WTHR |Soap lady saves money with detergent recipe

Soap lady saves money with detergent recipe

Howard County - A Kokomo woman has cooked up a way to save $500 a year on laundry soap and still keep her clothes clean.

Amy Boonstra, also known as the "soap lady," created a homemade brew because she believed her daughter was using too much detergent. Her homemade soap smells like fresh laundry hanging on a line.

"I found this recipe and thought I would doctor it up a little bit and use it, and it's worked fine," Boonstra said. "And, I'm saving between $30-$40 per month with her with laundry soap, and me, about $5 or $6.  And friends, about 10 or 20, so it works pretty good and it cleans very well."

Boonstra saves an additional $100 a year on fabric softener by diluting a store-bought brand and using sponges to soak up the fabric softener. She puts the sponges in the dryer.

The recipe:

"Amy's Hard Times, Homemade Laundry Soap"

Ingredients:
4 cups hot tap water
1 Fels-Naptha Soap bar
1 cup washing soda
1/2 cup Borax

Yield: This makes 10 gallons. Top load machine 5/8 cup per load. Front load machine 1/4 cup per load.

Shave Fels-Naptha Bar, or smash it with a hammer as I do, until it is in tiny pieces. Place in large pot on stove along with 4 cups of hot tap water. Stir over medium heat, constantly stirring. I use a slotted plastic spoon and a whisk. When completely melted, turn off stove and add 1 cup of washing soda along with 1/2 cup Borax. Stir until well blended. When completely dissolved, pour into 5 gallon bucket and fill with hot tap water to within about 4 inches from the top. This allows you to stir it without splashing it all over. It is very slick if it gets on the floor. Stir until everything is dissolved. Cover tightly with lid and let sit overnight.

Take lid off of the detergent and stir with whisk, small lawn rake or anything else you may have that works. It will be "globby", but continue to stir several minutes until it is evenly mixed.

Take a clean empty gallon jug and fill it "half way full" with the laundry soap, using a large funnel. Then, fill it the rest of the way with hot, tape water but leave room at the top to shake the soap before you use it. Also, shake it well each and every time you add the detergent to a load of wash.

Repeat filling gallon jugs until you have 10 completed.