The idea is simple: Marseille soap washes, black soap degreases, and baking soda and washing soda raise the pH to tackle baked-on grease. Together they do the job of a multi-purpose cleaner without its synthetic fragrance.

Allow a quarter of an hour to make it, ten minutes of which is spent waiting for the soap to melt.

What you need

10 g grated Marseille soap
200 ml boiling water
250 ml cold water
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 tablespoon washing soda
250 ml liquid black soap

The method

1

Pour the 200 ml of boiling water over the grated Marseille soap in a heatproof bowl. Stir now and then and let it melt.

2

In a second container, dissolve the baking soda and washing soda in the 250 ml of cold water. Stir until the water is clear again.

3

Slowly pour the alkaline solution into the melted soap, then add the black soap.

4

Blend to a smooth, slightly creamy texture, leave to cool, then pour into a pump bottle or an old rinsed-out container.

Where to use it

On all washable surfaces: worktops, tiles, stainless steel, basins, showers, taps.

For floors, dilute a capful in a bucket of hot water.
On a surface, a small blob on a damp sponge is enough.

Where not to use it

The mixture is alkaline. Avoid porous materials, which soak it up and become marked:

untreated wood
marble
limestone

Two points that matter

Do not add vinegar to the mixture: the acid neutralises the bases and you lose the effect of both. If you want to finish windows or stainless steel without streaks, wipe them with a cloth dampened with vinegar after cleaning, as a separate step.

Kept closed at room temperature, the soap lasts about six months. For fragrance, five to ten drops of lemon or lavender essential oil are enough.

The doses for our products are on their packaging, and that is what counts. If swallowed or splashed, call the Poison Centre on +32 70 245 245 and keep the packaging to hand.

The ingredients