Friday, November 11, 2011

About Soapin'

A couple of you readers asked for tips on laundry detergent making when I posted about making my own powerful cleaner and laundry detergent in this post, and I am just finally getting around to posting this! Sorry for the delay, but here's my two cents worth on soapin'.....
I've been re-searching and asking about, and the recipe I work with probably would not work for you living in America :(

Here in our area in Brazil, most people use this for a washing machine:

It's called a "tanquinho" which translated would mean, "little tank". It is not your normal washer, it just beats the clothes, you have to fill it manually, and rinse the clothing separately in a big tub or something of sorts, yeah I know, big pain....but it is what most of the people can afford so it works just fine, and yes, you should be thankful for the convenience of having a washer and dryer :)

Ahem...

All this to say, I use it to mix up my soap....and I don't know if you all have anything like this in the US...It's been a long time since I've been to the good ole' USA, so please correct me if I am wrong in assuming these "tanks" are not available there?!?! I haven't tried mixing the soap by hand, so I can't tell you if it works out or not, I guess you could always try :)

Just a reminder, this recipe makes a whole bunch of soap....around 15 gallons!!!
 ....Moving on:
Here's what I use for the soap: ( and this was a pain to calculate since everything here is measured differently.)

About 2 quarts of cooking oil (I buy the cheapest one available)
2 quarts of ethyl alcohol (is that available for you guys?!?)
2 lbs of caustic soda
your choice of essential oils
13 gallons of water from the tap

Again, I don't know if these things are available for you, if it is and if you're brave enough to try, go for it :) If you do want to try this recipe out, shoot me an email (alexejesslima at gmail dot com) and I'd be glad to give you the directions and offer help. I recommend that you research online, there are a ton of recipes for detergent out there. You can surely come across one that will work for you! It will definitely save money, and it just feels awesome to be frugal ;) Here and here are the links to two different recipes that I've come across, again I've never tried them, so I don't know how they would work, but I am sure you can find something.... and remember, If at first you don't succeed, try again! Mrs.Long from Treasures From A Shoe Box also has a post about laundry detergent you might want to check out

Thought? Comments? Questions?
I'd love to hear what you think, and your experience in soap making, if you do make your own detergent or try to make it :)

Many blessings,
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3 comments:

Treasures from a shoebox said...

I do make my own laundry detergent, but then I have an HE. If these tanks WERE available in the US, NO ONE would use them! We are all spoiled! Most American women are spoiled! I once bought an antique washboard and wash tub at an auction. When I pulled it out of the van, I told the girls that it was our new washer. I thought they were gonna cry!!!

Unknown said...

Mrs. Long, that's so hilarious that the girls thought they'd have to use the washboard :) I figured that you all wouldn't have the "tanquinhos". Those modern conveniences sure are nice, but we do just fine without it too :)

Joy in the Journey said...

Last time we were in Haiti we used a wringer, and still had to wrinse by hand. They did have a lovely little spinner gizmo that was really helpful:)