My green / sustainability journey began 3 years ago, and it started in the kitchen!
I was looking for non-toxic, effective, eco-friendly and of course, affordable ways to keep my home, kitchen and dishes clean. Using eco-friendly homemade cleaners help keep toxic chemicals out of our homes as well as our water system. Where possible, I always use upcycled containers to reduce my packaging waste and carbon footprint.
I started off by making eco enzymes or garbage enzymes, which during the course of my research, seemed to be the most effective and affordable, also helping me reuse kitchen waste. However, it takes a good 3 months for the fermentation process to take place and therefore needed planning to have a constant supply of eco enzymes in stock.
I have been using eco enzymes as my dishwashing and cleaning liquid for almost a year now and love it!
During the covid-19 lockdown period, my friend gave me some soap nuts and mentioned that besides using them as detergent, they can also replace dishwashing liquid. After some quick research, I decided to follow the recipe for the dishwashing liquid and put it to the test.
Soap Nuts are a natural washing detergent that is plant based. The soap nut shells contain Saponins, which on contact with water, releases mild suds, and can be used as an environment friendly alternative to detergent in washing machines as well as for other cleaning purposes!
Making the soap nut liquid:
10 Soap Nut shells1 liter of water
Simmer for 20 - 30 minutes
Strain the liquid, and it is ready to be used!
The leftover soap nut shells can go into the compost pile.
This basic soap nut liquid can become the basis for many cleaning tasks, This liquid can be used as a shampoo, an all-purpose cleaner, car wash liquid, pet shampoo, and more! I tend to use it purely as a dishwashing liquid.
I also found it to be just as effective as my eco enzyme dish liquid!
From a cost perspective, however, it is cheaper to make eco enzymes. It is fermented, it can be stored, and it lasts a long time.
Meanwhile, soap nuts are not too cheap, and the soap nut liquid has to be made in small batches as its shelf life is short.
For now, I will continue to use homemade eco enzymes as my dishwashing and cleaning liquid. That said, I will be experimenting using soap nuts as a washing detergent!