per small load of laundry.
- For a medium to large load use up to 2 tablespoons.
Makes about 128 tablespoons. Which is about 85 loads.
But why scent free? Well, we have some members with sensitive skin. When I purchased laundry detergent it was always the “free and clear” kinds. So I wanted to keep it simple and hopefully not irritate anyone’s skin.
We use regular Oxiclean in our normal laundry and cleaning and do not have any issues with it. However, if you are concerned about sensitive skin you can easily swap regular Oxiclean with Oxiclean Baby or Oxiclean Free.
After a month of use I can say we didn’t notice a difference in our laundry. It still came out clean. Nobody had any irritations or complaints. But I did notice a difference in our budget.
The cost breakdown of this laundry detergent is:
- Ivory soap – $1.98 for 3 bars – $0.66 for one bar
- Borax – $4.39 for one box – $1.30 for 2 1/3 cups
- Washing soda – $4.12 for one box – $0.98 for 1 3/4 cups
- Baking soda – $6.99 for 5 pounds – $1.40 for 2 cups
- Oxiclean – $7.71 for 48 ounce container – $1.92 for 1.5 cups
So for $6.26 I can do 85 loads of laundry. Which is $0.07 a load! In contrast the laundry detergent I was using before cost me $0.17 a load.
Have you ever used a homemade laundry detergent?
Have a great day!
Brandi
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Trial Size Scent Free Laundry Detergent
Ingredients
- 1 bar Ivory soap (3.17 oz)
- 2 1/3 cups borax
- 1 3/4 cups washing soda
- 2 cups baking soda
- 1.5 cups Oxiclean
Instructions
- On a microwave safe plate, microwave the bar of Ivory soap for 30 seconds.
- Remove and break into tiny pieces.
- Alternatively, you can shred the Ivory bar with a food processor or box grater.
- In a large container with a tight fitting lid, add Ivory soap pieces, borax, washing soda, baking soda, and Oxiclean.
- Close lid tightly and shake to mix.
Notes
- Use 1 tablespoon per small load of laundry.
- For a medium to large load use up to 2 tablespoons.
Looking for more Housekeeping Tips to clean your home? Check out my Housekeeping: Cleaning Tips and Tricks Board on Pinterest.
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