Homemade Liquid Landry Detergent

So as previously posted, I gave the powdered laundry detergent a try, and I did really like it, but the liquid goes so much further…so when I ran out of the powdered I made, I decided to try my hand at the liquid version.
I am using the Duggar’s recipe, as posted on their blog
4  Cups - hot tap water
1  Fels-Naptha soap bar (I used 1.5 Ivory bars to equal the oz of a Fels-Naptha bar)
1 Cup - Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda
½ Cup Borax
Directions:
-Grate bar of soap and add to saucepan with water. Stir continually over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted.
-Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of hot tap water. Add melted soap, washing soda and Borax. Stir well until all powder is dissolved. Fill bucket to top with more hot water. Stir, cover and let sit overnight to thicken.
-Stir and fill a used, clean, laundry soap dispenser half full with soap and then fill rest of way with water. Shake before each use. (will gel)
-Optional: You can add 10-15 drops of essential oil per 2 gallons. Add once soap has cooled. Ideas: lavender, rosemary, tea tree oil.
-Yield: Liquid soap recipe makes 10 gallons.
-Top Load Machine- 5/8 Cup per load (Approx. 180 loads)
-Front Load Machines- ¼ Cup per load (Approx. 640 loads)
I purchased all my materials at Long’s Drugstore, with the exception of the 5 gal bucket which I got at Wal-Mart for ~$3. 

I added about 30 drops of Lavender essential oil.  After it set and cooled over night here is what it looked like:

I then spooned it through a funnel into a Costco size Vinegar container (really any type of container would work…old laundry det bottle, rinsed out juice bottle, etc…).  I filled it half way with the detergent and then the rest of the way with water.  I just wrote on the bottle with black marker, nothing fancy or even pretty really.  I keep it by the washer with a 1/4c measuring cup, (I also use a 1/4c of white vinegar as a softener for my cloth diapers).

Anyhow, so far so good……for the same cost as the powdered detergent, you get 600 more loads worth of detergent.  A gal on a mom’s board I’m part of said she made the batch in January and is just now running out…so about 10mos worth of detergent for pennies really!
The cost break down for here in Hawaii:
Box of Borax $5
Box of Washing Sods ~$3
3 bars of Ivory soap $1.50
The Borax and Washing Soda is enough to make SEVERAL BATCHES (I used the same box for two powdered batches, and this liquid batch and still have plenty left to try my hand at some dishwasher soap!)  The 3 bars of ivory are enough for 2 batches!  So it adds up to pennies really!

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