Laundry Soap - Frugal and Environmental

I used to "make my own" laundry soap. It's a little time consuming but can be done in a few hours and supplies you with tons of soap that can last a few months depending on your usage and is super cheap. However a year ago we switched to a high efficiency machine and I was not sure the quantity to use safely and i am not willing to risk my machine. So I had to find another alternative. I read in the comments section of one of my favorite frugal websites hillbillyhousewife.com a good trick i now use.

I purchase regular powder laundry soap, take a clean jar fill 1/3 soap, 1/3 Arm and Hammer Washing Soda and 1/3 Borax. The washing soda and borax are the ingredients used to make your own soap! This really extends my detergent. I also feel like the carbon footprint is smaller because io go through less packaging. I use 2 tablespoons per regular load and 1 tablespoon for cloth diapers. Works great!

For those interested, here is the recipe and directions for the laundry soap I used to make:

You will need a bar of soap, laundry specific or Ivory is what I always used, 3/4 cup each of washing soda and borax and lots of water

Grate your bar into a large pot, the smaller you grate the faster this goes and this is the longest part. Pour on top 6 cups of water.
Over a low to medium heat melt all the soap. You must melt it completely before continuing to next step.
Once it's melted add the borax and washing soda and melt into mixture completely. I think this is a step most people rush. If you do not melt these powders down completely your final product will not gel.
Take a large bin and put 4 cups of cool water in bottom, the bin needs to be able to hold 3 gallons.
Pour over cool water hot mixture from pot and stir.
Add 1.5 more gallons of cool water and stir stir stir.
Here you could also add some essential oils if you'd like a scent, I do not recommend that if you are using this to wash cloth diapers. A few drops of any oil is plenty.
Stir stir stir.
Let sit overnight and it will gel up though it is ready to use immediately. I found thus mixture needed about a cupful per load. Which to me is way too much to put in a HE machine and why I stopped using it. Once the soap is gelled you can stir it to loosen and pour it into smaller containers, like leftover laundry soap jugs, for easier storing and easier pouring.

I hope you all try to find a way to save some green, think money and Earth, by experimenting with ways to extend your laundry soap.