Grate the soap and put it in a sauce pan.
Add 6 cups water and heat it until the soap melts.
Add the washing soda and the borax and stir until it is dissolved.
Remove from heat.
Pour 4 cups hot water into the bucket.
Add your soap mixture and stir.
Next, add 1 gallon plus 6 cups of water and stir.
Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel.
The finished soap will not be a solid gel.  It will be more of a watery gel that has been accurately described as an “egg noodle soup” look.
You will use 1/2 cup of the homemade laundry detergent per load. Remember that you will use the same amount for regular washers and HE washers.

Optional: You can add ½ teaspoon of an essential oil if you’d like for fragrance (lavender, lemon or Citrus Fresh are great options) or 1 cup of your favorite fabric softener.  Another option is to add 1 cup Oxi-Clean as a cleaning booster.