# Washing powder help.



## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Does someone with time want to put a recipe and really good directions for making powdered laundry soap, perhaps with photos in the recipe section above? Perhaps with photos of how you package and label it? A MHMR facility is looking into doing this along with the lotion they pump, scent, label and sell. Thanks! A I don't care if a couple people do this! If you dont' want to share publically can you email it to me so I can email it to them? Thanks, Vicki [email protected]


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## NPgoats (Mar 18, 2010)

What is a MHMR facility? Not that it makes any difference but curious.
Linda


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Mental Health/Mental Retardation. My sister used to run the building, they normally have to do piece work, which sadly they make slave wages at, it should be against the law. So we started having them pump lotion into bottles, shake in the scent, label and sell, they bought a big grill for cook outs and a flat screen TV for the building, plus several outings just that first summer. So I want to bring to them laundry soap.....I have never made or used anything but the liquid I make. So wanted some ideas on recipes, packaging etc.. that they could copy to sell locally. They aren't allowed to have a website, but if this works out I am going to wholesale it from them and sell it on my website and in the soaproom with the proceeds all going to them also. Vicki


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## NPgoats (Mar 18, 2010)

Wow that is a wonderful idea and very helpful for them. My son, who is in medical school now, use to work for one of those places when he was in college. He shared many stories with me some sad and some marvelous. Linda


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## a4patch (Oct 7, 2009)

Vicki,
I am not sure if this is what you want. Maybe it needs basic instructions like...use food processor with supervision or carefully plug in the food processor.
I do not have pictures yet but I will be making detergent soon. 
OR maybe someone else would like to add to/ change /improve on what I have posted???? Use this (or not) as needed.


Laundry Soap Directions
Ingredients
1 4.5 ounce bar of soap
4.5 ounces of baking soda
4.5 ounces of washing soda
4.5 ounces of borax

Use a food processor to grate the bar of soap using the grating attachment. 
Dump the grated soap into a bowl. 
Change the food processor to a cutting/chopping/mixing blade.
Dump the grated soap, baking soda, washing soda and borax into the food processor. 
Mix all ingredients for 2 minutes or until it is a fine powder. 
Decide the weight to be sold.
Place a container on the scales to hold the powder.
Measure out the powder according to weight needed. 
Pour the powder into the bag or box you will sell it in.


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Someone sent me info on using a blender, I think that would be safer than using a food processor. Another uses a meat grinder to grind the soap, I think the guys would actually love doing this.

I was so hoping it would use up more scrap soap than this!

Does anyone scent their finished product?

What do you sell this in, was thinking along the lines of ziplocks and a stick on label....or glassine bags that they could staple a label folded over the top of the bag. Has to be simple. Vicki


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## MF-Alpines (Mar 29, 2010)

I use coffee bags. You can get them in 1/2 lb size or 1 lb size or even 5 lb size. Simple to fill and simple to close. I think they're called "tin-tie"?


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## Anita Martin (Dec 26, 2007)

I use the tin-tie bags also, from papermart. They are inexpensive and can hold a variety of weights, you just fold the bag over. They come either with a window, or without. The recipe I use is:
5.5 oz grated soap
1 cup washing soda
1/2 cup borax
1/2 cup baking soda
1/2 to 1 whole dropper of scent. 

This makes about 21.5 oz of washing powder. I make one bag/batch at a time only because that's about all my food processor will process without getting overloaded. I make it in alot of different scents, mostly citrusey, tea tree, eucalyptus, lavenders, etc. I think you really do need to add the scent in the processor to make sure it's dispersed. The blender I have could not be used to make laundry detergent. It would not pull everything into the blades without added liquid. Maybe one of the higher-priced ones would, or a vitamix type mixer might work. It's important to add powder to the soap shreds when beginning to process so the soap doesn't gum back up into a ball and break the blades. 

Basically, it's one bar of soap per bag of detergent.


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## a4patch (Oct 7, 2009)

I use the tin fold over the top coffee bags also. I hate them. I must have gotten a bad batch. They leak the powder. I will do a cost analysis on Anita's recipe. It may be cheaper. I had to packing tape the bottom of each bag.

I do like the idea of the meat grinder for your workers, less chance of a cut.


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## tmfinley (Feb 21, 2008)

I use a gallon ziplock. I sell it 2 lbs at a time. I fill the ziplock with 32 oz of powder, let it settle in the bottom and then fold the ziplock over on itself and tape it so it is in a barrel shape then put the label on.


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Thanks everyone. I love the tin tie bag idea Anita, that would be super easy, and yes we were thinking 32 ounces and plastic jars that size would add $1 to each sale.

Does anyone want to snap photos and post them? I have the gals just reading this thread 

Thanks for the scent info, I have this incredible orange oil I use in one of my soaps that I really wanted to scent this washing powder with.

The guys could grind the soap by hand, the girls adding the ingredients to the fill tube in the processor to pulse it and add the scent. Thanks everyone! Vicki


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## todog (Dec 10, 2011)

A little hint for shredding the fels naptha, open it and leave it set for 2-3 days. The dryer soap shredds easier. Good luck!


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

Thanks Darlene, also for the helpful PM! I really want to try it with goatmilk soap and not the detergent bars, we will see how that works. Vicki


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## hsmomof4 (Oct 31, 2008)

It does work better if you formulate the soap at a 0% SF, IMO. And I find that once shredded, it's best to let it sit a bit for the shreds to dry out even further before you put it in the processor to pulverize it with the other ingredients. I make soap specifically for laundry soap, at 0% SF, and I OP it to reduce the moisture further. Cut into sizes to fit into the feed tube for my food processor, let sit a few days, shred, let sit again. The drier it is, the better it grinds up. Moister soap doesn't grind up as fine and tends to clump.


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## Anita Martin (Dec 26, 2007)

Dry soap is better, but I've used soft soap plenty of times. Just add plenty of powder to it in the processor. It won't clump if enough powdered ingredients are added before starting up the blade. Goat milk soap works just fine. The recipe I use calls for fels naptha but I use my own soap. I got this recipe from a local Amish/Mennonite store where they sell the ingredients to make it. Very cheap if you do it yourself. I ruin so much soap and have so many shreds that I've never had to make soap especially for my soap powder yet. Of course, I don't sell a lot of it either, but enough that I've only got about three bags left on my market shelf and I've made dozens!


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## NubianSoaps.com (Oct 26, 2007)

I use the same mold for logs and slab pours. Which leaves me about 5/8th inch pieces on the slab pours, times 3 with each mold I pour. I want to donate these to the cause, since I make so much Almond Biscotti with my mistakes  Vicki


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## Anita Martin (Dec 26, 2007)

The tin-ties I got from papermart are lined with some sort of plastic layer. Mine have never leaked or caused any problems. Plus, people can open them to get a sniff and re-close and I can't really tell the difference, which means I can make lots of different kinds and don't necessarily need testers for all of them. (kinda hard to have testers with powder, it seems to get spilled) I use really strong scents like eucalyptus, etc. (people do love anything citrus too), and they can often smell it through the bag. Yep, I've got people that buy it to make their laundry room smell good.


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