Soap and sanitize making

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Gardener1850

Gardener1850

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I'm seeing a lot of posts lately asking how to make soap, dish detergent, laundry detergents, etc. As the stores run short or people can't get something delivered this starts to become an issue. I thought it would be good to have a thread to keep all our recipes and suggestions for coping with product shortages in one place. Please add your recipes here or use the thread to ask others for help making the products we need. :)
 
The first thing I'm going to attempt to make is my own bottle of hand sanitizer. I had a travel size bottle I've been keeping in my car for trips to the store and it's almost gone. I haven't been able to find any Aloe Vera Gel but today I found some vegetable glycerin online and ordered it. That should work just as well as the Aloe Gel. I also have some isopropyl alcohol. I have seen a bunch of recipes but this one looks easy: How to Make Your Own Hand Sanitizer

Ingredients:

91% or higher isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) or ethanol alcohol Aloe vera gel or glycerin Essential oils (optional) Bowl and spoon Storage bottle or container Funnel (optional)
Step 1.
Combine ⅔ cup of 91% or higher alcohol with ⅓ cup of aloe vera gel or glycerin in a bowl and stir until blended.

Getting your ratios right in this step is critical. By combining two parts of 91% or higher alcohol with one part softening agent, you’ll land at about 60% alcohol content in the final product. Hand sanitizer that’s less than 60% alcohol will not be effective.

You can also increase the alcohol content to about 68% by combining ¾ cup of 91% or higher alcohol with ¼ cup of aloe or glycerin. Aloe or glycerin helps prevent the alcohol from drying out your skin.

Step 2.
Optional: Add 5-10 drops of essential oils to reduce the smell of alcohol.

If you’re sensitive to the strong smell of alcohol, you can add several drops of essential oils to your hand sanitizer. Do not add too much essential oil or you will dilute the alcohol content of your sanitizer below the 60% alcohol threshold. It’s important to note the active ingredient here is the alcohol, not the essential oils.

Step 3.
Bottle your hand sanitizer mixture.

Once your hand sanitizer is mixed and complete, pour the mixture into a container or bottle for use. You can purchase an empty bottle with a squirt top or pump from your local drug store or recycle a washed-out hand sanitizer bottle. If you have a funnel on hand, it can make it easier to pour the hand sanitizer into your storage containers. Once it’s bottled, your hand sanitizer is ready to use!

ETA: copied recipe in post
 
Last edited:
Dish washing soap
Instructions
Ingredients

  1. Heat water to boiling.
  2. Combine borax and grated bar soap in a medium bowl. Pour hot water over the mixture. ...
  3. Allow mixture to cool on the countertop for 6-8 hours, stirring occasionally. Dish soap will gel upon standing.
  4. Transfer to a squirt bottle, and add essential oils (if using). Shake well to combine.
Homemade Dish Soap: This Natural DIY Dish Soap Is Simple and Effective
I have borax on hand - can't remember why I bought it.
FYI - dish soap is becoming limited locally
 
I just want to mention how powerful Ivory bar soap is. It is definitely not mild, I found out accidentally when I used the Ivory bar to wash my makeup sponges. Wow, it worked so fast and effectively to remove all makeups from the sponges and puffs. Works well on makeup brushes also.

Since then, I use the Ivory bar to remove stubborn stains from clothes also. Works like magic most of the time.
 
I always have borax in my house. I use borax for two things-- Laundry detergent and ant poison.

Ant poison is simply a paste made from borax, sugar and water. I make it similar to this, but I use less water than called for:
  • 2 tablespoons of borax/boric acid
  • 1/2 cup of sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups of warm water
How to Kill Ants with Borax - A Deadly Ant Killer Recipe

Make sure you put the poison in places where kids and pets can NOT get to it. I put it behind the electrical plates in my wall or on the pipes under my kitchen sinks or on a bottle cap wherever I see ants. If you have pets you may have to get creative and make a petproof box with a hole for the ants to enter and get the poison or be diligent about keeping the animal out of the room with the poison for a week. It takes about a week for the ants to carry the poison back to their nest once they find it.

----------------------------------------------------
I haven't made my own laundry detergent in a few years but that might change if my favorite brand runs out. We have sensitive skin and have to get the kind without any scents or harsh chemicals or I have to make my own. The only reason I stopped using homemade is that I noticed it tended to fade the colors of my clothing over time. It's a really good, however, for saving money and it cleans the clothes just as well as commercial detergent if you can't find laundry detergent.

My laundry detergent recipe is just like this one with Borax, Washing Soda (NOT the same thing as baking soda, FYI) and Fels-Naptha bar soap which can be found in the laundry aisle (Sometimes I use Ivory soap if I can't find the Fels-Naptha): Make Your Own Laundry Soap in 3 Easy Steps

Here's How
  1. Mix together 2 parts Borax, 2 parts washing soda, and 1 part grated Fels-Naptha soap to create your own laundry detergent. You can make as much or as little as you'd like; just adjust the proportions as appropriate.
  2. Use up to three level tablespoons per wash load. Use one tablespoon if you have a high-efficiency (HE) machine.
  3. Store the rest in a lidded container, out of the reach of children and pets.

Tips
  • Be sure to label your detergent container, so others will know what's inside. Include a list of the ingredients as an added safety measure.
  • Borax sells under the name 20 Mule Team and can be found in the laundry aisle of your grocery or discount store. You should be able to find washing soda and Fels-Naptha soap there, too.
  • If you have trouble locating Fels-Naptha soap in the laundry aisle, check to see if it's with the bar soap.
  • If the grocery or discount store that you shop at doesn't stock these ingredients, try an international grocery store.
  • Zote, Ivory, or castile soap can be used in place of Fels-Naptha.
 
Glad there's a thread like this. I haven't read any posts yet, but I will.

I can't be bothered trying to find the hand sanitizer or wipes in my purse for every time I touch something in a store.

Found a way that works for clumsy me. I have been using this strong smelling bleachy Comet kitchen spray that I got at the Dollar Tree. I spray it on a clean piece of flannel until it's wet. I carry it with me in one of those thin produce plastic bags. Anytime I touch anything I can reach in and wipe my hands on it. I can wipe something off if need be. It's been very handy. It's strong smelling so I always smell like bleach now...so sexy and alluring. :rolleyes:
 
ilovewings said:
i was using isopropyl alcohol till
i ran out--now i am using 3% hydroge n
peroxide-- i cant use bleach-- the smell is
too strong for me
Click to expand...

Yet keep in mind, that just normal soapy water solution is JUST as effective for the lipid envelope. That is what I use. MOO.

It's comparable to hand sanitizers vs. soap and water for humans.... soap and water for viruses are the best. Even moreso than those hand sanitizers. MOO.

I could go on... but all will see from their point of view.
 
:):)
dixiegirl1035 said:
Yet keep in mind, that just normal soapy water solution is JUST as effective for the lipid envelope. That is what I use. MOO.

It's comparable to hand sanitizers vs. soap and water for humans.... soap and water for viruses are the best. Even moreso than those hand sanitizers. MOO.

I could go on... but all will see from their point of view.
Click to expand...

I’m also using soap ( dish soap to be exact) currently :)
 
Last edited:
My vegetable glycerin was finally delivered. After the bottle spent 3+ days in the "quarantined groceries" area of my garage, I decided it was time to attempt to make hand sanitizer. I used the
¾ cup of 91% rubbing alcohol and ¼ cup of glycerin ratio. I skipped the part about mixing in a separate bowl and instead I used a funnel to pour the liquids directly into an empty hand pump bottle, then I put the lid on and shook the bottle up really good to mix. It looks really thin in the bottle compared to regular hand sanitizer so I had my doubts about it being usable, but it did pump out thick enough to spread all over my hands easily.

I had my DH test some out too. We both agree that the feeling on the hands is not as nice as our preferred brand (Germ-X). The homemade stuff sort of leaves a soapy residue that feels as if you have spread liquid hand soap on your hands without rinsing. We both had to go rinse our hands after using it because our hands continued to feel slimy. So basically, I made antibacterial soap, not hand sanitizer. LOL.

Another downside is that it has a strong alcohol smell at first, but the scent dissipated quickly and didn't bother me too much. Not any worse than the smell of normal hand sanitizer, anyway. I did not use any essential oils, as I'm very sensitive to scents and I have reacted to them in the past. For anyone who has essential oils and likes them, they may help cover the rubbing alcohol scent.

So I'm not thrilled or anything but this homemade stuff will work in a pinch. I don't have any other options for going out to the stores, since all public restrooms are closed. And I have heard through the grapevine that hand sanitizer may not be delivered to my local stores for a very long time. It's all going directly to the hospitals instead. Maybe I will carry a bottle of water in my car to rinse my hands after using this in the parking lot when I go shopping.

MOO.
 
Gardener1850 said:
I always have borax in my house. I use borax for two things-- Laundry detergent and ant poison.

Ant poison is simply a paste made from borax, sugar and water. I make it similar to this, but I use less water than called for:
  • 2 tablespoons of borax/boric acid
  • 1/2 cup of sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups of warm water
How to Kill Ants with Borax - A Deadly Ant Killer Recipe

Make sure you put the poison in places where kids and pets can NOT get to it. I put it behind the electrical plates in my wall or on the pipes under my kitchen sinks or on a bottle cap wherever I see ants. If you have pets you may have to get creative and make a petproof box with a hole for the ants to enter and get the poison or be diligent about keeping the animal out of the room with the poison for a week. It takes about a week for the ants to carry the poison back to their nest once they find it.

----------------------------------------------------
I haven't made my own laundry detergent in a few years but that might change if my favorite brand runs out. We have sensitive skin and have to get the kind without any scents or harsh chemicals or I have to make my own. The only reason I stopped using homemade is that I noticed it tended to fade the colors of my clothing over time. It's a really good, however, for saving money and it cleans the clothes just as well as commercial detergent if you can't find laundry detergent.

My laundry detergent recipe is just like this one with Borax, Washing Soda (NOT the same thing as baking soda, FYI) and Fels-Naptha bar soap which can be found in the laundry aisle (Sometimes I use Ivory soap if I can't find the Fels-Naptha): Make Your Own Laundry Soap in 3 Easy Steps

Here's How
  1. Mix together 2 parts Borax, 2 parts washing soda, and 1 part grated Fels-Naptha soap to create your own laundry detergent. You can make as much or as little as you'd like; just adjust the proportions as appropriate.
  2. Use up to three level tablespoons per wash load. Use one tablespoon if you have a high-efficiency (HE) machine.
  3. Store the rest in a lidded container, out of the reach of children and pets.

Tips
  • Be sure to label your detergent container, so others will know what's inside. Include a list of the ingredients as an added safety measure.
  • Borax sells under the name 20 Mule Team and can be found in the laundry aisle of your grocery or discount store. You should be able to find washing soda and Fels-Naptha soap there, too.
  • If you have trouble locating Fels-Naptha soap in the laundry aisle, check to see if it's with the bar soap.
  • If the grocery or discount store that you shop at doesn't stock these ingredients, try an international grocery store.
  • Zote, Ivory, or castile soap can be used in place of Fels-Naptha.
Click to expand...

Borax is great for flea control as well. Dog shampoos don’t seem to do it as well as a simple borax wash. Dissolve some in water. Rinse the pet with the borax water mix while rubbing it all over. 10-15 minutes. I put the pet into a large plastic tub. And reuse the water over and over. Rubbing it in serves to calm the pet and gives the borax time to kill off fleas, ticks and lice. Great stuff. A particularly bad infestation can take daily baths for 3-4-5 days then taper down as things improve. Final rinse in clear water.
Fels-naphtha at neighborhood hardware stores. I’m amazed at the variety of items my small local hardware stores stocks.
 
Gardener1850 said:
My vegetable glycerin was finally delivered. After the bottle spent 3+ days in the "quarantined groceries" area of my garage, I decided it was time to attempt to make hand sanitizer. I used the
¾ cup of 91% rubbing alcohol and ¼ cup of glycerin ratio. I skipped the part about mixing in a separate bowl and instead I used a funnel to pour the liquids directly into an empty hand pump bottle, then I put the lid on and shook the bottle up really good to mix. It looks really thin in the bottle compared to regular hand sanitizer so I had my doubts about it being usable, but it did pump out thick enough to spread all over my hands easily.

I had my DH test some out too. We both agree that the feeling on the hands is not as nice as our preferred brand (Germ-X). The homemade stuff sort of leaves a soapy residue that feels as if you have spread liquid hand soap on your hands without rinsing. We both had to go rinse our hands after using it because our hands continued to feel slimy. So basically, I made antibacterial soap, not hand sanitizer. LOL.

Another downside is that it has a strong alcohol smell at first, but the scent dissipated quickly and didn't bother me too much. Not any worse than the smell of normal hand sanitizer, anyway. I did not use any essential oils, as I'm very sensitive to scents and I have reacted to them in the past. For anyone who has essential oils and likes them, they may help cover the rubbing alcohol scent.

So I'm not thrilled or anything but this homemade stuff will work in a pinch. I don't have any other options for going out to the stores, since all public restrooms are closed. And I have heard through the grapevine that hand sanitizer may not be delivered to my local stores for a very long time. It's all going directly to the hospitals instead. Maybe I will carry a bottle of water in my car to rinse my hands after using this in the parking lot when I go shopping.

MOO.
Click to expand...

Maybe less glycerin? 1/8 cup instead of 1/4. Glycerin is just for smoothness, right? Or does it disinfect, too? Still, less glycerin would probably keep the slimy feeling down.
 
Midwestmom2019 said:
Maybe less glycerin? 1/8 cup instead of 1/4. Glycerin is just for smoothness, right? Or does it disinfect, too? Still, less glycerin would probably keep the slimy feeling down.
Click to expand...

Hmmm... that might work. The glycerin is what keeps your hands from drying out from the alcohol and it also makes it a gel form so you can spread it all over your hands. However, at 1/4 cup it's not as gelled as normal hand sanitizer- it's a little thinner. I'm not sure I would want it more watery as then it could be hard to spread on my hands. I do have to say as an update, I used it a few times yesterday to try to get used to the feel of it and my hands are extra soft today. I've been rough on my hands the last couple months between working in the garden and washing them extra times and now it almost feels like I had a manicure. So I might just get used to the feeling of the vegetable glycerin hand sanitizer if it improves my skin. :p:cool:
 
Today, Dollar Tree had big bottles of Perioxide for $1 each. :) I've used it before for bathroom mirrors and counters.

"Hydrogen peroxide is typically sold in concentrations of about 3%. It can be used as is, or diluted to 0.5% concentration for effective use against coronaviruses on surfaces. It should be left on surfaces for one minute before wiping."

The Most Effective Ways to Kill Coronavirus in Your Home

Never use different cleaning agents at the same time. Some household chemicals, if mixed, can create dangerous and poisonous gases.
 
Gardener1850 said:
I haven't been able to find any Aloe Vera Gel but today I found some vegetable glycerin online and ordered it.
Click to expand...
They also had that green Aloe Vera Gel at Dollar Tree today. Do you have those where you live, or Dollar Generals? The SoCali stores only let 20 people into the store at a time. I wanted some of that Wintergreen Alcohol, but they haven't had any in awhile.
 
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