Laundry Liquid Recipe
Laundry liquid recipe
This recipe is a new addition to Under Your Sink and has come in after some experimenting. In the past I did not provide a solution to Laundry Liquid and suggested diluting the Laundry Powder or using the Laundry Butter Cleaning Paste.
If you've tried making your own laundry liquid before and ended up with something that separated in the bottle... I have something that may help, but does not solve the problem entirely... you still need to shake a before use to be safe.
The recipe
Dissolve the washing soda slowly in the hot water first.
Gently add the castile soap and glycerine, along with any essential oils if using. Stir, don't shake, to avoid foaming.
Let it cool completely to room temperature before bottling.
Laundry guide →
How much to use
Recommended amounts for an average 8kg machine. These are estimates only.
¼ cup.
⅓ cup.
½ cup.
Front loaders can use this liquid, but soap-based formulas foam more than commercial low-suds detergents. Start smaller than the full dose and adjust up if you're not getting the clean you want, rather than starting high.
Good to know
For stains and whites
Don't add sodium percarbonate into this liquid itself. Once percarbonate hits water it starts releasing oxygen (hydrogen peroxide) immediately, so it's not shelf-stable dissolved — it'll lose its stain-fighting power sitting in a bottle. Keep it separate and add a scoop directly into the machine alongside your normal dose of this liquid whenever you're tackling stains or brightening whites.
Shelf life
There's no water-loving preservative system in this recipe, which is exactly the point — you know everything that's in it. Use it within 2 to 3 months and keep it out of direct heat or sunlight.
Why this works
| Ingredient | What it does |
|---|---|
| Liquid Castile soap | Your surfactant, the ingredient that does the actual lifting. Surfactants work by dropping the surface tension of water so it can get in underneath oil and dirt instead of beading over the top of it, then hold that grime in suspension so it rinses away instead of redepositing on your clothes. |
| Washing soda (sodium carbonate) |
Binds the calcium and magnesium ions naturally present in tap water, before those ions can react with your soap and form the sticky, insoluble scum that leaves clothes feeling stiff or greying over time. It also raises the pH of your wash water, and soap-based cleaners work significantly better in an alkaline environment. |
| Glycerine | A humectant. It keeps the mixture blended and stops it separating or crystallising as it sits. |
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