A clean house for just PENNIES!

This is a product I talk about alot guys and I'm sorry if anyone who has come over from my other blog My Take are fed up of hearing about them but here goes...Soapnuts.

For a more detailed use and a review of Soapnuts click here

These little gems are a fruit from India that grows on trees. Because they aren't at all palatable and can give you a tummy ache if ingested they used them for cleaning. FYI they contain Saponin, a natural soap. You can use them in their raw form as nuts in the washing machine, you can crush them and blend into a fine powder and use as an abrasive or you can make it into a liquid and use for EVERYTHING CLEANABLE. Here are some uses:

• Laundry detergent (liquid, ground shells, shells whole)
• Shampoo (liquid)
• Body wash (whisk liquid into a foam)
• Household cleaner (liquid)
• Window cleaner (liquid)
• Car cleaner (liquid)
• Dish soap (liquid)
• Shaving foam (whisk liquid to a foam)
• and there are so many more...!

Personally I didn't like using them as a Shampoo as I prefer Baking Soda and Distilled White Vinegar. More on that later. I do however use them exclusively right now for laundry. I love them. You need to either use 6 shells in a muslin bag and just throw into drum, or you can use a few cubes of the liquid. I will explain that in a second. If you are using the shells you can use them for about 6 loads, or until they are looking pale in colour. Once used up they are fully compostable too.

So how to make the liquid:

• 6 nuts
• 2 cups water
• Boil in a saucepan for around 40 minutes or until tea coloured. Mind the foam though guys as you get alot and it will boil over if you don't watch it.

and that's it! You can use the same nuts until they pale, I get around 10 cups of liquid per 6 nuts. Bare in mind though that the liquid doesn't have a long shelf life (around a week in the fridge) what I do is freeze it in little ice cubes ready to be used in the wash. Use 2 cubes per load of washing....You also don't need softener as it makes the clothes very soft. If you find they aren't doing too good at lifting stains then just add a TBS of white vinegar in the detergent tray.

The best news? You can get 1KG for about £9 online and they will last a very very long time. Thousands of washes if using just for laundry. Seriously. Give it a go.