I’ve been making my own laundry detergent for a couple years now. After some experimentation and finding ways to make it easier (and still work!) – I’ve got it down to a simple three step process using three ingredients all purchased at my handy Food City.
I mix and store mine in one large plastic storage bin with a click down lid.
Simple Three Step Laundry Detergent
3 boxes of Arm and Hammer washing powder
3 boxes of Arm and Hammer baking soda.
9 bars of castile soup, grated by hand using a cheese grater.
I used to dread the grating the soup. But now I just own the process, take a quiet seat on my laundry room rug and grate soap for about 30 minutes. It’s a rather mindful practice actually, with a nice sense of reward at the end.
To make detergent: grate 3 soap bars in the plastic bin, pour in one box of washing soda and baking soda. Mix all together using a big wooden spoon. Repeat two more times to make a triple batch.
I use about 1/4 of a cup per large load of laundry. The large triple bin of laundry detergent lasts about four months.
For tough to get clean loads (like kitchen dish towels) I add these items to loads when necessary: Borax, OXO Bright, Eco Cover stain remover on individual garments, Dawn dish soap (for greece), vinegar and sometimes some essential oil to make things smell nice.