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I got this recipe from : www.frugalhomeliving.blogspot.com
Homemade Liquid Dish Washing Soap
1 (7-oz) bar ZOTE or Octagon soap (or 1-2-3 brand soap) {Or cut a 14-oz bar in half}
5 qts. water
1 c. baking soda
1/4 c. washing soda
1/4 c. lemon juice
Grate bar soap and place into a heavy stockpot. Pour in water & stir. Heat over medium heat, stirring often until soap is melted. Remove pot from heat and add in baking soda, washing soda & lemon juice. Stir to mix well. Allow mixture to cool then pour into a seal-able container or reuse your store bought soap bottle.
(As the mixture cools in the pot it may begin to gel up and separate itself from the water. This is ok. Simply mix with whisk before filling containers and it will be fine.) This batch makes enough to fill a gallon milk container and (2) 16-oz soap bottles. So you certainly get your money's worth from it.
To use: Use as you would any store bought detergent. It cleans well, but you will notice that you don't get a lot of suds from it as you do with commercial brands. So don't let the lack of suds and bubbles fool you.
*Note about the 1-2-3 brand soap. I saw this soap next to the ZOTE at the store and thought why not give it a try. It was a few cents cheaper than ZOTE but is only 12+ ounces unlike ZOTE that is 14 ounces. But either way, I thought it would be worth a try.
Pam's notes:
i usedd half a bar of regular soap and it turned out great. she is right it does not really suds up, but after washing my glasses it really does clean well. the recipe made three juice bottles full and i pour the extra bit in my current soap bottle that had a couple tablespoons of soap left in it.
Pam
Thanks for mentioning to whisk it. I found the same recipe and got a lovely thick layer on top of water. So I heated it just enough to melt it back down and whisked it every time I walked by. Seems to have done the trick. Looks like you still have to shake it a bit before use, but that's okay with me. Better than tossing out the whole batch!
ReplyDeletemy husband actually thinks it is fun to use a paint stirrer on his drill. love that man
ReplyDeleteThis looks good but i dont think i will ever stray from cascade products they are so effective and cheap with cascade coupons.
ReplyDeleteSo cool! I have tried Dr. Bronner's on my dishes and did not like it! Also, I love the Christian tone of your blog. I have a blog and I am always looking for fun things to link to on the blog FB and wanted to tell you I linked to this. Great idea!
ReplyDeleteWhat is ZOTE and Ocatgon soap? Can I use any soap? :)
ReplyDeleteLOL The DIY folks are heavy hitting the home products industry I see. They're desperate and spamming posts now? I just think that's hilarious.
ReplyDeleteSounds great but I really like suds. I just made some homemade shampoo from castille soap and coconut milk and it makes shaving cream thick suds so I'm going to try adding the coconut milk to this!
ReplyDeleteWhat is washing soda?
ReplyDeleteIs this dish soap thick like the store bought variety?
ReplyDeleteI doubled this so I wouldn't have to guesstimate a half a bar a soap, anyway, it is still pretty watery and won't stay mixed. How do I fix this? Just add more zote??
ReplyDeleteI found a website that tells you how to make washing soda cause I did not know what it was either http://www.pennilessparenting.com/2011/01/homemade-washing-soda.html
ReplyDeletesigh...i have tried this twice now...love the idea, but am having trouble getting the zote to stay mixed? have tried reheating several times and whisking the doo da out of it, but still ends up with a rather stiff 2-3 inch layer on top. my guys just don't get the "shake it first" thing...
ReplyDeleteanyone have any ideas about what i might be doing wrong? i am using exactly the products as listed?
i'm keeping my fingers crossed!!
Try using stick blender and maybe add 2 tbsp glycerin to the batch. Making sure to do the final mix whIle it is cool.
ReplyDeletei used a bar of fels naptha and a bar of dove shea butter soap. Once done it was too thick so i added half a gallon of distilled water and it came out great.
ReplyDelete