Teach Soap

I have been doing some reading and I think the recipe I will be trying first is(I found this in the forum, cant remember who it was from):
16 oz. 0% superfat shredded soap
2C. borax
2C. washing soda
using roughly 3T. per load.

My questions are: This recipe said 100%CO, do I need to do that, or can it be any of my recipes?
Do people have a preference on liquid versus powder soap, does one work better than the other?
Can washing soda be purchased at my local wal-mart or other stores?
Can I add FO to this soap? or EO only? (I don't generally buy EO's because of their price)
And lastly, is this something that goes bad, do I need to make small batches?

I am not making this to sell, only for my own use, and possibly pass some on to my family as well.

Thanks in advance!

It does not have to be CO, but it does need to be 0% or your clothes will get dingy over time. You can use FO in the soap you are using.
I don't know if the laundry soap would go bad over time or not - I have never had a batch last long enough to go bad.
Some grocery stores carry washing soda in the laundry aisle, it comes in a box that looks like a giant box of baking soda - I buy ours at Krogers, which is the big grocer around here.
I use the liquid, but I don't know if there are any benefits over the dry form or not - SueW likes the liquid.
I don't use the exact recipe that you listed, but it is close. I say make up a batch and try it.

Oh- welcome to the forum!

Thank you, DaveW
Looks like I will be doing some soaping soon, and putting washing soda on my grocery list

You can make your own washing soda too which I do. You just put some baking soda in a pan and bake it at 350 for about a hour or so. I mix it every 20 minutes or so. It's very easy

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

I make the liquid laundry soap because it works better in our water. I buy the washing soda at Food City (a local grocery chain) Walmart doesn't carry it. I don't think I would mess with cooking the baking soda because washing soda is inexpensive if you can find it. I make a 5 gallon bucket of the liquid and it costs about $3 total. I use 1/2 cup per load so it lasts a long time.

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

I found the washing soda and borax today at walmart. Now I just need to make a batch of soap Does it matter if I do HP or CP?

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

ljm 1180- how do you make the liquid?

I don't know what ljm 1180 does, but here is what I use:

Grate 6 ounces of soap and put into a sauce pan with 4 cups of water. Continually stir over medium heat until soap is dissolved.
Fill a 5 gallon bucket halfway with hot tap water. Pour in the dissolved soap.
Add 1 cup of washing soda and 1/2 cup of borax.
Stir until powders are dissolved.
Fill bucket the rest of the way with hot tap water.
Stir, then cover the bucket overnight. The liquid will gel.
Stir before using, and use 1/2 cup per load with a top-load machine.

Easy, isn't it!

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Linda
I know the voices in my head aren't real, but they sure have some great ideas!

I swear we're twins ljm 1180! And yes - we spent Saturday on the river and Sunday was spent pulling all the gear off the boat so it could be cleaned and covered for the winter. Cornmeal soap is on the short list, and I am planning on deer tallow soap this year also.
And just being curious ljm 1180 - even though you make your own soap, do you happen to keep a bar of Fels-Naptha in the cupboard? (Just testing my twins theory.)