Coconut Laundry Soap

It’s been ten years since I made my first batch of homemade laundry soap. Over the years, I tweaked my recipe according to the water we had. In the beginning of my research all those years ago, I read where people used bath soap to make their laundry soap. Something I do not recommend; there is a difference between bath soap and laundry soap.

Using Coconut Oil Soap in Laundry Soap. A Laundry Soap Update.

This post contains affiliate links. You can read my Disclosure.

Bath soap is made for our skin. Many kinds of soaps are superfatted, which means there is oil left over after the saponification stage (curing) with the sodium hydroxide (lye). This oil is a moisturizer for the skin. If you use bath soap in your homemade laundry soap, you add that extra oil to your wash water.

Laundry soap is just that. It’s made for laundry, and they market it as a laundry soap. It would be very drying and harsh on the skin.

Can you use different kinds of soap for laundry soap?

With my first batch of laundry soap, I used Fels-Naptha. When the formula in the soap changed and the results in clean clothes were not the same any longer, I began searching. That is why I shared about my research in TSP in laundry detergent and even began adding it to my laundry soap.

I stumbled over Zote in our Walmart when shopping several years ago. For a few years Zote was my choice until I started making my own soap.

I make and sell soap. Not just any soap, but soaps that are as close to all natural as possible. And you guessed it, I make my own Coconut Soap for our laundry soap.

My 100% coconut oil soap has zero superfat, which means there is no oil leftover in the loaf of soap.

I switched over from a liquid/gel type soap to a powder because I wanted to be able to sell laundry soap. I did this, so I would know how to answer questions if they arise. Powder and/or liquid, I love my Coconut Soap for either.

I have found when using powder laundry soap I use only the 1-2 tablespoons per load. When I used the liquid/gel, I used more than the ¼ cup. It was hard to not use more just because we’ve been trained to use the whole cap of store detergent. Have you found you use the whole cap? You know you don't have to, right? It's all about marketing. The more you use, the quicker you have to buy more. More money in the pockets of commercial laundry detergent makers.

Since using coconut oil soap in our laundry soap, I’ve noticed our clothes are brighter without adding a brightener.

One thing about using the powder laundry soap, I can mix up a huge batch and keep a small container in the laundry room and store the big bucket in a spare room closet. I can’t do that with the liquid form. I could, but then I would have to haul it into the kitchen or laundry room to scoop out detergent each time I needed to refill the smaller container.

Since I started making coconut oil laundry soap, I even reach for a coconut soap stick for stains. I still have a little nub of Fels-Naptha, but I reach for my stain stick because it works so much better.

I’m going to share my recipe using my own coconut soap. You can use another laundry soap if you have it or you can head over to Tullis Farms and purchase your very own laundry soap.

While I add essential oils to the laundry soap I sell. I don’t use scented laundry soap myself. I like the fresh clean smell this soap gives our clothes.

Coconut Laundry Soap

Ingredients:

1 ½ cup grated soap
¾ cup washing soda
¾ cup borax
optional: ½ – 1 teaspoon essential oils

Directions:

Place the soap in the food processor and pulse until it is finely ground. Add the washing soda and borax to the soap and mix well. Add the optional essential oils and mix well.

This recipe makes about 3 cups.

If you are looking for a Borax free laundry soap. Just mix in 1 ½ cups of washing soda instead of the ¾ cup while leaving out the Borax.