one gentle, versatile base that behaves the same across laundry → floors → surfaces → glass, with kid-safe chemistry and no sketchy tradeoffs. Totally doable 👍

1 liter (1000 g) batch

Ingredient%Grams

Distilled water 78.0% 780 g
Decyl glucoside 7.0% 70 g
Coco glucoside 4.5% 45 g
Sodium citrate 1.0% 10 g
Sodium bicarbonate 0.5% 5 g
Sodium phytate 0.15% 1.5 g
Glycerin (optional) 0.3% 3 g
Sodium benzoate 0.4% 4 g
Potassium sorbate 0.3% 3 g
TOTAL92.15%921.5 g

Top up with distilled water to 1000 g.

Things i need to buy:

Coco glucoside: 1 lb ≈ 453 g Surfactant
→ Makes ~10 liters of concentrate at 45 g each

Sodium benzoate: 100 g bag Preservatives
→ Enough for ~25 batches (4 g ea)
Potassium sorbate: 100 g bag (preservative)
→ Enough for ~33 batches (3 g ea)
Sodium phytate: 100 g (Chelator)
→ Enough for ~66 batches (1.5 g ea)

Sodium bicarbonate: any pantry box is more than enough (ph booster)
→ 5 g per batch is tiny

Buy larger sizes only if you plan to make this regularly — the powders are stable for years if kept dry.

Where to buy?

✨ Soap & cosmetic ingredient suppliers (best quality for formulas)

Bulk raw materials suppliers (e.g., Bulk Apothecary, New Directions Aromatics)
Soapmaking suppliers (e.g., Bramble Berry, Essential Depot)
- Coco glucoside (plant-derived surfactant)
- Sodium phytate (chelating agent)
- Sodium benzoate
- Potassium sorbate
🧂 Food-grade / pantry sources
- Sodium bicarbonate → baking soda
- Sodium benzoate & potassium sorbate → often sold as food preservatives (check food-grade label)

Step-by-step mixing (first-time friendly)

Step 1: Heat water

Heat ~700 g distilled water to ~40°C (104°F)
- Do not exceed ~50°C (122°F).
Keep ~80 g aside for later top-up

Step 2: Dissolve powders (order matters)

Add one at a time, stirring gently:

Sodium citrate
Sodium phytate
Sodium bicarbonate
Sodium benzoate
Potassium sorbate

Make sure each is fully dissolved before the next.

Step 3: Add glycerin (if using)

Stir gently.

Step 4: Add surfactants (slowly!)

Add decyl glucoside first
Then coco glucoside
Stir slowly, scraping sides
Avoid whipping air in

Foam now = waiting later.

Step 5: pH check & adjustment

Target pH 7.8–8.3
Too high → add 10% citric acid solution dropwise
Too low → tiny pinch sodium bicarb

Stir, wait 1–2 minutes, recheck.

Step 6: Top up water

Add remaining distilled water to reach 1000 g
Stir gently
Recheck pH once more

Step 7: Rest

Let sit 12–24 hours
Foam collapses
Viscosity settles

Then bottle.

6. If you decide to add essential oils anyway (optional)

Please don’t skip solubilization

If you do EO in the base:

Pre-mix EO with some of the decyl glucoside
THEN add to batch

Max safe amount:

0.05–0.1% total EO
Prefer sweet orange over lemon

Never add EO directly to water.

Tools you’ll want (nothing fancy)

Essential

Digital scale (0.1 g accuracy)
Heat-safe mixing container (glass or stainless)
Silicone spatula or spoon
pH meter or good pH strips (7–10 range)
Thermometer (optional but helpful)

Safety gear

Gloves: yes (nitrile or dish gloves)
Mask: optional but smart when handling powders
Eye protection: not required, but avoid splashing

No respirator needed. Nothing volatile here.

What changed was:

Added sodium benzoate + potassium sorbate (real preservation)
Lowered or removed chamomile (nice story, not functional)
Kept everything else the same, just gentler and more stable

1. Are any of these ingredients a concern for kids? 👶

Short answer: No — at these levels and dilutions.
Longer answer, ingredient by ingredient:

Decyl glucoside & coco glucoside

Non-ionic, sugar-based surfactants
Used in baby shampoo
Low oral and dermal toxicity
Rinse clean, no bioaccumulation

✅ Green light

Sodium citrate

Food additive
Used in baby formula
Improves cleaning in hard water

✅ Completely benign

Sodium bicarbonate

Baking soda
Mild alkalinity only

⚠️ Only issue: if pH creeps above ~9.5 it can dull wood finishes
→ We’ll keep this lower than before

Sodium phytate

Plant-derived chelator
Replaces EDTA
Extremely low toxicity

✅ Excellent choice

Chamomile extract

Skin-soothing
Trace botanical allergens possible, but at 0.2–0.3%, once diluted, this is negligible

Optional, not required for function.

2. The least-toxic preservative system that actually works

This matters most for kids + diluted use + spray bottles.

🥇 Best option for your use case

Sodium benzoate + potassium sorbate
(used in organic foods, juices, and baby products)

Why this system:

Non-halogenated
No formaldehyde donors
No phenols
Works at very low levels
Breaks down harmlessly

Use at:
👉 0.7% total in the concentrate

This keeps the base:

Shelf stable 9–12 months
Safe even when diluted and sitting in spray bottles

🚫 What I would not recommend for your situation

Essential oils as “preservatives” (not reliable, allergenic)
Vinegar-only preservation (fails in surfactant systems)
No-preservative + “just use it fast” (spray bottles grow things)

3. Refined “One-Base” Formula (Optimized + Safer)

This version:

Is gentler on wood
Cleans laundry better
Preserves reliably
Maintains similar dilution behavior to what you’re used to

✅ Final Kid-Safe Concentrate Formula (1 liter)

Ingredient%GramsDistilled water78.2%782 gDecyl glucoside7.0%70 gCoco glucoside4.5%45 gSodium citrate1.0%10 gSodium bicarbonate0.5%5 gSodium phytate0.15%1.5 gChamomile extract (optional)0.2%2 gSodium benzoate0.4%4 gPotassium sorbate0.3%3 gTOTAL92.25%922.5 g

Top up with distilled water to 1000 g after pH adjustment.

🎯 Target pH

7.8 – 8.3

This is the sweet spot where:

Preservatives work
Wood is safe
Kids’ skin is safe
Grease still lifts

Adjust with:

Citric acid solution (10%) if high
Tiny pinch sodium bicarb if low

4. Why this works across all your uses

Laundry

Surfactants do the work
Citrate + phytate neutralize hard water
Low alkalinity protects fabrics
No residue build-up

Floors & sealed wood

pH under 8.5 = finish-safe
No solvents or oils to smear

Counters, bathroom, general spray

No ammonia
No streaking agents needed
No fragrance = no film

Mirrors & windows

At high dilution, surfactants drop below streak threshold
Chelators prevent spotting

5. Dilution ratios (match your current habits)

You can keep using basically the same rates:

UseDilutionLaundry1–2 tbsp per loadFloors1 tbsp per gallonGeneral surfaces1 tsp per 16 ozWood tables½ tsp per 16 ozMirrors & windows¼–½ tsp per 16 oz

If streaking ever appears on glass → dilute slightly more.

6. Anything I’d change if this were my house?

Two optional tweaks:

Option A: Remove chamomile

No cleaning function
Slight allergen potential
Formula becomes even simpler

Option B: Add 0.2% glycerin

Improves hand feel
Reduces drying
Safe, kid-friendly

(Not required, purely comfort.)

✔️ Can I check and adjust pH right away?

Yes — and you should.

Check after everything except final top-up water is in
Adjust, then add water to final weight
Recheck once more at the end

pH will stabilize within minutes (not hours).

✔️ Can I remove chamomile entirely?

Absolutely.
It does nothing functionally in this system.

Replace it with:

distilled water or
glycerin (recommended if you like softer hands)

✔️ Should I add lemon or orange essential oils?

Short answer: You can, but they won’t help cleaning — only scent.

With kids + multiple surface uses, my honest recommendation:

Skip EOs in the base
If you want scent, add them only to a spray bottle later

Why:

Citrus EOs can dull finishes over time
Phototoxicity (lemon especially)
Add nothing to cleaning power at these dilutions

If you do use them:

Max 0.1% in the concentrate
Always solubilize (see note below)

Temperature & mixing — this is where people mess up

🌡️ Temperature target

35–45°C (95–113°F)