I’ve been slowly replacing my store-bought cleaners with homemade ones.  I like the idea of knowing what is really in the products that I use, and organic products can get pretty pricey, so I love the savings I get from making them myself.  I’ve been using this dishwasher detergent for about 2 months now.  I’ll be honest, it’s not quite as awesome as the jet packs I was buying before, but it definitely does the job.

I found the glass container at Goodwill for $1, and it’s PERFECT because it has that little handle where I’ve put the measuring spoon, so it’s easy to scoop out exactly what I need.  Here’s the recipe for the detergent:

Mix together the following ingredients:

1 cup of borax

1 cup of washing soda

1/2 cup of citric acid (if you can’t find it, you can use lemon kool-aid)

1/2 cup of kosher salt

Fill the rinse compartment with white vinegar.

There is still an unknown factor here, because, to be honest, I really don’t know what’s in borax or washing soda.  And, I don’t know if they are really healthy or not.  But, I’ve decided that at least it’s a step in the right direction.  If anyone has another recipe that you love, or that you think is safer, please pass it on!

This time around, I didn’t make the effort to locate citric acid, so I substituted lemon kool-aid. Next time, I’d really like to use the citric acid and see if it performs better.  I’ll let ya know!