When Cliff and I married it was a time of financial abundance. We had 2 salaries and no small children. Now we have 2 small children and 1 salary as we made the decision that it would benefit the children most if I am at home with them. The abundance of joy in sharing precious time with our children far outweighs the financial deficit. There are many little ways to save money such as thinking before getting into the car and driving on unnecessary trips, buying several of a product when they are on special and going without DSTV (Which I think is only worth it for the sport). A few months ago on radio 702 a caller explained how very simply to make your own laundry detergent which is very pricey. All you do it grate laundry soap and soak it in water for a day or 2, then decant into a bottle. For 1.5 litres I use 1/2 a block of laundry soap. The first time I made it I used a full block of laundry soap but it was too much and the ‘liquid’ was very thick, it has the texture of snot when too thick (sorry I just can’t think of a pretty way to describe it better).
I have been making my own laundry detergent this way for several months now and it is no less effective than store bought liquid laundry detergent, already I have saved hundreds of rands.
I used to do this for my son when he was a baby. Normal Washing powder and disposable nappies caused terrible eczema and I did all his machine washed clothing including towelling nappies with homemade liquid soap made with Sunlight bar soap. It was the only soap that did not give him eczema.
Hi there…thank you for an amazing idea, I am definitely going to try it out! How much do I use per wash?
I use about half a cup, sort of go by feel
Can you use it in an automatic washing machine?
Yes I use it in my automatic machine
Can you use this on a top loader washing machine?
Yes I do
For how long have you been using it? Does it not clog pipes or damage your machine?
I did it for a long time (then got lazy) but never had a problem
If making this to use on cloth Nappies, in a top loader, what’s the best ratio of water to soap bar, to make sure all the wee and bacteria is completely out of the Nappies?
Sorry I’m not really sure, I kinda wing it