DIY Soap

1  Yesterday for our Relief Society activity I was going to explain how to create soap and some other cleaners by using household products to save everyone money. I didn't end up doing it because the other 2 people I had talk did an amazing job and nothing else needed to be added to the meeting. But I thought I would share the things I found. I make the Laundry soap already, thanks to my sister Laura for sharing it with me. It works great and saves tons of money! But I am excited to try all the other things I found. I know this is a long post but maybe you could use some of these things. 

           Laundry Soap

http://www.icanteachmychild.com

Here are the ingredients you’ll need to pick up:

§  Borax ($2.99 at Walmart or Target–in the laundry aisle, or here)

§  Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda (NOT Baking Soda–$2.99 at local grocery store in laundry aisle, or here)

§  Fels-Naptha Soap Bar ($1.56 at local grocery store in laundry aisle, or here)

§  5-gallon bucket with lid (around $4 at Home Depot)

§  10 gallon milk jugs (or other containers) that have been cleaned and rinsed (the concentrate will disperse more evenly if you go ahead and divide it up.

1.   Grate the entire bar of the Fels-Naptha soap.

2.   Put in a pot with 4 cups of hot water.  Stir continuously over medium-low heat until all of the soap flakes have dissolved and melted (about 10 minutes). It should be slightly foamy with no “chunks” or flakes to be found.

3.   Fill a 5-gallon bucket half-full of hot water.

4.   Pour in the soap mixture.  Add 1 cup of Arm & Hammer Washing Soda and 1/2 cup Borax.  Stir.

5.   Fill the rest of the 5-gallon bucket with water until it is full.  Stir again.

6.   Cover and let it sit overnight.

7.   When you open the top up the next day, it should have gelled and thickened slightly.  Stir again.

8.   Use a funnel to fill a clean laundry detergent container (or gallon-size milk jug) and fill it HALF way with the soap mixture.  Fill the other half with water and shake

2.      Homemade OxyClean
recipe from  The Grocery Cart Challenge 

1 cup water
1/2 cup hydrogen peroxide
1/2 cup baking soda

Mix together and soak laundry in it for 20 minutes to overnight and then wash as usual. Or you can just skip the water and pour the peroxide and baking soda directly into the wash with your laundry soap and wash as usual.

3.      All Purpose Cleaner solution of vinegar and baking soda  

4. salt is a good abrasive cleaner for stainless steel pots and pans.
5. Windows Cleaner equal parts water and vinegar and use in a spray bottle
6. Furniture Polish olive oil and vinegar.
7. Brass Polish cut a lemon in half and sprinkle with salt; rub over brass.
8. Wood Floors equal amounts of vinegar and mild vegetable oil.
9. Mildew Cleaner: vinegar and salt.
10. Oven Cleaner a paste of baking soda and water
11. two parts mild vegetable oil to one part lemon juice, applied with a cloth, works well on wood furniture.
12. equal parts baking soda and salt make an effective scrub for your pots and pans or kitchen sink.
13. pure white vinegar works well to remove calcium deposits.
14. Olive Oil as Sap Remover

15.  Cornmeal as Grease Absorber Cornmeal absorbs grease on light colored fabric or upholstery. Pour enough on to cover the soiled area and let sit for 15 to 30 minutes. Vacuum to remove the grains.

16.  Baking Soda as Crayon Eraser Sprinkle it on a damp sponge to erase crayon, pencil, and ink from painted surfaces.

Picture Hanger Pop tabs are very strong and work well to hang artwork

Clean Headlights De-fog those headlights with an unexpected supply - toothpaste.

Old Tape To get that old tape sticking well again, nuke it in the microwave for about ten seconds.

Remove Grease Stains A little chalk on your clothes will remove those stubborn greasy stains.

Furniture Scrapes The oils from the walnut provide coverage for dings and scratches on furniture.

Cleaning Wipes

Materials Needed:

·                     cylindrical or tall square plastic food storage container, 10-cup capacity. ( I found mine at Walmart - a two pack for 2.99)

·                     extra-large roll of paper towels - I used 1 roll bounty paper towel cut in half (my hubby cuts them in the garage with his power miter saw)

·                     cleaning agents of your choice (recipes follow)

·                     electric drill with 1/2-inch drill bit

·                     liquid measuring cups

Instructions:

In the garage or workshop area, place a small block of wood beneath the plastic food storage container lid. Use electric drill to drill a 1/2-inch diameter hole in the center of the container lid.

For best results, select an extra-large roll of good quality paper towels for this project. I used Bounty and that seemed to work very well. I am told that less-expensive towels fray or shred when pulled through the holder.

For cutting the roll in half using the electric knife:
Without removing the paper towel wrapper, use the electric knife to cut the paper towel roll into two shorter rolls. Save the second roll for a refill later. Be patient! It may take up to two minutes to cut through the towel roll and cardboard tube inside.

Remove the wrapper, and place one short paper towel roll inside plastic food storage container. Using a liquid measuring cup, gently pour one of the following cleaning solution recipes over the top of the paper towel roll.

You will need between 2 and 4 cups of cleaning solution, depending on the size and absorbency of the paper towel product selected. These recipes make about three cups of solution; increase or decrease amounts if needed.

Place the lid on the plastic food storage container, and allow paper towels to absorb cleaning solution for 4 hours to overnight.
Open the food storage container. Gently pull the wet cardboard tube from the center of the paper towel roll and discard. Carefully pull the end of the paper towels from the inside, where the cardboard roll had been. Thread the end of the towels through the hole in the lid, and replace the lid.Pull gently on the exposed end to separate the cleaning wipe.

RECIPES:

General Cleaning Surface Recipe:

·                     1 1/2 cups white vinegar

·                     1 1/2 cups water

·                     optional: A few drops of favorite scented essential oil. I used lavender.

Disinfectant Cleaning Recipe:

·                     1/4 - 1/2 cup of pine cleaning solution such as Pine Sol

·                     2 1/2 - 2 3/4 cup of water

Window Glass Cleaning Recipe:

·                     1/2 cup of rubbing (isopropyl) alcohol

·                     2 1/2 cups water

·                     1 tablespoon white vinegar

baby wipes. The recipe is 2 cups warm or hot water, 2 Tablespoons liquid soap (baby bath or hand soap), and 2 Tablespoons oil (baby oil, coconut oil or even EVOO all work well - NO vegetable oil!) Mix it all up. Do NOT cut a hole in the lid for these! They will dry out too quickly. Just open the lid and pull a few out as needed.