Real dirty clothing detergent?

Posted by Heloise on May 22, 2013 at 3:05am

What do you use to wash really dirty clothes?

I never had to solve this problem myself so far since my clothes are not really dirty but the lady I live with is trying to lower the amount of poison we put in our garden. So beside the usual ''organic'' detergent found in supermarkets these days, do you use any natural things as detergent? If so what?

Thanks in advance for your time!

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  • Ariel Rosen December 3, 2015 at 7:07am

    Sals Suds by Dr Bronners, seriously the best/most effective household soap I've ever used, natural or not! I use 2 tablespoons for each load of laundry, even super dirty laundry, and also for washing dishes, anything else. Its amazing, I'm never going back to anything else!

  • Rachel Dianne Ritchie February 9, 2014 at 9:48am

    My husband & I found a really good recipe on youtube for homemade laundry detergent that we've been using. Doing the math, the soap winds up costing 2-4 cents per load depending on where you get your supplies.

    1 cup borax

    1/2 cup washing soda

    1/2 cup oxyclean

    1/2 bar zote soap

    Add all ingredients in a 5 gallon bucket then add enough VERY WARM water to approx. 3 inches to top of bucket. Stir well (this is best done with a drill and paint mixer attachment). Please note that a "skin" will form at the top of the bucket if allowed to set for too long between uses.

    We just saved 2 gallon sized laundry jugs and refill them as needed. You will need to shake the jug before each use. The oxyclean I get at our local dollar store (just make sure to check the label that it doesn't contain any funky, extraneous chemicals!) This also makes a really good "pretreatment" for stains on clothes. Just rub a little into the stain before tossing it into the wash. ZOTE is a tallow-based and Kirk's castile is a  coconut oil based soap. You can use a veggie peeler to flake the soap for the recipe above. We have a front- loader washer and have experienced no problems using this homemade version in our machine. I also have a recipe for home-made dishwasher tablets if anyone is interested!!

  • Angela B December 26, 2013 at 12:38pm

    Hi! I have 2 kids that dirty up their clothes like none other..LOL. So I understand the need to really get them clean. I like to add vinegar and baking soda to my laundry, that way I can cut down on the detergent, even if it is an eco friendly version. Also hydrogen peroxide is a great alternative to bleach(also gets blood out of clothes). Dr. Bonners castile soap is an amazing product. I just found out that it quickly dissolves stains! I am going to experiment with adding it to my laundry to see if that is an even better alternative.

    • Heloise > Kotryna May 23, 2013 at 9:45pm

      Yes I've heard of these nuts, they were expensive for the ppl I live with so I'm not sure these will be an option for them. I've heard ppl in Cuba were using salt. Have you tried it by any chance? And what components are you planning to use in your future formula if you don't mind me asking :)

    • Heloise > Kotryna May 25, 2013 at 1:08am

      Thanks Kotryna. I did not know a whole package of these soap nuts could last you a whole year, I'm gone try them for myself and maybe advise them to my friends. But salt I realize is good for plants, so will try that too.

    • Heloise May 25, 2013 at 4:13am

      Thanks. I'm no specialist and am learning everyday and I heard at least twice that salt would help plants to have more sodium and also that is very healthy for them. I'm still at the testing stage though. The garden where I live now is doing great, so that's a good base to start with. The water goes on to a bed of tomatoes. Since we have many tomatoes plants elsewhere I will have ways to compare.

    • Heloise > Kotryna May 25, 2013 at 5:52am

      Yes. Will try. First with the soap nuts.

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