I’ve finally done it! I’ve finally tried a homemade liquid laundry detergent.
For years, I have used my homemade versions of powdered laundry detergent. We love them and have been completely satisfied with our homemade powdered detergents. I have been making the powdered detergents for so long that they have been tried and tested in both an old used regular upright washing machine and new HE front loading washer. In both machines as they work well! They are cheap and I can make it in 10 minutes. We have also heard from many of you that you like these powdered detergents as well.
- Here’s the recipe for the homemade natural powdered detergent like Tide with scent
- Here’s the recipe for the homemade natural powdered detergent for sensitive skin like Dreft or Ivory Snow
But we have had several of you that have raved about homemade liquid detergents. I haven’t had a desire to make laundry detergent this way as nearly every recipe has required a pretty decent amount of time and labor. I HATE grating soap. I also don’t want to spend 24 hours making laundry detergent. Yes, I know, hands-on wise, it’s not that long. But in all honesty, when I run out of detergent, I usually need more ASAP. So, I just haven’t felt the need to try liquid if my powder one works great and takes 10 minutes to make.
Well, a couple of months ago, we had a family that stayed with us overnight (we are part of a Christian Hospitality Network for Christian families all over the world to have a place to stay, and if we go on the road, we have hundreds of places to stay too! It’s GREAT!…..Now back on topic ;)) and the mom in this family also liked making her own cleaning products as well. She also agreed that homemade liquid laundry detergents take too much time and this has stopped her from making it. She’s like me…. if she runs out, she needs more right away, not a day later.
She shared that she found an instant liquid laundry detergent recipe. I was intrigued and thought I would give it a whirl myself. She sent me the recipe a few days later when she got home from Everyday Cheapskate.
So I gave it a whirl and added my own modifications with essential oils.
Here’s the recipe and then I will talk about the pros and cons at the bottom.
What you need:
– 3/4 cup of Borax
– 3/4 cup of Washing Soda (or Soda Ash)
– 3/4 cup of Original Blue Dawn Dish soap
– Lavender essential oil (get them HERE)
– Hottest tap water
– 1-gallon container with a tight lid (I also used the Arrowhead water container, you can grab them for $1-$1.50 filled, drink the water and you have an affordable heavy duty container with a tight fitting lid and a comfy hand grip to make it easy to use).
Okay – are you ready for this……. it’s quite complicated! 🙂
- Dump the 34/ cup of Borax and Washing Soda in the bottom of a gallon jug with a tight lid – I used a funnel to not lose any.
- Then, with the hottest tap water you can muster, fill your bottle with water to the bottom of the label.
- Put the lid on tight and shake vigorously (BONUS: you will work on your underarm wings at the same time!)
- Then add you 3/4 cup of Original Blue Dawn Dish Soap.
- Muster up the hottest tap water again and fill up your bottle until the bubbles reach the top (liquid line will be several inches down still). I actually filled the 3/4 cup scoop and poured it into the funnel to fill it to wash out any remaining down and washing down into the bottle.
- Then put the lid on again and shake vigorously, switching the hard working side to the other side to get an equal underarm wing workout (no one wants just one wing ya know ;)).
- Finally, let it set on the counter for a bit for the bubbles to settle.
- Then top it off with lavender essential oil (about 10-12 drops) if you like (I LOVE lavender in my laundry) and a slow flow of hot water to fill it up (slow flow to not create a lot of bubbles again).
That’s it! You can also watch a video real quick on how to whip up a batch:
To use:
- Simply add 1/4 cup of this liquid detergent to a full wash load (this is enough!) and less for smaller loads. The amount is the same in both a top loader and an HE machine. I have an HE machine now and I have been using this with no problems. It doesn’t create a lot of suds and so it’s great for HE machines.
Pro’s
- This detergent is super easy to make and I can make it in half the time of my powder and a lot less equipment.
- It seems to be quite effective in our laundry! Dawn is also used often as a stain remover, so it makes sense to include it in a detergent!
- The laundry smells great!
- The laundry seems to be nice and clean!
Con’s
- The mixture does separate. The blue Dawn will settle at the top. So every time I need to use it, I just shake it vigorously for about 5 seconds before adding to the washer. But I look at this as a pro as it forces me (again) to work on my underarms. The housework workout is quite an effective one, but there aren’t many things that work on the underarms – so now you will be lifting a several pound weight and shaking it = underarm workout bonus for no additional cost!
- Your clothes can become a little starchy according to others, I have not noticed this at all – perhaps it’s because I also use vinegar in every load – which I highly recommend. This will do many things additional to your laundry, but also help the Dawn wash out completely to prevent starching.
- It is not technically natural. My powdered versions are totally natural. But because of the Blue Dawn, it cannot be labeled natural. However, original Blue Dawn is one of the mildest commercial products. Again, not the Dawn’s with a bunch of added stuff and scents, just the good ol’ classic. The good news is that this is the cheapest dawn and it get’s cheaper the bigger bottle you buy.
Pin this image to keep your instructions easy!
This was the biggest bottle at Walmart (56 oz.) as it was the best value at the time, but after buying this, I saw it at Costco and Sam’s Club that was about twice the size and even cheaper per ounce.
After this first batch, this is how much I have left. So this will last me for quite a while!
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Maureen
Just curious to how much it cost you a gallon for the detergent or price per ounce? Love the recipe thanks for sharing and I was also curious as to where you buy your washing soda/soda ash? Is the soda/ash available in bulk?
Thanks!
Carla
My local Walmart carries Washing Soda. Around 5 years ago, this wasn’t the case. 🙂
Cassie
That’s a good question Maureen! Let me do the calculations and get back to you on the price per load. I know it isn’t much. It might not be as cheap as my powdered detergents, but definitely cheaper than store-bought. But I will do the calculations 🙂 Also, you can find washing soda and Borax at Walmart on the laundry aisle. Borax is $3.38 and washing soda is $3.24 for very large boxes that will make several loads. You can see the cleaning shopping list with prices here: https://thethriftycouple.com/2013/03/15/make-23-homemade-natural-cleaning-products-for-around-12-printable-shopping-list-too/
Melinda Brehm
Hi, I saw in your article that you add vinegar to each load of laundry. I am curious as to how much you add to each load and when in the cycle do you add it?? Thanks!
Cassie
Hi Melinda, I put about 1/4 – 1/2 cup (depending on load size) in the fabric softener spot instead of fabric softener. So whenever you would do that for your washer is when you would add it. I use to have an upright and put it in the middle hole in the agitator once the machine was going. Now I have a front loader and I put it in the fabric softener spot before starting the machine. Hopefully that helps 🙂
beckie
Why couldn’t you add some vinegar to the mixture instead of some water? Do you think it would work?
Kiirstin
Don’t add vinegar until the rinse cycle because it can inactivate your detergent.
Christia
If you use fabric softener, would it be okay to put vinegar in the bleach container in your front loader instead???
Cassie
I don’t see why not. 🙂
Susan
Can I ask you a question Cassie, how about adding vinegar to the mixture will it work?
Cassie
Hi Susan,
That’s an interesting thought! I usually add vinegar on it’s own in the fabric softener spot, but I haven’t tried it as a mixture like this. If you do, let me know how it turns out. 🙂 – Cassie
laura carr
Does it have to be the original blue Dawn or will others work as well?
Cassie
I don’t know about the others as they have a lot of additional additives that may not be great for fabrics. The classic blue dawn is a degreaser that is used for much more than dishes and gentle enough for fabrics (and pets/animals – we have seen and heard of many using this for pets. But also, when oil spills occur, they use this for the ducks and animals there too!). You can always try it and let us know! The other benefit is the classic blue dawn is also the cheapest. 🙂
Michelle
blue dawn is the best, it was actually developed to clean animals that had been devastated by oil spills not just happened to be used for that, developed for that. For every blue bottle you but $1 goes to help clean wildlife affected by oil spills (can’t remember the name of the foundation). Dawn only became dish soap when they realized it was super gentle and effective for oil on animals and could be marketed for use around the house and would offset the costs of cleaning the wildlife. I hate to sound like a spokesperson but because of their environmental connections it is all we use. My husband even uses it in the shower after work (mechanic) to get all the car fluids off him!
maggie
I have been using this recipe for a couple of years, while I have everything out I usually make a large batch and put it in a 5 gallon bucket. I love it!
leslie dietrich
I make the homemade cleaner with blue Dawn and white Vinegar. It was labeled as a “shower cleaner” when I saw it on FB, but I use it to remove stains on clothes as well as for cleaning and it works better than Shout. I will certainly give this laundry detergent a try! I think it’ll work wonderfully with my “stain remover” I already use!
Courtney McGrew
I use a different gallon jug for my detergent so I’m curious to how much hot water your measurements come out to be, since I don’t have the label to judge the line. Thanks!
Cassie
Hi Courtney, you just need enough to mix the first 2 ingredients, so there isn’t an exact science to it. It would probably be about 2-2.5 cups of water for the first shake mixing.
Jodi Nicholson
Also if you can find it. Its best to use the classic dawn. That’s the one they use to bathe wildlife that has been in an oil spill. Its not concentrated. We have it locally at the Dollar General store.
Emily
May I switch out the Dawn dish soap for a natural dish soap? (I have found good deals on natural dish soap online.)
sabrina
Hi I was wondering how much vinegar you add per load. Could you please email be that’ll you Sabrina
Emily
What do you think about substituting Castile soap for the Dawn?
Cassie
I actually love this idea because we try to only use natural products in our home and this is one recipe that is not 100% natural (although Dawn is one of the simplest commercial products). This recipe is the widely used liquid recipe, but I had thought of castile soap as well. I just don’t like posting things until I make it and try it. I will do that next and so watch for that soon!
Jennifer
How much vinegar do you use per load and when do you put it in? The last time I tried to use vinegar, my clothes reeked of vinegar! I either used too much, put it in at the wrong time, or it was because I have to go to the laundry mat and I used public triple load washer. Will this work for hard water from a well also?
Cassie
Hi Jennifer, I haven’t ever heard of laundry smelling with using vinegar – it’s actually the opposite, which is why people use it in laundry. It pulls odors out better than most anything else out there and does not leave a vinegar smell. Here’s how I use it: I put about 1/4 – 1/2 cup (depending on load size) in the fabric softener spot instead of fabric softener. So whenever you would do that for your washer is when you would add it. I use to have an upright and put it in the middle hole in the agitator once the machine was going. Now I have a front loader and I put it in the fabric softener spot before starting the machine. Let me know if that works.
Jennifer
If you don’t want to grate bar soap… and use either dove or felsnaptha, microwave it first before blending in the food processor.
Heather
I’ll have to try this.
Now, what about this Christian Hospitality Network? Could you tell me more?
Jj
I use your powdered detergent recipe and love it but do not like pulling out my almost never used food processor to grate the soap. I would like to try this but I am worried about pouring the liquid detergent into 1/4 cup measure and spilling-wasting the detergent. Has reusing the water jug been difficult to handle when it is full? Any other suggestion as to what type of container to store this in to avoid a mess?
Bob Bergeron
go to wally world and get a refrigerator water dispenser with the push button spout.
Jolee
I don’t do nearly as many loads of laundry a week as you do note that the kids are grown, so I think I’ll save the container from the natural liquid deterrent I’m using and make a smaller batch!
Bonnie Harris
I just read your post regarding cooking beans and freezing them. All you mentioned was putting in water. Do you put in any seasonings?
Michelle
How much vinegar do you use per load?
Becca
Is this super deodorizing? Or do you have any tips/suggestions? My husband is a diesel mechanic so in the warmer weather you can imagine what his shirts might smell like on top of the usual dirt and grime. I’m afraid the smell is there to stay.
ABEL
Use 3 tablespoons of Simple Green on his work clothes with hot water. Then wash with ammonia and bleach free detergent
Jemo
I notice you say the laundry “smells great”! I don’t want my laundry to smell at all. Would look forward to comments from anyone who has tried non-scented liquid dish soap instead of the Dove.
Jj
Can you make this so it is printable?
Carie
I just made up a batch of the liquid laundry soap. I don’t see any bubbles in the wash load. Is that how yours looks when washing?
Jennie
I make my own liquid laundry soap too and i love it. it costs me about $30.00 per year to make it.
4 Cups – hot tap water
1 soap bar
1 Cup – Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*
½ Cup Borax
– Grate bar of soap and add to saucepan with water. Stir continually over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted.
-Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of hot tap water. Add melted soap, washing soda and Borax. Stir well until all powder is dissolved. Fill bucket to top with more hot water. Stir, cover and let sit overnight to thicken.
-Stir and fill a used, clean, laundry soap dispenser half full with soap and then fill rest of way with water. Shake before each use. (will gel)
-Optional: You can add 10-15 drops of essential oil per 2 gallons. Add once soap has cooled. Ideas: lavender, rosemary, tea tree oil.
genna
My is super watery and I feel like I use twice as much. Is there anyway to thicken it up?
kris
I was told by my washer repair man that dawn is very bad for your washer not only because it suds alot and can wear out the motor but it can also degresse the moving parts of the washer please look in to this
Rochelle
I was told this as well! I used to use Dawn to spot clean my (at the time) husband’s greasy clothes, as he was a mechanic. I had to replace parts on my washer multiple times, and this was the repair man finally told me. I stopped using Dawn and I haven’t had to make any repairs since then. That was probably 8 years ago now. But Dawn is a great way to ruin your brand new (or used) washing machine. I wonder if it would have the same effect if I used Castille instead of Dawn. Does anyone know?
Laurel
The water/soap mixture doesn’t come in contact with the washing machine motor or other parts. Some people think the water somehow flows through the motor, but that simply isn’t true. There is NO way this detergent can degrease the moving parts!
Kelly
This is such a great idea! I am a contributor author on Satisfaction Through Christ and we are doing a back to school round up this week and we would like to feature this post on there! Please let me know if this is ok and if we could use a photo image in the post. Congratulations on being featured! The article will post this Thursday 🙂
Alex
Hi Kelly,
Yes that would be great 🙂
Thanks!
Cassie
Rhonda Ramey
I’m new to this, so I hope my question does not seem silly:) when adding this detergent, is it ok to put in the dispenser, or add it after I put in the clothes? The reason I ask is because some of the other sites say it will clog the dispenser. Can’t wait to try!
Cassie
Hi Rhonda, I’ve been putting it in my dispenser, but either way would work fine. 🙂 Thanks for asking!
Jan
I love Blue Dawn, so going to try this.
Ann
I just made a batch of this liquid laundry detergent and can’t wait to try it out.. I also love lavender.. I had to add more drops of essential oil as even though the dawn is the original it still had a more dominant smell.. oh well.. Thank you for the post.
Also whenever I do add vinegar I add it at the beginning with the detergent.. I start the machine and then add it.. just a tad.. no more than a quarter of a cup.. my wash never smells of vinegar and it helps keep mildew away.. Cheers to the good life!
Rose
The first batch I made with this recipe crystalized. There were chunks of white stuff at the bottom of the bottle and the Dawn floated on the top. Since it was the first time I EVER tried a homemade laundry soap and the ingredients didnt seem to be to dangerous, I went on and used the entire gallon. This second time I am experimenting with the water/borax/washing soda mix thinking that I may have mixed it wrong the last time. I am going to let the solution cool before adding the Dawn this time to see if it crystalizes again. WISH ME LUCK!
Laura
What did you find when you made it again? Mine crystallized the first time too, but I do love it otherwise.
Rose
It crystalized again!
verna
i dont add borax to my home made laundry detergent because it gets hard at the bottom,i add laundry soda,baking soda the kind we dont eat but use to clean clothes or other things,dish liquid which is all natural,dash of food colouring just to give it a nice colour,and essential oils,with borax i put a little bit in a cup with hot water and melt it and throw it in the washer,dont matter if we put borax in boiling hot water it will turn hard in the bottom of the container,so it is best to keep borax out of the laundry detergent,so that way we got good looking laundry detergent with no clumps,just like store bought and i am so very pleased with my laundry detergent and the clothes smells so fresh,never go back to buying store bought again,and it is cheap,hope this helps,also we need to put the dish liquid in last because all the bubbles go down the drain and wasted,leaving it not so concentrated,hopw this helps
lisa
I dont use borax either; instead I use oxy-clean free and clear (yes they have that one noe). I did’nt get the nice blue color you have. I wonder if you add food coloring would that in some way, stain your clothing. I wrote a previous note to you all but I forgot to mention my borax “switch”
D. Lotridge
Hi,
I am looking for a good way to remove ring around the collar cuff and Tshirt perspiration stains will this work on that also?
Kim
Hi. I am also wondering about using liquid castile soap instead of Dawn. Has anyone tried it? And if it takes care of odors?
Thank you.
Julia
My detergent got kind of crystallized in the bottom of jug, what did I do wrong?
Leanne
Thank you Cassie! Here’s how I ended up on this blog, and why after a few attempts at other laundry soap recipes this one wth Dawn will be the one I end up using! I grated Ivory soap for a recipe, dissolved it and washing soda and made a gel laundry soap that I thought I’d love. When soaking my grater in a bowl of water I noticed a nasty scum in the bowl. I will not wash clothes with something that leaves a gross film! Who wants scum buildup on their clothes and washing machine??? What I did learn is that the same gel will very easily clean a gross stove! That formula is a general cleaner now. I have heard that citric acid will take care of that scum and help soften hard water but I don’t have easy access to it, it’s costly for even a small amount in my area. Our cleaners and softeners have a hard enough time working, why add dissolving scum to it’s job?
A note for anyone who has problems with the pwders not dissolving: fully dissolve the powders in VERY hot water, continually stirring until all grittiness is gone. Problem solved. It only takes a few added minutes to a very quick laundry recipe.
A note on septic tanks: this recipe is septic safe. You can double check with a plumber for that piece of mind if you wish. What you will find is that dry laundry products CAN build up in pipes and septic tanks. I also have heard but not researched myself, is that this recipe is not toxic to your leech field.
Ines
Well I made the laundry detergent this weekend. WOW!!!! It is so easy to make and it really really works great!
I will never have to pay $17.99 for Tide again. I also like the smell which is very light but good.
I paid $3.79 for a large box of Borax, $3.49 for washing soda, and $3.49 for a medium bottle of dawn, Total of $10.77 and I can make who knows how many gallons. Because it is more concentrated than most Dawn recipes it will last a lot longer because I only have to use a 1/4 cup.
You should really give it a try cause it only take 5 minutes.
Marcia Jones
I live in Australia and I can get most of the ingredients but l don’t know what blue dawn is and we don’t have a Walmart in this country so is there anything I can use instead of it.
Cassie
Hi Marcia, Blue dawn is an original, simple (unscented basically), higher concentrated dish soap. Most any dish soap will work fine. 🙂
Robyn
Hi Marcia,
I, too, live in Australia. I’m thinking maybe the “Earth’s Choice” detergent might be ok. Have you tried alternatives?
Lee Knott
Rather than adding coloring to the laundry soap, suggest you add “bluing” which is what used to be added to laundry to make whites whiter before they added fluorescent whiteners to the manufacturing process. Mrs, Stewart’s Liquid Bluing and Recketts are examples.
Lee Knott
Use “Fairy” washing soap, like Dawn it’s made by Proctor and Gamble with essentially the same ingredients.
Melissa
Can anyone figure out how much of each ingredient goes into each load? I’d rather just put each ingredient into my load separately but I can’t figure out the math.
Stella
I would not use Borax. It has been known to cause problems with your reproductive system. I would switch it out for plain Baking Soda.
Otherwise I’ve made this with Castille Soap and added Epsom Salt.
The water Must be HOT, you could put it in a pot and make sure it’s dissolved. JUST LET IT COOL OFF a bit before putting it in your jug.
Then add the soap and oils.
Amy
I’m wondering if I use the fels naptha, borax, washing soda recipe but also add some dawn to it, would that work??
Cassie
Yes, I don’t see why not. A little bit of dawn in a classic homemade liquid recipe would probably just mean that you’d get a bit of the degreasing power. Let me know if it works!
Michelle Hotchkiss
I was thinking this exact same thing, I want to make the laundry sauce recipe, but read that the recipes using soap can eventually coat clothing because they have no surfactants. I figured I’d try adding in dish soap to the mix. I don’t know if I will use Dawn, I might try and find a more natural dish detergent.
Zaneta
So I’ve been using this recipe for a while and really love it. I just wanted to check about water temperature. Does this liquid recipe work well in both cold and hot settings on the washer? I have a very old top load washer (which I love), but it’s not always the most energy efficient so I usually only use cold water washes due to the age of the machine.
Secondly, I am pregnant with baby #2 and cloth diaper my babies. Does anyone know if this detergent is cloth diaper safe?
Dana Horton
Hello Zaneta. The only thing i can see about the baby issue is the borax. Several people say to reduce the amount of borax and make a seperate batch just for baby clothes. Some one said to replace the borax with oxi clean,
Laura Belisle
I’ve used this recipe for a few years now. I absolutely LOVE it, and it’s very easy and inexpensive to make. It works WONDERS. Smells amazing too.
Dana Horton
I use this recipe for my small washer and it really does the trick. I can see the dirty water before rinsing. With my small wash and spin machine it only takes two teaspoons to do the trick depending on how dirty the laundry. It takes one to two rinse cycles. I used to make pods from the powder recipe but now it is just the Dawn recipe one gallon at a time. so the gallon will last me a long time. I “guesstimate” it costs around $2 to make one gallon for me.
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