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Thrifty Thinking
It’s DIY FRI. , where every week I try to post something you can do yourself rather than buy, which is a money saver, and can be VERY REWARDING. Some of these posts are crafts, sewing projects, homemade cleaners, homemade health aids, tutorials, and the like.
What I love about the on-line blog community is that we get to share ideas and learn from each other. I am always on the lookout to improve what I am doing in the home to be more effective, efficient, and energy-saving. How do you like my “e”lliteration alliteration?
Have you found the perfect dishwasher detergent? I would definitely have times when my old commercial liquid dishwasher detergent didn’t take care of everything, but it mostly worked well. In efforts to become more green and economical, I have been using my three different homemade dishwasher detergent recipes for the last eight months. I comfortably settled on using the # 3 liquid dishwasher detergent, with comparable results to my old commercial dishwasher detergent. The one thing, that didn’t really bother me because I would just shake it up, was that the liquid clumped a bit. I thought by shaking up the detergent, it would be good enough.
Well, I got a comment on my post for Three Different Homemade Dishwasher Detergent Recipes, Powder and Liquid that was intriguing, from a reader, Jessica, that I had to check out. She pointed out on the Bronner website appeared this article, A Word of Caution About Vinegar and Castile Soap. The article talks about how vinegar and castile soap don’t work together because castile soap is a base, and vinegar is an acid. It won’t hurt anyone to put them together, chemically speaking, but they don’t work together to clean well. Go here to read more about it. They do work well, one after the other though. So for those of you who use vinegar as a rinse aid, it should be no problem as long as they don’t mix together.
All that to say, now I have been experimenting and reduced my Homemade Liquid Dishwasher Detergent to this recipe below. I took out the vinegar and the Lemishine, since they counteract the effects of the liquid castile soap, reducing the homemade liquid dishwasher detergent to three easy ingredients, liquid castile soap, water and essential oil. I have been so please with the results. My dishes, especially my glasses, are nicer, cleaner, and clearer than before.
So here is my more effective liquid dishwasher detergent recipe for you.
Ingredients
- 2 cups vegetable-based castile soap (I got mine at Trader Joe's)
- ½ cup water
- 3 drops essential oil of your choice (I used Tea Tree Oil from Trader Joe's)
- Vinegar
Instructions
- Mix the first three ingredients in the bottle and shake well.
- Shake each time before using.
- Use 2 tablespoons per load.
- Put vinegar in the rinse aid compartment.
- Run the dishwasher as you normally would.
The Verdict: If you find this recipe isn’t working well for you, increase the amount of detergent you use by a tablespoon. I can’t tell you how pleased I am with the results of this recipe. I am one who doesn’t rinse my dishes before loading them in the dishwasher, but I do hand wash my bigger dishes over the dirty ones to remove some of the oils and food.
Do you need a powder detergent recipe? Here are two powder recipes to consider…
Have you made your own…
We would love to hear from you! Feel free to comment. Get free e-mail updates by subscribing here. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. “Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful” (1 Corinthians 4:2 ESV). Thanks for visiting!
Sonja
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Have you read the labels on Dr Bronner Soap? I read the baby mild one and put it back on the shelf… never to buy.
Miss Rankin, Can you be more specific about Bronner label? I have not checked label yet, as I was going to the store to make recipes using this product. Thanks for your attentiveness at point of purchase.
I will be writing a big comment about this, but I am putting thought into it, so it will take a while.
I’ll take it, Sonja.
In short, Dr. Bronner’s philosophy is antithetical to Christianity. It is inclusive where Christ is exclusive. We admire his penchant for love but he is tolerant where we would not be. He was willing to abandon his family for sake of world peace…not something we’d encourage. He believed the world is a spaceship and we need to save it. Again, not all stuff we’d affirm.
I realize this can get dicey for some, but I don’t have to advocate all of his philosophies to use his fantastic products. There is a chance that my purchasing a Dr. Bronner product is casting a vote for a manufacturer who espouses some things I’m not excited about, but then that’s the case in just about every circle of life (My coffee? Uber-liberal Starbucks. My pants? A sweatshop in Indonesia. My shaving cream? Tested on animals. AAH! Will it ever end?!?!?).
Don’t use Dr. Bronner’s products if it violates your conscience; to be so would be sin. But personally I’m more interested in learning – and teaching others – how to refute those philosophies head on, in more direct ways than refusing to buy their products.
I hope that helps.
P. S. For what it’s worth, Sonja is working on developing her own liquid castile soap recipe – which she’ll post here – so you can make your own at home rather than buying Dr. Bronner’s.
P.P. S. You can read more here if you’d like: http://drbronner.com/dr_bronners_philosophy.php
I have been wanting to try something different for my dishwasher. I use natural cleaning everything else – pretty much vinegar and baking soda and I make my own laundry soap and other cleaning products – but haven’t found something that would seemingly work for dishwashers.
As far as the controversy of Dr. Bronners, I feel similar to Jonathan, there are so many companies that don’t support my very specific views on anything, but unless I am able to do everything myself from scratch (highly unlikely), I am going to have to make some compromises.
Thanks, Heather. It totally works for dishwashers. I can’t say I understand how (it’s Sonja’s deal).
And on the compromise comment, I don’t even see it like that as much as battles in the war. Sometimes we make sacrifices (in the context of a battle) for sake of the bigger picture (in the context of a war). We may buy organic produce from a pagan farmer, which is as morally irresponsible as buying a Dr. Bronner product, but am I supposed to feel better about it if I don’t know what his views are? (That’s not what you’re saying; you’re just being practical.)
Anyway, I don’t want to highjack this post. The detergent is awesome and it works well! The scent is pungent and clean-smelling.
Thanks again for the comment!
Hi, I’m Anne from Life on the Funny Farm (http://annesfunnyfarm.blogspot.com), and I’m visiting from the barn hop.
This looks very simple (and thrifty!), I will have have to give it a try. Thanks for sharing!
Anyway, it’s nice to “meet” you! Hope you can pop by my blog sometime to say hi…
I can only find castille soap in a bar. If I melt it in some water, do you think this would still work? Any ideas how much water to melt it in?
Hi Angie, I am currently working on a liquid castile homemade. I bought three different brands of bars. No success yet, because the soap solidifies. So I will try a bigger water ratio to soap tomorrow. Also, I have a feeling that castile bars made from coconut oil will be less successful because it solidifies at room temperature.
Thanks this was my question too. I use the bar soap to make my own laundry soap. Do you have a dish liquid recipe you like?! I have had terrible luck making this. I have bought the citric acid to make the powdered version for the dishwasher but have not been brave enough to try it yet.
Hi Kelly, I have not made liquid dish soap yet. It’s on my task list when I need it next.
I really like that this is frugal and natural! Thanks!
I had made the dishwasher detergent recipe that you mentioned that mixed the Castile soap and vinegar but I also read that they were cancelling each other out. So what I have been doing lately is just to have vinegar in the rinse agent spot (as you suggested too) and then to make it very simply in one of my detergent spots I put a squirt of Dr. Bronner’s Peppermint Soap (I love how that smell then goes throughout the kitchen!) and in the other I put a Tablespoon of baking soda. It is quite easy and I have found it to work pretty good.
Interesting about the baking soda. Thanks for the heads up and for visiting, Abbi!
Hi Sonya
Do you know if this dishwasher liquid is safe for use on utensils, etc, used for kombucha and kefir? I’m desperate to come up with something that allows me to put them in the dishwasher and know that regular dishwashing liquid slowly kills the SCOBY and grains when they come into contact with the cleaned utensils and jars, etc.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that you know the answer! Thanks
Oops, I meant regular dishwasher liquid – sorry!
Hi Diana, I wish I knew better about the SCOBY and grains, but I can’t say that I do. I do know that castile soap is vegetable based, usually made of olive oil, but other oils like coconut oil are frequently used in castile soaps. So if the vegetable oils are an issue, than this won’t work for you. I am sorry. I hope this helps. Thanks for visiting!
Hi Jonathan, thanks for your reply
If I find out it’s okay to use I’ll try and remember to come back and repost so that others know.
Thanks!
Visiting from the Barn Hop. I have got to try this! I’ve made some powders before and haven’t been happy with the results. Thanks for sharing!
Great idea! I wish I had a dishwasher.
I hope you will share this with Natural Living Monday!
http://mexicanwildflower.blogspot.mx/2012/10/natural-living-monday-7.html
There is another Castile soap sold by Dr. Woods. I get it from vitacost. I haven’t seen anything questionable on it. Hope that helps:)
Thanks for the heads up, Amy!!
Am I the only one who had issues with this recipe? I made it exactly as directed and my dishwasher was pouring suds out all over the kitchen?!?! Does anyone know why this would happen???
Hi Becky, I am so sorry to hear this! Nothing like this has happened to me or anyone I know. No other person has told me this. How much soap do you put in the dishwasher each time? Have you tried to reduce the amount of the soap you use? Maybe just try a teaspoon of soap if you haven’t done so already.
I used 2T as it says above. I have only used the soap once but was planning to use only 1T next time to see what happens. We do have a very old dishwasher so I suppose that may be a factor. Thanks for your reply!
I would try just a teaspoon. The Castile soap goes a long way. Thanks for the update!
Thanks for posting this recipe ! We have been trying lots of different recipes and havent found anything we are really excited about. I just started the dishwasher and will update with results soon! We have been making our own liquid castille soap
. Sonja, the reason that your process for making liquid soap from bar soap is not working is because sodium hydroxide is used for making bar soap and potassium hydroxide is used for making liquid soap. I hope that helps you and saves you time from trying to figure it out. Let me know if you have any other questions. Thanks again for the post !
Thank you, Nichole for the heads up about why the liquid castile soap isn’t ideal when made from the bar!! I will post that later. I would love to know how it works for you!!
Is the essential oil necessary for the recipe or can I skip that?
Hi Laura! Yes, you can use the recipe without the essential oil. I have done it before.
I omitted the essential oil because I didn’t have any on hand but followed the other instructions including vinegar as a rinse aid. I had a film on all of my plastic items (everything else was sparkly clean) Would the oil have prevented the film or is that sure to another cause? I do have hard well water.
Hi Farrah, I don’t think the essential oil would be a major contributor to getting the film off. The essential oil gives a nice scent and has antimicrobial properties. You can try it if you get some.
Also, you could try increasing the amount of dishwasher soap you use to 2 1/2 or 3 T. I would do it incrementally.
The temperature of your water also affects how well your dishwasher works.
Another thing I have read is that sometimes there is a build up of mineral deposits, especially with hard water, and the build up is hard to get off. You can soak those particular dishes in 100% vinegar for 30 minutes, and then wipe down http://www.ehow.com/how_7687575_white-residue-off-dishes.html.
I hope something in here helps! Thanks for visiting!
I am passionate about homemade everything from cosmetics to cleaners to homegrown food and making things ourselves. I say all this because I have tried just about EVERY homemade dishwasher soap from liquid to powder types. NOTHING works as well as commercial for me. Plastics have always gotten a film on them and my husband has to use Tupperware everyday for work and my daughter uses bottles. I had to get a scrub brush and SCRUB off the film because it would get so caked on. I am not saying this to discourage you because I would love to find an alternative to commercial. But mainly wanted to share that I have not found a single recipe that does not leave a film on plastics.
Hi Kate, Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Unfortunately not everything will work for everyone. There are so many variables, condition of dishwasher, hardness of water, etc….Thank you for visiting!
This has worked great on my dishes except that some of them end up with little white specks on the outside of them. Has this happened to anyone else? Any ideas for getting rid of that? I might try less soap next time. Thanks!
Hi everybody! Thanks for posting this because I love making my own soaps– because it is cheaper and I find they work better. I got peppermint scented castille soap- it doesnt fill the whole kitchen!! The vinegar isn’t rinsing well at all for me so I am going to try lemi-shine for hard water and hope i get a good result.
No the smell DOES fill the kitchen! (Thank you phone spell check)
tried updated recipe but still have ugly film on glasses and i am assuming on everything else…tried more vineger in rinse compartment ….still bad film…HELP!!!
Hi Annie, There are so many variables that contribute to how this recipe works, hard water, is your dishwasher actually clean, do your dishes already have some kind of residue or film, etc….This recipe works much better if the mineral deposit build up isn’t present on dishes. To get it off, soak your dishes in 1 part vinegar 1 part water solution. If this doesn’t work, use 100% vinegar. Then use the detergent as normal. Hopefully this helps, and thanks for visiting!
About the vinegar in the rinse aid dispenser: another blogger (sorry, I don’t remember who it was) posted that she used vinegar in her rinse aid dispenser and ended up with requiring repairs. The repairman advised her that vinegar destroys the rubber gaskets/parts in the dispenser.
The solution recommended by the repairman and implemented by this blogger was to put a cup FACING UP in the top rack of the dishwasher and put a little vinegar in it at the beginning of the wash cycle. She was happy with this solution.
I’d rather not need a rinse aid! Baking soda is an excellent remedy for hard water, and it is recommended on the box that a rinse in water with baking soda will prevent spots on handwashed dishes/glassware. Seems to me that this would also be true of the dishwasher, so including baking soda in the formula would be an excellent idea.
Just my thoughts…
Hi D’ann, Thanks so much for sharing! I am interested in the baking soda information, especially. Not sure how to employ the baking soda as a rinse aid in the dishwasher, since vinegar and baking soda don’t like each other too much:). I don’t want to cause a mini explosion, but it’s something to look into. Thanks for visiting!
So, the recipe for making liquid soap is….liquid soap? Really? What’s the point of this “DIY” recipe?
Hi Steve, The point is to have an alternative for commercial products full of toxic chemicals. The more natural the better for us and our world. Thanks for visiting!
Another question do you only use tea tree oil or have you tried other oils too?
I have only used tea tree oil because my liquid castile soap is peppermint scented. I would love to use lavender, but I haven’t yet. I bet you can use other essential oils.
we also had the problem with suds overflowing the diswasher. We have a water softener, and i syspect that has something to do with it. We are working with reducing the amount, but haven’t found the right amount yet.
Hi Tom, I bet you are right about the water softener. Thank you for sharing and for visiting!
I’m having a problem with film on my clear plastics – measuring cups, Copco cups. Oddly enough, just on the outside. I’m still using Jet-Dry in my rinse cycle – because my dispenser hasn’t emptied yet.
Anyone else having this issue?
Hi Deah, Plastics can be tricky to clean, and there are many variables to what will work with your dishes including the type of water you have, how clean your actual dishwasher is, and how well your dishwasher works. I did read that sometimes mineral deposits build up(especially with hard water). You can try soaking those plastics in 100% vinegar for 30 minutes. This link may help. http://www.ehow.com/how_7687575_white-residue-off-dishes.html. Thanks for visiting!