Homemade Laundry Detergent

When you're looking at this general trend towards self-sufficiency/homesteading, one of the most common household replacements is homemade laundry detergent. Users say it's just as effective as the store bought kind and a lot cheaper. I figured it would be an easy thing to swap out in our lives, requiring little time or effort. I've been putting it off, mainly because I recently found some 'free and clear' Tide on clearance and have been using it up. It's not quite all gone yet but it's time to start thinking about the next run of detergent. I'm biting the bullet and going homemade.

I was in and out of stores yesterday, searching for the base soap, washing soda, and borax. I was driving through a rural area, and I tried places like Rural King and Dollar General, because in my mind they would be the "right" sources. No luck (though I scored a great deal on 1/2 gallon mason jars). I finally found the borax at Target. Then, on a whim, I checked my 'boutique' grocery store today and found the soap and washing soda on the shelf. The prices were reasonable, too.

I've got all my ingredients. I'm working on dredging up the energy to put them all together. I'll let you know how it turns out.

The recipe for powdered detergent:

2 cups Fels Naptha Soap (finely grated)
1 cup Washing Soda
1 cup Borax

• Mix well and store in an airtight plastic container.
• Use 2 tablespoons per full load. 

Oh! For me, I will be adding an antibacterial and antifungal agent to the wash load - probably simply tea tree oil (15-20 drops per load, added in when I load the machine). The internet says you can also use essence oils to add a scent to the laundry. I'm super sensitive to scents, though, so I'll be skipping that part. I started adding tea tree oil a few loads ago with the regular detergent and there's no added smell. 

Also, I'm running a top loading HE machine.