• A kraft paper earth bag with simple white label with Under your Sink Logo and description Borax- all round Eco-cleaner – mid strength alkali There is a little wooden bowl with white crystalline Borax granules inside. It’s a clean image to show green cleaning. This is a product image for website as this is for sale in various sizes, online with Australia wide delivery.
  • Borax powder granules that are white.
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One of the reasons homemade laundry powder works so well.

Borax

Borax

$13.90
$13.90
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Borax (sodium borate) is a naturally occurring mineral salt that has been used in household cleaning for generations. It softens hard water, helps control odours, supports stain removal, and allows soaps and other cleaning ingredients to work more effectively.

In my toolkit, I think of borax as sitting somewhere between bicarb and washing soda. It's often my next step when bicarb isn't quite enough, but I don't need the strength of washing soda. That's why you'll find it in many laundry powders, cleaning pastes, and other DIY cleaning recipes.

Borax is sometimes confused with boric acid, but they are different compounds with different properties. Borax has a long history of household use and is approved for use in Australia.

Why buy it pure?

Buying the pure ingredient means you control what goes into your cleaning products and how much you use.

Borax isn't the ingredient I reach for most often, but it earns its place. I use it in my laundry powder, for odour-prone cleaning jobs, and in cleaning pastes where it helps improve the performance of the whole formula. One bag can be used across multiple cleaning products, reducing the need for separate specialised cleaners.

What can I use it for?

Borax is one of those ingredients that helps other cleaning ingredients perform better. I use it most often in laundry products, cleaning pastes, and odour-prone cleaning jobs.

  • Make your own laundry powder with washing soda and coconut soap flakes
  • Add to heavily soiled or smelly loads as a laundry booster
  • Help freshen towels, sportswear, mop heads, cleaning cloths and other odour-prone items
  • Use in cleaning pastes for grout, tiles, sinks and other hard surfaces
  • Soak whites to help freshen and brighten fabrics

Avoid use on wool, silk and aluminium.

Helpful information

Borax is mildly alkaline and sits somewhere between Bicarb Soda and Washing Soda in my toolkit. It's often my next step when bicarb isn't quite enough, but I don't need the strength of washing soda. It helps soften hard water, control odours, and improve the performance of soaps and other cleaning ingredients.

Borax is sometimes confused with boric acid, but they are different compounds with different properties. Borax has a long history of household cleaning use and is approved for use in Australia.

Suitable for:
• Most washable fabrics
• Towels and sportswear
• Grout and tiles
• Sinks and hard household surfaces

Avoid using on:
• Wool
• Silk
• Aluminium

Packaging:
Available in home compostable Earth Bags or reusable Apothecary Jars.

Storage:
Store sealed in a cool, dry place and protect from moisture to prevent clumping.

Safety:
Keep out of reach of children and pets. Avoid contact with eyes and prolonged skin contact. Do not ingest.

Why buy it pure?

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Borax laundry booster for handmade laundry powder. Borax powder in a scoop with pegs

Why it's in my toolkit

Borax has been part of my cleaning cupboard for much longer than Under Your Sink has existed. More than ten years ago, when I first started experimenting with DIY cleaning, I kept seeing it appear in recipes. At the time, I didn't know much about it - I simply followed the instructions and used it where recommended.

When I later started building the Under Your Sink ingredient range, borax was one of the ingredients I revisited. There was plenty of conflicting information online, so I did what I always do: looked beyond the headlines and read the research for myself. After understanding how it works and where it fits, I was comfortable giving it a place in the toolkit.

What keeps borax in my recipes isn't what it does on its own, but how well it works with other ingredients. Combined with washing soda and coconut soap flakes in a laundry powder, it helps the whole formula perform better. That's why you'll find it in some of my favourite recipes.

It's not an ingredient I use for every cleaning job, but for laundry powders, cleaning pastes, odour-prone items and heavily soiled washing, I've found it earns its place. Sometimes the best ingredients aren't the ones doing all the work themselves - they're the ones helping everything around them work better.

Ready to go deeper?

  • Ingredient Guide

    Learn what Borax is, how it works, where it comes from and why it's used in cleaning products.

    Read the guide 

  • Put it to work

    Explore DIY cleaning recipes featuring borax.

    Browse recipes 

  • More to explore

    Articles, guides and practical resources to help you clean with confidence.

    Explore the blog 
Clean on Your Terms

Clean on Your Terms

You choose the ingredients, giving you full control over what comes into your home.

One Ingredient. Endless Uses.

One Ingredient. Endless Uses.

No single-use products. Each ingredient works solo or together across many tasks.

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Full Green Approach

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