If you’re new to hanging with us here at Six Dollar Family, you might not know that I love to find new ways to use things. Often, I’ll go out of my way to find a way to reuse something that is found around my house. One of my favorite things to find new uses for is Fels Naptha soap. If you’ve never used it, you might just be surprised at how many ways to use Fels Naptha there are. The great thing is that each and every one of the Fels Naptha uses I know about will save you money. Yay for saving money!
One of the reasons that I love Fels-Naptha so much is because it is incredibly cheap here in the US. I can pick it up at Walmart for less than $1.00 per bar. If you can’t find it at Walmart, Amazon sells it as well. When you use Fels Naptha, a little usually goes a long way which means that is a dollar well spent. At that price, I can afford to buy a few bars to experiment with and I’m fairly certain you can as well. It may only be a bar of soap, but there are so many uses for Fels Naptha that it just makes sense to me to stock a few bars in your home. You’ll be glad you did once you get into the habit of using it.
Ways to Use Fels-Naptha Soap
Back in 2015, my family started a journey to find as many things to make as possible so we could stop buying them. What began as a list of 30 things to make homemade, is now a huge list. Fels Naptha is the main ingredient for a lot of those things. I am 100% positive that once you see how many ways to use Fels Naptha there truly are, your home will be the same as mine!
Is Fels Naptha Soap Safe?
Fels-Naptha was extremely popular during WW2 but over the years it dropped in popularity as convenience products made their ways to the shelves. Recently though it has seen a resurgence since so many people are starting to recognize the value of saving money with depression era money saving tips or money saving tricks from World War 2.
Fels Naptha is safe, however, it is a known eye and skin irritant with prolonged exposure. Also, while Fels-Naptha isn’t labeled as a nasal irritant, I find that grating it does irritate my nose quite a bit. Just keep that in mind when you’re looking for ways to use Fels-Naptha in your home. With all of that said, you will be fine as long as you aren’t sitting in a bucket of soapy water for hours. You can view the Fels Naptha MSDS sheet right HERE if you would like.
If you find that trying these uses for Fels-Naptha irritates you a bit more than you care for, you can give Zote soap a try. Simple at Home has an a really nice list of uses for Zote soap HERE.
Uses for Fels Naptha Soap
Treat poison ivy with Fels-Naptha
Our family spends a lot of times outdoors which makes this one of my favorite ways to use Fels Naptha! If you think you have come in contact with poison ivy, poison oak or poison sumac, quickly scrub the area with Fels Naptha soap. Rinse very well with hot water. The Fels-Naptha will help to remove the oils from the poison ivy from your skin keeping you from itching and blistering later. Use it on hands, ankles, and arms that may have touched the ivy. Be sure to avoid your face and any other sensitive areas of your body.
Use Fels-Naptha to clean your grout
Cleaning grout can be a pain in the rear, but Fels Naptha can make it easier. Before you get to scrubbing, rub your grout with the corner of a bar of Fels Naptha. The soap will help remove the dirt that is trapped in the lines of your grout. Follow the soap with your favorite homemade grout cleaner and rinse well.
Make a quick and easy homemade dish soap
Do you hand wash your dishes? Why not make use this super budget friendly use for Fels Naptha soap and make homemade dish soap? For hand washing dish soap, grate 1/4 cup Fels-Naptha and combine with 1 cup of water. Melt the soap into the water on the stove, let cool then use like you would any other dish washing liquid. It will work better than any dish liquid you can buy at the store for hand washing, but it isn’t great for dishwashers. For homemade dishwasher soap, check out my homemade dishwasher soap recipe or my homemade dishwasher detergent tablets instead.
Use Fels-Naptha to help unstick drawers
In my kitchen, I have a drawer that likes to get stuck. I’m sure we all have at least one in our homes and that’s why I love this tip the best out of all of these ways to use Fels-Naptha. It might not seem like it but it absolutely will help you save money around your home since you won’t have to buy something to get that stubborn drawer unstuck. For an easy fix, rub a bar of Fels-Naptha on both of the drawer tracks. It will lubricate the track and cause your drawer to open and close freely.
Use Fels-Naptha to brighten your whites
Washing your whites in bleach too often can make them take on a yellow or dingy color. To keep that from happening, skip the bleach and use Fels-Naptha to help boost their color! Simply dissolve one cup of grated Fels-Naptha into a sink full of warm water. Soak your white clothing for an hour then wash as you normally would. When the whites come out, you will notice they are whiter, less dingy, and will be sparkling clean!
Pre-treat stains with Fels-Naptha
Keeping your white clothing looking great isn’t the only laundry themed tip on this list of ways to use Fels-Naptha soap. You can also use it to pre-treat stains so there is never a need to buy those expensive stain remover sticks or sprays! To pre-treat, rub the stain with a bar of Fels-Naptha and wash as you usually would. This works great on grass stains, makeup stains, lipstick, oil, chocolate, and other foods quite nicely.
Use Fels-Naptha to clean your sneakers
Dirty and stinky sneakers? Rub a bar of Fels Naptha soap over them before you clean them. It will pre-treat any stains like grass, grease or mud and also help deodorize them so that they smell better. This can save you quite a bit of money over those expensive odor eating insoles.
Use Fels-Naptha to keep deer out of your garden
Pest deterrents can be expensive and often are full of things you don’t want near your vegetable garden. If deer have started to consider your garden their personal buffet, Fels-Naptha can help. Grate a bar and spread all around your garden and near your plants being careful not to get any near the roots. They won’t like the scent (or the taste if they lick it) and will choose to go elsewhere. If you need an extra strong boost, you can also add things like scallions and chili powder with the Fels-Naptha for that extra strength.
Make Homemade cleaning products with Fels-Naptha
At it’s base, Fels Naptha soap is a laundry bar which makes it perfect for cleaning and perfect for making DIY cleaning products to help you save money around your home. You can use it for everything from making homemade powdered laundry detergent, homemade laundry detergent tablets and more. Usually if a DIY cleaning recipe calls for a bar of soap, Fels-Naptha can be used.
Clean gunky sinks and toilets with Fels-Naptha
We all know that commercial cleaners are expensive so if you’re looking to save money around your home, using Fels-Naptha in as many places as possible is a great way to do it, especially in the bathroom.
To clean your sinks, rub them all over with a bar of Fels-Naptha then using a soft cleaning brush, scrub them. Rinse well and your sink will be as clean as a whistle. To clean your toilet, melt 1/4 bar of Fels-Naptha into 5-6 cups of water. Allow the soap/water mixture to cool quite a bit then add 15 drops of lemon essential oil and 10 drops of tea tree oil. Pour into your toilet bowl then use your toilet brush to clean normally. Flush and you’re good to go!
Use Fels-Naptha to clean soap scum from your shower
If your shower has glass shower doors, you’re probably pretty familiar with soap scum. Instead of using expensive commercial shower cleaners, rub a clean, dampened sponge with Fels-Naptha then scrub your damp shower and doors down with it. Be sure to hit every area of your shower and doors. It will take some elbow grease the very first time that you do it, but once it is done, it will be significantly easier to keep up with. If you want to make the process easier, pre-clean your shower with our homemade bathroom cleaner then use the Fels-Naptha after you have rinsed well.
Clean paint brushes with Fels-Naptha
If you like to paint. you might be spending a ton of money on paint brush cleaner. There’s no reason to. Just rub your brushes over a bar of Fels-Naptha then rinse well. The bristles will stay soft and they’ll be as clean as new.
Shine aluminum with a bar of Fels-Naptha
Do you have aluminum cookware? If so, Fels-Naptha works great for shining it! Just rub your gunky aluminum with the edge of the bar and polish! Rinse well and you’re done!
Remove baby formula stains with Fels-Naptha
Baby formula is one of the worst things to have stain your clothes or your baby’s clothing…especially if you’re looking to resell them. To remove baby formula stains from clothing, rub the stain with a wet bar of Fels-Naptha then soak it in 1 gallon of water with 1/2 cup Borax powder for 30 minutes. Wash like normal and the stains should be completely gone! This is especially helpful if you’re looking to sell your old baby clothes online.
Treat cold sores with Fels-Naptha
Cold sores can be literal pain. To help dry them out and treat cold sores with Fels-Naptha, simply wash the area with the sore on it with Fels Naptha soap and rinse well. Pat the area dry and after a few days, it should be gone. One caution on this is to be very careful if you have sensitive skin since Fels Naptha is a known skin irritant.
Use Fels-Naptha to make a homemade insecticide
If your garden plants are being eaten alive (literally) by bugs, this may end up being your favorite of all of these ways to use Fels-Naptha. You can use it to make an insecticide that will kill the bugs on your plants without harming the plant itself. Since commercial insecticides are so expensive, this is another great ways to save money around your home.
To kill bugs using Fels Naptha, grate a small chunk of Fels-Naptha then dissolve 3 tablespoons of the grated soap into 1 gallon of hot water. Allow the mixture to fully cool, add to a spray bottle and spray on your plants.
Use Fels-Naptha to repel bugs
Not only will Fels-Naptha kill bugs, but it can also repel them. To keep bugs away from your plants and home in general, cut a bar of Fels-Naptha into 1 inch chunks and place around the areas that you need to keep bugs out of.
For plants, you’ll want to place the chunk at the base of the plant, but be careful not to get it into the root area. This will work for garden bugs as well as moths and other creepy crawlers that can get into your home.
Deodorize your can with Fels-Naptha
Why spend extra money for scented trash bags when you can save money around your home and use a bar of Fels-Naptha instead? To clean and deodorize your trash cans, dissolve 4 tablespoons grated Fels-Naptha into 1 gallon of hot water.
Allow to cool and add 15 drops of tea tree oil and 15 drops of lemon essential oil. Spray the inside and outside of your trash can with the cleaning solution and allow to dry fully. Your trash can will now be clean, disinfected and deodorized.
Bonus? Since Fels-Naptha works to repel bugs, it will also be pest free!
Remove ink stains with Fels-Naptha
I can’t be the only one who has washed an ink pen, right? Really? Noooo, I really can’t be!
In any case, if you too have washed a BIC; Fels-Naptha can rescue your laundry. Just add a chunk to your washer and wash like normal. For stubborn ink stains, follow the instructions above for baby formula stains. Your clothes should look like new!
Use Fels-Naptha to repel mice
Mickey causing too many issues in your home, but using mouse traps isn’t your cup of tea? Fels-Naptha to the rescue! Cut 1 inch chunks off of your bar and place them in areas where mice and other critters give you issues at. They won’t like the smell and will stay away. If you want to double up on the protection, add a few cotton balls covered in peppermint essential oil in different places. They won’t like that smell either.
Treat Chigger and mosquito bites with Fels-Naptha
Chiggers and mosquitoes are pretty common pests during the warmer months of the year, but luckily Fels-Naptha can help relieve the itching from them!
To treat chigger and mosquito bites with Fels-Naptha, simply wash the area well with the soap. Rinse well and pat dry. The soap will help dry the bites up leading to relief for you.
You also might want to consider using a homemade bug spray or homemade citronella candles next time so you can prevent bites in the first place. If you’re like me, mosquitoes like to make you their dinner buffet.
Fels-Naptha can prevent poison ivy
Not only can you dry up poison ivy, poison oak or poison sumac with Fels-Naptha, but you can also prevent it. Poison Ivy can stay on your clothing for up to a year after you’ve brushed against it even with commercial laundry detergents.
Washing exposed clothing with Fels-Naptha though can help remove any oils that are on the clothing and actually keep you from many itchy nights. Make sure to wash them separately from the rest of your laundry. Since we camp a lot, I keep a WonderWash on hand just for this. I don’t want to take the chance that the oils will transfer to my washer.
Clean grease and other things off of your hands with Fels-Naptha
Know someone who deals with greasy hands on a regular basis? Lava hand soap works well but is twice the price of a bar of Fels-Naptha. Washing your hands with it can easily remove not only grease, but onion scents and other things that can stain or scent your hands.
Clean outdoor furniture with Fels-Naptha
Outdoor furniture can get pretty funky over the course of just a few weeks and they are super expensive to replace. Instead of replacing them, clean then with Fels-Naptha.
Wet your furniture down and rub your outdoor furniture with either the bar itself of with a cleaning brush that has been rubbed across a bar then rinse thoroughly. We like to use this when we clean our outdoor furniture on a budget. It helps them stay looking great but keeps my budget in tact!
Treat mildew with Fels-Naptha
Mildew is another thing that can befall not only your outdoor furniture but other areas in your home as well. Again, Fels-Naptha can be used to help clean it.
Wet the area down and spray with a bleach solution that is made up of 2 parts bleach and 1 part water. Let the bleach solution site for 10-15 minutes. Rub the area down with your bar of Fels-Naptha and scrub with a soft scrub brush. Rinse well and the mildew should be gone!
Lubricate squeaky door hinges
The squeaky wheel gets the grease, right? Well, the squeaky door gets the soap. If you have a squeaky door hinge or knob, rub a dry bar of Fels-Naptha on the areas that squeak. Wipe off any excess and the squeaky wheels should fall silent. This is one of the best ways to use WD-40, but if you don’t have any on hand, Fels-Naptha will work well.
Use Fels-Naptha to clean your carpets
One of my favorite ways to use Fels-Naptha is also one that will help you save money around your home. Commercial carpet shampoos are super expensive but Fels-Naptha is super budget friendly.
Just mix 1/2 cup grated Fels-Naptha with 2 gallons of water and heat to boiling. Allow it to cool completely and use it with a carpet shampooer to shampoo your carpets! As with any other carpet shampoo, be sure you check in a hidden are for color fastness.
Easily remove stickers and labels with Fels-Naptha
The list of things thrifty people reuse is pretty big, but a staple item that gets reused is jars and bottles. Those jars and bottles usually have pretty strong labels and stickers on them though and they can be a pain in the rear to remove sometimes. You could buy Goo Gone, but Fels-Naptha can make it even easier.
Rub the seam of the label (where the glue is) or the entire sticker with a dry bar then let sit for a few minutes. Next, soak the jar in a bit of water with a bit of soap melted into it. Once you’ve soaked it for a bit, the label or sticker should peel right off.
Prevent lice with Fels-Naptha
Now before I get into this, I want to remind you again that Fels-Naptha is a known skin and eye irritant. Please be careful if you choose to use this tip and if it harms your hair or eyes, neither Six Dollar Media, Inc. or I personally will be held responsible.
Some folks claim that Fels-Naptha can be used to prevent lice. To use it for this purpose, wash your hair with Fels-Naptha once a week. A much easier method is to add tea tree oil to your shampoo. Add 10-15 drops to each bottle of shampoo and conditioner, shake and shampoo/condition like normal.
Treat minor acne with Fels-Naptha
Have a nasty pimple or zit? Wash the area with the pimple with Fels-Naptha. It will help dry out the oils in the pimple and help it to heal quicker. Rinse well with warm water and be sure to avoid your eyes.
If you would rather avoid using Fels Naptha on your face, consider giving our DIY Acne Mask with Essential Oils a try. It works so well!
The mice suggestion? The mice that came into my house actually chewed my bar of soap so I guess the mice I have are weird.
That happened to me too. I was looking it up to see if it is harmful to them (hopefully!).
I really loved this post.. I had bought some Fels-Naptha soap to make homemade laundry soap, but decided to use another recipe and so was wondering what to do with this soap…looks like there’s plenty of great options. Thank you for sharing these ideas.
I love your site, thank you for sharing all these tips.
I also had bought some Fels-Naptha for making homemade detergent but ended up using Zote instead (it smells better). Now I know some uses for those other 3 bars of Fels I have leftover. I think I am going to try chunking it to put around our patio and fire area to keep bugs away, the grout needs cleaned as well, so I will try that one too. Thank you for giving me uses for those leftover bars.
I have a bit of Fels-Naptha in some water in a container tall enough for a toothbrush to stand in it in the laundry cupboard to use as a pre-treat and stain remover.. it works well for me.
We grew up using it for every thing on the farm.. Mother was a huge fan of Fels. I am only in my 50’s but it has been used for nearly every and any thing.
Does the water get funky after some time? Do you keep a lid on the container?
Back in the 50’s, my mother used to wash my hair with Fels-Naptha. She said it brought out the blond highlights. I suppose it kept the bugs and mice out of my hair. Never noticed highlights.
I do have a bar sitting on my laundry tub. The one thing I will say is we had mice last year and they had eaten the corners of my soap. Used mouse traps and caught it with a chunk of Fels-Naptha soap. Just so happens we were on a houseboat saw a mouse the boat had a mouse trap I set it using this time Ivory soap and caught 3.
My Dad taught me, when as younger, that shaving the bar of Fels and adding enough water to make a paste would be a temporary fix for a leak in my gas line! Water will wash it off, but gas won’t!
It’s also great for scrubbing kitchen floors. They feel so clean and smell great too
This is the best cleaner for baseball season. Simply dampen the grass stain and/or the dirt stains with water, rub for ten seconds or so with the moist bars of F-N, and then throw in the wash with a regular load. This is the best way, and most economical way I have ever found to remove baseball stains. My mother used it in the 70’s and it still works today.
At my Walmart, this soap is over $3 a bar. If I could get it at under a $1 a bar, that would be great!
I’m not sure where you’re located Brenda, but I have never seen it more than $1.98 a bar and even then that was in a very expensive area. I live near Austin which is a fairly expensive area and I can get it for $0.98 per bar most of the time.
Brenda, do you have an ACE Hardware nearby? or another hardware store? The ACE near me has it for around $2.
I saw it today and the Baraboo Wi Walmart for $1
Menard’s has it for 99 cents too!
Thanks for the tip Michaelina!
My dad had a hole in the gas tank of his car and rubbed fels -naptha over it and it stopped the leak until he was able to get to a shop to have the tanked fixed. This was back in the 70s don’t know if anything in gas or the soap has changed since then but I was amazed at how good this worked.
As a child back in the 50’s, if I said a “dirty or naughty”word my mother would march me down to the basement laundry room and wash my mouth out with fels naptha bar soap. Very effective.
Oh NO ! I had forgotten about that!
But its all true, what carrie said?
Can you usE Fels Naptha for washing a kitten with fleas?
Pat, for that I would recommend the original blue Dawn.
Fels Naptha is GREAT keeping deer out of flower gardens. The couple who tend to our flower beds at The River Golf Course here in IInt’l Falls, MN us Fels Naphth shavings in the flower beds to keep the deer out. I swear it works, none of the beds have been bothered by the roaming deer at the course.
Glad to hear it works that well Martha!
I had a bar of feels naptha sitting in my laundry cupboard and used it as a last resort to get lipstick out of a whole load of clothes that I dried with a bright pink lipstick (left it in the pocket of my sweatshirt). I was so upset and thought I would have to throw away about ten pieces of nice clothing. I scrubed every one of those pieces with fels naptha, threw it back in the washer with a Tide Pod and Oxyclean powder, and there was not one trace of lipstick when I pulled it out of the washer. I am still amazed! I cannot praise fels naptha enough! Where have you been all my life, FN?!?!
I seem to be the only one who ruined my 100% cotton shirt by rubbing naptha soap on the grease and dirt stains. It bleached the turquoise color out where I applied the soap on the stains. Now the shirt has small white spots. I did not leave the naptha on my shirt that long (10 minutes?)…..and I put the shirt in water with the soapy naptha water to let it soak a while afterwards. What went wrong? I had read the label to be sure it was OK to use on colors. I even went on the internet and saw no warnings about using it on colored clothing.
Lori, that sounds shirt specific. I’ve used it on colors many times with no issues.
I LOVE, LOVE, Fels Naptha. I have been using it since 1962 and my Mother swore by it, too. I use it
on all collars, cuffs and grease spots. Never fails me. I save all little pieces in a mayo jar. Then add
water and make my own liquid Fels Naptha. I hope they never discontinue it. Like they do every other
good thing.
Another icky thing. When my mom was a youngster in the early 1900’s they use to Fels to wash their
hair when they contracted lice. I said it was icky.
i Live in Florida and we have a Roes they are $1.00 Bar
Hello. My favorite top got semi gloss paint on it. My friend recommended Fels-Naptha.
The brand is Slinky Brand sold by HSN. Material is light weight Jersey stretch knit, color charcoal gray.
Do you think Fels-Naptha will work without messing up the color ?
Thank You
If it is a water based paint yes, it should be okay. If it is an oil based paint, I don’t know of anything that will take it out. Be sure to test a small inconspicuous area for colorfastness though.
I am 76 yrs old I learned about FELS NAPTHA from my mother. I have always kept a bar in the house. Recently my granddaughter (mid 30’s) asked me if I could try and get a stain out of one of her daughters outfits (she had tried her Dreft stain remover) to no avail. When I got stains out on first try she was amazed, and asked if I thought it would work on the grey rug by her back door. Said she didn’t know what made the stain but she had tried to wash it after using a pretreat stain remover and it was still there. I left her my FELS NAPTHA. She called me 2 days later so excited that she pretreated as I had told her then threw it in the washer and not only was the stain gone but she rug looked like new and smelled soo good.
I’m so glad you and she were able to get the stains out!
Very interesting information. I bought this soap. However, I am afraid to use it as it seems to be dangerous in many ways. Is it just a money saver?
Hi MJ, Yes Fels Naptha is safe. It can irritate skin with prolonged exposure, but the ways we’ve listed here do not put it on your skin long enough to really be a concern for the kind of prolonged exposure needed.
When the soap was first made, it contained “Naptha” which is where the name came from. The Naptha ingredient is the one that was unsafe, but modern Fels Naptha bars NO LONGER contain the ingredient. The modern bars do contain titanium dioxide, however, again, you would need to inhale far more of it than we are suggesting use of in order for it to be a true concern. Quite a few products contain titanium dioxide.
Ultimately, it is up to you to decide whether you feel Fels Naptha is right for you and yours. Thanks for the question!
I used a bar to clean the mold off our Trex deck in Florida. Had previously used it to get mold off outdoor furniture.
Thanks for the Fels Naptha 30 uses I honestly have lived by this bar soap for the past 3yrs. When I discovered it’s miracle stain removing elements but never knew of other uses till this post infact my boyfriend has a slight touch of poison oak and as we speak just went to try it because I literally just read this article 15 minutes ago. Again like you love to save and love to find shortcuts new use of something. Thanks again this has Truely made my day.
Fel Naptha will also prevent swimmer itch. Just wash with it after you come out of the lake and you won’t get the itch. If you’ve already gotten the itch then wash with it and the itchy bumps will go away in a little while.
Thanks for the tip Angie! I love it when someone suggests another use for it. 🙂
Enjoyed your blog or post whatever. Very informative.
LOL glad you enjoyed it. (Post or article is the correct term ;))
Kroger carries Fels Naptha here in TX for 98 cents. I am 70 yrs old and beside laundry stains my mother used it for us when we got poison ivy by rubbing s wet bar directly onto a mosquito bite or a rash. It relieves the itch almost immediately and the rash is gone the next day. I buy 2 bars at a time and have been using it all my life. I am going to see if it works on grout too, something that usually takes a lot of harsh chemicals. I use it on my hubby’s collar stains as well.
Thanks for the tip about Kroger! I’ve always just grabbed it at Walmart. 🙂
How is Fels Naptha for putting under your bed sheet to prevent leg cramps? I know that’s an old home remedy, but it works for me with other kinds of soap, but I thought since Fels is so strong, it might be even better.
I have actually never heard of that one Marilyn! Please let us know how well it works!
My Mom had me at-the wash tub and wash board every Sunday evening with Fels-Naptha soap doing stain control, I was 10. I use it still, daughter works with children I have never met, or their Moms and she brings me stained clothing to treat. Yes my Mom also washed my hair occasionally with Fels-Naptha, especially school season and the threat of lice. I had very long blonde hair worn in braids also to confine due to head lice. I taught all my children how to use it and they still do, best stain remover ever!!!Janice