Homemade Dish Washing Soap

While we were staying home and not leaving our house, even for groceries, we started to look at other options we could try when we ran out of items.  Early on, we ran out of dish soap.  Here is an easy, natural, dishwashing recipe that we tried and are still currently using!

                                                              HOMEMADE DISH SOAP

1 1/3 cups boiling water.
1/4 cup grated castile bar soap.  I didn't have this on hand so I used Fels Naptha bar soap.
1 Tablespoon washing soda.  You can use a little more if you want a thicker soap.
1/4 cup liquid castile soap.
15-25 drops of essential oil.  This is optional.

Directions:

Add grated soap to boiling water.  Stir in washing soda and castile soap.  Let mixture cool, stirring occasionally.  Add essential oils if desired.  You can transfer this to a soap dispenser or container of your choice.  If soap is too thick, you can always add a little warm water to thin.  We added ours to a mason jar and just keep it next to our sink.  

Homemade Weed Killer

I've never been much for putting chemicals on our yard, but weeds are my enemy.  I researched a lot of homemade weed killers.  I found this one and it worked like a charm! 

Homemade Weed Killer:

4 cups Vinegar

1/4 cup borox

1 teaspoon liquid dish soap

Mix together and place in spray bottle

This is what I started off with.  I have pulled these stubborn weeds many a time, and they always come right back.

Here is what it looked like just 24 hours after spraying.

After 48 hours the weeds were completely dead and easy to pull out of the ground.  I sprayed the rest of the rock area in hopes that nothing will come up in the dead weed space.  Keep in mind this solution will kill grass too, so make sure you only spray what you want to kill!

Here is the end product.  It looks so much better!  We will see what happens in a couple weeks.  Crossing my fingers the weeds stay away.

Frugal Fabric Softener

Well the colder weather means no more hanging our clothes outside on the line.  I tried hanging some blankets outside the other day and they never did completely dry.  This means I will be using my dryer again and that means...static cling!  Ugh.  It's the worst in the cold months.

I used to use dryer sheets.  Then I started saving some money cutting the dryer sheets in half.  Half a sheet was usually sufficient enough to get most of the static out of the clothes.  Almost a year ago I ran out of dryer sheets and decided to try a new method.  I use a quirt bottle filled with a capful of liquid fabric softener and fill the rest of the bottle with water. Squirt 6-10 sprays into dryer on top of wet clothes.

I still have the original bottle of fabric softener that I bought almost a year ago.  I just made up a new batch of it yesterday and it is still working really well at getting the static cling out of the clothes.

I should mention that I also shake the bottle each time I use it to make sure it gets mixed well.

Homemade Laundry Soap Comparison

It's been over a year and a half since I switched to homemade laundry soap. In June 2010 I made my first batch of liquid laundry soap. I loved it. I stored the bulk of the soap in a 5 gallon bucket next to my washer. I used an empty detergent bottle and filled it up as necessary. The liquid soap lasted about 3 months.I heard alot of people talking about how they love the easiness of the powder so in September when I ran out of the liquid I decided to try the powder.

I do agree, it was extremely easy. All you have to do is grate the soap and mix all the ingredients together. Storage is easier because you aren't dealing with a huge bucket of liquid. You only have to use 1 Tablespoon of the powder. I can keep it nicely on top of my dryer and I don't have to refill the container each week.However the powder didn't last me near as long as the liquid did. I even made a double batch the first time I made it. I ran out in about a month.

I think both the liquid and the powder clean equally as well. However, my preference is the liquid. It may be a bit harder to store if you are short on space. I don't mind filling up the bottle every week or two and I like that it lasts me much longer.

Do you use homemade laundry soap? What do you prefer?

Homemade Laundry Soap

I have been using my own homemade laundry soap for over a year now. I decided once the last batch of liquid soap was done I would try and make the powder form.

The powder detergent takes a lot less time to make up than the liquid version. Here is the directions.

Combine in a bowl:
2 cups borax
2 cups washing soda
1 bar of grated soap (I used Fels Naptha)

I actually doubled the recipe but still only used 1 bar of soap.
That's it. Use 1 Tablespoon per load of clothes. I was a bit skeptical because 1 Tablespoon seems to be such a small amount. So far though I have been happy with the results. I do still use my commercial detergent on the really dirty/smelly items (for example football gear).

This stores more conveniently than the liquid soap as well. I can keep it in a jar on top of my washer.Do you use homemade laundry soap? If so, do you use the powder or liquid?

Clean Sinks

I used to spend money on store bought cleaning supplies. I have pretty much eliminated most of those products now. I have switched over my cleaners to safe, simple, homemade recipes. For my sinks I have been using plain ol baking soda. A couple of shakes is all you need. It works great on the porcelain and gets all the stains and gunk off.

The other great thing about cleaning with baking soda? It's so safe even my pre-schoolers can use it. Here are some recipes for other homemade cleaners.

All-Purpose Cleaner
Homemade Laundry Soap
Glass Cleaner
Oven Cleaner

This post is linked to the Frugal Tuesday Tip.

Homemade Glass Cleaner

I am phasing out all of my store bought cleaners and switching to homemade green cleaners. I am loving my all-purpose cleaner. Above is my window and mirror cleaner. The recipe is simple.

Add 1/4 cup vinegar to a spray bottle and fill the rest of the bottle up with water. That's it!

I use a clean cloth to wipe the windows. You could also use waded up newspaper.

This post is linked to the Frugal Tuesday Tip.

Homemade All Purpose Cleaner

Here is a very simple recipe for homemade all purpose cleaner. I have been slowly changing over all my cleaners from store bought to homemade. I really like making my own. So easy to do, cheap, and I feel alot safer using them or having the kids use them to clean. I have no complaints about this solution. It seems to clean things nicely. Here are the ingredients.

2 cups boiling water
1/4 cup castile soap
2 tsp borax
2 T vinegar

Pour all ingredients into a spray bottle. Shake before using. You could also add essential oils to your solution if you choose. I don't because the castile soap I get has a pepperminty smell to it and I like that.
Also another little helpful hint. I write the ingredients on the bottle so that I know when it runs out what the concoction was. The recipe on this bottle is doubled so that I can fill 2 bottles at a time.

Update on Homemade Laundry Soap

I just made up my second batch of homemade laundry soap. I switched over to homemade soap back in June. Over all I am happy with the switch. It has definitely saved us money. The soap I made in June lasted a little over 3 months, and trust me, we do A LOT of laundry at our house. Here are a few things that I have observed.

Clothes that are washed must be removed from the washer within 12 hours or so or they will start to develop a stink. When I used commercial laundry soap I could let the clothes sit in the washer a day or so and there was no odor. The perfume used in the soap would make the clothes still smell nice when I finally took them out.

Things that are heavily smelly (like son's football gear) still smell after washing with the homemade detergent alone. I have been adding vinegar to the water but I still get a funk. So, I have reserved commercial detergent for those kind of items. Any suggestions on that?

Like I said over all I am happy with the switch and will continue to use homemade laundry soap. If you are interested in the recipe you can read my post here.

Homemade Laundry Soap

I have finally crossed over and started making my own laundry soap. So far I have no complaints. I have only used it a handful of times. It was SO easy to make and I am excited about the savings I will see in my pocket book by not having to purchase soap from the store.

Here is the recipe I used.

4 cups hot water
1 Fels Naptha Soap bar
1 cup Washing Soda
1/2 cup Borax
5 gallon bucket with lid

1. Grate 1 bar of soap into saucepan with water. Stir over medium heat till all dissolved.2. Add Borax and Washing Soda to 5 gallon bucket and fill 1/2 way with water. Stir to dissolve.
3. Add hot soap mixture to bucket and fill up the bucket the rest of the way with hot water.
4. Place lid on top and allow to sit overnight to thicken.
5. Fill a laundry soap container or equivalent 1/2 full of soap mixture. Fill the rest with water. Shake well before each use.
6. Pour 1 1/2 lids full into top loading machines.

Makes 10 gallons

All the ingredients can be found at Hy-Vee. I also found them at my local Fareway.

Natural Clothes Whitener

I stopped using bleach a while ago. The fumes are extremely dangerous if inhaled. Bleach is not only toxic to humans, but to the environment as well. I used to pour a little in my washer when I washed my whites and socks.

I have since switched over to vinegar. The mild acid brightens clothes and gives them a crisp, fresh smell. I pour about 1/2 - 3/4 cup into my washer along with my detergent. When the clothes are done, they don't have any of the vinegar odor on them. It's a natural way to get my clothes clean, bright and smelling fresh.

Homemade Oven Cleaner

Let's start off by saying I HATE cleaning the oven. I hate the scrubbing, the smell, just the thought of cleaning the oven bums me out. Our oven is the only appliance in our house that has not been replaced. It is the original oven and yes, I will admit I was kinda hoping it would give out so I had an excuse to buy a new one. That is how much I hate cleaning. But, since it is such a trusty old thing and doesn't look to be dying anytime soon, I decided I had better just bite the bullet and clean it.

I have been wanting to try a homemade cleaner for awhile because the fumes from the store bought stuff are just so bad. Now that I am expecting, I figured it would be a good time to try a safer version so that I don't have to inhale those horrible fumes.

This is the before picture. (Yes, I am terribly embarrassed to even show this.)Here is the after picture. I was quite impressed with how well it cleaned. I think it could have used another coating and sat overnight again, but like I said I hate cleaning the oven so this is good enough for me!

Here is the recipe I used.
2 Cups of hot water
1/8 cup dish soap
1/4 cup of vinegar
3 tsp of borax

Baking Soda

Mix the water, dish soap, vinegar and borax into a spray bottle. Coat the inside of your oven with the liquid. Next, generously cover the oven in baking soda. Once it is covered, spray the liquid over the entire oven again. Allow to sit overnight.Scrape it out in the morning and clean off the rest of the residue with hot water. The best part? You don't have that nasty smell leftover that the commercial brands usually leave behind.

Homemade Dishwasher Soap

I have been experimenting the last couple months with my homemade dishwasher soap. At first I was not a huge fan. It didn't clean as well as commercial brands and left spots on the glass. However, I have increased the amount (from 1T to about 1 1/2-2T) and it seems to be working better for me. I also added vinegar to my rinse dispenser which I think has helped too.

Here is the recipe I have been using.

1 Cup Washing Soda
1 Cup Borax
1/2 Cup Salt
1/2 Cup Citric Acid (like Fruit Fresh)

Mix together and store tightly covered in a Mason Jar. Use 1-2 Tablespoons per load. Add vinegar to the rinse dispenser for best results.

For those really greasy, dirty loads I am keeping my commercial soap on hand-just in case. But for everyday washing this seems to be working well.

Linked to Frugal Friday at Life as Mom.

Daily Shower Cleaner

I hate cleaning my shower. Let me rephrase that I really hate cleaning my shower. With 6 people in the house all sharing the same shower it creeps me out to think what is living in my shower. I do a deep cleaning of the shower every so often. I admit I probably don't deep clean often enough. I have been reading some articles about homemade daily shower cleaners and this intrigued me.

I am curious has anyone tried something like this? I like the idea of spraying something on each day after getting out of the shower and leaving it on. My goal is to not so much prolong the amount of time between my deep cleanings but to just maintain the cleanness of the shower and tub. I still give the younger kids baths and I HATE putting them into our tub, knowing that we have all showered in there EEEK!

I was pretty set on trying the vinegar and water solution and just spraying it on each day after my shower, but then I read somewhere that it is acidic so it will eat away at the caulk around your tub. I have found many other recipes, but wondered if any of you have tried anything that you would recommend.

Thanks for the help.