Homemade Dishwasher and Laundry Detergent

I have been wanting to try my hand at homemade dishwasher detergent and also laundry soap for awhile now. I finally got the chance to whip up a batch of each this weekend. Since I've not done this before, I didn't want to make a huge amount of either just in case the particular recipe didn't work for us. My plan is to try these recipes out first, and then if we like them to buy the ingredients in bulk and make a large amount to have on hand.

A few months ago, I did attempt a liquid dishwasher soap recipe that was just okay. We recently moved and I'm not in love with our new dishwasher even when we use commercial detergents like Cascade, so there is probably nothing wrong with the recipe at all, it just doesn't always work that great for us, especially if there is food dried on the dishes. Regardless, I wanted to try a powdered recipe this time.

Thanks to a post on Diaperswappers, here's the recipe I made.

Homemade Dishwasher Soap (powder)
*1/2 cup Borax
*1/2 cup Washing Soda
*1/4 cup coarse salt
*1/4 cup food grade citric acid

Use 1 tablespoon per load. Use white vinegar as the rinse aid.

A few notes:
*I found Borax and Washing Soda at Ace hardware. They come in a box about the size and shape of a cereal box. They were with the laundry products. If this recipe works, I will attempt to find where I can buy these in bulk to save even more money.

*My food grade citric acid came from a wholesale Frontier coop order. I've also read you can find it at Whole Foods, beer brewing shops, and other speciality food shops. I've also read you can use packages of lemon Kool-Aid as a substitute if you can't find citric acid.

*I add the white vinegar in the dispenser where I would normally put the Jet Dry.

*If you use 1 tablespoon per load, this amount will wash 24 loads of dishes.

We've only tried it once or twice and so far so good, but I'll definitely post later when I have a better grasp of how it's working for us. I'll also work on figuring out how much this cost but it is definitely really cheap! I'm crossing my fingers that this works!

Now, on to the laundry soap. I have to admit I am a die-hard Tide user. I love the way it works and I love the way it smells, so switching to homemade is going to be difficult to do. The reasons I want to switch though are to save money, cut down on chemicals in my home, and do what's best for the environment.

Here is the recipe for the laundry soap that I tried for my front loader:

Homemade Laundry Soap (powder)
*1 cup grated soap
*1 cup borax
*1 cup washing soda

Use 1/2 to 1 tablespoon per load for a front-loading washing machine.

A few notes:
*For bar soap, I read you could use fels naptha, Kirk's castile, or really just about anything. I used a Dr. Bronner's Peppermint Castile bar because that's what I had on hand (purchased from Trader Joe's).

*I found the Borax and Washing Soda at Ace Hardware. They come in boxes similar in size to cereal boxes and I found them in the laundry/households section.

*I grated the soap by slicing it into strips with a knife and then putting it into my Blendtec blender. I read that it wasn't recommended to do in a blender, but it worked fine for me. I ran it through one cycle of "grind grains." Just beware it doesn't get too hot if you do try a blender because the heat will melt the soap and make it clump together again, thus defeating the purpose! You can also hand-grate the soap or use a food processor.

*This is a powder recipe. I also read about how you could make a liquid version using these same ingredients but adding water and melting the soap. From what I read, the liquid version was actually recommended for front loaders and the powdered for top loaders, but I'm giving the powdered a try first because it will take up so much less space and be less work to make (and I'm all about LESS work!). From what I've read, some people say you have to dissolve the powder recipe in hot water before adding it to your wash if you're not washing with hot water, but since I've only used it once or twice, I really can't comment on that just yet.

*For a fabric softener, I've been using white vinegar in the pull-out dispenser just like I would commercial fabric softener.

*You can read more about homemade laundry soap at the Duggars site: Favorite Family Recipes. Since they wash clothes for like 20 people, I'm sure they know what they're talking about!!!

I've used the laundry soap along with the white vinegar 3-4 times so far. No issues noted yet, but I'm sure it will take a few weeks/months before I can make a good call on how the recipe is performing over time.

If this one doesn't work out, I'll definitely check out this TipNut site for another recipe to try!

So, that's that for now. If these work out, I will definitely be back to post photos, tips/tricks, a cost breakdown, where to buy the ingredients (in bulk), how best to store, and more! In the meantime, I've found a laundry recipe that is supposed to work for cloth diapers, so I am going to whip that up and see how that goes!

Have you tried any homemade cleaners? Feel free to share your recipes! I'm always looking for something new to try! :)