| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| campchic |
Posted - Jul 28 2007 : 05:24:50 AM
I just made my first batch of laundry detergent. I waited the recommended time before using. It says it will thicken to a gel consistency. Mine is still very watery. What did I do wrong? Can I still use it? Any thoughts on this would be very helpful.
Thanks,
Erin |
| 25 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| katrina |
Posted - Aug 01 2010 : 8:02:29 PM
Ok, so for dosing... I read one place that said 1/2 cup, and one that said 1 tbs. Different sites, but still the same equal parts recipe. How much does everyone here use?
www.WorkOfArtCreations.com |
| Alee |
Posted - Aug 01 2010 : 5:18:12 PM
Elizabeth- honestly I don't usually use EO because the soap washes the scent away for the most part. If I want to scent the clothes I usually put some in the vinegar I put in the rinse water. I like lavender even though my husband hates it!
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
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| woolgirl |
Posted - Aug 01 2010 : 3:15:14 PM
Thanks Alee! Do you have any in particular you like to use?
Farmgirl #1947 |
| Alee |
Posted - Aug 01 2010 : 1:26:15 PM
You sure can! Just mix really well to get as even dispursement as possible. I usually put mine in with the baking soda and then the baking soda is the "carrier" so to speak and as I mix in the baking soda with the other ingredients it mixes the EO in as well.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
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| woolgirl |
Posted - Aug 01 2010 : 12:15:21 PM
I know this has probably been asked, but can you use essential oils in the dry detergent?
Farmgirl #1947 |
| Montrose Girl |
Posted - Aug 01 2010 : 07:04:20 AM
I just found Zote at our local Walmart. They had never carried it before so anyone looking should double check.
Laurie
Best Growing |
| katrina |
Posted - Jul 31 2010 : 08:48:52 AM
Just a note for everyone who is looking for Washing Soda. Washing soda is Sodium Carbonate, which is also known as "Soda Ash" which is used as a fixative for dyeing. It is also a major staple for pool and hot-tub owners, and is sold as "Ph Up" at pool supply stores. I buy it in a 50lb tub at a time for significantly cheaper than the retail. (I'm a dyer and use TONS of the stuff). You can get it in smaller batches from the pool stores too. Just an idea to see if you may be able to find it cheaper.
www.WorkOfArtCreations.com |
| Alee |
Posted - Jul 25 2010 : 10:15:59 PM
Erin- always go with ounces.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
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| campchic |
Posted - Jul 25 2010 : 5:40:23 PM
Question: When making laundry soap, does 1 bar fels naptha = 1 bar zote? There is quite a difference in size between the two.
Erin
Farmgirl #190
www.concrete-and-grace.blogspot.com |
| Alee |
Posted - Jul 13 2010 : 06:17:19 AM
Lisa- yes I would recommend the same amounts for H.E machines.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
| Farmhousegirl |
Posted - Jul 12 2010 : 10:55:27 PM
Alle-Thanks again, I'm gonna try it and see. Also, do you think I would use the same amounts for h.e. machines?
Lisa
Farmgirl Sister #1747 |
| Alee |
Posted - Jul 12 2010 : 6:20:53 PM
Lisa- if there is something in your wash that needs disinfected- then I would do about 3 cups of vinegar in the wash cycle. The smell really doesn't linger. As your cloths dry it disapates. As a replacement for laundry softener you can use about as much vinegar as you would Downy (about 2/3 of a cup) in the rinse. By the time the clothes dry they are soft and sweet smelling!
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
| Farmhousegirl |
Posted - Jul 12 2010 : 6:13:26 PM
Alle,
Thank you for the information.... one more question, so if I use vinegar in my laundry it would disinfect just the same as bleach? The other roadblock I have to vinegar is the smell...:( I'm so not a fan of the smell.
thanks again,
Lisa
Farmgirl Sister #1747 |
| jill skane |
Posted - Jul 11 2010 : 4:29:43 PM
I think I am going to try the homemade soap it sounds interesting.
thanx for the ideas.
jill |
| urban chickie |
Posted - Jul 11 2010 : 4:00:24 PM
Yes, there are vegetable based soaps that will work as laundry cleaners. Despite all the myths to the contrary, there are no inherent characteristics in animal versus plant oils. However, each and every oil has its own unique properties, and once that oil is saponified it has other qualities that again make it unique. There are both excellent and poor plant oil soaps, and there are both excellent and poor animal oil soaps. Animal vs plant makes no difference per se. What might make a difference is that using a soap that is not formulated for laundry might add unwanted oils to your clothing, sort of defeating the purpose of washing. I personally know a soapmaker who uses 100% coconut oil soap for her household cleaning. Many use 100% lard for laundry, but I believe this is as much historical availability for recent Europeans as for the qualities inherent in lard soap (cleans well, low suds). I am not familiar with Kirk's so-called Castille, but a true Castille is defined as being 100% olive oil and no other oil.....it is an excellent facial and body soap for sensitive skin (even on newborns) but it has a slimy texture that I would think would be off for laundry. Since the term Castille soap has not been regulated legally, however, commercial soapmakers have taken to calling anything with olive oil in it as "Castille", and eventually came to the current practice of calling all vegetable oil soaps Castille, but it is incorrect to do so. When you read in older texts (homestead medical care, Farmer's Almanacs, etc.) how Castille soap is so good for you, they are referring to the real deal and not vegetable oil soaps in general. There is little or no similarity in all the vegetable based oils you currently can find in health food stores - their characteristics as soap are defined by the oils used in them and how those oils perform once saponified. There is much more similarity between saponified palm oil and tallow, for example, than there is between palm and olive. Each oil's characteristics are defined by the fatty acids in the oil. OK, that might have been WAY more than you cared to hear LOL!!
Catherine
Farmgirl #1370
City Girl By Birth,
Suburbanite By Location,
Farmgirl at Heart
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| Mama Jewel |
Posted - Jul 11 2010 : 2:42:53 PM
Does anyone know of a laundry bar soap that is without animal ingredients or does it have to contain tallow to properly clean? Would Kirk's Castille work as a laundry soap? I went to their site, but couldn't find any info on it being used as a laundry soap & the info I was reading about using a *regular soap bar* said that it's not formulated to be used in a washing machine so it would gunk up the machine.
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
| AngelaJoy |
Posted - Jul 09 2010 : 10:15:12 AM
I just made my first batch of laundry soap! I'm making more to pass out at work, along with the how to. I used Jenny's recipe and just love it. I'd like to make dishwasher soap too...Can anyone tell me how to? |
| Alee |
Posted - Jul 09 2010 : 05:56:04 AM
Lisa- Chlorine is a naturally occuring element. It's on the periodic table. But it is also highly caustic and toxic. It is hard on the body to work with. If you read the bottle it will have all sorts of warnings on it about don't drink, wash off skin, avoid inhaling the fumes etc.
Vinegar is a GREAT replacement for sterilization. And it is MUCH cheaper. Just your ordinary white vinegar. It disinfects, is actually more effective at killing mold. It doesn't whiten away spots like bleach, but you can try Hydrogen peroxide for that. If you need to sterilize your cutting board, just splash some vinegar on the board and wipe around. Let air dry. Vinegar truly is safe and non toxic.
Another thing that vinegar can do that is nice- if you have pets you can pour it on any little pee spots they might make and it denatures the protien in the urine while sanitizing so you don't have to fight a residual smell.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
| Farmhousegirl |
Posted - Jul 08 2010 : 11:02:24 PM
High there, I'm new to all this, and I have a question concerning bleach. I have this notion that it's natural, if that is incorrect, what do you use to disinfect? I use washcloths to wipe up counters, and I'm sure they are full of bacteria when they hit the wash, which I use bleach to disinfect them.
Thanks
Lisa
Farmgirl Sister #1747 |
| kathyinozarks |
Posted - Jul 08 2010 : 12:03:07 PM
I make my own laundry supplies too, have for 2 years now and would never go back to purchased. When I visit my Mom in Indiana I am able to pick up the fels bar soap-but it is really strong stuff and on their site online it is recommended only as a stain treament. I make a dry deteregent with it and use it as a soak for really dirty laundry, then I wash on the heavy cycle with my homemade liquid (gel) soap. I have found a bar soap here in Missouri called Kirks which has been made since the early 1800s and cleans well. I am sensitive to most soaps, and this works well for me. We also have an HE machine and I love my homemade soaps cause no suds.
if you go to my blog link (below) and go to photos you will see the soap-my recipes I use are in there.
A retired country girl,living in our woods in the ozarks http://kathyinozarks.multiply.com/ |
| MrsRooster |
Posted - Jul 08 2010 : 11:38:31 AM
There is some debate over the safety of Fels.
www.mrsrooster.blogspot.com
Farmgirl #1259
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| Mama Jewel |
Posted - Jul 07 2010 : 8:43:02 PM
ohhh, okay. Thanks for the info, Catherine. I just wanted to make sure there wasn't something bad that I should be avoiding. Thanks!!
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
| urban chickie |
Posted - Jul 05 2010 : 3:05:13 PM
Jewel, Zote contains optical brighteners that Fels Naptha does not. Both have perfume and dyes and are otherwise pretty similar for the purpose of laundry soap.
Catherine
Farmgirl #1370
City Girl By Birth,
Suburbanite By Location,
Farmgirl at Heart
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| Mama Jewel |
Posted - Jul 05 2010 : 2:35:28 PM
I found Fels Naptha soap... is this stuff just as good as Zote? Is there anything harmful or bad about Fels as I'm seeing so much talk about Zote, I thought I better check before I start shredding the soap. Thanks! (again 
Farm Girl Sister #1683 Living Simply & Naturally on our lil Sweet Peas Farmette
"Do Everything in Love." 1 Cor 14
http://www.piecemama.etsy.com |
| Alee |
Posted - Jul 02 2010 : 6:32:28 PM
Nicole- if you have a buildup in your shirts I usually first wash with a strong amount of ammonia. Then if you have stains then try soaking the stain in lemon juice and laying out in the sun.
Alee
Farmgirl Sister #8
www.awarmheart.com
www.farmgirlalee.blogspot.com
www.allergyjourneys.blogspot.com
Put your pin on the farmgirl map! www.farmgirlmap.blogspot.com |
