Update: Laundry Detergent

It has been 5 days since I made my own laundry detergent using tutorials and recipes I found on Pinterest. Original post is HERE.

I’ve washed a number of loads with it since and I can finally give a full report on my results. I used about a 1/4 cup of detergent and filled the softener dispenser with plain white vinegar. Dried everything in the dryer as usual, no softener sheets or dryer balls.

First two loads were bedding, sheets and a quilt from my bed. I was really pleased with the results. Nothing miraculous or anything but the felt and looked clean and had a nice fresh scent. As you may know, the dogs like to sleep on my bed so that results in less than fresh smelling and looking bedding at times. Especially the quilt on top which tends to get quite dingy and sometimes muddy if it rains (which it hasn’t done in MONTHS here so that hasn’t been an issue.) I wash it frequently and sometimes I don’t always think it gets really clean. This time it did. I use a special memory foam pillow with a custom case made from stretchy terry that often looks kind of gross because I’m often lazy and don’t remove all my makeup before bed. It came perfectly clean and white again. Bonus was that everything smelled fresh and clean without a perfumey smell.

I then did a load of towels. Some of the dish rags were a little “ripe” smelling but I threw them in anyway untreated. I again used a cup of vinegar in the rinse. I was really happy with the results. Clean, fresh and no bad odors.

The real test came the other night when I took a sweatshirt out of my closet that hadn’t been worn in months. It must have been put away damp because it had that distinct “musty” smell that comes from cotton being damp and put away in an airless place. YUK! It was so bad I couldn’t even stand to wear it sitting by the campfire. I put it in a load with some other dark clothes like jeans and Tshirts. Again using a cup of vinegar in the rinse with the homemade detergent. It came out without any residual smell! The only complaint I had about this load was that a lot of the clothes were more wrinkled than I’m used to when I use liquid softener. But that could also be because I put them in the dryer before work and my husband took them out later. I usually try to get them out immediately and hang them up while still warm to avoid wrinkles. For all I know they may have sat in the dryer for hours and then got thrown into a basket before finally getting folded/hung.

My daughters and husband have also used this new detergent and I haven’t gotten and blow back from them. I’m thinking we may have a winner. The only loser may be the orange drink dispenser that I stored it in. It tends to separate over time so I just keep a wooden spoon inside to stir it up with and then sometimes it gets a little chunky and clogs up the spigot. I’m going to try to remember to look in the neighbor’s recycling bins tomorrow for some gallon jugs or find some other way to store it.