I am all about doing things that can save money! I also love to do things 'home-made'. I don't go as far as some do, but I do try to do as much as I can to make my own products and do it the cheap way! I also have always been a huge fan of dishwashers!! As I would help my Mom with dishes at home I always told her that when I got my own house I only wanted 'dishwasher safe' items. While, not every item in my kitchen now is dishwasher safe, the majority of my items are! Because I love to cook, and try to make everything I can from scratch, I generally mess up quite a few dishes when I go to cook dinner. Therefore, I run my dishwasher every couple days at least (and I'm sure that will increase as we have children!). Dishwasher tabs are quite expensive and that expense was just not fitting into my weekly Wal-Mart grocery and household needs budget. So, a friend of mine had tried making dishwasher detergent from a recipe found on Pinterest and they truly liked it! Well, I got on Pinterest and found quite a few recipes for dishwasher detergent. Some made huge batches, some made small batches, some required lemon Kool-Aid (which would stain your dishwasher after a few uses). After ready many many recipes, I finally found one I wanted to try! So, I mixed up a batch and of course, just happened to have a dishwasher full of dirty dishes to try it on! I have to say, I like it!! Below is a picture of my detergent and the recipe I used to make it! I also used vinegar as the rinsing agent (in that little spot in the dishwasher door!). Good Luck and enjoy!!
2 cups of Borax
2 cups of Baking Soda
4 tablespoons of citric acid--can be found near canning items
White Vinegar
Mix everything together by either dumping into a big bowl and stirring it really well or dumping it into a container with a lid and shaking it up. You can keep it in your lidded container or re-use your old detergent box, or a jar.
I use about 1 1/2 tablespoons per load. (3/4 tablespoon in the open cup and 3/4 in the closed locking cup) I have heard that if you have hard water, you can adjust the amount of Borax, or add salt to the detergent mixture
Did your glasses & plastic things come out without a film on them? I have found that since the government made them take the phosphates out of dishwasher detergent, my spatulas, plastic bowls, etc., have a white filmy residue on them. I tried everything I could think of, even contacted Proctor & Gamble. I finally switched to Seventh Generation pods, and it worked, but they are expensive. I've been thinking of trying one of these recipes, too.
ReplyDeleteThe only time I notice the film is when my vinegar is running low in the rinse container. Although, I have also heard it could be from hard water, and you may need to add more salt to your detergent mixture. If I have anything especially greasy or dirty I am also very sure to rinse of the majority of the nastiness before I put it in the washer! I hope that helps! Good luck and let me know if you try it!!
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