Homemade laundry detergent recipes

I've been researching ways to make homemade laundry detergent. Basically, there are three ingredients: bar soap, borax, and washing soda.

There are two methods to making it; one involves boiling water for a gel detergent, and the other doesn't involve any water for a powder detergent. In the interest of simplicity, I decided to focus on powder recipes.

Here are a few great recipes I found:

Homemade laundry detergent recipes from Tipnut.com

Powdered Laundry Detergent - Recipe #9

12 cups Borax
8 cups Baking Soda
8 cups Washing Soda
8 cups Bar soap (grated)

Mix all ingredients well and store in a sealed tub.
Use 1/8 cup of powder per full load.


Powdered Laundry Detergent - Recipe #4

2 cups Fels Naptha Soap (finely grated - you could also try the other bar soaps -- Ivory or Zote))
1 cup Washing Soda
1 cup Borax

Mix well and store in an airtight plastic container.
Use 2 tablespoons per full load.


Homemade laundry detergent recipes from Stretcher.com

Laundry Detergent: Basic Mix

* 1 cup soap flakes

* 1/2 cup washing soda

* 1/2 cup borax

Laundry Detergent: Soft Water Mix

* 1 cup soap flakes

* 1/4 cup washing soda

* 1/2 cup borax

Laundry Detergent: Hard Water Mix

* 1 cup soap flakes

* 1 cup washing soda

* 1 cup borax

Liquid Laundry Detergent

* 1 cup of any of the above mixes

* 2 tablespoons glycerin

* 2 cups warm water

Mix ingredients and store in a sealed, labeled canister in the laundry room.

To use, measure 1/2 - 3/4 cup of the mix and wash your clothing in warm or cold water. Use cold water for the rinse cycle.


Here are some more informative links:

A great step-by-step guide with photos and a wonderful sense of humor from TheSimpleDollar.com. This one is actually for gel detergent.

Recipe from eHow.com

Information from Yahoo Answers