Homemade Laundry Detergent for HE Washers

After seeing some pins on Pinterest, my sister in law tried a version for her regular washer. She made 5 gallons of it, uses 2 tbsp, and LOVES it! It worked wonders on her laundry and the amazing amount of money she saves was even more amazing! The thing that really caught my attention besides the above mentioned, was that she finally got that weird moldy smell out of her towels. I thought it was just me! I have washed and rewashed my towels trying to get that awful smell out of them. I am a smell obsessed woman and this bothered my OCD of smelldome. So...I thought, what the heck. I'll try it. But, I had to make sure that I could find something that wouldn't damage my HE washer. The most useful site for me was DIY Natural. After looking at many sites and reading readers reviews and comments, here's what I came up with. Also, you'll see how much money you'll save! It's really ridiculous. I found everything at my local Walmart. You can also find these items at Amazon.


Ingredients:
Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda (Approx $2-3)
Borax (Approx $2-3) 
Fels-Naptha ($.97)


You will need:
Cheese grater
Container that seals good to put your laundry soap in

Directions:
1 Cup Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda
1 Cup Borax
1 Small Grated Bar of Fels-Naptha
I put in about 3 tbsp for each load
THAT'S IT!!!

I use the smallest holes...HOWEVER....PLEASE watch your fingers! It never fails (cuz I'm clumsy) that I tear my finger up! So be careful!
I admit, this is the only so-so part of the whole process...grating the soap takes a while and your hand and wrist will not be happy! And, I'm sure I could do something better to not make such a mess.
After you put all your ingredients in, put the lid on and shake the fire out of it. You need to make sure it's mixed well.
I still use my use fabric softner, but never fear-I am researching the best DIY fabric softner and will post it for you!

Happy DIYing!