DIY Detergent Chemical Free & Vegan

My favorite natural DIY product is detergent. Perhaps because it is the first product I made or because homemade chemical free detergent has a huge positive impact on the environment and our health. For whatever the reason, I love making, using, and sharing this recipe!

You will need:

Washing Soda - 1 cup

Borax - 1 cup

5 gallon bucket with lid (I bought mine at home depot)

Bar of soap or liquid soap (I use Dr. Bronner’s)

Cheese grater (if using bar of soap)

Measuring Cups (1 cup and 4 cup) 

Bottle of container (An old detergent bottle will do)

Wooden Spoon

Boiling pot

Tea Tree Oil
Water - 4 cups to boil & to fill a 5 gallon bucket

Essential oil (optional)

All of these products can be found at your local grocery store, health food store, or amazon.com

Grab the materials and lets go!

Step 1:
Boil 4 cups of water and fill the 5 gallon bucket half way with hot water

Step 2:
Shred a bar of vegan soap (or use a food processor)

Step 3:
Once water is boiled, slowly stir in the soap shreds until the soap has dissolved. Then add 1 cup of washing soda and 1 cup of borax stir until completely mixed

Washing soda cannot be replaced with baking soda! 

Step 4:
Poor soap mixture into a 5 gallon bucket and fill the rest with hot water. Then place lid on bucket and let cool for several hours.

Step 5:
Once the mixture cooled, add tea tree oil (~20 drops). You can also add an essential oil of your choice such as lavender for additional fragrance

Step 6: Let sit for 24 hours or until it becomes a gelatin

To use:

Stir detergent then fill a bottle (old detergent bottle) half way with hot water and half with the detergent. Shake before use and follow the instructions on your laundry machine for the amount needed and you are ready to use! 

CONGRATS! You just made TEN gallons of detergent! One bucket lasts my family of three six months - In the past two years I've made a total of 4 buckets.



The extra product will not be wasted! Save it for an upcoming easy laundry DIY that will save you money and it is chemical free!

Check back for a natural cost effective fabric softener! 

Every little change you make towards a natural lifestyle is helpful to you, your family, the environment, and is cost effective. 

Homemade Dish Soap

Homemade Natural Dish Soap

What you use to wash dishes is just as important as what you put in your body and on your skin. While washing the dishes, the chemicals in the soap are absorbed into your skin and later any soap residue left on the dishes will be consumed. I make a quick and easy natural eco-friendly soap that can rival the cleaning power of any conventional dish soap. 

You will need:

Dr. Bronner's bar soap, washing soda (NOT baking soda, found in the laundry aisle), distilled white vinegar (cuts grease, antibacterial, and removers odors), cooking pot, empty soap dispenser, storage container, grater, mixing spoon, funnel, & measuring spoon

Optional: tea tree oil (antibacterial), essential oil (for natural fragrance), vegetable glycerin (moisturizer), and vitamin E oil (preservative)

 Basic ratio: 1.5 cups of water per 1 tablespoon soap shreds, 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar, 1 tablespoon washing soda

I customized the basic ratio to one that works best for me and generates about 1.5 galloons of soap:

24 cups water, 1 cup soap shreds, 1 cup distilled white vinegar, 1 tablespoon washing soda

How to make your own natural dish soap:


Step 1: Fill pot with 24 cups of water and let boil

Step 2: Shred a bar of soap. I do this over a piece of wax paper so clean up is easy. I reuse the wax paper and store the extras in a reusable plastic bag with the soap label.

Step 3: Once the water boils add 1 cup of each: soap shreds, washing soda, and distilled white vinegar.

Step 4: Stir until soap shreds melt then remove from heat to let cool for several hours.

Step 5: Once cooled stir in optional ingredients: 10-15 drops of tea tree oil, 1 tablespoon of vegetable glycerin, essential oil, and vitamin E.

Step 6: As it cools, the mixture will start to gel. This process can take several hours, so let is sit and stir on occasion. When mixture is ready it will form into a thick gel-like consistency.

Step 7: Once gelled use a funnel to pour soap into a disinfected dispenser and storage container. 

Step 8: Shake dispenser before use.

The end result:

 

I use a reusable an eco-friendly dish sponge that you can find here.

Unlike conventional dish soap, this soap does not contain a surfactant, a harmful chemical designed to create suds. While this soap recipe naturally suds on its own, do not expect the same amount of suds as from conventional dish soap. Society created the false belief that clean is defined by large amounts of soapsuds, however we know this is not true. 

As you will learn from this blog, the ingredients for the recipe are repeated for other homemade products. If you are new to making homemade products, purchasing the required ingredients will cost more than buying one bottle of conventional dish soap, but the ingredients will last you a long time and are used for other homemade recipes.

This dish soap is the basis for several other homemade products. 

Check back to learn other ways on how you can use this dish soap recipe!

If you try this recipe let me know in the comments how it turned out!

DIY Cat Litter

DIY - Recycled Cat Litter

Most of us already take measures to improve our environment, but how many of us take the time to reduce the imprint our four-legged friends are leaving behind on Earth? One easy way to make a difference is to use a litter that is safe for the environment. Clumping cat litters are the most popular because they are cheap and have cute commercials (usually a sign of a bad product). However, clumping litters are made from a natural chemical called sodium bentonite that is not biodegradable meaning cat litter is dumped in a landfill and left forever. 

Non-biodegradable cat liters are toxic to the Earth, animals, and humans. To prevent odors and increase absorbency they are coated with harmful chemicals. When touched, pieces of clay litter turn to dust particles, which can cause respiratory and urinary track infections as well as trigger allergies and asthma in both cats and humans. In the past, I used this type of cat litter and the dust would get stuck in my throat. It was unpleasant for me to clean their box and for my cats every time they used the bathroom. Also, cat liter is designed to clump and harden for easy cleanup. Once ingested the same hardening process will cause a blockage inside your cat’s gastrointestinal tract. Think your cat does not ingest the cat litter? When cats clean themselves they are swallowing their fur and whatever is on it, hence cat hairballs. Also if the clay litter hardens on the cat's paw your cat will bite and lick it away, swallowing a hard piece of clay. Most cat litters state not to flush used cat liter for this same reason. 

A simple fix is to use litter that is safe for the environment and our pets such as Plant Petco’s Paper Cat Litter or Purinia’s Yesterday’s News. We can reduce the four-legged imprint even more by making our own cat litter with recycled newspaper. 

This DIY is not just for cat liter. It is also great for small animal bedding, birdcages, soft bedding for feral cats, paper for gift bags, and packaging.  

You will need:

Free local newspaper and paper shredder

Optional: storage bin or bag

Step 1: Separate the newspaper into two piles - newspaper articles and glossy paper (usually advertisements and coupons). We will be working only with the articles because it absorbs more than the glossy paper. This will not work with printer paper. 

Step 2: Separate each article section into individual sheets, fold in half, and tear into strips. Tear the strips following the grain of the paper.  The grain will vary pending the style of the paper but it is usually from top to bottom.

Step 3: Feed strips into shredder                                    

Step 4: Optional: Store in a bucket, bag, or box 

How to use:
I use a mixture of 50/50 store bought cat litter and paper shreds. The amount to use will vary pending the likes of your cat.  My cat took to the paper shreds right away, but if your cat is picky, I suggest adding some shreds to the litter slowly, especially if you plan on replacing all the litter with paper shreds.

Step 1: Add regular cat litter, just enough to cover the bottom.
Step 2: Add the paper shreds on top to cover the store bought litter.
Step 3: Generously sprinkle baking soda over the top. 

Clean Litter Box, Happy Cat Tips:

1. Clean Litter: Change your litter every 1-2 days and remove soiled litter daily. Every few weeks also wash and disinfect the litter box. Cats are clean animals, they like to keep themselves clean and even their bathroom. To disinfect naturally read my blog post on how to make your own. Do not use a harmful wash or disinfectant because cats do not like strong odors and doing so may deter them from using the litter box. Also the chemical additives found in cleaning products are harmful to their health.

2. Baking Soda: One of the amazing uses of baking soda is as an odor remover. It absorbs the odors of the litter box safe in a safe and natural way.  Sprinkle baking soda on top of the cat litter and the bottom of the litter box to catch any urine. This is highly effective to remove odor. 

3. Privacy & Location: Cats are private animals, even more so when using the litter box. Just like humans shut the bathroom door,  cats do not like using the box in front of others or out in the open. If possible use a covered litter box, or place the litter box inside of a soft dog crate. This is also a helpful if your dog likes to eat from the cat litter box and great to catch fall out litter and prevents tracking. My cat is too big for most covered litter boxes, so I use a soft dog crate to keep the litter box private and away from the dog. Do not place the litter box near an eating or sleeping area because no one likes to eat or sleep in the bathroom. If you do not cover the liter box, for privacy place the liter box in an area that does not track a lot of attention.

4. Type of Litter: Instinctually, cats like sand as litter, because of the soft texture. Hence, why some cats use potted plants as their bathroom.  If your cat is having a hard time using the litter box, try a different kind of litter. The pet store sells a variety of textured litters safe for the environment. Alternatively, the paper shreds provide a softness that cats like and is fluffy to allow them to bury their business.

If you have any tips for a happy cat please post below in the comment section. 

Marchetto

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                                                                            MEOW.