Dishwasher Detergent

1  cup borax

3/4 cup baking soda

2 1/2 tablespoons of ground castile bar soap

citric acid

Pour borax, baking soda, and soap into a glass jar. Shake to mix. For each load, add 2 TB of mix plus 2 teaspoons of citric acid.

Notes:

If you add the citric acid into the mix, it gets clumpy, especially in humid weather. I found adding the citric acid separately to each load words best.

To make soap powder, I put Dr. Bronner’s Organic Pure-Castile Soap bar soap in my food processor. I shred the soap with the grater/shredder attachment. Then I put in the regular food processor blade and run it for a while. It turns to a coarse powder. I usually food process at least 3 bars of soap in one session so that I have plenty of soap powder. I also grind up left over slivers of bar soap from our shower.

This recipe for homemade vegan dishwasher detergent works great at my house. I have soft water. I have read other recipes that call for about 1/4 cup salt, which may help for hard water areas.

Borax and Washing Soda should be available in the laundry section of your local grocery store.

See my blog entry, The Best Homemade Dishwasher Detergent, for more information.