I have posted a lot of recipes for Homemade Homemade Cleaners, but I had a hard time understanding dishwasher detergent. After digging a little deeper, I finally figured out the secret! This homemade dishwasher detergent recipe uses natural ingredients to help you save money and get dirty dishes squeaky clean.
Powdered dishwasher detergent
I had experimented with many recipes for dishwasher powder, but all of them left a bit of residue, especially on glassware. I didn’t know if I had too much of something or if I was missing an ingredient that would make it more effective.
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Thanks for a little advice on Pinterest, I discovered that the missing ingredient was citric acid. Better yet, I already had some on hand make bath bombs so I tried. The result was clean, shiny dishes with no build-up of residue or grime.
The magic ingredient
As its name suggests, citric acid is an acid naturally found in lemon juice. Adding fresh lemon juice to your homemade dishwasher detergent, however, isn’t really practical because it shortens the shelf life. For those with hard water (especially if you don’t have a water softener), citric acid provides natural cleaning power to remove filmy dish residue.
I combine the citric acid with the rest of the ingredients and put everything in the laundry compartment. Some people find, however, that it works better separately as a rinse aid. In this case, put a tablespoon of powdered citric acid in the rinse aid compartment of your dishwasher.
Some people use vinegar in the rinse aid dispenser or in a bowl in the top rack of the dishwasher instead. But with time white vinegar can break the rubber seals and hoses in your dishwasher.
How Homemade Dishwasher Detergent Works
While the natural acidity of citric acid prevents a film from forming, the other ingredients in this homemade detergent help clean dishes.
Washing soda, the main ingredient here, increases the pH of the water and helps soften the water. It also removes stains and grease and acts as a cleaning agent. Most store-bought detergents include it in their soap recipe, so you’ll often see it on the label as sodium carbonate. You can even do it yourself baking soda.
I also added salt to the recipe, which also helps clean and soften the water. Most recipes call for kosher salt because it is pure sodium chloride without any other minerals. However, I haven’t had a problem using regular sea salt.
A lot of noise…
The final ingredient in this dishwasher mix is borax, which has been the center of an online debate. In my opinion, Borax is at the very bottom of the scale when it comes to the potential toxicity of chemicals in cleaning products. It’s a natural ingredient that I feel comfortable using in my cleaning recipes.
Otherwise, I also used enzymatic cleaners like Biokleen Borax-free dishwasher soap.
Where to buy it
Don’t want to make your own dishwasher detergent, but also don’t want to resort to hand washing a lot of dishes? There are now many healthy dishwasher detergent options! You can even find them at places like Walmart, Amazon, or your local grocery store. Here are a few that I have already used with good results:
DIY Dishwasher Detergent Recipe
This simple recipe is a great non-toxic alternative for cleaner dishes! Plus, preparation only takes a few minutes.
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Store dishwasher detergent in an airtight container in a dry place.
You don’t work for yourself?
Homemade powdered dish detergent can be tricky. Depending on how hard/soft your water is and what temperature you wash dishes at, it can be difficult to find a recipe that works.
A simple solution to try is to omit the citric acid from this recipe and use it as a rinse aid. Put 1 tablespoon of homemade dishwasher detergent in the prewash compartment and add 1 tablespoon of citric acid to the main wash compartment. This way, when you run the wash cycle, the dish detergent will wash the dishes first, then the citric acid will help make them shine.
New to natural cleaning?
If you’re new to DIY or natural cleaners, here are some other easy, inexpensive recipes:
What do you use in the dishwasher? Have you ever made your own dishwasher detergent? Share below!
