Making It: Radical Home Ec for a Post-Consumer World by Kelly Coyne, Erik Knutzen Page B
Authors: Kelly Coyne, Erik Knutzen
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exceedingly well and helps lift stains. Consider it borax’s more aggressive big brother. Because it is so strong, it should never be used on wool or silk. It will strip the natural oils from these fabrics, leaving them crunchy. Like borax, it also softens water, boosting the cleaning power of soap.
Sodium carbonate is sold by Arm & Hammer under the name Super Washing Soda. Like borax, it’s inexpensive, but it’s not as widely available as borax.
Look for it in the laundry section of supermarkets. If you have trouble finding it, call Arm & Hammer’s customer relations line or visit its Web site for the names of local retailers. You may be able to purchase sodium carbonate at places that sell pool supplies because it is used in the pool business to balance pH levels. Just make sure you get 100 percent sodium carbonate.
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Wear kitchen gloves when handling washing soda, because it dries the skin.
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BAKING SODA (SODIUM BICARBONATE)
The primary use of baking soda in the laundry is as a water softener and a deodorizer. It is not a cleaning agent in itself, but like borax and washing soda it helps soap clean, and it is noncaustic and nonirritating. Use baking soda in conjunction with soap for not-so-dirty loads. Buy baking soda in large boxes or bags at restaurant supply stores.
Homemade Laundry Powder
PREPARATION: 10 min
Here is our basic recipe. In this formula, baking soda softens the water, borax brightens, and soap lifts dirt. The ratio of each ingredient goes like this:
1 part grated laundry soap
2 parts borax
2 parts baking soda
If you haven’t purchased grated laundry soap, you must begin by grating the soap yourself. See the entry on soap (page 75 ) that discusses laundry soap options. Some bars of soap are harder than others. Soft ones will form curls of soap; hard ones form powder. Softer soaps can be pared into thin strips with a potato peeler. You can shred soap on a box grater or, if it’s not rock hard, chop it into chunks and grind it in a food processor.
Add the borax and baking soda to the soap. You can process them together in the food processor or mix them thoroughly by hand with a spoon. Store your laundry powder in a lidded container. At first, use 2 tablespoons per wash load, increasing the amount only if you find you need more cleaning power.
If you’re washing in cold water, there’s a chance of undissolved powder bits being left on clothing. You’d only see it in dark loads. To prevent this, put the powder in the washer, turn on the hot water for just a couple of seconds to help the powder dissolve, then return the setting to cold.
This laundry formula doesn’t foam much, but it still cleans. Its low-sudsing nature makes it safe for front-loading and high-efficiency (HE) machines.
If the recipe above doesn’t work as well as you’d like, break down the elements to find the perfect solution for your home. Play mad scientist in the laundry room. Here are some variations and customizations:
SUBSTITUTE WASHING SODA FOR BAKING SODA FOR GREATER CLEANING POWER. We formulated the Homemade Laundry Powder recipe with baking soda because washing soda can be hard to find. We’d suggest you try baking soda first and move up to washing soda if you have to.
All wash starts with soap, so KEEP A TUB OF PLAIN GRATED LAUNDRY SOAP ON HAND. Soap provides the vital service of lifting dirt and allowing it to be rinsed away. In hard water, though, soap can leave behind traces of soap scum, over time resulting in stiff fabric and graying whites. The trick with soap is to use as little as possible. Truthfully, it takes very little soap to make water a more effective cleaner. Start with 1 or 2 tablespoons per load and work up if needed.
BORAX IS PROBABLY THE BEST ALL-AROUND AID FOR SOAP. It won’t harm your clothes, and it helps brighten and deodorize laundry. Toss in about ½ cup borax along with the 2 tablespoons of soap, as described above, to make laundry detergent on the fly.
BAKING SODA
Sodium carbonate is sold by Arm & Hammer under the name Super Washing Soda. Like borax, it’s inexpensive, but it’s not as widely available as borax.
Look for it in the laundry section of supermarkets. If you have trouble finding it, call Arm & Hammer’s customer relations line or visit its Web site for the names of local retailers. You may be able to purchase sodium carbonate at places that sell pool supplies because it is used in the pool business to balance pH levels. Just make sure you get 100 percent sodium carbonate.
----
Wear kitchen gloves when handling washing soda, because it dries the skin.
----
BAKING SODA (SODIUM BICARBONATE)
The primary use of baking soda in the laundry is as a water softener and a deodorizer. It is not a cleaning agent in itself, but like borax and washing soda it helps soap clean, and it is noncaustic and nonirritating. Use baking soda in conjunction with soap for not-so-dirty loads. Buy baking soda in large boxes or bags at restaurant supply stores.
Homemade Laundry Powder
PREPARATION: 10 min
Here is our basic recipe. In this formula, baking soda softens the water, borax brightens, and soap lifts dirt. The ratio of each ingredient goes like this:
1 part grated laundry soap
2 parts borax
2 parts baking soda
If you haven’t purchased grated laundry soap, you must begin by grating the soap yourself. See the entry on soap (page 75 ) that discusses laundry soap options. Some bars of soap are harder than others. Soft ones will form curls of soap; hard ones form powder. Softer soaps can be pared into thin strips with a potato peeler. You can shred soap on a box grater or, if it’s not rock hard, chop it into chunks and grind it in a food processor.
Add the borax and baking soda to the soap. You can process them together in the food processor or mix them thoroughly by hand with a spoon. Store your laundry powder in a lidded container. At first, use 2 tablespoons per wash load, increasing the amount only if you find you need more cleaning power.
If you’re washing in cold water, there’s a chance of undissolved powder bits being left on clothing. You’d only see it in dark loads. To prevent this, put the powder in the washer, turn on the hot water for just a couple of seconds to help the powder dissolve, then return the setting to cold.
This laundry formula doesn’t foam much, but it still cleans. Its low-sudsing nature makes it safe for front-loading and high-efficiency (HE) machines.
If the recipe above doesn’t work as well as you’d like, break down the elements to find the perfect solution for your home. Play mad scientist in the laundry room. Here are some variations and customizations:
SUBSTITUTE WASHING SODA FOR BAKING SODA FOR GREATER CLEANING POWER. We formulated the Homemade Laundry Powder recipe with baking soda because washing soda can be hard to find. We’d suggest you try baking soda first and move up to washing soda if you have to.
All wash starts with soap, so KEEP A TUB OF PLAIN GRATED LAUNDRY SOAP ON HAND. Soap provides the vital service of lifting dirt and allowing it to be rinsed away. In hard water, though, soap can leave behind traces of soap scum, over time resulting in stiff fabric and graying whites. The trick with soap is to use as little as possible. Truthfully, it takes very little soap to make water a more effective cleaner. Start with 1 or 2 tablespoons per load and work up if needed.
BORAX IS PROBABLY THE BEST ALL-AROUND AID FOR SOAP. It won’t harm your clothes, and it helps brighten and deodorize laundry. Toss in about ½ cup borax along with the 2 tablespoons of soap, as described above, to make laundry detergent on the fly.
BAKING SODA
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