I am far, far from being being completely green in our home yet.
Making some changes as far as how I purchase the things we need, and in what quantities to avoid
extra packaging has helped. I implemented a better recycling routine recently and am seeing a huge
difference already in how much garbage we have once the recycling is all removed.
That is shocking actually!
I am phasing out many of the cleaners and detergents we have used for a long time.
We all have allergies and sensitive skin, and so much of what is in the giant jugs of detergent and
soap is mostly fragrance and water anyways.
One thing I fell in love with a few years ago was Dr. Bronners Pure Castile Soap, but found myself
going through it quickly, and those little bottles were pretty spendy.
I saw this recipe recently on making your own liquid castile soap and I was excited to see that it
only had two ingredients and it only took a few minutes to make.
All natural & plant based ingredients that are safe enough for your family, pets, home and everyday
use. That’s really how it should be anyway don’t you think?
I kind of think that our generations were convinced that a detergent had to create a lot of suds, and
also have a strong “clean” smell in order to work.
Not the case, but it has been good marketing for many years. All natural products have gained
in popularity and are so much easier to find now.
But you might get a bit of sticker shock initially, and recipes like this one can help you find good
ways to clean your home and still save some dough.
Here is what I used to make my liquid Castile Soap:
Supplies:
-
- Clean Quart sized Mason jars, rings and lids
-
- Water
-
- Cheese grater
-
- Large microwave safe or bowl
- Castile Soap in bar form (I used Kirk’s, available at my local grocery store)
Directions:
Begin by using 4 cups of boiling water to every bar of soap you are grating.
Each quart sized mason jar will hold 4 cups of this mixture.
After the water has come to a boil, add grated soap and stir well until it’s just
about dissolved. Let it sit and cool for about 1 hour. I like to use a large
glass Pyrex measuring cup (mixing bowl size) since it has a pour spout and
is microwave safe.
Stir again, by now your soap should be completely melted and you can pour
it into your mason jars and add the lids. I’ve noticed the liquid will separate
a bit after a few days, just give it a shake and add to your spray bottle for
concentrated high quality soap for cleaning, or a bucket for mopping etc…
It smells like clean laundry that you just brought inside, and it is one way
to save a few bucks on cleaning supplies.
And remove some chemicals from your home while you are at it.
I hope you enjoy your liquid Castile soap as much as we do, I am always finding
new ways to use it!
Thank you so much for reading friend, wishing you a blessed & creative day- Also a perfect gift for your wedding.
I wonder if you could use a foaming hand soap dispenser- like the ones sold by Pampered Chef? Would that make this soap a little more foamy?
Tracy,
It’s funny you asked that because since I made it, I ran out of foaming hand soap in our bathroom. This works very well in the foaming soap dispenser too!
xoxo, Tanya
I cut my castile soap with about 2/3 water in the pump, lasts longer and still makes lots of foam. 🙂
Hi how much do your soap bars weigh?
Im in au and tried to make this but I think I did it wrong. I did 100 gr of soap in 1 liter of water. Thats not right is it? Can I fix this or throw it away? Thanks
Mirthe,
I will have to check and see how much they weigh, but there really is no right or wrong, just how concentrated the soap probably is. Once you make it a couple times you will know what ratios you like best.
Thank you for visiting!!
xoxo, Tanya
I tried this and found that once the mixture cooled it turned into gloopy soft clumpy goo (hard to describe but not the look in your pic). What did I do wrong?
Sharon,
The same this g happened to me. I think this recipe uses smaller bars. The Dr. Bronner bars I buy are 5.0/5.5 oz bars so I grate half of it and add it to 32 oz of hot water in the mason jar. I then stir it maybe about aa minute to dissolve. Let cool for about an hour and cap. Then you are good to go.
When my soap looks tooo thick I added more hot water and shake well. You can’t really mess this up.
Hi There can i use liquid castille saop instead of the bar soap?
Hi Lynette!
That is a great question, since I was trying to make my own liquid from bars to clean my home and laundry, I am sure a liquid would save you time in the process and still work great. Part of the process is trying for sure so a small batch to see if you like it would be fun to experiment with!
xo, Tanya
Fyi bronners contains…Potassium Hydroxide.
Potassium Hydroxide is a caustic inorganic base. So bronners claiming to be organic is a lie…
Potassium hydroxide is more commonly known as lye. Lye and oil are used to make soap, whether it is bar soap or liquid soap. The lye is neutralized by the acid in the oil during saponification. The bar soap used to make this liquid Castile was made with lye. While lye is caustic and nonorganic, none of it is left in the final product.
What a cool fact! I did not know this! Thank you for explaining that. What a great community!
Lye is sodium chloride.
I meant sodium hydroxide.
Potassium hydroxide is another form of lye. The homesteaders who made their own lye from ashes and rainwater were making crude potassium hydroxide
Water is an inorganic compound. Every element excepting carbon is inorganic; literally “organic” means “carbon based” and technically only compounds containing carbon are organic. Life as we know know it is carbon based and produces the carbon based compounds we are familiar with, thus carbon based compounds are associated with life and technically “organic” means “life based”. However, carbon is only one element and the compounds based on it are only a portion of the natural compounds which our natural world consists of and upon which living things rely. There are many naturally occurring caustic compounds, many which are made by living, organic, things. “Organic” has become a common misnomer for non-manmade; for purposes of the incorrect new common venacular, lye (potassium hydroxide, a naturally occurring compound) is, like water, is “organic”.
Water is an inorganic compound. Every element excepting carbon is inorganic; literally “organic” means “carbon based” and technically only compounds containing carbon are organic. Life as we know it is carbon based and produces the carbon based compounds we are familiar with, thus carbon based compounds are associated with life and technically “organic” means “life based”. However, carbon is only one element and the compounds based on it are only a portion of the natural elements and compounds which our natural world consists of and upon which living things rely. There are many naturally occurring caustic compounds, many which are made by living, organic, things. “Organic” has become a common misnomer for non-manmade; for purposes of the incorrect new common venacular, lye (potassium hydroxide, a naturally occurring compound) is, like water, is “organic”.
You are so right Sarah, so many things that we dub Organic does not mean that we should eat them or assume that they cannot hurt us. We do need to make sure we are aware of what we use and consume. Thank you for your thoughts today!
Sorry about the double post. The first one didn’t seem to take so I posted again, then both appeared.
Any resolves for the thickening gloopy soap?
Hi Krystal,
I added a bit of water to mine and stirred it if I noticed thickening 🙂
Thank you!!
Tanya
making this. thankyou for the recipe
Hi I’ve been doing a lot of research and most have mentioned that once you add water to a product, bacteria may form after a certain amount of time. If I were to make this and not use it right away, will I have to put a preservative? Thanks in advance!
Hi, what’s the answer to the question about bacteria forming once you add water and don’t use right away? What would you add to preserve !
I found this information on the web:
https://recyclenation.com/2015/06/naturally-get-mold-and-mildew-out-of-your-outdoor-spaces/
One guy also uses it daily in his shower. He puts it on his washrag, and cleans his entire body, even his hair. He uses the same washrag and he says it never has molded in the years he’s used it.
I don’t have any personal experience, though. :o)
Use distilled water to avoid problems.
Thank you so much for sharing this, I made a batch and it came out great. I love using it for my laundry Detergent. ☺
I am so glad you are enjoying it too Louise! Thank you so much for letting me know 🙂
Would love to know how much you use per load in a HE washer (which most are now).
No more than a tablespoon possibly even less, it does not take much 🙂
How much do you use for a load of laundry? Thanks for all your info!!
Hi Julie, it takes very little I usually use about 2 Tablespoons at the most 🙂
Thank you so much for visiting!
Hey fantastic blog! Does running a blog like this require a massive amount work?
I have virtually no understanding of programming however I
had been hoping to start my own blog soon. Anyway, should you have any ideas or tips for new blog owners please share.
I know this is off topic however I just needed to ask.
Thanks!
IDrII3 What as up I am from Australia, this time I am viewing this cooking related video at this website, I am really delighted and learning more from it. Thanks for sharing.
I have the same question as Leslie above……the concern about bacteria forming because of the water content and no preservatives……do you know anything about this? I know when using on your skin as in creams or lotions if we use water in the ingredients we also need to put in a preservative. Do we neeed a preservative in this?
I just posted on Leslie’s question. Maybe it will help you also?
Presumably, the bar soap can be in a damp environment with no issues. Would using distilled water take care of the (hopefully) small chance of there being a problem?
Any product without a preservative will have a shorter shelf life. Some things you can try are adding some vitamin E oil as a natural preservative, use boiled water and storing the products in opaque or tinted containers out of direct light.
Mine completely solidified. Did I do something wrong? Or can I heat it and use it?
Same Breanna. Same.
I would like to share this with my Farmgirl Sisterhood Chapter! We are going to be learning how to live more simply and healthy.
Used a 5oz. bar of Castile soap (not Dr. Bronner’s) and a quart of boiled water. Set up like gelatin that had been in the fridge a couple of weeks. Added another quart of boiling water and turned out okay. Wonder if there is a difference in density of bars.
Whoa! After adding extra 32oz. of hot water it seemed okay but in the morning I had 2 quarts of gel again. Had added 2 tablespoons to 12oz. foaming hand soap dispenser and have a big lump of gel that won’t pump out there too. If I keep adding water until it stays fluid I think I could have gallons. This is either really bad: it will always gel, or really good: I can have gallons of liquid Castile soap from one 5oz. bar!
LoL! Did you end up getting gallons of Castile soap??
I used 6 cups of water. 1 bar of Kirk’s unscented castile soap and essential oil. No problems whatsoever. Wonderful replacement for Dr. Bronner’s.
I want to make another batch soon, thank you for the suggestion I do like Kirk’s too just haven’t tried it. I will now for sure !
My mother was a beautician years ago and she used Castile soap on her clients. No one ever had dandruff. She made her shampoo exactly like your recipe.
That is a great tip Janice thank you so much!!
How much can i use for dishes?
Insightful and informative tips on how make a liquid castile soap. Thanks
I need to start making this.