Herbal Homekeeping

[Guest guest]

Hi all!! I am looking for recipes for household cleaning products

which are not haemful to the environment. I particularly want

something for laundry. Any recipes?

Love....Mary Ostrowski

[Guest guest]

>maryostrowski

> Hi all!! I am looking for recipes for household cleaning products

>which are not haemful to the environment. I particularly want

>something for laundry. Any recipes?

> Love....Mary Ostrowski

 

Hi Mary,

 

Here are 2 posts about a homemade laundry detergent which I've been meaning

to try to make once I run out of Country Save (my current detergent). So I

haven't tried it yet, but here is the recipe and information:

 

Here's two posts about it:

--------------------

 

1 bar fels naptha (or other pure soap), grated

1 c. washing soda

3 gallons + 1 quart hot water

 

Mix the grated soap with the 1 qt. water. Stir over medium heat

till dissolved. Pour into a large bucket or container (at least 3.5

gallons), and stir in the remaining 3 gallons water. THEN stir in the

washing soda, stirring well till dissolved. Allow to cool, and the mixture

will gel. Stir well, and use 3/4 c. per load.

 

IMPORTANT: If you add the washing soda before the full amount of water,

you will end up with a very hard, unuseable mass. The soda reacts with

the soap to firm up, and so you MUST add the full amount of water before

you add the soda.

 

Notes:

The mixture can be used just fine before it gels.

Fels Naptha has given me the most effective results, but any plain

(as in not deoderant or beauty bar) soap can be used in the recipe.

Cleaning results will vary, but experiment if you like! The mixture will be

sort of watery/lumpy, but that is normal. You could wisk it to make it

smoother, but it isn't necessary. You can use cold water if you like, but

the washing soda will not dissolve as easily. Just use whatever

comes out of the tap on hot - no need to boil (although you can if you

want!)

 

 

 

This is the recipe I've been using for several months now. It is

very easy to make, and very cheap. Our clothes are cleaner than they

have ever been. We use it on all our laundry, except fleece covers,

which get detergent (they leak otherwise!).

 

1 bar fels naptha soap, grated

1 c. washing soda (NOT baking soda)

1 qt. + 3 gallons hot tap water

 

Mix the grated soap with the 1 qt. hot water. Heat over medium

heat, stirring frequently, till soap is completely dissolved. Pour into

large (4 gallons or more) bucket w/tight fitting lid. Stir in the remaining

3 gallons water. Add the washing soda, and stir well till dissolved. Let

sit overnight till completely cool and gelled. Stir well, and use 1/2 - 1

c. per load, in place of your regular detergent.

 

NOTES:

 

This can be made with any pure soap, such as Ivory, or Kirk's,

but I've had the best results using Fels Naptha.

 

Fels Naptha is generally located with the bar soaps, and usually

on the bottom shelf. Cost is usually somewhere around $1/bar. Most

" mom & pop " stores, and very large chains (such as Meijer) will carry it; it

is less often found in the medium-size stores.

 

Washing soda is located with the laundry supplies, usually next to

the borax. Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda is the only brand

I've seen, but there may be other brands out there.

 

DO NOT use baking soda instead of washing soda. They are

not the same. Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate, while washing soda is

sodium carbonate. Very similar, but not identical. The soap will likely

gel up, but the cleaning results will not be the same. Incidentally,

washing soda is NOT edible, while baking soda is.

 

_______________

Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com