Have You Ever Heard of Soap Nuts?

When I got my copy of the green knitting by Ann Bode, I fell in love with the "soap dish" style, a soft cotton bag used when adding nuts to your laundry. Soap nuts? I had not heard of them! I did a little investigation because I was very intrigued.

In fact soap nuts are dried fruits of the tree "Soapberry" (sapindus mukorrosi). They are dried berries and not nuts. Years and years ago, humans found that when soap soaps, they release saponins, a natural cleanser. They clean and soften your clothes without chemicals.

The benefits of using many soap nuts seem to be:

Their use instead of commercial detergents reduces the dumping of toxic chemicals in our ecosystem.
They are a natural product and can be used on those who are allergic to skin or detergent.
Using them lowers your grocery bill by minimizing your use of fabric softener.
They are biodegradable and can be reused up to 5 times.
Can be used as a stain remover and general household cleaner.
Their purchase supports fair trade workers in India and Indonesia where trees grow.
I had their experience. I am always looking for "green" products, especially for your treatment for dog clothes I knit! Those that I bought smell like vinegar. Apparently, this is a natural smell, but it has not moved to washing. They came with their own little bag to use with washing machine. I used it with white, dark and colored clothes. To my surprise, I went out of clothes washed with them very clean and soft. I must admit that I am adding bright clothes to the eggs, but this may not be necessary. I hang most of my clothes on the drying shelves in the basement instead of using my clothes dryer, and I can not see any difference when using them without adding a liquid disinfectant. I reused the same set of nuts 3 times and got excellent results.

Here are some other tips I've discovered about soap nuts:

To test whether the nuts are still reusable, place them in a jar of water with a lid and rattle them. If they are still foamy, they are still good for other loads. Add water to the load.
To clean the house, add some water in the spray bottle.
You can boil them on the burner with water to make a Liquid Soap Soap. Use the liquid to clean the windows and even jewelry your pets!

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