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All Natural Laundry Soap

This is the easiest and most natural homemade laundry soap I have ever made. It works really well and is pretty inexpensive.
Just measure the water and the soap nut pieces into a pot and simmer. Then store in a cool place.
Use 1/4 cup of the liquid to a medium size load of laundry.
It makes a brown tea-colored liquid soap that does NOT stain the clothes brown. The white sheets come out white.
Prep Time0 minutes
Active Time1 hour 30 minutes
Keyword: Laundry, DIY, Natural, Fragrence Free
Yield: 2 Quarts
Author: Joanne
Cost: About $.10 per load for small loads. Big really dirty loads maybe as much as $.30

Equipment

  • 6 Quart saucepan You are essentially making a tea with the soap nuts. They foam up if they get too hot, so leave room. I use a 6 quart saucepan.

Materials

  • 10 Cups Water I use filtered or good well water
  • 1 Cup Deseeded Soap Nuts

Instructions

  • Add the soap nuts and the water to your large sauce pot. Be sure there is extra room in case it foams.
  • Bring to a gentle boil
  • Reduce the heat and cover the pan
  • Allow to very gently simmer for 1 hour
  • Allow to cool. This can take another half hour. Feel free to let the mixture sit overnight.
  • Strain the liquid into a jar and label. Be sure it's obvious that this is soap not a drink, and include the measurement per load because it doesn't take very much to clean the clothes.
  • Store in the refrigerator. I keep one quart jar in the fridge and the other by my washer in the cold cellar. There are no preservatives in this soap and it will mold if it's kept in a warm place. It will keep for a few days in most conditions so you don't have to run to the refrigerator every time you need soap.
  • Use 1/4 cup of the liquid to a medium size load. Increase as needed for big dirty loads.

Notes

  1.  Consider freezing the liquid in small molds if you need it to stay fresh longer.  Or make a half a batch.  
  2. I buy my soap nuts from https://mountainroseherbs.com/soap-nuts-deseeded The last time I bought a pound for $10.50 and it made five or six batches of detergent.  
  3. It's important to properly label your laundry soap as it will look like iced tea. 
  4. When the clothes are lifted from the washer they may have an earthy smell.  This will vanish completely as they dry
  5. You may add essential oil to the soap if you want to
  6. For very dirty chore clothes or towels that sat in the hamper too long, I add some borax powder.