Homemade Cleaning Supplies

One of the ways I try to save money on a regular basis is by making my own cleaning solutions. My grandmother used a lot of white vinegar and baking soda around her house, and those two things are in heavy rotation at my house too, but one of my favorite things to make is detergent for the dishwasher.

I admit that I love my dishwasher. I was fortunate to grow up with an automatic dishwasher, and I actually had never washed dishes by hand until I got married and we moved to a small house in Maine. I remember looking around the tiny kitchen, turning to my husband, and asking "But, where is the dishwasher? How will we wash dishes and things without one?" Ha. I was young (20) and naive, and about to find out just "how" to wash dishes without a dishwasher. I was so grossed out at the thought of putting my hands in that dirty dishwater after the first few dishes had been cleaned. I used to drain and refill the sink multiple times so that I didn't have to touch that yucky water. I laugh at myself now, after 16 years of cleaning up after sick children and pets and rinsing and washing cloth diapers, a little dirty dishwater seems like nothing.

But I still love my dishwasher and use it daily. Here's the recipe I use:

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Automatic Dishwashing Detergent

1 cup washing soda (crystals)
1 cup borax
2-3 drops essential oil

Place all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor. Process until washing soda crystals are reduced to powder. Store in airtight container. Use 1- 2 tablespoons per load in your dishwasher. To save even more money, substitute Rinse Aid with white vinegar.

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Processing this in the food processor grinds the powders finer and helps to distribute the oil throughout the detergent. I've been without a food processor for almost a year, so lately I haven't been able to do more than just stir the three ingredients together and it still works just fine, but I think it does dissolve better when it is processed beforehand.

You can use any essential oil you like. I normally add either lavender (my favorite) or lemon oil (smells more like commercial dish detergents).