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Wednesday, July 18, 2012

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Making your own detergent

One of my new years resolutions was to begin being more thrifty and earth friendly. After having made my first batch of homemade laundry soap- I was hooked. It cleaned so well, and smelt so good! Could I possibly make my own diaper detergent? Surely you need a lab, some sort of scientific background...who can just whip up diaper detergent? After a lot of research, and I mean a lot- no way I'm going to ruin my stash by using something on my diapers that I shouldn't, I finally found, tweaked, made, and used homemade diaper detergent! It has been a few weeks now, over 20 diaper loads and we have had no buildup issues (you actually don't even use real "soap"), no odor issues, and no leaking. Actually, it's been pretty perfect so I thought I'd share! :

What you will need:
-baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)
-oxygen cleaner (sodium percarbonate and sodium carbonate)
-washing soda (sodium carbonate)
-A lidded jar or tub to keep it in.

Mix equal parts of all three ingredients, put into your container. That's it! I love that this is not a huge recipe, you can make however much you want to make or however much can fit into your jar. Use 2TBS for a medium-large load, and 1TBS for a small load. They do not come out smelling like lemons and watermelon, clean is not a scent. They smell like nothing, and they are clean! I am no expert, all I know is this has been working for our family, our budget, and our diapers!

**Disclaimer: Be sure to check with diaper manufacturer's to see if homemade detergent that contains these ingredients are safe to use on your diapers.

Shay is a stay at home mom of three little girls, a foster mom, and a regular TCDW blog contributor. When she's not homeschooling, changing diapers, or snapping pictures, she spends time blogging about their journey in the foster care system, family, cloth diapering, and raising kids. You can follow along at http://www.busybudgetmom.blogspot.com

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have been using this "soap" for a few months and I love it! My diapers are clean and I have had no issue with repelling or buildup. I started because I live in smalltown MT and can't afford to have diaper detergent shipped. This has been a life saver and everything is at the local store and I use them for my cloths detergent and for other household cleaning.

Moe said...

I am going to have to try this. I wonder how it works for hard water. I currently use Rockin Green hard rock, but I am having ammonia problems.

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Jen said...

Do you use these measurements for a front loader or a top loader? I've had such a hard time finding a detergent I like, so I'm super excited to try this out!

Unknown said...

My cloth diaper stash consists of Bumgenius 4.0, Bumgenius newborn, and some prefolds. Do you have any experience with this solution with these diapers? Thanks so much!!

Deltaflute said...

Melissa- Have you tried stripping? I use Rockin' Green for hard water and periodically have ammonia smell with my all-in-ones. Periodically I have to run them through the water again (after cleaning them) without any detergent. Then they are fine after that.

Unknown said...

Can you clarify something for me? The recipe in the article lists baking soda, but the photo with the article has borax instead. Which is it?

Anonymous said...

I am going to use this recipe but also want to add in Purex Crystals, which are CD safe. How much would I add in?

Sarah said...

I'm a little bit confused... your recipe lists baking soda, but your photo shows borax. Is there borax in your formula? I've heard it's hard on diapers...

thewrightlife said...

also confused by the borax...clarify?

Unknown said...

It's washing powder, not baking soda. I use this - and yes there is borax too.

Unknown said...

Ok, also - I use this but I'm having awful staining from poop. Should I use MORE detergent?