Frugal Family: Good Clean Savings

Since many readers seemed to enjoy a past article regarding , here are some more ideas for some good clean savings on something we all deal with -- laundry.

Of course the option to line-dry is the most frugal option for drying, what about washing your clothes?

I first heard about making your own laundry soap on the popular show, "19 Kids and Counting," and as I’ve said before, “If anyone knows how to save it’s a family with that many kids.”

In the laundry soap aisle of the grocery store you’ll find your necessary supplies: a bar of Fels Naptha soap, a box of Washing Soda and a box of Borax. 

To make the soap you simply grate the bar of soap into a pot containing 4 cups of water. Cover that and cook over medium-low heat until the soap is completely melted. Pour that mixture into a 5 gallon bucket and add 1 cup of the washing soda and a half cup of the borax. Stir with a paint stick or in my case I have a stick blender specifically for soaping and then fill the bucket with hot tap water until it’s a few inches below the lip. Let the soap sit overnight to congeal and then mix. This is why I love my stick blender, it makes a much easier job of this. You then fill an empty laundry detergent bottle about half full with your homemade soap and then fill with tap water since it is concentrated. Remember to shake the bottle before each use and you’ll need approximately a cup for a top-loading machine of just half cup for a front loading.

I’ve been using this soap for the last two months. It does not suds-up in the washer which concerned me but after checking online I found that it’s not supposed to. It’s good for sensitive skin and kept the towels from getting that musty smell after hanging in the bathroom. Usually I need to add bleach but the mild inhibiting properties of the Borax keep them smelling fresh.

Washing Soda and Borax are great around the house as I previously hinted at.

If you have ants in your home and don’t have to worry about small children or animals you can leave a mixture of Borax and sugar, mixed at a 1:1 ratio, where you see the little visitors and it will take care of them.

Borax is also great to clean the toilet. Pour a quarter cup full into the toilet bowl before you go to bed and lightly scrub with a brush in the morning. It actually works rather well on rust rings too.

Got mold I your tile grout? A paste of Borax and water left to do its job will help since it’s a mold inhibitor. Apply, let dry and wipe off. I need to give this one a try though it should NOT be used on painted surfaces.

Baby clothes and others that have stains can be soaked in Borax as it’s a natural alternative to color safe bleach according to its packaging. Soak items in a mixture of a half cup of Borax in your washer or add one tablespoon to a gallon of water. A half hour later wash as usual. 

Washing Soda is a great all purpose cleaner. Dissolve a half cup in a bucket of warm water to clean kitchen grease and other dirt and grime away from kitchen and bathroom surfaces except for aluminum and no-wax floors.   

You can purchase your supplies for around $10 at  though and most grocery stores will also have them in their laundry and cleaning aisle. While the bar of soap is needed each time you make a batch, the boxes of soda and Borax are enough for quite a few batches unless you use them for other cleaning jobs around the house like I do.

Either way you’re still spending less on cleaning supplies are going the ‘natural’ and ‘green’ route with ingredients.