The joy of owning a dishwasher should be opening the little door to freshly washed sparkling dishes… except when that doesn’t happen. When commercial dishwasher detergent leaves a weird film [or as I like to call it a “chemical slew”] on the dishes… then you question if the dishes are actually “clean”.

What is in commercial dishwasher detergent?

• sulfuric acid (skin burns, eye damage, carcinogen, worsen asthma)
• sodium hypochlorite (skin burns, eye damage, allergen, carcinogen)
• pthalates  (also labeled DBP, DEHP, or DEP)
• fragrance (because it’s horrific and in so many commercial products)

Just a few of many toxic ingredients. These ingredients are carcinogens and toxic to aquatic life. They can cause severe skin and eye irritations, burns, asthma and respiratory conditions, and don’t belong on your dishes. Then comes the problem of ingredients which are not properly disclosed… [this is a rant for another day].

[Sidenote: Why is store bought dishwasher detergent so expensive? OMG. It’s actually ridiculous.]

How to Make and Use Natural Dishwasher Detergent

This is not a typical dishwasher detergent recipe where everything is mixed together in a jar or into tablets. When everything is mixed together (click here for a video about acids and bases – apparently middle school science FTW), the cleaning properties are neutralized, resulting in an ineffective cleaner. These ingredients are amazing cleaners when they are used one after the other (this is why they are put into different sections, so they are released at different times during the cleaning cycle).

Start by adding 1-2 tablespoons of washing soda into the “Pre-Wash” section of the dishwasher (or if your dishwasher doesn’t have one, add it to the bottom of the dishwasher). Washing soda has amazing grease-cutting and dirt removing cleaning properties. This is what makes it the main powerhouse cleaner used in this recipe.

Next add 1-2 tablespoons of citric acid into the “Main Wash” section of the dishwasher. Citric acid is derived from citrus fruits (lemons, limes, orange, grapefruits). It will help the recipe work for those with hard water because it is an acid that breaks up alkalinity of hard water.

Finally pour vinegar into the “Rinse Aid” section of the dishwasher. Vinegar will get rid of any powder residue and result in sparkling, spot-free dishes!

Rejoice in how easy that was!

Psst… some extra tips

Scrape all food off dishes before putting into dishwasher. That gunk should not be going down the drain or through the pipes.

Adjust the recipe if you have hard water. Try increasing the amount of citric acid in the recipe, until you see a positive change!

Citric acid and washing soda can clump if kept in a humid or moist location (ex. under the sink). To combat this, fill a small muslin bag with rice and put inside the containers. You can always put the clumps inside a food processor or jab at them with a fork and break them up again. Store your ingredients in a cool, dry location. I keep mine in an airtight sealed glass jars and they do not clump.

Happy Dishwashing 🙂

Have you made your own dishwashing detergent? How do you keep your dishes sparkling clean?